THE DURSO DIFFERENCE
WE PROVIDE YOU WITH ENRICHING EXPERIENCES WHILE OFFERING AN OPPORTUNITY TO CONNECT WITH FELLOW TRAVELERS
Meet your trip planner!
Our founder, Julie Durso, has worked her whole career in the travel industry as an adventure travel guide and trip planner. She spends all her spare time traveling the world, both solo and in groups. She has lived in Italy off and on for the last 10 years and is fluent in Italian! Through all of these experiences, she learned what it takes to create incredible trips for individuals, couples, families, and groups!
TRIP DESIGN
We pride ourselves on creating fabulous trips that are curated for young professionals. We include a healthy mix of scheduled activities along with some much-needed down time where you can choose to relax and read a book or wander the streets of the local town. We are experts in travel and you can rest assured that our team has not only researched the best spots, but they have also visited the trip locations prior to the trip. We have a wealth of resources at our disposal to create authentic trips that hit the highlights of the location in addition to offering unique off-the-beaten-path experiences.
LIKE-MINDED TRAVELERS
Have you always wanted to travel and see the world, but don’t want to travel solo and don’t have a crew to travel with? If you answered yes, then we’re the crew for you! We offer amazing itineraries and create the perfect travel crew for you!
We vet every traveler to be sure they have the same values as our travelers and are within our target age ranges. Why do we restrict travel to certain age groups? We want to honor the fact that people of the same age group tend to share values and enjoy one another's company and want to travel with like-minded and similarly aged travelers.
INCLUSIONS
Yes, that’s included! Vacation should be a time to destress, not worry about the details. That’s why we build in the cost of the unique and fun experiences into our carefully designed trips. You never have to worry about paying extra for the best activities during the trip.
This also means that all the gratuities for meals and local guides are included! We don’t want you worrying about carrying small change around and having to consider how much you should or should not be tipping the local guides. We know how important it is to take care of our suppliers, so we handle the tipping. With that being said, gratuity for your trip leader is not included, and you can choose to tip your trip leader at the end of your trip based on your experience on the trip!
GIVING BACK
After years of traveling the world, our founder, Julie Durso, has come to recognize the importance of giving back to the places we travel. Not only do we want to travel sustainably by encouraging reusable water bottles for every traveler, but we also want to have a positive impact on the places that we’re traveling! While many companies offer opportunities to visit local charities, it can often feel forced and uncomfortable when it comes to offering donations. We have come up with the solution of donating a portion of the profits from every trip, so there is no awkward moment of asking for donations. If you feel so inclined, you’re always welcome to give more to our partners, but we feel so strongly about giving back that we will donate on your behalf.
Each of our itineraries has a partner non-profit, charity, or NGO with whom we have a personal relationship. A portion of every trip sold will go to the charity specific to that itinerary. We want to create a lasting impact so we will only work with one charity for each itinerary so that we are sure they feel the real impact that we are making. When possible, interactive activities will be included in the itinerary for our guests to get to know and to learn more about the charity their money is going to.
Testimonials for your guide!
"Above and beyond! Wise beyond her years. Cool, calm, collected, confident and a pleasure to be around.”
— Adam B.
"Julie planned an amazing trip for my family to the Eastern coast of Sicily. Her tremendous knowledge and attention to detail made for a perfect trip. Julie was available for us 24 hours a day. You will thoroughly enjoy any trip Julie plans for you!"
— Sue M.
"It seemed as though Julie could answer any question posed to her, was willing and able to handle any situation, and genuinely wanted everybody to have a great experience.”
— Will M.
"Julie is perfect in every way! She is so warm and personable and is so genuine. She was incredibly upbeat and helpful every minute of our journey. She's extremely knowledgable and organized and communicated with our group very well. Julie is a very beautiful person, on the inside and out. She really does go above and beyond. And her picnic lunch was AMAZING! With Julie leading the way, our trip was greater than great.....a trip of a lifetime with the most wonderful memories.”
— Shelley L.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Why are the trips organized by age?
Our date-specific trips are designated for different age groups. After 10 years of guiding and planning trips, our founder, Julie, discovered that the groups that create the best group dynamics are the ones where travelers are of similar ages! While the itineraries will have the same flow and locations, the trips will be tailored to the specific age ranges. For example, there will be more extreme/active activities for young professionals and the hotels may not be quite as luxurious in order to keep costs down for younger travelers.
Our age ranges are:
30-45 years old
40-55 years old
50 and up
Our open-ended private and custom trips are open to everyone! See more below!
All you have to do is to get yourself to our destinations and the rest is taken care of by our Detours team!
What if my group has people in multiple age ranges?
No problem! Check out our Private and Custom Trip Page to setup a trip for you and your friends or loved ones. Pick a date for one of our custom curated itineraries or create one just for you and your group!
This works great for a multi-generational family or a collection of several families all wanting to travel together!
How will trips look during the time of Covid?
We will include the following requirements:
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Both travelers and trip leaders will be required to have their temperature taken on arrival to the trip.
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Required mask use on all trips
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Increased sanitation standards for partner hotels and suppliers
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Protocol and training for trip leaders specific to COVID-19
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We will include as many outdoor activities as possible that encourage social distancing practices.
** Failure to comply will lead to travelers not being welcome on the trip.
Why Detours with Durso?
Detours with Durso was founded by Julie Durso, who has worked in the travel industry for 8 years with 6 as a guide! She lived in Italy for 3 of those and is fluent in Italian. She knows what it takes to make a great group trip and wants to provide amazing experiences to young professionals. The market has been largely ignored for many years and Detours is offering experiences tailored to this market!
How big are groups?
Groups are typically between 5 and 15 people with an average group size of 10. We want to keep our groups manageable so that we can create that familial feeling while traveling. We want you to bond and create lasting relationships with your fellow travelers!
How does payment work?
You are required to pay a non-refundable deposit while Detours with Durso reviews and accepts your booking request. The deposit amount is specific to each trip and is provided when you inquire about your booking page (generally 20% of the trip cost or $500). If, for whatever reason, Detours with Durso in its discretion decides not to approve your booking, your deposit will be refunded in full. Regardless of the deposit amount, you will be required to adhere to the following payment schedule when booking trips within 60 days of a trip start date:
45 Days Prior to Trip ……….. 100% of Trip Cost Due