Central European Tours
Discover the heart of Central Europe on tour, encompassing Germany, Switzerland, Holland (The Netherlands) and Austria. Discover Alpine panoramas, scenic lakes and picturesque towns where you can meet the locals and sample regional delicacies. From the fairy tale Rhine Valley to the artistic hub of Vienna, you’ll have a holiday to remember on a train journey, small group tour or coach tour through Central Europe.
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12 Days Chamonix to Mogliano Veneto
Operator: Collette
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9 Days Munich to Zurich
Operator: Insight Vacations
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Explore has been taking small groups on adventure holidays all over the world for almost 40 years. The expert team, at home and overseas, works together more to create itineraries that leave you feeling that you’ve really explored a destination rather than just visited. You’ll see the highlights, the must-sees, of course. But you’ll also get away from the beaten track, and get a different perspective on your destination. You’ll get closer to a place, its people and cultures.
Our small groups are typically 12 people – small enough to get right into the heart of your destination, but big enough to find like-minded people to share your experiences with. And the glue that holds these groups together is our local tour leaders, who are uniquely placed to add individual and spontaneous moments to each trips – moments that stay with you long after you return home. All sorts of people travel with Explore – our groups are usually a mix of solos, couples and friends. What unites them is their adventurous spirit and thirst for real travel experiences.
We provide authentic small-group travel, designed by experts and led by experts, with sustainability at its heart and a common desire for unforgettable experiences. Whether you’re on a cultural tour of Lebanon, cycling in Vietnam, walking in Italy or exploring Costa Rica with your family, when you’re travelling with Explore you know that you’re in good hands.
Our small groups are typically 12 people – small enough to get right into the heart of your destination, but big enough to find like-minded people to share your experiences with. And the glue that holds these groups together is our local tour leaders, who are uniquely placed to add individual and spontaneous moments to each trips – moments that stay with you long after you return home. All sorts of people travel with Explore – our groups are usually a mix of solos, couples and friends. What unites them is their adventurous spirit and thirst for real travel experiences.
We provide authentic small-group travel, designed by experts and led by experts, with sustainability at its heart and a common desire for unforgettable experiences. Whether you’re on a cultural tour of Lebanon, cycling in Vietnam, walking in Italy or exploring Costa Rica with your family, when you’re travelling with Explore you know that you’re in good hands.
APT is an Australian family-owned company whose essence began in Melbourne in the 1920s. More than 90 years on, APT offers life-enriching trips to every more continent, and through the company’s vast industry experience, meticulous planning and unquestionable passion it's earned a place among the world’s most well-regarded travel companies.
From boutique river cruising to small-group 4WD adventures; traditional coach touring with a decadent twist; epic rail journeys to small-ship expeditions; classic ocean cruising to safaris of discovery by both land and air – there’s little APT are unwilling to consider in pursuit of creating the finest holiday experience for its valued guests.
Timeless luxury, exclusive experiences, life enriching moments and true personalisation. APT offers all-inclusive holidays so everything is taken care of. We invite you to join us; you won’t be disappointed.
From boutique river cruising to small-group 4WD adventures; traditional coach touring with a decadent twist; epic rail journeys to small-ship expeditions; classic ocean cruising to safaris of discovery by both land and air – there’s little APT are unwilling to consider in pursuit of creating the finest holiday experience for its valued guests.
Timeless luxury, exclusive experiences, life enriching moments and true personalisation. APT offers all-inclusive holidays so everything is taken care of. We invite you to join us; you won’t be disappointed.
xxAt Collette, we consider everyone who travels with us to be our personal guest. Every moment matters to us because we know it matters to you. This may more be because at heart we are a family owned company that has been in business for 100 years. It may be because our team are passionate about sharing their own love of travel and uncovering mysteries.
Choosing Collette comes with benefits that take your guided travel experience to another level. Our inclusive tours provide you more value for your money and more of what makes travel special. Let us show you the world!
Choosing Collette comes with benefits that take your guided travel experience to another level. Our inclusive tours provide you more value for your money and more of what makes travel special. Let us show you the world!
Discover
Must do experiences and highlights throughout Central Europe
Historic Berlin 
The Hills Are Alive 
Canal Cruise Amsterdam 
Cologne Cathedral 
Lakeside Lucerne Recent Reviews
What our clients are saying about their journeys through Central Europe
Swiss Escape
Swiss Escape
Janine, NSW, Australia, Feb 2026
A lovely 8 day bus tour with Globus, this was my first tour with Globus. The Tour Director, Susanna, who has worked with Globus for 42 years was very knowledgeable, efficient and went out of her way to ensure all participants had a great time. The countryside of Switzerland is very beautiful and the accommodation throughout the tour was excellent read more with all breakfasts and a few dinners provided with the package.
Unfortunately, our time in Lucerne, did not go to plan, the yearly carnival (which is celebrated in all of Switzerland) started the morning after we arrived, so our castle tour and many attractions were closed. I feel this is something that Globus should have been aware of and alternative plans should have been put in place. The carnival itself was very festive and the street parade great to watch, but disappointing that items on our schedule were unable to be visited.
On the last day of the tour, the optional tour consisted of a visit to the Castles of Bellinzona with lunch - we were given 'free time' to wander through the historic Bellinzona district. Local points of interest were closed due to the carnival, the Castle is free to enter, lunch was provided, but was fairly basic, we then visited Como in Italy and again was given 'free time' to explore Como on our own. This should have formed part of the the tour and not a optional paid tour, as previous tour days we visited cities and were given free time to explore. The cost of this 'optional tour' was quite expensive for what was provided and this was discussed by the other tour participants, who were also disappointed with this optional tour. Overall, I enjoyed the tour.
Unfortunately, our time in Lucerne, did not go to plan, the yearly carnival (which is celebrated in all of Switzerland) started the morning after we arrived, so our castle tour and many attractions were closed. I feel this is something that Globus should have been aware of and alternative plans should have been put in place. The carnival itself was very festive and the street parade great to watch, but disappointing that items on our schedule were unable to be visited.
On the last day of the tour, the optional tour consisted of a visit to the Castles of Bellinzona with lunch - we were given 'free time' to wander through the historic Bellinzona district. Local points of interest were closed due to the carnival, the Castle is free to enter, lunch was provided, but was fairly basic, we then visited Como in Italy and again was given 'free time' to explore Como on our own. This should have formed part of the the tour and not a optional paid tour, as previous tour days we visited cities and were given free time to explore. The cost of this 'optional tour' was quite expensive for what was provided and this was discussed by the other tour participants, who were also disappointed with this optional tour. Overall, I enjoyed the tour.
Winter Xmas
Winter Wonderland
Lorraine , NSW, Australia, Dec 2025
Destinations, bus comfort & top hotels made this tour exceptional. Included meals were always top class & guide was friendly, knowledgeable & helpful. Only negative was that 1 night stops made trip seemed rushed - 2 nights in each location would have provided more leisurely experience.
8 Days Xmas Markets Europe
Christmas Markets of Austria, Germany and Switzerland
Laksh, VIC, Australia, Dec 2025
You get what you signed up for - loads of unvarying Xmas markets! The wares are the same whether it is Vienna, Munich, Salzburg, Innsbruck or Lucerne with minor price diff. The Euro Xmas traditions & stories are interesting. Glugwein mugs are fun to collect. Itinerary is great & good weather definitely helps. You will get more fog than snow due to unseasonably read more warm winter frm mid to late Dec 2025. Optional experiences are grear - be prepared for extra €600. Great timing & organisation to avoid crowds but Tour Director rather blase & not informative. Included meals went downhill after the start at Vienna with mediocre welcome dinner & venue. Accom is central & not bad. Overall- pretty good 7 days tour but counting the last day which is just drop off at airport at Zurich is diabolically misleading!
Wonderful Tour of German and Austrian Christmas Markets.
German & Austrian Christmas Markets
Narelle and Chris, QLD, Australia, Dec 2025
Our tour commenced in Frankfurt with a welcome dinner which was a chance to meet fellow travellers. Albatross tours are usually around 28 passengers but we only had 14 so everyone got to know each other and we had a great time. Our journey included stays in Rothenburg, Oberammergau and Salzburg, finishing in Munich. All hotels were a good standard and read more centrally located so it was easy to get to the main sights and Christmas markets. Highlights of the trip, beside the Christmas Markets, were a Night Watchman tour in Rothenburg, Neuschwanstein Castle visit and a horse drawn carriage from Filzmoos up the mountain where we enjoyed a lovely morning tea. This tour proviided some spectacular and breathtaking sights and we enjoyed every minute of it.
Elena was a great tour manager who worked very hard to make sure everyone enjoyed themselves and she went the extra mile for a couple of travellers who werent as mobile as the rest of us. Our driver, Marco was very skilled, especially manoeuvring the coach in some small streets and tight spaces. As always, it was easy booking through Global Journeys and look forward to booking again.
Elena was a great tour manager who worked very hard to make sure everyone enjoyed themselves and she went the extra mile for a couple of travellers who werent as mobile as the rest of us. Our driver, Marco was very skilled, especially manoeuvring the coach in some small streets and tight spaces. As always, it was easy booking through Global Journeys and look forward to booking again.
Make sure you can walk
Christmas in Central Europe, Berlin to Vienna
Mom and Daughter Trip, WA, United States, Nov 2025
We did a mother–daughter trip. We can both walk. Some in our group could not, and it really dragged us down. We also can follow simple travel instructions and pivot to make our own plans for side activities and meals; others could not. That said, we had a great time!
Our CEO, Jelena, was great. However, at times we felt that she could have used some read more office support that she could have contacted. We turned a corner to be at a Christmas market that wasn’t there in Berlin. She did a great job of pivoting, knowing some history to tell us, and found a cathedral for us to go in and tour for a moment. She also explained some other monuments that were in the plaza, which was an old site used for Christmas markets but not in 2025.
The small offers that the tour company provided, such as the currywurst, the glüevine, and lebkuchen, seemed to be more difficult with the budget allowed by the tour company than it really needed to be. For instance, people were given too many options: what was in the budget, or add more money, or pay for the deposit on the mugs and get it back if you want, or keep it if you want. It just seemed very confusing for so many people at once. It would have been nice if it had been arranged that we went to a specific booth for each of those items. Maybe G Adventures is able to look into contracting that in the future. Or making a specific reservation for the cakes and coffee in Vienna. Or working it out ahead of time with the restaurant on the meet-up day for a set meal that’s within the budget, so everybody can get a little bit without having to go over budget, get confused, and feel off-put on our first dinner together.
We loved the Christmas markets. We loved the time that we spent. We loved the bit of history that we learned through our CEO. We know that it was one of the first Christmas market tours of the year, and we definitely felt some hiccups, but we had a good group of people that really tried to make the best of it.
I would recommend this tour for anyone in their 20s, 30s, 40s, 50s, and 60s. My mom was fine in her 70s, but others younger were not. I don’t want to sound bad, but if you walk with a cane, a walking tour is probably not the tour group that’s best for you. That’s the experience that 17 people had to endure on our tour. They would have to be able to walk multiple miles and deal with their luggage themselves, because one slow person affects 17 other people, and that really isn’t fair for the 17.
We knew we were going to be staying at smaller places, and they were great and had different personalities. Although the one in Salzburg should probably be looked at for the smell in the restroom, on the flip side that smell made us get out of the room nice and early to find the Thursday market in Salzburg, which was an amazing find and one of the highlights of our trip.
The accommodations were okay. I would give them about two stars at best. Berlin was a little bit better. But for single women traveling, places with a whole lot of graffiti or a strip club across the street were not exactly the safest feeling, and I don’t know if that was actually planned. But it’s how it was, and we did try to travel in groups because of that. There were some very high points and some very “this could be done a little bit better with just a little bit of effort” points as well.
Our CEO, Jelena, was great. However, at times we felt that she could have used some read more office support that she could have contacted. We turned a corner to be at a Christmas market that wasn’t there in Berlin. She did a great job of pivoting, knowing some history to tell us, and found a cathedral for us to go in and tour for a moment. She also explained some other monuments that were in the plaza, which was an old site used for Christmas markets but not in 2025.
The small offers that the tour company provided, such as the currywurst, the glüevine, and lebkuchen, seemed to be more difficult with the budget allowed by the tour company than it really needed to be. For instance, people were given too many options: what was in the budget, or add more money, or pay for the deposit on the mugs and get it back if you want, or keep it if you want. It just seemed very confusing for so many people at once. It would have been nice if it had been arranged that we went to a specific booth for each of those items. Maybe G Adventures is able to look into contracting that in the future. Or making a specific reservation for the cakes and coffee in Vienna. Or working it out ahead of time with the restaurant on the meet-up day for a set meal that’s within the budget, so everybody can get a little bit without having to go over budget, get confused, and feel off-put on our first dinner together.
We loved the Christmas markets. We loved the time that we spent. We loved the bit of history that we learned through our CEO. We know that it was one of the first Christmas market tours of the year, and we definitely felt some hiccups, but we had a good group of people that really tried to make the best of it.
I would recommend this tour for anyone in their 20s, 30s, 40s, 50s, and 60s. My mom was fine in her 70s, but others younger were not. I don’t want to sound bad, but if you walk with a cane, a walking tour is probably not the tour group that’s best for you. That’s the experience that 17 people had to endure on our tour. They would have to be able to walk multiple miles and deal with their luggage themselves, because one slow person affects 17 other people, and that really isn’t fair for the 17.
We knew we were going to be staying at smaller places, and they were great and had different personalities. Although the one in Salzburg should probably be looked at for the smell in the restroom, on the flip side that smell made us get out of the room nice and early to find the Thursday market in Salzburg, which was an amazing find and one of the highlights of our trip.
The accommodations were okay. I would give them about two stars at best. Berlin was a little bit better. But for single women traveling, places with a whole lot of graffiti or a strip club across the street were not exactly the safest feeling, and I don’t know if that was actually planned. But it’s how it was, and we did try to travel in groups because of that. There were some very high points and some very “this could be done a little bit better with just a little bit of effort” points as well.
From the begining to the end, booking, touring Germany, Austria, France and Switzerland, our tour guide, coach driver, hotels, food, Qatar airlines - it was a wonderful experience with no blips.
