By Matt Villano, on July 16, 2015

San Francisco by Segway

Look! There near the trees! It’s a bird! It’s a plane! No! It’s an Expedia Viewfinder blogger! Making emu noises! On a Segway!

On a recent visit to San Francisco, as I zipped around Golden Gate Park on a Segway earlier this summer, this was the omniscient third-party voice I heard in my head.

Sure, I was on a tour; part of a larger group. Yes, the Segway didn’t actually go faster than 12 mph. But I felt cool—a lot cooler than I thought I’d feel—and it sure as hell felt like I was going fast.

I did the tour as part of an epic two-city road trip I took with my family in June. While my wife and kids were back at the hotel (the kids aren’t big enough to ride Segways, and somebody had to watch them), I was tooling around the park and making emu noises as I went.

The tour started with a practice session and a safety demonstration.

 

Then, we were off. All told, we covered about eight miles along the east side of the park. Our escapade lasted about 2.5 hours. Along the way, we learned a TON of fascinating (and valuable) information about the park, San Francisco history, and more.

Perhaps the best part of this experience was the ease with which I booked—because Expedia now enables customers to book activities alongside flights, hotels, and rental cars, I was able to buy a spot on my Segway tour right from Expedia.com, and pay less because I bundled it with other travel.

Considering my wife and I are constantly traveling with our two little ones, this benefit saved us both money and time. Who doesn’t need more of those?

What are some of the best tours you’ve taken and why?