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The best tour operators in the world: 2023 Readers' Choice Awards

By Condé Nast Traveller

It’s been a challenging few years for tour operators but the names below are in it for the long haul (as well as the short and medium), honing itineraries and managing expectations. So who prepared your travel documents this year? Red Savannah and Black Tomato scored highest for first-hand knowledge, and Exodus Adventure Travels and Abercrombie & Kent for on-the-ground support. But when it came to all-round endeavour, Scott Dunn and The Turquoise Holiday Company were leaders of the pack. Both report a surge of interest in Asia, as well as multi-generational travel, solo adventures to Namibia, Bhutan and Mexico, and authentic experiences such as outback stations in Australia and bear lodges in Canada.

These are the best tour operators in the world, according to the 2023 Readers' Choice Awards . The scores below are percentages representing overall average levels of satisfaction.

The best general tour operators in the world 2023

15. Cox & Kings. Score 88.00

14. Hayes & Jarvis. Score 89.44

13. Carrier. Score 90.73

12. Simpson Travel. Score 91.48

11. Kuoni. Score 92.82

10. Mr & Mrs Smith. Score 93.29

9. Kensington Tours. Score 94.14

8. Audley Travel. Score 94.77

7. Original Travel. Score 95.44

6. Cazenove + Loyd. Score 95.92

5. The Ultimate Travel Company. Score 96.75

4. Abercrombie & Kent. Score 97.12

3. Elegant Resorts. Score 97.39

2. Red Savannah. Score 97.96

• The Turquoise Holiday Company. Score 98.42

The best travel specialists in the world 2023

15. Wild Frontiers. Score 94.81

14. Martin Randall Travel. Score 95.17

13. Intrepid Travel. Score 95.40

12. Wilderness. Score 96.54.

11. Inntravel. Score 96.88

10. Oxford Ski Company. Score 97.15

9. Kirker Holidays. Score 97.47

8. andBeyond. Score 97.61

7. Ampersand Travel. Score 97.65.

6. InsideJapan Tours. Score 97.79

5. Steppes Travel. Score 97.88

4. Black Tomato. Score 98.03

3. Exodus Adventure Travels. Score 98.15

2. Healing Holidays. Score 98.35

• Scott Dunn. Score 98.70

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The 10 Best Group Travel Tour Companies for 2024

Caroline Morse Teel

Caroline Morse Teel is the Executive Editor for SmarterTravel Media. Caroline has a passion for adventure travel and has hiked to the top of Mt. Kilimanjaro and the bottom of the Grand Canyon in pursuit of a good story. Follow her around the world on Instagram @TravelWithCaroline .

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For those truly epic, once-in-a-lifetime destinations, you want to leave your itinerary to the experts. Whether your dream is to see the Big Five on an African Safari, trek tall mountains, explore European cities, or something even wilder, a group tour is the easiest way to do it.

However, picking the wrong group tour company is the quickest way to ruin your trip. Make sure you choose a tour company that aligns with your goals and travel styles. Do you want an intimate group tour or do you prefer to make lots of new friends in a big group? Does the price line up with what you like (luxury vs. budget)? Is the itinerary going to all the places you want to see? 

We’ve done the research and found the very best group travel tour companies for 2024 for every type of traveler.

Best Overall Group Travel: Exodus Adventure Travels

With trips on every continent, Exodus Adventure Travels covers anywhere on this planet that you could possibly want to go, from popular destinations like the Amalfi Coast to well off-the-beaten-path adventures like Tajikistan. This award-winning group travel company boasts thousands of repeat customers who sign up for trips year after year (97% of past participants would recommend Exodus Adventure Travels to a friend). 

These small group tours operate with only around 8-16 people and always feature experienced local leaders who can give you a unique insight into your destination. Exodus Adventure Travels caters to any type of travel style, including trips broken down by type of activity (think walking, cycling, multi-adventure, winter, or cultural) as well as type of traveler (family, age group, etc.). There are curated collections (coastal, “away from it all”, European wilderness, and trips of a lifetime) to inspire you, as well as self-guided options for when you want all the benefits of a group tour planner without the actual group. Looking for that special safari? Exodus Aventure Travels just partners with the African Wildlife Foundation to create carefully curated luxury adventures that go above and beyond the standard safari. 

Exodus Adventure Travels tours work for almost any budget, with options that range from affordable to premium. 

Top Trip: Explore under-the-radar Europe by foot on Exodus Adventure Travels’ Lakes & Mountains of Slovenia walking tour .

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Best Adventure Group Travel: World Expeditions

World Expeditions has been taking adventurous travelers to remote locations all over the world ever since its first group trek through Nepal in 1975. Today, World Expeditions offers active itineraries on every continent. Intrepid travelers can opt for trips themed around mountaineering, rafting, cycling, hiking, and more. 

World Expeditions aims to leave communities and places where they operate tours better than they found them. Trips are created using the company’s Thoughtful Travel Charter as a guideline, which emphasizes respect for the environment, sustainability, having a positive impact on local communities, protecting wildlife, and more. 

World Expeditions’ trips are capped at just 16 people to provide a good experience for participants, and there are no single supplements for solo travelers willing to share a room with someone of the same gender. 

Top Trip: Summit Africa’s tallest mountain on a fully-supported trek up Kilimanjaro on World Expeditions’ eight day trip up the beautiful Lemosho Route . 

Best Budget Group Travel: G Adventures 

For travelers on a budget, G Adventures offers cheap group tours that make dream destinations accessible to nearly anyone. (Think: sailing the Galapagos for just $1,014 , criss-crossing India’s Golden Triangle for $799 , or spending 8 days in Bali for less than $749.)

G Adventures is one of the best tour companies for solo travelers as well, as most trips don’t have a single-supplement. You can choose to share a room with another G Adventures solo traveler, or pay extra to have your own space.

G Adventures keeps costs down by opting for cheaper hotels and local meals, and making certain activities optional (for an additional cost). Pick your travel style—options range from “basic” to more luxe tours run in partnership with National Geographic. Family tours, local living tours (featuring homestays), and wellness-focused tours are also available. 

Top Trip: G Adventures’ China Express trip is a great way to see the highlights of China if you’re short on both time and budget. 

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Best Educational Group Tours: EF Go Ahead Tours

When you really want to learn about a destination, consider a group trip with EF Go Ahead Tours . EF is the world’s largest private education company, and the Go Ahead Tours arm capitalizes on the company’s relationships with local educators, historians, and tour guides to create group trips that take you deep into a destination. 

These small group tours generally cap at 38 travelers, and feature unique educational experiences. For a bucket list trip, EF Go Ahead Tour’s special event tours are particularly enticing, as they offer behind-the-scenes access to tough-to-plan trips like Oktoberfest in Munich or Cherry Blossom season in Japan. 

Intimidated by solo travel? EF Go Ahead Tours is a great option for solo travelers, since it offers designated trips for solo travelers , where everyone is traveling alone, making it less intimidating.  

Top Trip: Bring the tastes of Italy home with you on EF Go Ahead Tours’ Food & Wine: Piedmont & Tuscany tour (operated in partnership with America’s Test Kitchen), where you’ll learn how to make local dishes. 

Best Responsible Group Travel: Intrepid Travel

Looking for a responsible group travel operator that focuses on bettering the communities and destinations they visit? Intrepid Travel is the world’s largest travel B Corporation, a certification for companies doing good. 

Intrepid Travel’s tours focus on sustainability, diversity, inclusion, and sustaining communities. The company has its own charity, The Intrepid Foundation , which has donated over 10 million dollars to over 160 community organizations. 

Intrepid Travel’s small group tours attract a wide range of travelers, but they are especially great for younger travelers, as they have a large number of trips designed for people aged 18-35 . (Other trips, including family-focused trips, are geared toward any age.)

Top Trip: Experience foodie trip of a lifetime Intrepid Travel’s South Korea Real Food Adventure , which includes time in three cities and an overnight temple stay.

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Best Private Group Travel: Kensington Tours

Whether your group consists of just two people or involves taking the entire extended family, Kensington Tours will take all the hassle of planning out of the equation. This private group operator creates personalized trips and itineraries tailored to your preferences, while their experts handle all the logistics and bookings. 

Plans are entirely flexible, and can even be changed while on the trip on a whim. Need some inspiration? Browse Kensington Tours’ travel ideas , to get some ideas for your next adventure. 

Top Trip: Sail around the stunning shores of Croatia and the Dalmation Islands on a private luxury catamaran on Kensington Tours’ fully customizable tour . 

Best Polar Group Travel: Chimu Adventures

Whether you’re headed north to the Artic or south to Antarctica, Chimu Adventures has the perfect polar group trip for you. Chimu Adventures has some of the most variety for polar trips, with options to fly, cruise, or a combination of both to get to your destination. For an ultra-unique Antarctica trip, Chimu Adventures offers cruises departing from Australia or New Zealand (most Antarctica trips depart from Argentina).

Chimu Adventures is one of the cheapest group trips to Antarctica, with rates starting under $6,000.

Top Trip: If you’re pressed for time (or simply don’t have the stomach for the Drake Passage), Chimu Adventures’ Antarctica Fly Cruise will get you to the ends of the earth quickly and smoothly.

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Best Group Tours for Solo Travelers: For the Love of Travel

Group tours can be a great way to meet new people, but they can sometimes skew on the older age range. If you’re between 25-39 and a solo traveler looking to meet new people, you’ll love For the Love of Travel . All participants on the trips are between 25-39, and according to the company, 80 percent are solo travelers—so you’ll make friends fast. Hoping to meet someone who will be more than just a friend on your next trip? Trips include a balanced number of “gal and guy spots” to ensure an even balance of genders within groups (and of course, non-binary genders are always welcome). 

For the Love of Travel offers weeklong (or longer) international trips as well as shorter weekender trips to closer destinations like Mexico or Costa Rica—perfect for people without a lot of vacation time.

Top Trip: Sleep in a glass igloo under the Northern Lights, go sledding with huskies, and warm up in traditional saunas on For the Love of Travel’s Lapland tour , already booking dates for 2024.

Best Biking Tours Group Travel: DuVine Cycling

Biking through the rolling hills of Italy or across the mountain roads of Chile sounds like a dream, but the logistics seem daunting (especially if you don’t want to haul all your own stuff from point-to-point). Enter: DuVine Cycling , a luxury small group tour company that specializes in bike trips. 

With trips across Europe, Latin America, Africa, Asia, and the United States, DuVine Cycling is a cyclist’s dream. Choose from all-biking trips or mix things up with a cycle and sail bike tour or a multi-sport adventure —no matter what, everything is included, from luxury boutique accommodations to top-quality name brand bikes. 

Top Trip: DuVine’s Holland Bike Tour promises “tulips, windmills, beer, and cheese”—what more could you need?

Best Luxury Group Travel: Abercrombie & Kent

Abercrombie & Kent has been delighting discerning travelers since 1962. Today, they take travelers on unforgettable adventures across over 100 different countries and all seven continents. Although Abercrombie & Kent’s trips are pricey, they encompass once-in-a-lifetime experiences like private jet tours around the world or luxury chartered cruises .

There are trips designed for solo travelers and families , and the small group journeys max out at around 14-18 guests.

Top Trip: Swim with whale sharks in the Philippines, feed proboscis monkeys in Malaysia, and photograph wild tigers in India on Abercrombie & Kent’s Wildlife & Nature: Around the World by Private Jet trip , already booking dates into 2024.

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• World's Best

The Top 15 Tour Operators in 2021

Scott Bay is a magazine editor specializing in travel, architecture, and gear. He was previously an assistant editor at Travel + Leisure . His work has also appeared in Wired , Architectural Digest , Wallpaper , Robb Report , Saveur , Daily Beast , and more.

Note: If you’re looking for our most recent recommendations, check out the 2023 list of our favorite tour operators .

This year's World's Best Awards survey was open for voting January 11 through May 10, 2021, as destinations around the world were lifting COVID-19 restrictions. Survey rules have always allowed readers to reflect on their travel experiences over a three-year period. We hope that this year's honorees will inspire your own travels as you get back out into the world.

Linking up with the right tour operator can take an amazing trip and turn it into a trip of a lifetime . This might seem like magic, but their in-the-know expertise and long-standing relationships open the doors for the seemingly impossible — a private Jeep safari with a professional tracking team in the depths of Torres del Paine or one-on-one cooking classes from a chef that runs a Michelin-starred restaurant in the south of France. And if any group has traversed the world enough to discern the best tour operators out there, it's the readers of Travel + Leisure .

Every year for our World's Best Awards survey, T+L asks readers to weigh in on travel experiences around the globe — to share their opinions on the top hotels, resorts, cities, islands, cruise ships, spas, airlines, and more. Hotels were rated on their facilities, location, service, food, and overall value. Properties were classified as city or resort based on their locations and amenities.

The companies that made the list have the skills and connections to create itineraries that reflect their clients' personal interests. No. 3 VBT Bicycling Vacations curates two-wheeled trips all over the globe . One reader said, "Their staff make all the difference." No. 2 Mountain Lodges of Peru puts together highly personalized trekking adventures to Machu Picchu. As another reader exclaimed, "This is the way to visit Machu Picchu!"

But at the top of the list is Quasar Expeditions. Though primarily known for its cruises (the company won the small-ship ocean cruises category this year), it also operates a roster of dynamic safari-style excursions in South America. Read on to find out what sets it apart and which other companies join it on this year's list of the best tour operators in the world.

1. Quasar Expeditions

Quasar Expeditions is for adventurers. The highly specialized itineraries are designed to make guests feel like they're James Cook or Charles Darwin. "Quasar Expeditions' guides are the ultimate, passionate gatekeepers to the Galápagos Islands," one reader said. "Their enthusiasm and love of the islands and the wildlife encourages you to share in their passion and desire to conserve the natural beauty and habitat of the area while still allowing low-impact tourism." Another raved, "Excellent isn't a high enough rating to describe our experience with Quasar Expeditions. Extraordinary in every way!" And while Quasar is best known for its Galápagos trips, it gets high marks for its Patagonia itineraries, which takes guests into the best parts of Chile's Torres del Paine and Argentina's Los Glaciares — two of South America's most spectacular national parks.

Score: 99.58 More information: quasarex.com

2. Mountain Lodges of Peru

Score: 98.93 More information: mountainlodgesofperu.com

3. VBT Bicycling Vacations

Score: 98.70 More information: vbt.com

4. Classic Journeys

Score: 98.60 More information: classicjourneys.com

5. TCS World Travel

Score: 97.55 More information: tcsworldtravel.com

6. Black Tomato

Score: 97.25 More information: blacktomato.com/us

7. Inside Japan Tours

Score: 96.84 More information: insidejapantours.com

Score: 96.72 More information: tauck.com

9. Wilderness Travel

Score: 95.71 More information: wildernesstravel.com

10. Trek Travel

Score: 95.71 More information: trektravel.com

11. Geographic Expeditions

Score: 95.70 More information: geoex.com

12. Thomson Family Adventures

Score: 94.89 More information: familyadventures.com

13. Greaves

Score: 94.74 More information: greavesindia.com

14. DuVine Cycling + Adventure Co.

Score: 94.64 More information: duvine.com

15. Odysseys Unlimited

Score: 94.39 More information: odysseys-unlimited.com

See all of our readers' favorite hotels, cities, airlines, cruise lines, and more in the World's Best Awards for 2021 .

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The 15 Best Tour Operators

Traveling on tours offers an unparalleled opportunity to explore the world’s wonders, immerse oneself in diverse cultures, and create unforgettable memories.

Whether it’s marveling at historic landmarks, experiencing vibrant local traditions, or savoring exotic cuisines, tours provide a structured yet adventurous way to discover new places. Guided by expert locals, travelers gain deeper insights and access to hidden gems often missed when traveling alone.

From bustling cityscapes to serene landscapes, each tour is a unique journey, catering to various interests and comfort levels. Embracing the spirit of exploration and camaraderie, going on tours is not just about seeing new places, but about living them.

Best Tour Operators

National geographic expeditions.

National Geographic Expeditions aligns its tours with the core values of its parent company: exploration, science, education, and storytelling. Launched in 1999, they offer guided tours on all seven continents, including experiences like sunrise photography at Machu Picchu and train journeys through the Swiss and Italian Alps.

Their tours are designed for meaningful exploration and cater to different traveler types, including photographers, families, and independent travelers.

They offer a range of travel methods, such as land, small ship, train, river cruise, and private jet tours. The company’s Signature Land tours, led by NatGeo experts, feature high-end accommodations and special access to field researchers and sites​​.

Collette stands out in the realm of tour operators with its diverse array of travel options that include land tours, river cruises, rail journeys, small group tours, and city stays. This company, which tends to attract a more mature, value-oriented audience, does not skimp on quality, offering four-star hotels and meals in well-reviewed local restaurants.

Collette is also committed to sustainable tourism, utilizing local businesses and restaurants and investing in community and environmental projects. With local guides employed on all trips, they ensure an authentic experience.

The tour sizes vary, accommodating both classic and small group tours, and they cater primarily to adults, specifically couples aged between 50 and 70. Their destinations are extensive, covering continents from Europe to the Polar regions​​.

Tauck Tours

Tauck Tours, a family-owned company with almost a century of experience, offers guided tours across more than 100 destinations in over 70 countries, spanning all seven continents. They are known for delivering experiences that exceed expectations, providing authentic, behind-the-scenes access to worldwide destinations.

Tauck’s tours are distinguished by their focus on local customs, traditions, flora, and fauna, and they offer upscale meals and accommodations. Their tour guides, known as Tauck Directors, are seasoned professionals from 40 countries.

The company offers a variety of trip styles, including land tours, small group journeys, river cruises, and family journeys. Tauck also partners with documentary filmmaker Ken Burns for thematic trips​​.

Alpaca Expeditions

Alpaca Expeditions is a highly reputable tour company specializing in group and private hikes to Machu Picchu, including several Inca Trail alternatives. With a focus on responsible tourism, they support local communities through sustainable practices, like using eco-friendly equipment and providing fair wages to porters.

Their group sizes are capped at 16 people to ensure a personalized experience. The company’s commitment to customer safety and comfort is evident in their numerous positive reviews, which highlight their attention to detail and knowledgeable staff.

However, Alpaca Expeditions may not be the most budget-friendly option and their small group sizes can limit availability.

AB Expeditions

AB Expeditions is a Cusco-based travel company that specializes in small group tours, particularly focusing on the Inca Trail and other treks in the Peruvian Andes. Founded by industry veterans Abel and Elsa, the company has a strong commitment to social responsibility and community engagement.

Their tours are known for their personalized touch, thanks to the small group sizes which allow for a more intimate and tailored experience. They place a strong emphasis on the welfare of their porters and guides, ensuring they are well-cared-for, which is a key aspect of their responsible tourism ethos.

The company’s tours are designed to provide an authentic experience of the local culture and landscapes, combining adventure with cultural immersion.

The positive reviews on Tripadvisor highlight their knowledgeable guides and commitment to community social projects, reflecting the company’s focus on creating a positive impact both for their clients and the local communities they interact with. 

Traveleez is an emerging name in the world of Inca Trail tours, distinguishing itself through a blend of exceptional service and social responsibility. They specialize in immersive, expert-led tours that delve deep into the rich tapestry of Inca culture. The company is committed to delivering memorable Andean adventures, emphasizing quality, safety, and comfort.

What sets Traveleez apart is its approach to travel – it’s not just about exploring majestic landscapes but also about empowering community futures. A portion of the company’s profits is dedicated to enhancing local youth education, making every journey with them a step towards positive community impact.

This blend of cultural immersion and social responsibility makes Traveleez stand out in the crowded field of tour operators. Their tours offer an opportunity for travelers to experience the wonders of the Inca trail while contributing to the betterment of the communities they visit​​.

Infinite Adventures

Infinite Adventures specializes in unique and adventurous multi-day trips, particularly throughout Alaska. With over a decade of experience, they have curated the best spots for an authentic Alaskan adventure.

The company’s focus is on small group tours, which allows for a more personalized and intimate experience. Their tours are designed to cater to those seeking an adventure in the wild, rugged terrains of Alaska.

Their trips cover a wide range of activities and destinations, providing an opportunity to explore the natural beauty and wildlife of Alaska. The company is known for its meticulous planning and attention to detail, ensuring that each trip is not just an adventure but also a safe and comfortable experience.

Infinite Adventures’ approach to travel is about creating unforgettable memories in one of the most breathtaking landscapes in the world. Their tours are ideal for those who want to experience the raw beauty of Alaska in a small group setting​​.

World Expeditions

World Expeditions is a seasoned player in the adventure travel industry, with over 40 years of experience in offering authentic and unique holiday experiences. Their focus is on paths less traveled, ensuring that their trips are not just adventures but also an exploration of uncharted territories.

They offer a variety of tours, including trekking, cycling, cultural tours, and wildlife adventures, catering to a wide range of interests and fitness levels.

The company covers an extensive range of destinations, from the high peaks of the Himalayas to the remote corners of Antarctica. They are known for their pioneering spirit in designing groundbreaking trips, often venturing into areas that are not typically covered by mainstream tour operators.

Their commitment to responsible and sustainable travel is evident in their approach, focusing on minimizing environmental impact and maximizing social engagement with local communities.

Trafalgar is a renowned family-run travel company that has established itself as a key player in the global travel industry. They offer a wide range of group tours across various destinations, focusing on providing immersive experiences that connect travelers with the essence of the places they visit.

Trafalgar’s tours are known for their deep engagement with local cultures, offering unique experiences like dining with locals in their homes or visiting hidden gems off the beaten path.

Their tours cover a diverse array of destinations including Europe, North America, South America, Asia, Africa, and Australia. Trafalgar prides itself on its well-planned itineraries that strike a balance between famous attractions and lesser-known locales, ensuring a comprehensive travel experience.

The company’s commitment to responsible tourism is evident in its efforts to sustain and enhance the communities and environments they operate in. 

The Coyote Trip

The Coyote Trip is a unique tour operator that embodies a philosophy of open-mindedness and embraces new experiences. Their ethos is centered around engaging with the communities they visit, offering a more immersive and meaningful travel experience.

This operator specializes in group tours, designed to welcome new experiences and foster connections with local cultures and people.

Their tours are crafted to provide travelers with an opportunity to explore in a way that is both adventurous and culturally enriching. The Coyote Trip’s approach is about more than just visiting a destination; it’s about integrating into the local environment and gaining a deeper understanding of the places and people encountered along the way.

This company is an excellent choice for travelers who are looking for tours that go beyond traditional sightseeing and offer a more holistic and engaging travel experience​​.

Discovery Nomads

Discovery Nomads is an adventure travel company that stands out for offering independent tours and small private group tours. Created by seasoned travelers who have explored over 90 countries, their tours are designed to cater to those who seek an adventurous and personalized travel experience.

Discovery Nomads focuses on providing tours that are not just about seeing new places but truly experiencing them. The company covers a broad range of destinations, offering unique itineraries that are tailored to the interests and preferences of the travelers.

Their tours are perfect for those who prefer a more independent style of travel but still want the convenience and expertise that comes with a guided tour. Whether it’s exploring remote landscapes or delving into the heart of bustling cities, Discovery Nomads offers an array of options for the modern, adventurous traveler​​.

Luxury Gold

Luxury Gold stands out in the realm of tour operators for its focus on providing exclusive and high-end travel experiences. Their tours are characterized by VIP experiences and unique access to renowned landmarks and people.

They cater to travelers looking for luxury and exclusivity in their journeys, offering meticulously crafted itineraries that combine comfort with unique experiences.

The tours offered by Luxury Gold are designed to introduce travelers to incredible people and places, often with access that goes beyond what is available to the general public. T

his operator is about offering the extraordinary, with each journey meticulously planned to include exclusive experiences that reflect the culture and history of the destinations. From private dining in iconic locations to meetings with renowned experts in various fields, Luxury Gold’s tours are for those seeking to travel in style and luxury.

Doctor Gumbo Tours

Doctor Gumbo Tours, based in New Orleans, offers a unique and engaging approach to tours, focusing on the rich cultural and culinary heritage of the city. Founded by Dylan O’Donnell, a.k.a Doctor Gumbo, the company aims to provide tours that are both informative and entertaining.

They specialize in food and drink tours, showcasing the diverse and vibrant culinary scene of New Orleans. These tours not only offer a taste of the city’s famous dishes but also delve into the history and stories behind them.

Doctor Gumbo Tours also offers walking tours that explore the historical and cultural aspects of New Orleans. These tours are designed to be interactive and fun, steering clear of the mundane and instead offering a lively and engaging experience.

Their unique approach to storytelling and focus on the rich traditions of New Orleans make these tours a favorite among visitors who want to experience the true spirit of the city. Whether it’s exploring the culinary delights or the historical streets, Doctor Gumbo Tours provides an immersive and memorable experience of New Orleans​​.

China Discovery

China Discovery is a top-rated tour company specializing in customized and group tours across China. Based in Chengdu, they offer a wide range of tour packages that showcase the diverse landscapes and rich cultural heritage of China.

From the modern skylines of Shanghai and Beijing to the ancient wonders of Xi’an and the natural beauty of Guilin, China Discovery covers an extensive array of destinations.

Their tours include popular options like the Kunming Lijiang High-Speed Train Tour, which connects two major cities in just 3.5 hours and features attractions like the Stone Forest and Jade Dragon Snow Mountain. Another highlight is the Beijing Shanghai Tour by High-Speed Train, offering a blend of imperial history and modern urban life.

China Discovery’s tours are known for their attention to detail, personalized service, and focus on creating a unique travel experience for each traveler.

Lily’s Beijing Tour

Lily’s Beijing Tour Guide & Car Service stands out as a highly rated tour company in China, specializing in tailor-made tours in Beijing. With a team of knowledgeable guides boasting years of experience, they offer insights into the city’s rich cultural heritage. 

They offer a variety of tour packages, including the Beijing One-day Highlight Tour, which covers Tiananmen Square, Forbidden City, and Mutianyu Great Wall. For a more extensive exploration, their Three Days Boutique Private Tour includes iconic landmarks like Temple of Heaven and Jingshan Hill.

Lily’s Beijing Tours are also known for accommodating budget-conscious travelers, with options like the Skip The Line Beijing Mutianyu Great Wall Group Tour. The company is praised for its exceptional customer service, comfortable vehicles, and accommodating guides.

Travelers looking to explore Beijing’s historical and cultural landmarks in a personalized and memorable way will find Lily’s Beijing Tours an excellent choice. Their tours are well-suited for those who want to delve into the history and beauty of Beijing with the guidance of experienced and caring professionals.

Final Thoughts

Exploring the world through the lens of these diverse tour operators offers unique and enriching experiences, each tailored to different interests and preferences.

These operators exemplify the varied ways travelers can engage with new destinations, whether through local cuisine, historical insights, or personalized itineraries. Ultimately, choosing the right tour operator can transform a simple trip into a memorable adventure, deeply connecting travelers to the places they visit.

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8 Ways to Choose the Perfect Tour Company

Last Updated: November 3, 2023

That idea of tours being bad is an old and outdated perception.

These days tour groups have become more adept at the changing landscape. They feature smaller groups, more authentic experiences, a better environmental impact, and more local guides.

I love group tours.

Even though I am an independent traveler, I find group tours super fun, a great way to meet people, learn more from an informed guide, go to places you normally can’t, and wet your feet in travel. My first trip overseas was on an organized tour. I didn’t know the first thing about travel and that tour gave me the confidence to travel on my own. It was the taste test I needed to become hooked on travel. Tours give a lot of people time to adjust to the “travel lifestyle.”

Unlike in the past, today’s tours are eco-friendly, cater to all travel styles, over cheap, and make a point to use local transportation and guides. And many destinations (like Halong Bay, the Galápagos Islands, the Serengeti, Machu Picchu, Antarctica, Everest) are virtually inaccessible without an organized group tour!

In this article, I am going to tell you how to find the best tour company so you get one that is inexpensive, eco-friendly, provides local guides, and gives back to the local community:

1. Research the costs

With tour companies, it’s not always true that you get what you pay for. Many tour companies nickel-and-dime you, while some are really good at maximizing value for your every penny. Ask how your money is spent to find out if you are really getting the best value for your money. How much of your fee is their overhead? Are you paying for top-notch hotels but staying in two-star guesthouses? You want a company that is transparent with why prices are the way they are.

Moreover, make sure you ask if there are added fees to pay when arrive. Many companies require you to pay additional money when the tour starts or don’t include park or attraction entrance fees. That cheap tour won’t be so cheap if you have to pay for everything while you’re there!

2. Make sure you are the audience 

Is the tour geared toward older couples? Young people? Families? You don’t want to end up on a loud Contiki tour full of drunk twenty-year-olds when all you want is a quiet holiday.

There’s a tour company for everyone — just make sure you don’t end up on one that isn’t yours. Most tour companies list their guest demographics on their “About” page, and you can usually see from the photos of their tours who goes on it.

You can also tell the audience based on accommodation: if it’s hostels or guesthouses, it’s usually for backpackers and budget travelers; if it’s fancy digs, it’s for older travelers and families.

This is very important because these are the people you’ll be traveling with so you want to make sure it’s the kind of people you are traveling with. I’m still friends with the people from my first tour in 2003 because they were people like me. The tour in Japan that was filled with older families? Not so much. We didn’t have much in common. Wonderful people but we didn’t connect.

So, I always look for tours that have my demographic in them.

3. Get local guides

Guides can make or break your trip. They are going to explain everything to you and keep the flow of the tour going. I don’t want them hiring some young kid, non-expert, or someone who doesn’t know the place well. I’ve been on tours where the guide was a walking encyclopedia, and on somewhere the guide was a glorified timekeeper.

Make sure the company uses knowledgeable, local guides. The guide should be a local or at least a long-term resident, know the local language, have travel experience, and know life-saving techniques.

If you are unsure about the guides, call the customer service line and ask them about their guides.

4. Safety record 

Make sure the company follows all the proper safety requirements and is accredited by the local government, the government where they are registered, and any other appropriate trade organizations.

5. A balanced schedule 

You’re paying for them to fill most of your day. How do they do that? Are they doing that? Do they have a lot of activities organized, or do they leave you to your own devices?

That said, you don’t want a schedule that is crammed with things to do. Make sure you get a schedule of all the activities and pick a tour that is balanced. Running around will leave you wishing you had a holiday from your holiday, but you don’t want to be sitting around all day, either.

I love taking small group tours because they generally have a good balance. Any tour that requires you to be on a huge bus and hits 6 cities in 5 days is not a tour to take!

6. Environmental impact

There’s a growing trend among travelers called ecotourism . It’s about more responsible travel, not only toward the environment but also toward the locals in an area. This means using local guides, hotels, and services, and making sure to reduce waste and your footprint on the local habitat.

Moreover, these companies tend to offer better and more interactive tours that also give you a good degree of autonomy.

I think it’s important to pick a company that provides great value and gives back to the place you are visiting. After all, did you go there to ruin it for others? Doubtful.

Check with groups like the International Ecotourism Society for a list of companies that have been certified “eco-friendly.” With so much money pouring into the industry now, you have a lot of companies fraudulently saying they practice ecotourism but end up being involved in terrible labor practices, animal abuse, and waste.

7. Group size

Tour companies that have smaller groups tend to be much more mindful of the environment and the impact they are leaving. It’s a lot easier to meet people in a group of 10-15 than it is in a group of 60. I don’t like to go on tours with more than 15 people on them. However, I have friends who love Contiki tours with 40-50 people. Know what you are getting yourself into, so you don’t find yourself with a group too small or too large for your tastes.

Just remember larger groups tend to stay at bigger, more impersonal accommodations (they can only accommodate the numbers), eat at more touristy restaurants, and tend to travel to more destinations quicker.

In my expert opinion, small group tours are the best.

8. Check their reputation

How have other travelers enjoyed their time? Look for online reviews to see what a company’s reputation is. It might not always be what they claim, and it’s important to find out the truth before you book.

Remember that MOST people only write a review if something goes wrong. Someone might give a tour company one star just because their eggs were runny. Find the average. Someone might hate a tour because the weather was hot. Seriously. These are actual negative reviews from the tour operator company, Thomas Cook:

“On my holiday to Goa in India, I was disgusted to find that almost every restaurant served curry. I don’t like spicy food.”

“We went on holiday to Spain and had a problem with the taxi drivers as they were all Spanish.”

“We booked an excursion to a water park but no-one told us we had to bring our own swimsuits and towels. We assumed it would be included in the price.”

“No-one told us there would be fish in the water. The children were scared.”

“Although the brochure said that there was a fully equipped kitchen, there was no egg-slicer in the drawers.”

“When we were in Spain, there were too many Spanish people there. The receptionist spoke Spanish, the food was Spanish. No one told us that there would be so many foreigners.”

“We had to line up outside to catch the boat and there was no air-conditioning.”

So how can you trust the reviews you read online?

Take them with a grain of salt. You can read reviews on websites TrustPilot . The approval rating should look like a bell curve but with more A’s and B’s than C’s. I look for companies that average 85% or higher (or 4 out of 5 stars). If a company is that highly rated, the negative reviews are probably just outliers.  

My Recommended (Best) Tour Companies

Here are some of my favorite small, day-tour, or backpacker bus tour companies:

• Take Walks – This is my favorite walking tour company. They run a wide variety of insightful and entertaining tours around Europe and the US. What makes them so good is they get you inside access to attractions and places you can’t get elsewhere. Their guides rock too!
• Get Your Guide – A massive marketplace for tours, activities, and excursions. If you’re looking for something niche, you’ll find it here!
• Devour Food Tours – My go-to tour company for tasty food tours around Europe and the US.
• Kiwi Experience – A hop-on, hop-off bus tour company in New Zealand for backpackers!
• Baz Bus – A hop on, hop off again bus tour company in South Africa for all travelers.
• New Europe – Free walking tours throughout Europe.
• Free Tours By Foot – Pay-what-you-like tours throughout Europe and the United States. They are one of my favorite free walking tour companies in the world!

THE #1 COMPANY FOR MULTI-DAY SMALL GROUP TOURS

When it comes to multi-day, multi-week tours (think trips through Morocco, sailing in the Galápagos, etc.), I highly recommend using Intrepid Travel .

Intrepid is my favorite and best small group tour operator out there! I really love their guides, their small groups, off-the-beaten-track itineraries, and their commitment to the local environment and community. I always have an incredible time on their tours. They are my favorite multi-day tour operator and the only one I use now (the picture at the top of this page is me on their Patagonia trip). Intrepid is environmentally friendly, uses local guides and transportation, doesn’t rush their tours, and are quite inexpensive. I don’t even consider anyone else when it comes to multi-day trips.

I love tours. They are a great way to meet people, get a local to add value and knowledge, and see places you can’t get to alone! I don’t take them often but I do take them. And, since I follow the above rules, I always have a good time. Some of my favorite travel memories were when I was on a group trip. If you follow my tips above, you’ll never go wrong either.

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The Best Tour Operator Websites to Inspire You In 2019

A website’s text to image ratio is a balancing act, and travelers don’t stick around if it’s not right. According to a survey of 2,000 U.S. and UK travelers by GlobalWebIndex, one-third of respondents said social media content influences their destination choices more than TV, print media, or other online content.

3 Key Elements Every Tour Operator Website Needs to Inspire Travelers

Besides fancy bells and whistles of any effective website, tour operator websites also need:

• Transparency
• Responsive and mobile-ready features
• Online booking

Before booking, a traveler wants to feel reassured after visiting a website. User-generated content (UGC) and reviews from platforms such as TripAdvisor go a long way on this front.

Does your website have one or several elements of social proof? And are the visuals on your site showing unique experiences that few other operators could provide?

User-generated content is quickly becoming a must-have for tour operator websites today: Eighty-five percent of travelers find it more influential than brand photos or videos. Based on the elements above, here are the best tour operator websites to inspire you in 2019.

Haka Tours: A Website Redesign that Immerses Travelers

Haka Tours , a New Zealand-based adventure tour provider, redesigned its website  to offer more content about New Zealand as a destination that compliments tour-specific content. The company’s former website wasn’t visually inspiring and offered only clunky, text-heavy descriptions of tours, said Barnaby Lawrence, Haka Tour’s digital marketing manager.

“The initial intent was just to replace the gallery on our homepage, but now we have multiple galleries throughout the site that use content based on hashtags. The homepage showcases a mixture of all the tours you can do, and we also have individual galleries for each tour category, such as mountain biking or adventure tours.”

Since the website’s relaunch, Haka Tours has experienced a 45 percent drop in bounce rate, a 75 percent increase in page views, and 30 percent more sessions per user.

Active Adventures: Showing Every Traveler They’re Welcome

Active Adventures , New Zealand-based tour company, knows how to capture people when they feel most inspired.

Videos, written testimonials, and UGC fill the homepage. This makes sense, given that customer reviews are trusted 12 times more than marketing coming directly from brands.

What we love most about this gallery is the destination-specific CTAs. Rather than a generic “Book Now” CTA layered across every visual, they use CTAs like “View our Annapurna trip!” or “View our Bolivia trip”. This brings visitors to a new booking page where they can check availability, the trip difficulty, ratings from other travelers and related treks.

Other conversion-driven elements include a chatbot, a newsletter, and a blog.

Papillon: Keeping Call to Actions Front and Center

Papillon , a Nevada-based aerial sightseeing company, gets travelers engaged the second they land on the homepage.

With a “Choose Your Adventure” widget at the top of the homepage, visitors are instantly involved in planning their trip and taken deeper into the site where they can view more content and information about a tour.

The user-generated content gallery high up on the homepage also includes call-to-actions overlayed on the photos. If a traveler is enticed by a photo of the Grand Canyon, they can click on that photo to get more information about a tour that visits the place in the photo.

Fat Tire Tours: Mobile-Ready to Help Travelers In-Destination

U.S. and European tour company Fat Tire Tours has a website that checks many of the same boxes as the other sites, but its mobile site is also compelling and makes it simple to book on the go and keep travelers informed.

Travel websites need to consider functionality for a variety of different screen sizes for travelers to quickly access the information they need, given many tours are still booked last-minute or day-off.

Against an average of 30+ tour operator websites analyzed , Fat Tires’ site also loads much higher than average — at a rate of 1.7 seconds vs 6.3. Anything faster than 3 seconds is considered best-in-class.

Hawaii Forest & Trail: Focused on a Mission

Hawaii Forest & Trail highlights its mission statement at the top of its homepage. Every piece of content throughout the site works to inspire travelers about the mission and Hawaii’s unique natural landscape, and also makes travelers feel like they’re part of a larger story.

Turning Travelers Into Marketers

Running a tour company is difficult enough without worrying about how to market all of the offerings.

Tours and activities are one of the most complex sectors of the travel industry for all the moving parts involved in making a tour successful. But this sector is also one of the most visual and anticipated by travelers.

Harvesting real-time user-generated content for a website is one of the biggest marketing strategies an operator can adopt to create a two-way conversation that keeps a company top-of-mind for the next trip.

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15 Best Group Travel Companies for Guided Tours in 2024

The best tour companies for guided tours in 2024 deliver special insider experiences you simply can't book independently..

The Scoop: What to Know About Trafalgar Tours

Guided tours are an easy and stress-free way to discover new places. When you travel with the best tour operators, you can often dig much deeper into the history, culture, and daily life of your destination than if you’d gone it alone. In fact, the world’s top tour companies employ local guides, handle all of the details, and often deliver special insider travel experiences you simply can’t book independently. And travel tour groups are a good value, too.

To learn more about this year’s best tour companies and their guided tours, click on any company name in the list below to go straight to their website and start your search. Or, scroll down to read more about my picks for the best tour operators in 2024.

2024’s Best Tour Operators for Guided Tours 

• G Adventures  
• Adventures by Disney
• Grand Circle Travel
• Road Scholar
• Collette  
• Tauck  
• National Geographic Expeditions  
• Overseas Adventure Travel
• Intrepid Travel  
• AdventureWomen  
• Abercrombie & Kent
• Exodus Travels

1. Trafalgar Tours

One of the largest and most established tour operators in the world, Trafalgar offers everything from standard coach tours and small group active tours to private tours, hiking and biking tours, and special interest tours built around nature, history, food, and other interests. All told, Trafalgar hosts more than 350 guided tours in 72 countries and all seven continents. England, Italy, the Iberian Peninsula, Egypt, Ireland, Argentina, and Thailand are some of its most popular destinations. ( Read our full Trafalgar review here .)

Seniors and travelers 50 and older are Trafalagar’s core audience, though children as young as five years old are welcome on its family tours. Trafalgar’s solo travel options include free or reduced single supplement prices for many of its most popular trips. Each of its tour directors has at least three to five years of road experience, and many have been with the company for decades. 

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Trafalgar’s guided tours cover all accommodations (typically four-star hotels where available) and most transportation during your trip, including airport transfers on the majority of its overseas tours. Most meals and activities are included. Trafalgar also offers special one-of-a-kind experiences such as dining with locals, sleeping in a castle or historic hotel, and early entry to popular tourist attractions. Anyone who books a tour with Trafalgar’ is automatically enrolled in its Very Important Traveler (VIT) program that offers discounts and priority access on future trips. 

Quick Facts about Guided Tour Operator Trafalgar

• Average guided tour group size: 40 guests (standard coach tours); no more than 17 guests on small group active tours.
• Price range: Upscale.
• What’s included: Accommodations, transportation within the trip, admission prices, and most meals.
• What’s not included: Pre- and post-trip transportation, some meals, and tips.
• Primary audience: Seniors and travelers over the age of 50.
• Destinations: Europe, Africa, North America, Central America, South America, Middle East, Oceania, and the Polar regions.
• How to book:  Directly through  Trafalgar or through a travel agent
• More tours: 10 Best Trafalgar Tours to Take in 2024

2. G Adventures

Small group tour operator G Adventures has guided trips suitable for a wide range of travel preferences. The company’s driving philosophy is all about improving the world through travel, and it supports this mission by utilizing local businesses and community resources on its tours. Many of G Adventures’s guests share this philosophy as a core value. 

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The company’s guided tours cater to a variety of fitness levels and cultural interests. Its classic tours hit a sweet spot between backpacking and traditional group tours; active tours focus heavily on hiking, trekking, biking, and other physically intense activities; family tours lean into age-appropriate activities and kid-friendly accommodations; local living tours let you participate in the rituals of daily life in unique destinations around the world; and 18-to-thirtysomething tours let young adults explore the world with similarly aged companions. 

G Adventures also partners with National Geographic for both general tours and family journeys designed to provide guests with an even deeper understanding of the cultures and traditions of each destination. And the company’s one-of-a-kind Jane Goodall Collection of guided tours offers a responsible way to experience wildlife up close. G Adventures offers a unique perk on all of its trips. The company’s Lifetime Deposits program allows you to retain your initial deposit for use at a later date at no extra charge if you need to postpone a trip due to a change in plans or circumstances.

Quick Facts about Guided Tour Company G Adventures

• Average guided tour group size: 12 people.
• Price category: Moderate.
• What’s included: Accommodations, activities, and some meals.
• What’s not included: Airfare.
• Primary audience: Adults ages 30 to 55, but also families and younger travelers.
• How to book: Directly through G Adventures or through a travel agent.
• More tours: 10 Best G Adventures Tours to Take in 2024

3. Adventures by Disney

Founded in 2005, Adventures by Disney offers upscale small group tours to about 40 destinations on all seven continents. While you may associate Disney with princesses and talking animals, a vacation with Adventures by Disney is more about the Disney way of doing things than it is about The Walt Disney Company’s entertainment brand. 

When you travel with Adventures by Disney, what you’re getting is top-notch service, people-pleasing trip leaders (called Adventure Guides), and special experiences created just for Disney’s guided tours (think skip-the-line access to tourist attractions like the Louvre in Paris, special backstage tours on Broadway, or traditional bread-baking demonstrations in Iceland). Each trip also includes at least one Adventure Guide from the host destination, who brings local knowledge and a deep connection to the destination. 

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On guided tours with Adventures by Disney, things run smoothly and right on time . That makes it a great choice for stress-free family travel adventures . Most of Adventures by Disney’s guided tours feature built-in family time as well as built-in alone time for the adults. On some evenings, the Adventure Guides may host a “Junior Adventure” movie night. Other times there may be a kids-only dining table for the evening meal. 

Guided tours with Adventures by Disney include upscale accommodations, transportation within the trip (such as airport transfers, internal flights or trains, and motor coaches), admission prices and VIP experiences, luggage and concierge services, taxes, most gratuities, and many meals. There are typically some “on your own” meals, and pre-trip transportation is not included in the price. Adventures by Disney vacations tend toward the luxury side of the price range: an eight-day Peru vacation starts at $6,199 in 2024; an Adriatic expedition cruise starts at $8,999. In addition to its family-oriented trips, Adventures by Disney also offers private tours and adults-exclusive tours.

Adventures by Disney travelers can enroll in the company’s Adventure Insiders program to receive special offers, including advance notice of new tour destinations.

Quick Facts about Guided Tour Operator Adventures by Disney

• Average guided tour group size: 35 to 44 guests.
• Price range: Upscale/premium.
• What’s included: Accommodations, transportation within the trip, admission prices, VIP experiences, luggage and concierge services, taxes, most gratuities, and most meals.
• What’s not included: Pre- and post-trip transportation, some meals, and tips for your Adventure Guides.
• Primary audience: Families and adult Disney fans.
• How to Book: Directly through Adventures by Disney or through a travel agent.

The flagship brand of the Globus family of companies (which also includes Cosmos and Avalon Waterways ), tour operator Globus offers coach tours on six continents spanning more than 70 countries. Tour styles include small group tours , offered on Europe and North America itineraries; choice tours, which allow you to choose from three or four possible excursions rather than a one-size-fits-all schedule; undiscovered tours that take a deep dive away from the tourist areas; self-guided independent tours; Escapes by Globus , which operate during the slower tourism season between November and March; and faith-based trips to destinations such as the Holy Land.

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Globus caters to older adults, generally from about 50 to 70 years old, with most guests traveling as part of a couple or family. For solo travelers, which comprise about 20% of the tour company’s guests, Globus offers single supplement waiver promotions on select tours. Globus also has a Welcome Back Credit loyalty program. Each trip earns up to a $250 credit toward a future trip with Globus, Cosmos, or Avalon Waterways.

Quick Facts about Guided Tours with Globus

• Average guided tour group size: 38 guests (classic coach tours); 20 to 24 guests (small group discovery tours).
• Price category: Budget to moderate.
• What’s included: Hotels, all breakfasts, some additional meals, all transportation, VIP “skip the line” access, and local guides.
• What’s not included:  Gratuities and airfare; however, Globus offers the option to purchase airfare when you book, which comes with free airport transfers.
• Primary audience: Adults between 50 and 70 years old.
• Destinations: Europe, Africa, North America, Central America, South America, the Middle East, and Oceania.
• How to book: Directly through Globus or through a travel agent.

5. Grand Circle Travel

Operating since 1958, Grand Circle Travel is another highly regarded tour operator for adults over 50. The flagship brand within the Grand Circle family of companies (which also includes Overseas Adventure Travel ) offers a wide selection of land-based tours and river cruises for groups ranging in size from 24 to 47 people. 

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Grand Circle Travel’s trips are specifically designed for older travelers. Leisurely pacing and a focus on value are hallmarks of the Grand Circle experience. Like its sister company Overseas Adventure Travel (O.A.T.), which is a top choice for active solo travelers over age 50, Grand Circle stands out as a great fit for solo travelers interested in finding camaraderie and community on vacation. The company offers free or low-cost single supplement fees on all of its itineraries. Grand Circle has guided tour experiences on all seven continents. Land-based group tours average about 30 travelers, while river cruises can range from about 38 to 45 guests. Grand Circle’s loyalty program, called the Inner Circle Club , offers discounts for frequent guests and multiple trips booked within the same calendar year. 

Quick Facts about Guided Tour Operator Grand Circle Travel

• Average guided tour group size: 24 to 30 guests (land tours); 38 to 45 guests (river cruises).
• Price category: Moderate to upscale.
• What’s included: Airfare, meals, activities, accommodations, transportation, special events, gratuities for local guides and motor coach drivers (land tours); airfare, accommodations, most meals, onboard drinks and house beer and wine, port charges, and gratuities for local guides and motor coach drivers (cruises).
• What’s not included: Airfare can also be purchased separately.
• Primary audience: Adults, including solo travelers, over the age of 50.
• How to book: Directly through Grand Circle Travel or through a travel agent.

6. Road Scholar

What started as the tour company Elderhostel in 1975 has since evolved into Road Scholar , a non-profit tour company with an educational focus that offers guided tours around the world. Its primary audience is senior travelers, but it also has the special and unique Grandparent Adventures , which support grandparents and grandchildren traveling together. Road Scholar is also very solo-traveler friendly—about 25 percent of Road Scholar tour guests are solo travelers. And the tour company has a number of itineraries for women-only tours as well.  

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Road Scholar’s educational tours include all accommodations plus most meals, expert-led lectures, field trips, and hands-on experiences, as well as transportation and gratuities. Road Scholar is able to book airfare for international tours, which allows you to have your travel monitored and supported by the company from start to finish. 

Quick Facts about Guided Tour Company Road Scholar

• Average Tour Size: 22 people.
• Price Range: Budget to luxury (from about $699 to $21,999 per person).
• What’s Included: Accommodations, most meals, expert-led experiences, transportation, gratuities, and the Road Scholar Assurance Plan coverage.
• What’s Not Included: Pre- and post-trip transportation.
• Primary Audience: Older travelers, grandparents traveling with grandkids, women, and solo travelers.
• Destinations: Europe, the Americas, Africa and the Middle East, Asia, Australia and South Pacific, and Antarctica.
• How to book: Directly through Road Scholar or through a travel agent.

7. Collette

A family-run business with hundreds of guided tour options across all seven continents, Collette offers a mix of small group trips (14 to 24 people per tour) and classic guided tours (up to 44 people). Its group tours start around $1,500, and most guests are over the age of 55. Collette is worldwide travel brand and tour operator with offices in the U.S., Canada, Australia, and the U.K.

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From land tours and river cruises to rail journeys, small group tours, and city stays, Collette offers a variety of ways to travel, including optional excursions and pre- and post-tour nights at your destination. And while the company tends to attract an older and budget-focused audience with an eye toward value, many of its hotels are four-star quality, and meals favor well-reviewed local restaurants with generous menus. 

Collette employs local guides for all of its trips and puts an emphasis on utilizing local businesses and restaurants. It also offers community sustainability programs for its guests in destinations across the world and invests a percentage of its proceeds back into local community or sustainability projects. Tour guests are automatically enrolled in The Collette Passport Club and receive credit toward future trips. 

Quick Facts about Guided Tours with Collette

• Average guided tour group size: 44 guests (classic tours); 14 to 24 guests (small group tours).
• What’s included: Hotels, activities, museum and attraction admissions, local guides, transportation, and airport transfers.
• What’s not included: Airfare, meals, and gratuities.
• Primary audience: Adults, primarily couples, between the ages of 50 and 70.
• How to book: Directly through Collette or through a travel agent.

8. T auck Tours

Family-owned Tauck has a simple philosophy: Deliver more than what’s expected. The award-winning guided tour operator has been doing just that for nearly 100 years by offering authentic experiences and behind-the-scenes access to destinations all over the world. Tauck’s century of experience is evident in nearly every detail of its guided trips, which cover more than 100 destinations in 70+ countries across all seven continents.

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The company’s tours are well-regarded for their expertise in local customs, traditions, flora, and fauna. Meals and accommodations are upscale. Its tour guides, called Tauck Directors, come from 40 countries and average a decade of experience each. You can choose from five unique trip styles: land tours, small group journeys, river cruises, small ship cruises, and multigenerational family journeys called Tauck Bridges. The tour operator also boasts an exclusive partnership with the award-winning documentary filmmaker Ken Burns, offering deep-dive trips that explore the themes of his films, including the American Civil War, U.S. national parks, baseball, and jazz. 

Quick Facts about Guided Tour Operator Tauck

• Average guided tour group size: 35 people (standard tours); 24 people (small group tours).
• Price category: Upscale.
• What’s included: Gratuities, sightseeing and admissions, most meals, airport and luggage transfer, and taxes.
• What’s not included: Airfare and alcohol.
• Primary audience: Adults over age 50 and multigenerational family groups.
• How to book: Directly through Tauck or through a travel agent.

9. National Geographic Expeditions

Launched in 1999, National Geographic Expeditions leans into its parent company’s core values of exploration, science, education, and storytelling to offer exceptional guided tours on all seven continents. From exploring the Swiss and Italian Alps by train to photographing Machu Picchu at sunrise, National Geographic Expeditions takes you to some of the most celebrated natural wonders, archaeological sites, and wildlife-rich destinations in the world. 

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A guided trip with National Geographic Expeditions is all about meaningful exploration of the world and its many cultures. Whether by land, small ship, train, river cruise, or even private jet, you can expect a guided tour that goes way beyond the ordinary. And with itineraries geared specifically for photographers, families ( in partnership with G Adventures ), or independent travelers, you’ll be exploring alongside both like-minded travelers and subject matter experts. 

The company offers two unique ways to travel: National Geographic Signature Land tours, led by NatGeo experts, are its flagship trips and feature high-end accommodations, special access to field researchers and sites of interest, and even photography workshops; National Geographic Journeys, led by local guides, utilize mid-range hotels and blend hands-on exploration with more free time to explore on your own. Many National Geographic Expeditions trips also offer pre- and post-trip extensions.

The National Geographic Lifelong Explorers program offers loyalty discounts for return guests. Additionally, a portion of the proceeds from each trip helps fund the National Geographic Society’s research and conservation programs around the world.

Quick Facts about Guided Travel Tours with National Geographic Expeditions

• Average guided tour group size: 16 to 25 people per departure; cruises are all in small ships under 200 passengers.
• Price category: Premium (National Geographic Signature Expeditions); budget to moderate (National Geographic Journeys).
• What’s included: Meals, accommodations, excursions, services of a National Geographic Expert, ground transportation, most transfers, baggage handling, most gratuities (for National Geographic Signature Land); some meals, accommodations, excursions, local guides, ground transportation, and some transfers (for National Geographic Journeys).
• What’s not included: Airfare, some meals, and some gratuities.
• Primary audience: Photographers and families with a passion for learning.
• How to book: Directly through National Geographic Expeditions or through a travel agent.

The budget-friendly member of the Globus family of travel brands (alongside Globus and Avalon Waterways ), Cosmos offers a range of tours around the world but has a particularly strong focus on European tours. Cosmos offers similar itineraries to its sister brand Globus but brings costs down by opting for good-but-more-budget-minded accommodations. While Cosmos is best known for its coach tours, the company also offers small group trips, off-the-beaten-path itineraries in popular destinations, event-focused tours, and Christian faith-based trips that highlight religious history in the Holy Land, Italy, Spain, and Portugal.

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Cosmos runs tours on five continents spanning more than 60 countries. Among its most popular destinations are Great Britain and Ireland, Canada, France, Greece, Italy, Portugal, Spain, and the United States. Many of the company’s tour directors hail from the country in which they lead tours, and a number of them have spent decades with Cosmos. The company also employs local guides to help with additional on-the-ground aspects of its tours. Cosmos offers a Welcome Back Credit loyalty program. Each trip earns up to a $250 credit toward a future trip with Globus, Cosmos, or Avalon Waterways.

Quick Facts about Group Tours with Cosmos 

• Average guided tour group size: 36 guests (standard coach tours); 20 to 24 guests (small group tours).
• Price category: Budget.
• What’s included: Hotels, guided city sightseeing excursions, ground transportation, and some meals.
• What’s not included: Airfare, optional excursions, gratuities; flights and airport transfers can be purchased at additional cost from Cosmos.
• Primary audience: Adults in their early to mid 50s.
• Destinations: Europe, South America, Central America, North America, Asia, Africa, and Oceania.
• How to Book: Directly through Cosmos or through a travel agent.

11. Overseas Adventure Tours (O.A.T.)

Part of the Grand Circle family of companies that also includes Grand Circle Travel and Grand Circle Cruise Line, Overseas Adventure Travel (also called O.A.T.) is a small group adventure travel tour specialist offering guided tours on all seven continents. O.A.T.’s tour group guests are over the age of 50 and many are solo travelers looking to join like-minded travelers on active itineraries around the world.

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Why is O.A.T. is so popular with older solo travelers? One reason is that the company rarely charges a single supplement on its trips. A fair number of the company’s guided tour itineraries also have women-exclusive departures. Overseas Adventure Travel rates all of its tours by activity level ranging from one (easy) to five (strenuous). The company operates more than 60 unique trips on all seven continents. Both multi-country and single-country tours are offered; some itineraries focus on culture while others have an ecological focus.

Unlike many other guided tour companies, O.A.T.’s prices typically include airfare, though guests also have the option to book their own flights. Overseas Adventure Travel’s loyalty program is the Sir Edmund Hillary Club , which offers benefits beginning with your third trip.

Quick Facts about Guided Tours with Overseas Adventure Travel (O.A.T.)

• Average guided tour group size: 13 people.
• What’s included: Airfare, most meals, all transportation, accommodations, activities, and gratuities for local guides.
• What’s not included: Gratuities for trip leaders, some meals; airfare can also be booked separately.
• Primary audience: Active adults over 50, particularly solo travelers.
• Destinations: Europe, Africa, North America, South America, Middle East, Oceania, and the Polar regions.
• How to Book: Directly through OAT or through a travel agent.

12. Intrepid Travel

Sustainable and experience-rich travel is the heart and soul of everything Intrepid Travel does. The not-for-profit group travel tour operator runs trips geared toward young adults, women, solo travelers, active travelers, and families, and it generally attracts like-minded guests who value responsible travel, conservation, and respect for indigenous cultures. In fact, many of Intrepid’s most compelling guided tours make personal connections with local communities a centerpiece of the experience.

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Intrepid offers a wide range of trip styles and themes to suit a variety of audiences: Basix caters to independent travelers who prefer free time to explore on their own; Original tours include a mix of activities and free time; Comfort goes at a relaxed pace; and Premium tours offer the best accommodations, most comfortable transportation, and exclusive experiences. Different themes include Active, Food, Expeditions, Family, Solo, 18 to 29s, and Trekking, among others. Travelers are automatically enrolled in the Intrepid Insiders program with their first trip. The loyalty program offers advance notice of sales and new trips.

Quick Facts about Guided Tour Operator Intrepid Travel

• Average guided tour group size : 12 people.
• What’s included: Accommodations, local transport, and some meals.
• What’s not included: Airfare, travel insurance, and tips.
• Primary audience : Adults ages 25 to 40.
• Destinations : Europe, Africa, North America, Central America, South America, Middle East, Oceania, and the Polar regions.
• How to Book: Directly through Intrepid or through a travel agent.

13. AdventureWomen

The women’s-only travel group AdventureWomen makes it easy for female travelers to explore the world in a safe and meaningful way alongside other women. Founded in 1982, AdventureWomen now offers nearly 50 tours across more than 65 counties. AdventureWomen’s guided travel tours for women welcome solo female travelers, women traveling together, mother-daughter pairs, sisters, and more. Each tour description clearly outlines the required fitness level for the journey. 

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The company’s most popular guided tours include a wintertime tour of Iceland to view the Northern Lights, a Galapagos Islands wildlife cruise by private yacht, and a journey along Croatia’s Dalmatian Coast. These guided women’s only adventure tours include lodging, ground transportation, most meals and activities, guides, and some gratuities. AdventureWomen’s average tour group size is on the small side, with tours generally welcoming 12 to 15 women per departure. Guests often credit the small group size for fostering camaraderie with other travelers on these guided tours. 

Quick Facts about Guided Tour Company AdventureWomen

• Average guided tour group size: 12 to 15 people.
• What’s included: Accommodations, most meals and activities, ground transportation, tour guides (called Managers), and some gratuities.
• What’s not included: Pre- and post-trip transportation, alcohol, some gratuities, and certain meals.
• Primary audience: Women seeking to travel with other women.
• Destinations : Europe, Africa, North America, Central America, South America, and the Middle East.
• How to Book: Directly through AdventureWomen or through a travel agent.

14. Abercrombie & Kent

A pioneer in the world of luxury small group trips, Abercrombie & Kent has been operating guided tours for more than 60 years. These days, the tour company runs trips on all seven continents spanning more than 100 countries. Each of Abercrombie & Kent’s small group tours is run by a Resident Tour Director who remains with the group throughout the trip, while additional specialized local guides help travelers enjoy one-of-a-kind insider experiences.

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Because Abercrombie & Kent is a luxury tour operator, accommodations tend toward high-end hotels wherever possible. Participants are often Gen X and Boomers. Guests are automatically enrolled in the company’s Marco Polo Club loyalty program on their third journey with Abercrombie & Kent. 

Quick Facts about Guided Tours with Abercrombie & Kent

• Average guided tour group size: 14 people.
• Price category: Upscale/premium.
• What’s included: Inter-trip flights, upscale accommodations, luggage transfers, meals, mid-journey laundry services, all activities, and expert guides.
• What’s not included: Airfare to and from your trip destination.
• Primary audience: Adults aged 40 and older.
• How to Book: Directly through Abercrombie & Kent or through a travel agent.

15. Exodus Travels

A worldwide adventure travel tour operator, Exodus Travels offers small group and independent cycling, walking, hiking, wildlife, and cultural tours in nearly 90 countries across all seven continents. Exodus has operated small group guided tours, self-guided tours, and private tours around the world since 1974, and today offers more than 500 unique tours ranging from popular locales like the Amalfi Coast in Italy to remote destinations like Tajikistan. 

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The company’s small group tours average between eight to 16 guests and utilize local trip leaders and experienced local guides. Solo travelers comprise nearly half of Exodus’s guests, who are given the option to pay a single room supplement or share a room with another guest at no additional charge. For those who want the convenience of a curated trip (pre-planned accommodations, activities, and transportation) without the constraints of traveling with a group, Exodus’s self-guided options give you freedom and flexibility to explore on your own. 

While Exodus is popular with budget-minded travelers, the company also offers premium guided tours to some popular destinations. A partnership with the African Wildlife Foundation allows Exodus to offer luxury safaris, for example. Guests are automatically enrolled in the tour operator’s loyalty program, called Exodus Collective , after two trips. Exodus Collective offers special discounts and members-only sales. After your seventh trip, you’ll be upgraded to the company’s Pioneer level, which comes with even greater discounts and perks. 

Quick Facts about Guided Tour Operator Exodus Travels

• Average guided tour group size: 8 to 16 people.
• Price category: Budget to upscale.
• What’s included: Accommodations, some meals, activities, and local guides.
• What’s not included: Airfare, airport transfers, and gratuities.
• Primary audience: Adventure travelers, solo travelers, and active independent travelers.
• How to Book: Directly through Exodus or through a travel agent.

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Europe Tour Companies

List of europe travel companies & tour operators with 258007 reviews.

Expat Explore Travel

• Excellent - 4,389 reviews for Europe tours

Best tour guide ever! We have been on many tours and Luke really went above and beyond. He is passionate, knowledgeable, funny, organized, and energetic. He gave us tons of history which really enriched the tour. He was always positive and made sure everyone was having a great time. If you have an opportunity to take a tour with Luke, definitely do it!

Everything was great

• Excellent - 5,600 reviews for Europe tours

Rianna was an outstanding trip manager. As a first-time Contiki traveler, I couldn't have hoped for a better experience. Rianna ensured that the trip was exceptional for everyone. Her organizational skills and clear communication made everything easy to follow and understand. She offered excellent recommendations for each city we visited and shared her extensive knowledge and interesting facts about the locations. Rianna was professional, yet incredibly fun to be around, making the journey both educational and enjoyable.

The trip was fantastic! Rianna did a great job organising it. She would in detail provide a schedule plan a couple of days out but also go through it together as a group the itinerary which explained the timings. I also appreciated the activities that were done outside of the normal itinerary that brought the group together such as the soccer game and trivia. Rianna was also really approachable as well therefore if you had any questions or concerns, you could chat to her directly. Overall I really enjoyed my time and part of it was having Rianna as my trip manager.

Europamundo

• Good - 3,195 reviews for Europe tours

We saw alot over the time. However the itinerary could be tightened up to allow more time in Glasgow and Belfast. The first day has nothing scheduled and the London tour could have been done then. We took our own tour to Stonehenge. Day 7 has a couple hour free in Belfast but not enough time to even visit the Titanic museum. The last day was a 1.5 hour tour of Dublin. I saw this as more a 6 day tour and no time in Glasgow. Some days were very late, arriving at after 7 or 8 which made for very late dinners. We enjoyed what we saw.

Very impressed with our tour guides Fillippo and Maria. Truly this trip became a memorable one and I really appreciate all that the tour guides did for us. However not very happy with the hotel in Rome, very rude staff and poor room environment. There was construction works going on and the hotel staff simply bullied us when we complained about it.

Italy on a Budget Tours

• Excellent - 376 reviews for Europe tours

Perfect getaway for anyone in need of a good rest and quality time with their partner. We loved every moment. Amazing tuk-tuk ride, easy bag transfers. Exquisite wine tasting with two course meal. The hotel in Tuscany with the room walking out onto one of the pools- amazing. Fantastic restaurant on site! Our SPA session was relaxing with a beautiful dinner (spectacular view) afterwards. Walking distance from medieval town.The tour guides were great, high energy, friendly and welcoming. I’m so glad I booked this as our Tuscany experience.

My sister and I did the Mama Mia Tour throughout Italy May 27-June 8. Each one of our tour guides was amazing, we had Carlo and Max in Rome, Giovanni in Sorrento, and Nedas in Florence and Venice. All of them were so fun to tour with, always happy to take our picture and since the groups were smaller we could be a bit more customizable with our experience and what we wanted to see during walking tours of the city! The guides were probably one of my favorite parts of the trip because after spending so much time with them they began to feel like more of a friend than a tour guide which was awesome! I really enjoyed the welcome dinners as well to help break the ice with fellow travelers and get to know the guides better. They all were very funny and knowledgeable of the location we were at and happy to provide food/activity recommendations for our free time. The only critique I would give the company is we were often not meeting our guides at the accommodation, we were asked to meet them somewhere in the city whether that was a train station or a specific street in the city. Being in a city I had never been to before this was a little difficult at first, especially when the meeting point was far away. I wish they would put us in direct contact with who we are meeting so we can message them if we are lost or running late, and who we should be looking for. With that being said, we had a couple times where we arrived at the meeting point and nobody came or came much later once I called the company a few times, which I think could have been resolved if we were just given the contact of who we were meeting from the beginning or making a WhatsApp group chat of some sort for the group to send updates and communicate better. But after one incident of a meeting point mix up the company was very accommodating in helping us the rest of the trip and adding a gondola ride in Venice for us to make up for a hiccup in Rome. Overall I would recommend this trip to other fellow travelers! You see such amazing things with amazing tour guides and I would do it again and again!

• Excellent - 912 reviews for Europe tours

We’ll planned and we’ll informed once on the trip

Would have preferred more free time for shopping and hotels closer to shops.

• Excellent - 142 reviews for Europe tours

Lack of communication on all tours. Having to go to a second company to answer all our questions instead of going directly to TourRadar. You should not source your services.

Overall, it was a great trip! We absolutely loved our Greece trip and felt like Tour Radar did well with the Greece part of the trip. Transportation was provided, tours set up for each city that included awesome tour guides that did a fantastic job. All the hotels and staff were fantastic. However, Tour Radar totally dropped the ball in Italy, the second half of the trip. No transportation to or from any destination OR guidance on how to get to our hotel. We were essentially stranded in an airport and both train terminals until we walked to a restaurant with WiFi, bags dragged along, and were able to figure out a way there. We wasted hours and walked many miles out of our way because the transportation wasn’t provided in any way. Additionally, there weren’t any tours provided in Italy besides one in Rome, which was very rushed and didn’t cover Rome or any other city Tour Radar was supposed to provide tours for. We ended up booking separate tours for all the cities in Italy we saw, which defeats the purpose of using tour radar. We were overall happy with the Greece part of the trip and very disappointed with the Italy side of the trip (though we figured it out ourselves and still had a fabulous trip…Just not thanks to tour radar).

• Excellent - 1,924 reviews for Europe tours

Was an excellent trip. Rose, our tour guide was awesome! She was very personable, funny, knowledgeable about all things UK and had great suggestions for free time. Jason our coach driver, was an excellent driver, extremely helpful and all around nice. Even our one day driver Daniel was great. Jason was required to take a day off. I would recommed this trip to anyone looking to go to the UK. Also, I would recommend Trafaglar to anyone looking to take a tour of another country.

Trafalgar did a wonderful job! Your director Johnny and drivers David and Sid were amazing. Only suggestion is Novotel hotels are a bit sub par and some hotels had bath tubs that were difficult for older clients to traverse.

• Excellent - 74,901 reviews for Europe tours

Excellent. Everything was smooth as advertised.

It was an amazing tour. The food was great, hotels really comfortable, nice, excellent service and the actual places that we visited were so beautiful, historic and timeless. Marina our guide was awesome as she was knowledgeable, kind and really nice. We loved it totally

Dorak Tours

• Excellent - 52 reviews for Europe tours

Fantastic tour of the sites of Istanbul and Cappadocia. Our guide Yasemin was exceptional. She was very knowledgeable and ensured everything went smoothly. Would highly recommend

All my expectations were met.

Dimensione Sicilia - Dimsi …

• Excellent - 154 reviews for Europe tours

It was very well organized, Placido was a great guide and I enjoyed it. The pace was just right, and the itinerary was good. The only thing I found misleading was the extra charges for some activities, entrance fees and city taxes. It would be better if they were all listed as additional fees, apx 150 EUR extra per person.

There was great confusion among my tour friends because this tour in reality is very different from how it is described. The tour company offers two different tours (round-trips starting at Palermo and Catania). In fact, wherever you start, you join in to the tour from the other starting point en route. So at Palermo our new group of 16 joined a 24 person group that started at Catania, and when we reached Catania, they left and were replaced by a new 20+ person group. So this is almost always (according to the guide) a 40 person, full-bus tour. Additionally, there are Spanish language tours by the same company using the same routes. This means the schedule and activities are designed for two, 40-person, full-bus tours to operate simultaneously (again, I checked this with the tour guide, who confirmed it). The guide and driver were very good. Some of the included dinners were poor in quality. We had one unannounced hotel change, and the hotels in general were average. Some of the days were very taxing physically, especially the day in Syracusa, with 15000+ steps. Overall, Sicily is a great tour destination, and this tour hits the highlights.However, the tour did not quite meet our expectations due to its size.

Choose Balkans

• Excellent - 320 reviews for Europe tours

We had a private tour, that included the 2 of us and our guide. We seen a lot in 8 days. From Bosnia, Albania, Montenegro, Macedonia and lastly Kosovo. Our guide was very knowledgeable and told us a lot of history of the area. He would drive as close as possible to the top of castles and churches that he could, which was different then when you are on a bus and have to get offf much further down. He also knew many people in the areas and would have managers and directors come and talk with us. We even got to go talk with the Bridge keeper in Perast, Bosnia. The bridge keeper allowed us up in his little house above the bridge and he served us Turkish coffee and Baklava. Had been great meals and many great wines during our travels. Our guide also took care of our heavy luggage as some of the hotels did not have elevators. Thanks Tour Radar for a great trip!

The boat trip costs about 25 euros and covers the península and sazan island. There is no tour In vlore so essentially what you pay for is the driver to drive you to Vlore and back. The beaches are full of stones.

Intrepid Travel

• Excellent - 11,756 reviews for Europe tours

Really enjoyed the first part in Spain and Portugal, helped especially by the guide. The Moroccan guide was a disappointment, Chefchouen and Fes wonderful, not sure why we went all the way to Marrakech for more of the same, and the tired hotel didn’t help. So pleased the group was a fantastic bunch. We had a ball in spite of other things.

Could have been (should have) a day or two longer. I think there is enough to see in Ponta Delgada to justify a day there. Also, I would like to see the tour end where it starts. In Ponta Delgada.

Travel Talk

• Excellent - 6,443 reviews for Europe tours

The countries are wonderful and the Travel Talk team is organized, knowledgeable and treats all travelers with much respect. The hotels are very nice and sleeping outside of Dubrovnik makes sense due to costs while giving exposure to Trebinje that you would not be possible otherwise… The issue is that the timing is too tight, it is worth having more time in each place and not have 2-3 hours in certain places like Tirana, Kotor or Mostar.

The Balkan tours by Tour Radar is an excellent value for money oriented 8 nations tour in 12 days. Fantabulous tour and great experience. Their Tour Managers ( Mr.Vojin Munchan & Spyros Varveris) are GEMS. Have excellent knowledge about History, Geography and Politics of this entire region. Local tour guides were also good professionals. Macedonian one was Prof of Tourism . Every one on earth if possible and affordable, I shall strongly recommend this tour as well as the operator.

G Adventures

• Excellent - 19,193 reviews for Europe tours

Amazing tour!! I got to make the best of my short time in Europe by seeing four beautiful countries. I would do it all over again in a heartbeat and am actually already looking at more tours of Europe for next year!

Very nice island, itineraries all very different from a difficulty and view point. Local CEO just perfect. I would not recommend this hotel, City Marina, and its breakfast.

Insight Vacations

• Excellent - 645 reviews for Europe tours

Greg Colgin was our travel director and made the trip memorable. He is knowledgeable, caring, extremely organized, and concerned about our wellbeing. He made the trip fun with his little extras. The itinerary was good. We saw a lot in the amount of time we had.

Greg was positive, knowledgeable, fun, and very organized. He provided creativity, kept our time as very fun and informative. Wanted to make sure he was available to answer questions and to meet everybody’s needs.

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10 Travel Websites for Tour Operators to Learn From

Tour and activity operators striving to have the best offers and best websites – this list is for you. These are the best travel websites for tour operators to learn from. It’s always recommended to continuously improve and grow, and this will give you just what you need. What’s a better way than benchmarking with best practices within your own sector?

You should definitely take a look at these websites. Whether you want to just check them out regarding design and categories, or you want to get some concrete information. You’ll see how they organize their content, what kind of content it is. And you can even learn specific things about countries and destinations that your tour business deals with. Here are travel websites for tour operators and activity providers to get ideas from and implement the best ones to your own business.

10 Travel Websites for Tour Operators

1. skift – research reports and latest industry news.

This is your go-to place for all the latest research reports regarding the travel industry. Everything is curated, analyzed and written by Skift ’s expert editors and analysts. Skift covers current strategic and tactical travel topics. If you want to know what are the breaking news, trends or statistics at the moment, or just read interesting stories – this website is your perfect source.

2. Travellers Point – Travel Community Site

One of the world’s largest travel community sites, Travellers Point features 30,000 blogs and more than 1.4 million photos. It has active forums where you can ask just about anything. The discussions of forums on this website are a great way to find out more information about your potential clients. What travelers want, what are their worries. This is important if you want to form your offers based on their needs. One of the travel websites for tour operators that can give you the deepest insight into your customers’ way of thinking.

3. Context Travel – Expert Writing and Splendid Walking Tours

Context Travel recruits academics who are passionate about their subject and who live in the area they’re working in. Thus, you’ll find experts on the Cold War in Berlin and architectural experts tracking down Roman remains in central London. In-depth, informed and interesting, the range of the walking tours they offer is simply outstanding. You can choose between 39 cities all over the world and for each city they are incredibly tailored to various tastes. For example, let’s take Paris. They don’t provide only general walking tours. Instead, travelers can choose between historic tours, specifically for markets, culinary themed, for every bigger museum and monument separately; there are children’s tours and there’s an option of customized private tours. That’s just to name a few. It could change the way you look on guided tours forever. And especially the features they have on their website are worth checking out.

4. In Your Pocket – City Guides and Marvelous Design

The website design is just breathtaking. Same goes for the way this site is set up, categories, content, etc. Definitely, lots of things that you could look up to. And, therefore, deserves its place on the list of best travel websites for tour operators. Their part “Inspiration – a selection of our finest travel writing” and “Editor’s picks” should really be an inspiration. Entertaining and honest, the In Your Pocket city guides make their rivals seem tame by comparison. More than 100 European cities have been given the treatment. All the key content from the print editions has been collated on this well-organised and user-friendly website. It also includes a series of YouTube vignettes.

5. Gadling – Featuring the Most Interesting Stories

It’s true; there are plenty of travel websites out there that will bring you news. But Gadling really has everything covered and there are not all generic stories. They feature stuff that you won’t find anywhere else and you can literally find every category that comes to your mind. It’s interesting that it has been said how Gadling is the travel equivalent of an iPod shuffle button. The stories are so random and it’s one of the most refreshing travel websites for tour operators.

6. Secret London – Everything About one City

If you’re a tour and activity operator that specializes in one city, then Secret London is a perfect example of how to exploit everything. It’s a very comprehensive guide to the hidden corners of London. You can see all the categories and subcategories they have. This site focuses on those odd little details that give London its charm. There are stories, for example, about abandoned train stations, the different types of the post box, and some hidden locations. There’s lots of trivia, but also helpful information about best vegetarian food places, for example. Just look at how many different “Welcome walks” tours they offer.

7. Spotted by locals – the Best Source of Information for Tour Guides

Rather than rely on an outdated guidebook, Spotted By Locals allows you to get tips from insiders. Locals in 40 European cities blog about their favorite restaurants, bars, shops, and festivals – it’s like having a friend show you the best spots. You can buy a PDF guide to each city or download the free smartphone app. This is a great encouragement for tour guides to use this kind of information in their tours. Tour operators could perhaps embrace this kind of thing in their own cities. You can even easily become a “spotter” yourself and be a part of this interesting movement.

8. Travelfish – Independent Guide to SE Asia, Forums, and Blogs

Travelfish is an independent guide to Southeast Asia. It’s one of the well-written travel websites for tour operators, packed with hard-earned information, opinionated and up-to-date. Along with an authored guide, it contains user reviews, forums, blogs and general advice, mainly aimed at budget travelers. Arguably better than the big-name publishers. It’s good to see how they cover pre-trip planning information, weather information, country backgrounders, and itineraries. Plus, they check out hotels, restaurants, and things to do and see in the region, and provide transport information.

9. Lonely Planet Thorn Tree Forum – Great for Deeper Insight About Travelers

Again, as mentioned earlier, forums are a great source of information. And here barely a question goes unanswered. From snapping up a last-minute visa to Burma/Myanmar from inside central Vietnam to crossing between Bulgaria and Serbia when the trains are on strike. If you’re going to discover thorny travel problem anywhere – it’s this place. Lonely Planet Thorn Tree Forum can even inspire tour and activity operators to start their own forums on their websites. It’s great for encouraging interaction with your travelers.

10. Travel + Leisure – Great for Sharing Stories With Your Customers

Travel tips, guide, news, and information – all in one place. Similar to already mentioned Skift, this website has everything. It’s also an excellent source for stories you could share on your social media when you don’t have your own content. Keep up with the travel industry trends with Travel + Leisure .

Hopefully, some of these travel websites are going to give you some new ideas about your own website and your tour and activity offer. At least you can find out a lot about your potential customers on some of these websites’ forums.

Bloglovin’ – Find Bloggers you can Connect With

Besides travel websites for tour operators – you can follow travel bloggers. It’s never been easier to find travel bloggers that might be of greatest interest to you, just Google them. And you can keep up with them through Bloglovin’ . It’s a site that allows you to save blog posts for future reference and discover new blogs you’ll love along the way. You could also collaborate with some travel bloggers. And you can match up your business goals with the personality and style of a travel blogger and trust their writing. After all, blogs are the way to go in the present day! And more and more people search for their next tour on their favorite travel blogs.

Reach out to us if you’d appreciate some help! If you have any questions or comments, feel free to contact us or share it right here.

Finally, if you liked this article, share the love with your colleagues!

ORIOLY on March 22, 2017

by Lidija Šomodi

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Low Budget Digital Marketing Strategies for Tour Operators

In this ebook you will learn strategies to boost your digital marketing efforts, and the best part, at a low and even zero cost for your business.

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We at Veena World understand that nowadays, travelling has become much more than just visiting a new destination. That is why each of our vacation packages offers you the respite that you anticipate from a holiday. As a well-informed traveller, it is only right to expect more from your travel company in India - we strive to ensure the same for our customers. It is no longer about only conveyance and accommodation. For those who enjoy travelling, the best travel packages are those which can offer them holistic holiday experiences. That is exactly what you get when you opt for the best travel company in Mumbai – Veena World.

Counted among the top 10 travel agencies in Mumbai, Veena World has all the travel services under one roof. In our constant endeavour to be the best travel company in India, everything that we do is based on creating and setting new benchmarks. With extensive travel know-how, end-to-end travel planning and a wide assortment of travel packages, we are counted among the best travel agents in India that ensure the best holiday experiences.

What makes us one of the best travel companies in India?

We, at Veena World, know that there is nothing better than the experiences and memories you are able to create when you travel to new places with our holiday packages. With Veena World’s packages, you can head out and indulge in the exploration of an unknown destination or revisit your favourite spots in places that hold a lot of memories, you can meet new people from various walks of life, and mark another spot on the map that you have covered; there is nothing better than travel.

We understand exactly what a simple trip can mean to a person and that is why we have created specially curated travel packages to ensure that you can have the most memorable experience possible. Travel the world with Veena Patil Hospitality as you can find the best of tour packages at Veena World to suit any and every travelling need.

Whether you want to head out for a solo trip or travel with a bunch of like-minded people, Veena World, one of the best travel companies in India, has got you covered. Recognized among the best travel companies in Mumbai and the whole of the country, we offer customised and bespoke services whenever you book holiday packages online with us. Regardless of the duration or destination you choose, our personal touch in every itinerary ensures that every tour is a speciality. Being one of the most well-known travel companies in India, we care about delivering great holiday experiences. 

All you have to do is book your holiday packages online at Veena World. After that, get ready for the vacation of a lifetime. The attention we put into crafting each package is one of the reasons why we are regarded as the best travel portal in India. 

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7 Tour Operator Software for Small Teams | Bókun (2024 Guide)

Charlotte Gannon • June 7, 2024

Small tour guide brands should look for a few key features when comparing booking software:

• First, you need the tools to create a booking website. Many brands offer booking widgets you can embed on your site to drive bookings. But if you don’t already have a booking website, you’ll need tour operator software with a website builder.
• Second, you need tools to grow your distribution network over time. You can get your name in front of more potential customers by selling tours on OTAs and partnering with other businesses to promote each others’ services and experiences.
• Third, you need user-friendly features to manage operations and staff. This includes creating tour listings, setting pricing and availability, keeping track of bookings, assigning tour guides, automating simple customer communications, and reporting on revenue.

You’ll also want to consider scalability — your booking management system should adapt with your business as you grow. That way, you don’t “outgrow” your systems and reach a point where you have to switch software (as we all know transitioning software can be a massive headache).

Last, and perhaps most obviously — pricing is important for small teams. Comparing tour operator software pricing is tricky because pricing models can vary: some systems charge subscription fees, some charge booking or transaction fees, and some charge a combination.

We compiled this guide of 8 popular tour operator software for small teams. We’ll cover the features bulleted above, scalability, and pricing, so you can compare the options and find what’s best for you.

Our guide kicks off with a review of our solution, Bókun. (To explore our platform after reading, we offer a free 14-day trial .)

Best Tour Operator Software for Small Teams

Flexible tour operator software to support small teams & guide growth strategies.

Bókun is loved by tour operators ( rated 4.8 stars on Capterra ) because:

• Our platform brings everything to sell tours online and manage operations under one roof.  You can ditch manual methods (like  tracking bookings in spreadsheets ), consolidate your tech stack, and keep everyone and everything running smoothly.
• Bókun is super easy to use and learn.   We offer a  free 14-day trial  so you can get acclimated to the platform  before deciding if you want to opt-in to the PRO subscription.  Users report  little to no learning curve when adopting Bókun and adjusting platform features when they want to add sales channels or start partnerships. Our team is happy to answer questions and help during onboarding, and we even offer consulting for growing teams as they increase reservations through our platform.   
• We’re a Tripadvisor brand and Viator partner,  offering special perks for those users . Viator users can import tour listings directly into Bókun for easier management. We also offer four free Viator product checks each month and  waive Bókun booking fees  on reservations from this platform.   Bókun connects with Tripadvisor to display customer reviews on both platforms. (We’re also a Premium Connectivity Partner with GetYourGuide.)

Our tour operator software  is designed to meet the criteria we discussed earlier, and we offer  more affordable, straightforward pricing than our competitors  so our platform is accessible for even small one- or two-person teams.

We offer all features at one flat subscription cost ($49), and our booking fees are the lowest in the category (1.5% for online bookings from your website, OTAs, and partners).

We’ll review the key features below, showing how other tour operators use Bókun to sell online, increase bookings, partner with other businesses, and keep operations in order.

Create a Booking Website to Enable Direct Bookings

Our platform provides a user-friendly website builder so you can  start selling tours online  and enable direct bookings. You can access this website builder for free during your trial to begin creating a custom site. 

Our platform provides a variety of website templates (all mobile-friendly and SEO-optimised), and then you plug in the fields. You can add custom colours, images, and logos and then include details about your tour guide company. The booking engine is already installed and ready to go.

After you design your site, you choose your preferred website name, and we’ll cover the charges to secure the domain.

Our website builder and complimentary domain can save tour operators $3K on average (many teams can spend much more if they’re paying for monthly website maintenance or SEO services). Most website builders charge fees to use their software, then domain charges are highly variable. Some domains cost a few cents, and others cost thousands. 

You can watch a quick demo here:

Learn more:   Create a Booking Website in 7 Steps

In addition to our website builder, we also offer booking widgets for teams that already have a website. You can embed our online booking engine on your site with just a few clicks.

Enabling online bookings alone improves the customer experience and helps obtain new business. Instead of submitting request forms or emailing you to ask about availability, customers can find you online, learn about your business, see your tours and openings, and instantly book with you. 

We worked with Railbiking in Greece to build a booking website and allow their customers to book online. Bookings doubled within the year , and 89% of reservations were made online. ( You can read their story here. )

Grow Your Distribution Network via OTAs & Bókun Marketplace

Creating a booking website is one way to drive business — but people can only book with you there if they know about you. That’s why  Bókun connects with dozens of online travel agencies (OTAs)  so you can sell tours on the sites people know and use to book travel. 

As mentioned above, we’re a Tripadvisor brand and Viator partner, so you can sell tours on those sites and get your business in front of millions (upon millions) of new travellers.

But we also connect with GetYourGuide, Expedia, Headout, Tiqets, Trip.com, and many industry-specific OTAs to help grow your distribution network.

Read more:   Trip.com Partners with Bókun to Grow Supplier Reach and Boost Inventory

You can add and remove sales channels at any time through the Sales tools  tab. Then, you can manage bookings and availability across all sites in the Bókun calendar. 

We recommend small teams start with one major OTA, like Viator, and another regional or niche reseller that is more closely linked to your products.

Don’t list tours on a dozen sites at once and overwhelm yourself. If you see sales from Viator, you could open up more availability on that sales channel or add another major OTA like GetYourGuide. Explore different OTAs related to your niche and test how those perform for you.

In addition, Bókun Marketplace is home to 27K+ suppliers and resellers. 

Beyond connecting with OTAs, you can partner with other travel businesses through the Bókun Marketplace. Our network includes other tour and activity operators like yourself, in addition to hotels, resorts, rental providers, and attractions like museums, theme parks, and universities.

Tour operators use our network to:

• Find resellers to promote their tours — this helps you reach new potential customers and fill your booking calendar.
• Sell others’ tours and services and grow their business through multiple revenue streams. 
• Build tour packages   with partners  to offer unique experiences that help them stand out from competitors.

Read more:   Venice Tours Achieved 400% Revenue Increase through the Bókun Marketplace

You can establish these relationships and manage all communications and contracts in Bókun. Our system also includes a reporting dashboard where you can see which channels or partners drive the most business. Then, you can use these learnings to inform your growth strategy. (We’ll also cover this reporting dashboard later.)

For more tips, check out some of our other guides: 

• How to Market a Tour Company
• How to Sell Tours on Viator
• 10 Tips to Get More Tour Reservations

Design New Tour Listings — Increase Revenue with Add-Ons & Combo Packages

You can design and manage all tour listings in the  Experiences tab.

This feature is especially user-friendly because it shows tour operators everything they need to include in listings — you simply walk through the steps in our product builder. (Then, you can create templates from listings to easily build new listings later on.)

In the image above, you can see the fields our system prompts you to complete when designing tour listings. You want to brainstorm catchy, attention-grabbing titles, provide detailed itineraries, and include high-quality images and videos from past experiences.

The more you can include to showcase past experiences, the better. We recommend adding at least six images.

Our system also lets you offer   Extras   (add-ons) with tours — this is a nice way for travellers to customise their experiences, and it also gives you an opportunity to upsell customers and earn more from each booking, increasing your return on investment (ROI).

You can set pricing and availability by product — and you have a few options when setting pricing:

• Set one flat rate
• Create pricing categories (offer one rate for children, another for adults, another for seniors, and so on) 
• Offer bulk discounts
• Set rates for private tours
• Leverage dynamic pricing rules

Note:  Dynamic pricing is an advanced tool that automatically adjusts your rates based on set rules. 

Circling back to Railbiking in Greece — after switching to online strategies, they started regularly booking out their calendar, so they wanted to drive additional revenue by using dynamic pricing to increase rates for tours that were especially popular with travellers. Even with increasing pricing, they still booked out (allowing them to earn more without adding more products, partnering with other businesses, or even lifting a finger).

Next, you select your availability rules with our simple-to-use tools; you choose: 

• How customers book with you (if they specify a date and time, just a day, or they buy a general pass)
• Start and close out dates for experiences (aka, the times of year you offer tours)
• The specific days of the week the experience is available
• Departure times 

Availability rules populate your calendar, so you don’t have to manage this week by week. You can always adjust specific days or block out certain departure times to accommodate unexpected changes.

Availability also populates across all of your active sales channels and updates as customers book with you, so you can avoid overlap and double bookings.

Manage Staff, Customers, and Behind-the-Scenes Operations

While on the topic of back-office operations, let’s cover some of Bókun’s other tools to keep you organised.

To refresh, we’ve already discussed creating a booking site, channel management, selling on OTAs, and product and availability management — briefly mentioning how you can manage new bookings and real-time availability from the Bókun calendar.

Centralised Booking Calendar

The Bókun booking calendar is your  one-stop-shop for managing all reservations . It displays bookings from your website, OTAs, and partner channels and allows you to add offline bookings. (Managing offline bookings is always free!)

Then, you have a bird’s-eye view of everything on your agenda and can keep up with any cancellations or rescheduling. You can also assign guides to tours so they can see their schedules.

Mobile Apps

We offer  mobile apps for iOS and Android   so you and your staff can access the booking calendar while out in the field. You can see who’s scheduled to attend tours (and who specifically is on the guest list) and keep up with last-minute changes or cancellations. 

Our apps also have a ticket scanning feature  to speed up and simplify guest check-in. 

CRM & Automated Communications

The Bókun booking platform includes a CRM ,  so you don’t have to purchase and integrate this system separately. Our CRM automatically saves customer information — names, emails, addresses — when they contact or book with you. Then, this powers Bókun’s  automated communications functionality. 

Our system saves you time and gives you confidence that you’re not forgetting any important to-do’s by automatically sending customers booking confirmations, tickets, reminders before tours, follow-ups, and more.

Our ticketing tool lets you design tour tickets (with QR or bar codes) so customers can save them on their mobile devices for a smooth check-in.

We provide a series of templates to customise all types of emails, such as: 

• Thank you’s that can be sent after tours
• Promotional emails (with discounts, promo codes, etc.)
• Upselling emails to sell add-ons
• Retargeting emails to capture abandoned carts or cancellations
• Newsletters about new experiences or events in your area

You can customise templates any which way and choose when they’re scheduled to send (on specific dates, after set actions, etc.). Our system takes care of the rest.

Customer Portals

Bókun also includes customer portals so travellers can view, modify, or cancel tours online at their convenience. Our system automatically emails customers after they cancel or modify a reservation to confirm the accepted changes. Our system sends you a notification and automatically updates your calendar when customers make changes.

(You can also design and schedule customer cancellation emails inviting them to reschedule for a later date.)

Integrations with Payment Processing Systems 

Bókun   integrates with   countless payment gateways — PayPal, Stripe, Apple Pay and Google Pay for example — to give customers multiple options to pay online at checkout. We also connect with Klarna so you can provide customers with financing options for pricier experiences.

This improves the booking process as customers can actually confirm bookings and guarantee their spots when making reservations (and they don’t have to wait to pay in person when they arrive, prolonging check-in).

Reporting Dashboard

As we talked about earlier, Bókun includes a reporting system so you can monitor sales performance and a variety of other KPIs. Our system has preset reports to show you:

• Revenue — See how much you earn from online reservations and break earnings down by source. You can track revenue from offline bookings here, too. 
• Performance of sales channels & partners — See who brings in the most bookings and revenue and invest in more of what’s working for you. 
• Total number of bookings — See how many bookings you earn in a single day, week, or month. You can customise reports to review data over any time frame. 
• Details about bookings — For example, how many travellers per booking (to gauge if you attract families, couples, etc.), if travellers purchased add-ons, which add-ons they purchased, etc.
• Tours that are booked most often — See which products are most popular and which ones customers pass on. 
• Busy & slow seasons — See which times of year you receive the most bookings and when bookings fall off. Then, you can prepare for busy and slow seasons accordingly; you can hire more staff during busy months, and you could look at which tours are most popular and offer similar experiences during slow seasons. 

Bókun App Store

We mentioned earlier that customers appreciate our straightforward pricing — we offer all of our core features to all users for a flat subscription cost. But users can customise Bókun or purchase add-ons through the app store .

We have a variety of tools to support different use cases; most apps are free (like Adventure Photos), but we offer a handful of paid modules (including inventory management, a more advanced reporting suite, a digital waiver solution, and solutions for travel agents).

We also integrate with tools like Zapier, Slack, and Google Calendar; which you can access through the app store.

You can purchase apps and change settings as you grow and business needs change; we’re always around to help.

Getting Started & Growing in Bókun

We offer a  free 14-day trial  for you to explore Bókun. During the trial period, you can build your website, connect to Viator, manage offline bookings, and browse our Marketplace. 

After the trial ends, you can opt-in to our PRO subscription for $49/month. This grants access to all core Bókun features discussed above. (Remember that you can customise the software and manage those purchases through our app store.)

We offer super low booking fees — 1.5% for online bookings from your site, OTAs, and partners. Plus, we never charge Bókun booking fees on Viator or offline reservations. 

Our team is available to answer questions as you get started and can consult with you as you grow to lend insights to your strategies. Our platform supports small tour operator teams, and we offer custom solutions for enterprise and global brands — so Bókun can support you no matter how big you grow.

To learn more about Bókun, start your free 14-day trial   — no credit card required! 

Resmark  is a nice tour booking software for small teams because it’s an all-in-one solution, the platform is easy to use, and pricing is affordable. 

Resmark lets you receive bookings directly from your site, connect with OTAs, and manage offline reservations; automate back-office tasks like sending customer emails and waivers; and report on revenue and bookings. They don’t offer a self-serve website builder, but they offer website-building services and booking widgets to embed on your site.

Resmark packs a lot under one roof, but their customer experience team is available to help during set-up and training. Then Resmark’s platform and features are designed to save tour operators hours every week, so they have time to work on the business (instead of in the business) — explore growth strategies, add new tours, hire more staff, etc.

The only downside here regarding growth is that Resmark does not offer a reseller marketplace. The platform connects with OTAs to promote tours on travel sites, but it doesn’t have features to connect or collaborate with other businesses in the tourism industry.

• Website building services
• Booking widgets
• Channel management & connections with OTAs
• Availability management
• CRM & automated customer communications
• Digital waiver solution
• Integrations with popular payment gateways
• Dynamic pricing & other advanced pricing options
• Options to sell add-ons
• Options to create tour packages
• Advanced booking management tools like notes & task management
• Inventory management
• Resource management
• Accounting tools

Resmark offers two core packages and custom plans for enterprise teams. Both packages include all of Resmark’s booking management tools listed above and access to their online waiver solution (up to 50 free waivers per month).

The differences between the two packages lie in pricing and booking fees.

• You can opt for no subscription fees (the “free package”) and pay a $500 set-up fee. Resmark also charges 3.5% transaction fees in this package but you can choose to pass those to the customer or cover them yourself.
• Or, you can pay a $95/month subscription cost and avoid the $500 set-up fee. Resmark also charges lower transaction fees in this plan (2%).

Resmark recommends its “free package” for seasonal businesses or businesses planning to pass customers booking fees. It recommends the paid plan for businesses that operate year-round.

3. Regiondo

Regiondo  is a good booking solution for small teams because the platform provides the essentials for selling and promoting tours online without overwhelming you with a ton of complex features. The navigation and features are  reportedly  user-friendly and easy to learn. 

Regiondo is a German brand whose solution has historically been popular with small and growing tour companies in the UK. However, they’ve expanded their reach through a recent merger with Rezdy (more on this in a moment) and offer custom enterprise plans to support growing teams.

In addition, they offer solutions to support high-volume ticket sales and packages for travel agents and DMCs/DMOs.

One downside to note with Regiondo is that pricing is expensive, and they charge extra to access and use their partner network. If you want to register as a reseller, you have to purchase the Partner plan separately.

• A one-click website builder to create custom sites —  Regiondo charges an extra $52/month for this feature
• Online booking engine
• Product & availability management
• Reseller network
• Touch POS to manage walk-up reservations & payments
• Online payments via Stripe
• Marketing tools to offer discount codes & request reviews
• Mobile apps

Regiondo offers a few packages for tour and activity providers:

• The Starter plan starts at $50/month — it supports two users and grants basic feature access.
• The Advanced plan starts at $105/month — it supports five users and gives access to more features, like automated communications and options to sell add-ons. 
• The Enterprise plan  starts at $210/month — it supports 25 users and grants full platform access. 

These rates are entry-level prices; Regiondo offers custom quotes based on what you require from the software. They also charge a 3% system usage fee and a 52¢ ticket fee in each package.

You can choose to be a tour operator or reseller — if you want to do both, you must enrol in (and pay for) both programs. Regiondo does not disclose pricing for Partner plans. 

Read more:   Best Regiondo Alternatives: Comparison Guide

4. Checkfront

Checkfront  might appeal to small tour and activity businesses interested in fast growth because it has hundreds of tools to help tour operators sell online and grow their customer base. (It’s worth noting that Checkfront does not offer a website builder, only booking widgets.) 

Small teams like Checkfront’s online booking platform because it’s reportedly easy to learn and highly scalable. They also don’t charge subscription fees; instead, they charge a 3% booking fee for each reservation.

The con worth noting here is that many tour operators find Checkfront’s offerings a little too much; most don’t need hundreds of features to manage operations, so they’re paying for and working around functionality they don’t use. They also say that  some important features, like the reporting dashboard, are limited in functionality. 

We won’t list all of Checkfront’s features, but here are a few important ones for smaller teams:

• Reservation system with self-service bookings
• Online payment options: Checkfront integrates with popular payment processors, connects with your POS, and lets you send custom invoices
• Real-time, customisable booking dashboard
• Custom form builders and waivers to send to customers before their tours
• Channel management
• Integrations and developer API

Checkfront has two plans:

• The  Growth plan with all of Checkfront’s core features. They do not charge subscription fees here, but 3% booking fees on every reservation. You can choose to cover these or pass them to the customer. 
• Custom plans (Managed ) include a dedicated account manager who provides training and support through onboarding. These quotes are based on what you require from the software. 

Read more:   Best Checkfront Alternatives: Comparison Guide

Note:  Regiondo and Checkfront both recently merged with Rezdy.  Rezdy  is typically more popular for growing or enterprise tour guide companies and wouldn’t be our first recommendation for smaller teams. 

Regiondo and Checkfront may better cater to this audience; however, existing users of both platforms note changes to features and pricing since this merger. If you’re considering either of these options, this may be something to discuss during your demo call.

5. FareHarbor

We’ve added  FareHarbor  to our list because its pricing appeals to small teams — they don’t charge subscription fees, and customers pay booking fees. Its software solution includes essential booking management tools and features to drive new business (like OTA connections and a reseller network). 

FareHarbor might also appeal to small businesses because its team offers a website-building service. Note:  This is not an elaborate website development service; it’s still free because they customise a site from their template library — it’s similar to Bókun’s website builder, but you give FareHarbor creative control.

However, the warning we always give about FareHarbor is to consider booking fees.

FareHarbor doesn’t disclose exact booking fees online; they’re variable but can be as high as 6%. If you offer multi-day trips or more expensive tours, these fees could tack a lot to the customer’s final cost, and if they see expensive booking fees at checkout, it could deter them from clicking purchase. (Especially if they see competitors offer similar experiences without the booking fees.)

Customers note  that booking fees can negatively impact conversions, so consider how fees could affect your pricing and whether you’re willing to take the risk to avoid subscription costs. 

• Website-building services
• Online booking widget
• Customisable booking calendar
• Connections with OTAs & channel management
• Product management
• Staff management
• Integrations with Stripe
• Customer portals
• Fast check-in features & online waiver tools
• Options to sell memberships

FareHarbor does not charge a monthly subscription; they charge fees for each booking. The fees vary but are as high as 6%. FareHarbor passes these fees to the customer. 

Read more:   Best FareHarbor Alternatives: Comparison Guide

6. Peek Pro

Peek Pro  is another booking management platform for small teams interested in growth strategies. 

This option might be more advanced than Checkfront above because it offers automated retargeting tools to increase bookings, Peek Capital to apply for loans, and features to sell memberships, add-ons, and tour packages — in addition to core booking management tools. (Like Checkfront, Peek Pro does not offer a website builder.)

Although customers appreciate Peek Pro’s robust feature set and customer support team, they warn of difficulties in adopting and learning the software.

They say  Peek Pro streamlines the booking experience for customers, but learning the features and managing the back end is challenging. (Some also mention set-up fees to get started.) But reviews also say Peek Pro’s team is available to help when you have questions and provides online training resources to answer common questions. 

• Online booking widgets
• Reservation management
• Integrations with OTAs & channel management tools
• Availability & staff management
• Options to sell memberships, add-ons, bundles, gift cards & vouchers
• Marketing tools, including customer retargeting
• Dynamic pricing
• Fast check-in features, including digital waivers, Kiosk mode, and ticket scanning
• Peek reseller network
• Peek Capital (to apply for loans)
• Integrations with online payment processors

Peek Pro does not disclose pricing on their website, but reports say they charge a $199 set-up fee along with booking fees. Fees vary but can be as high as 6%. (So we issue the same warning here as with FareHarbor above.)

Xola’s  online booking system might appeal to small teams because: 

• The platform has a super-modern look and feel, with advanced but user-friendly features. Xola also differentiates itself by offering a homegrown booking engine + payment solution. It’s designed to prevent customers from dropping off during checkout and help you see more bookings.
• Their team offers a website-building service to help you get up and running quickly.
• They offer complimentary set-up & onboarding, with 24/7 support to help when needed.
• The platform features the basics to get online  and more advanced tools to drive bookings and grow your business. 
• Xola doesn’t charge subscription fees.

However, Xola’s pricing is a lot like FareHarbor’s above. They charge booking fees instead of subscription fees, which can be as high as 6% — but you can cover these yourself instead of passing them to the customer.

It’s also worth noting that Xola requires you to use its homegrown payment portal and charges transaction fees (1.9% + 30¢).

So, you have to consider the cost of your experiences with these other variables to determine if Xola could be a good option for you. 

• Website builder
• Native payment gateway 
• OTAs & channel management
• Partner network
• Marketing & automation tools to drive new bookings & revenue
• Reporting tools
• Ticket management solutions (for theme parks and other attractions)

Xola charges a transaction fee (1.9% + 30¢) when customers use their payment gateway.  Xola notes that these fees vary for international transactions.

They do not charge subscription fees but, instead, booking fees. They pass booking fees to the customer; these fees vary but are reportedly as high as 6%.

Try Bókun Today

Want to explore Bókun’s platform and features in more depth?  Start your free trial  and try our website builder, sales tools, Marketplace, and more. 

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