Intrepid Urban Adventures

Intrepid's day tours, run by local guides

Intrepid Urban Adventures runs day tours in cities around the world, led by local guides: food walks, cooking classes, city sightseeing and what it calls "Uncommon" day trips. The site sorts destinations into Africa, Asia, Central America and the Caribbean, Europe, North America, Oceania and South America, and its homepage title promises "150+ Tours Worldwide." The popular destinations it lists are Boston, Kangaroo Island, Kyoto, Marrakech, Melbourne, New York, Osaka, Paris, San Jose, Vienna and Washington, D.C., and the featured tours add Bangkok, New Orleans, Venice, Istanbul and Hanoi. The contact page says the company is based at the Intrepid Group Head Office, 7/567 Collins St, Melbourne, Victoria, 3000, Australia. Prices on the site are shown in dollars.

The about page describes the idea as "a network of local friends all around the world, people you can call on in any city to show you the secrets of their hometown," and the company as a global community of foodies, history buffs, street art fans and beer and wine lovers who lead day tours about those passions. The homepage sums up the format as "day tours with a difference," built to show a city "in just one day with a local guide by their side."

Food tours, cooking classes and city days

The homepage's most popular products give a fair picture of the range, each with a duration and a price for adults (12 and over) and children:

• New Orleans French Quarter Food Experience, 2.5 hours, a guided walk through the French Quarter and the French Market, which the page calls "America's oldest public market," with "4 food stops and 5 food samples" such as a beignet, a po'boy or muffuletta and a cup of gumbo, plus a hot sauce tasting. The page says the food adds up to a full meal. It lists $112 per adult and $67 for children aged 4 to 11.
• Vienna Food, Coffee and Market Tour, 5.5 hours, from the city center to local districts, with coffee and pastry, a market Jause with mulled wine, an ice cream tasting, bakery pastries, a traditional Austrian lunch with dessert and a drink, street food, and metro tickets. It lists $208 per adult.
• Marrakech Tour: Tajine Cookery Class Experience, 4 hours, with a cooking class, a lunch of tajine and Moroccan salad, Moroccan tea, a recipe sheet and hotel pick-up and drop-off, at $79 per adult and $57 per child aged 6 to 11.
• Paris Hidden Montmartre Tour, 2 hours with a croissant, at $63 for adults and children alike.
• Washington Mall & Monuments by Electric Car Tour, 2 hours in an all-electric 7-passenger vehicle, at $79.
• Experience Bangkok's Temples & River of Kings, 5 hours, with a longtail boat ride and entrance fees to the Grand Palace, Wat Pho and Wat Phra Kaew, at $89.

The featured list also includes an Osaka Retro Streets & Local Eats Adventure and a Private Hanoi After Dark Mixology Experience, and the categories menu has a Private Tours section.

How a tour runs

The FAQ says tours have a maximum group size of 12 people, adding that "On rare occasions there may be slightly more travellers for our most popular tours." Tours are guaranteed to depart even with one passenger, and a solo booker who would rather join others can ask to move to another day. The meeting point is on the voucher and the tour page; only selected tours include a hotel pick-up, and otherwise travelers make their own way there. Tours start on time, and the FAQ says a traveler who is late without warning loses the tour and the refund.

Each tour carries a physical rating from "an easy low to an active high." On accessibility, the FAQ says the company tries to make tours accessible where it can but that some destinations "may be challenging for those with wheelchairs or other assistive devices," and points to the accessibility and physical rating on each tour page. Children are welcome on many tours; the minimum age is in each tour description, the FAQ says children under six typically go free, and parents with a stroller should check that the tour is listed as accessible. On dietary needs, the FAQ says "We can cater for dietary requirements on most tours, provided you advise us in advance," with a note on the booking, but warns that some destinations may have limited or no options. Most tours go ahead in any weather; if one is canceled in extreme conditions, the guide gets in touch to move it.

Booking, changes and cancellations

Booking is online with instant email confirmation and a voucher carrying a 5-digit reference, which is shown to the guide, ideally on a phone. Some age-restricted tours may ask for ID. The FAQ's cancellation rule is clear: a tour can be canceled "up to 48 hours prior to the tour's start time," and later cancellations carry "a 100% cancellation fee." Changes and cancellations go by email to reservations@urbanadventures.com, and for a tour less than 48 hours away the FAQ suggests contacting the local operator named on the voucher.

The company does not build custom itineraries, but existing tours can be booked privately, with requests for a specific time or hotel pick-up handled by email. Gift certificates can be redeemed at checkout. General questions go to info@urbanadventures.com, which the contact page says is answered within 24 hours, and travelers already on the road can call the local office in their city for a last-minute booking. A Safe Space Policy sets out conduct rules, and the company says guides can ask guests who break them to leave without a refund.

What the site leaves open, and who it suits

The FAQ says the physical rating, accessibility and child policy are on each tour page, so the homepage alone does not settle whether a given tour works for a wheelchair or a young child. It does not say which kinds of diet (vegetarian, vegan, allergies) each food tour can handle. The homepage cards mix inclusions and exclusions in one list, so a reader should check the full tour page for what is covered, including tips, which the FAQ calls welcome rather than included.

Intrepid Urban Adventures suits travelers who want a food or city day with a local guide in a group of about a dozen, clear cancellation terms and fixed prices, in a wide spread of cities. Travelers who want a fully custom itinerary will find only private versions of existing tours.