Small-Group Yosemite Day Tour from San Francisco

We got COVID on Saturday. Tested positive at noon on Sunday. Called Viator immediately. They told me that because it was less than 24 hours (it was 20 hours and on a Sunday when there was no one in the office) and we lost $1200 because of the unkindness of your company. We offered to show proof of positive test and they said they didn’t care. I travel a lot and have a large network of friends and family who value my travel opinion. I will be sure to tell EVERYONE about the terrible treatment we received. I’m sick with COVID and have to keep calling just to be told you wouldn’t help us at all.

Our tour guide, Parker, did a great job! Very organized, informative, and had just the right amount of narrative. The pickup and drop off were great! A relaxing, fun and great way to see Yosemite.

The tour operator cancelled our tour the night before it was supposed to occur. Luckily we had another free day and were able to reschedule to next day. The driver and tour guide was excellent. I felt sorry for her. She drove about 12 hours that day. The tour is 15 hours (12 hours of driving and 3 hours in the park). We were exhausted by the time we go there and just barely got to see he water fall. We did not see anything else. The van was old and needed repair. It had no shock mounts left. We felt every bump in the road and the van was jumping up and down at every minor bump. I recommend you take a tour that stays overnight at Yosemite.

Omg it was the best experience!!!!!! The scenery was everything and I love nature. Parker was our tour guide and he was absolutely amazing, very informative and funny. I’d definitely do this agin

The trip and our tour guide, Randall were awesome. The bus was terrible. First off, the bathroom on board hadn’t been pumped, so it was “emergency use only”. Then, on the way back from the park, the a/c died and it was stifling on board the bus. The only saving grace was that it got cooler outside as we approached San Francisco and the outside air being blown in was cooler. This is an ALL DAY trip. We were told to meet the bus at 6:30am. The bus actually arrived at 7am and we were NOT the 1st stop for pick-up. We were originally booked for a small group trip to Yosemite, but there was some sort of issue with the transportation, so we were called the day before and told we’d been upgraded to Yosemite and the Sequoia Trees trip. We picked up 2 more sets of people along the way, then stopped in Oakdale for snacks & bathroom stop (bus had to re-fuel). We arrived at the park around 11:30 am. We drove around the park a bit and stopped for pictures that included El Capitan, Bridal Veil Falls and Half Dome in the distance. We were dropped off at the Yosemite Lodge to explore on our own for 3 hours. This gave us time to eat, use the rest rooms, visit the gift shop, visit Yosemite Falls, put our feet in Mercer River and walk to Coombs Meadow. We took TONS of photos, because there were beautiful sights everywhere! When we got back to the bus, we drove a little closer to El Capitan to see if we could spot climbers and to take more pictures. Next we drove to the a Toumey Grove where there were a handful of old growth Sequoia trees. It’s a 20-30 min walk down a fairly steep grade to the trees. To the right there is a loop to see a “tunnel” cut through the base of a giant Sequoia. The top of the tree had burned recently. There were several burnt trees or downed trees in the area (assume they were from forest fires and disease). Next, there is that same 20-30 minute climb back UP the steep grade you came down. There is no water there and the toilets are primitive (think outhouse). The elevation is around 7,000 ft, so hydrate and take it easy if you’re susceptible to elevation sickness. We were running late getting back to San Francisco. Originally we were set to arrive back at the pick up point at 9pm, but because of the air conditioning issue and the driver stopping to buy a couple cases of bottled water for us (I, personally, drank all 3 500 ml bottles I brought and 1 I bought at the snack stop, then 2.5 more before making it back to San Fran & our hotel). We walked over 6 miles on this trip. If it hadn’t been for the larger group (29 people) and the bus being less than awesome, it would have been a 5 star trip. We booked through Viator and I felt like they kept us informed and the tour company was a good one. Our tour director didn’t talk our ears off and answered questions and gave us suggestions for our free time.

This is a great full day trip to Yosemite. Our tour guide James was very knowledgeable and kept us informed on all that we would do and see. We had built in stops for snacks and bathrooms. This is a must do if visiting San Francisco for the first time.

Mitch was a great and obliging host. He shared fun and interesting knowledge about all the main features of our trip, from agricultural to geographical to historical! He also figured out a mutually helpful dropoff point for us, since we're staying in the East Bay area, which saved us maybe half an hour or more on what was already a very long day (p.s. if staying in East Bay, send a message in advance to the tour organisers to figure out a better pickup point en route). The sites themselves were just stunning - some of the most inspiring scenery I've seen anywhere in the world. Trip was comfortable enough on the minibus, with a few well-timed convenience stops on the way, though I'd have preferred shorter breaks and more nature! Not many people wearing masks despite nominal encouragement.

I had an incredible experience and the guide gave us all information about the place and attention. She all the time was very helpful

The experience was amazing. Chadwick was the guide and he was really knowledgeable and nice. I wish we would have more time to hike more but the rest was fantastic!

Well, I am more an individual hiker and knew before this is going to be very touristy. But I wanted to have a look at the Yosemite and took it as a compromise. Our guide/ driver Brian was very sweet and caring ( I felt very sorry for him seeing that several people went out without giving the tip). To see the legend El Capitano was nice for sure but for me personally it was way to crowdy. It was still nice to do that trip. Thanks to Brian and the company. 🧡