Globus tour company

Which itineraries are you looking at?

I have not traveled Globus. The things I see right away is that not all their groups are Small...so if you want a group limited to 24 people you need to look for the specific dates they run. Tours with larger groups move slower, more time for comfort stops, more time to get everyone fed and back on the bus.

Some of their itineraries move really quickly. 2 nights in one location = 1 full day to explore. 1 night in a location gives you an afternoon and maybe part of a morning depending on how far you have to go that day.

I looked at the 9-day Rome to Paris one and there is just one night in Florence and Venice so not even a full day there. In Switzerland they stay in Lucerne so that is not actually in the mountains.

I see optional tours listed to see highlights...such as an extra charge for the "Highlights of Rome" to get you to the good things. I prefer a tour company that lists what they are going to show you in the full price instead of adding things bit by bit.

Tips are not included so you will need to calculate 10Euro per day for a tip for your guide and some for the bus driver as well.

I can't tell if shopping stops are part of the mix. I just am not a shopper and specifically choose tour companies that say they don't do shopping.

Take a look at the hotels. I did not look at any but Venice and for that location you are not actually staying in the canal part of Venice, you are staying on the mainland at Mestre.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mestre

I have done a number of tours with Rick Steves, Road Scholar and now Seymour Travels.

This way of travel may be your style but it would not work for me. Each person travels differently!

Thank you Pam,
That was very helpful. I prefer tours that are not rushed since Iam in my 70’s. Iam like you, there are only 1 day visit. I prefer a long Niger time. I will check into others. Again Thank you, Larry

If you like tours that are not rushed, many of the Road Scholar tour programs have moved to staying in 1 or 2 places and doing day trips out from there. I like that method of seeing things. I've done plenty of Rick's tours where you are moving every other day and even that, with 2 nights in a location is very tiring.

Take a look at www.roadscholar.org and see if anything meets your needs.

Gate 1 Discovery tours are another option. They are smaller group as well.

I would also suggest checking out Odysseys Unlimited. They are well run small group tours. They do suggest you tip the guide $10 or $15 a day but that is at your discretion. The price includes air but you can book your own air and just ask for the land price. They stay in nice hotels and are very customer oriented. They cater to their passengers a bit more than Rick Steve’s as you don’t have to carry your luggage. I find their tours less exhausting than Rick Steve’s. I like their guides and their itineraries. We have been very happy with their service and will be doing our eighth tour with them in November to India and Nepal.

I ran tours for Globus decades ago. They are a middle level tour company and every tour is different.

Some tours are rushed, some are slower. If you share which tours you are interested in, I can try to decipher to see how fast or slow they are going to be.

I have done nine tours with Globus and have enjoyed them all. I prefer to concentrate on one country or area at a time rather than the panoramic type tours that cover many countries/distances in one trip. If you read the day by day itinerary it usually tells you the driving distance for the day so you can get an idea of how long you’ll be on the bus. The busses are very comfortable. Sometimes after several days in a busy city I look forward to a day on the bus. I do try to avoid trips with too many one night stays, especially in a row. They are very organized and good at getting you where you need to go. I usually go in a day or two early to explore on my own as most trips start in major cities. You can add one or two pre or post days thru Globus or book on your own. I have found their rates to be good and appreciate that I don’t have to change hotels, or rooms. I like to do a lot of research before I travel, then pick and choose which optional tours to do based on my own interests. (Some people do all the optionals, some people do none, others like me do some, it’s totally up to you.) I am a solo traveler now (widow) and enjoy being part of the group. People are friendly and there are usually other solo travelers too. If you’re not sure coach travel is for you I would suggest starting out with a shorter trip to test the waters. Globus offers regular, small group and off-season tours (called “Escapes”). I’ve done three of the Escapes (N of Ireland, Spain, Sicily) and found them to be a good value.

Hello,

I've never traveled with Globus but have taken 13 Road Scholar, 3 Overseas Adventure Travel (OAT), and 2 Odysseys Unlimited tours. I've also never been on a Rick Steves tour. My primary reason is that the first three companies tend to have fewer one- or two-night stops. As noted in an earlier reply, Road Scholar especially has many more tours that stay in one or two locations with day trips requiring only a short bus ride.

Slightly off topic, Road Scholar, OAT, and Rick Steves tours seem to have comparable prices for similar itineraries and lengths of stay (Odysseys Unlimited is more expensive). However, unlike Rick Steves tours, Road Scholar and OAT always have luggage handling at least to the lobby and stay in hotels with elevator access to all rooms. As an otherwise active senior solo traveler, I can't imagine carrying luggage, no matter how lightly packed, up or worse down stairs, especially spiral staircases or those without handrails. I can easily take luggage to my room provided there is an elevator.

This is not to comment negatively on Rick Steves tours. Different travelers have different abilities, needs, and preferences.. And I do love this forum although I seldom contribute because of never having traveled with Rick Steves.

My first trips to Europe were with Globus. My trips with them were about 25 years ago so I can't vouch for current tours, but my tours were all wonderful. The guides were all well trained, helpful, and full of great information about the places we visited. The hotels were all very nice, some centrally located and some not. Meals were as good as any group meals and some were really special.

As Frank noted Globus is a mid level tour company - not a super low budget choice and definitely not a luxury choice. I chose them at the time because I was on a smaller budget (Europe travel wise) and they were well priced for what you get. You get what you pay for with tours. Big groups and optional excursions cost less. Small groups with more inclusions cost more. The Globus tours I took were almost half the cost of those small group tours that include tips and all excursions.

I learned so much and saw so many wonderful things on those tours that it's hard for me to say anything really bad about them. If budget is an issue then I do recommend them.

If budget is an issue, I recommend Gate 1. I think it attracts lots of teachers for a reason. The only Globus tour of Europe we've ever taken was in 1990. We saw a lot for our money, but the Tour Director was horrible-he wouldn't let a man use the toilet on the bus even though it was an emergency and he lectured us about how Americans waste energy on AC(after a night in a hotel in Berlin where I thought I was going to suffocate). He also tried to talk us into going on the diamond cutting event that was part of the tour instead of skipping it so we could go to the Anne Frank House. This past Jan/Feb we took a Globus small group tour to New Zealand and Australia and it was perfection. We literally could not think of any way to improve it and all the included dinners would have been highlight dinners on other tours. We loved our Tour Director. My husband tends to be critical and he said early in the tour that she was very good at what she does. She hit the right balance between being friendly and being professional.

My mom and I traveled with globus and it was great. This was 25 years ago, however