Home > Compare Tour & Adventure Operators > AAT Kings vs APT
AAT Kings vs APT
Compare the travel styles, pricing, destinations and popularity of AAT Kings and APT.The Low Down
AAT Kings have partnered with Global Journeys since our inception, and as a result we have an in-depth understanding of all their trips, through both Australia and New Zealand. Our team have journeyed with them on 9 tours through New Zealand, Tasmania, South Australia, Northern Territory and Queensland. That close relationship also means we can deliver fantastic savings throughout the year. AAT King's core multi-day coach tours cater mainly for those over 55+, whilst their short breaks in the Northern Territory tend to attract a more diverse range of ages. All coaches are first class, and AAT Kings pride themselves on their tour guides - many of which have been with them for decades!
Initially providing coach touring around Australia and NZ to the local market, APT have grown exponentially over the last decade to now offer trips around the world, and are well known for their European river cruises. Over the last few years APT have introduced small ship expeditions that cruise the waters through Asia, Europe, Canada and off the coast of Kimberley. Catering primarily for the retired market, their trips aren't cheap, but in APT's case - you get what you pay for. Look out for their great Fly Free offers, and Earlybird Savings. The team here at Global Journeys have travelled multiple times by coach, cruise & river with APT, and we definitely recommend them as a quality, consistent, reliable Operator, and our past client reviews back that up.
Stats
No. of Trips
78
No. of Departures
4,321
Avg. Trip Length
9 Days
Avg. Price Per Day
$509
Accommodation
3.5 - 4 Star
Budget
Affordable & Premium
Trip Styles Coach ToursShort BreaksCity Breaks
No. of Trips
417
No. of Departures
2,082
Avg. Trip Length
15 Days
Avg. Price Per Day
$854
Accommodation
4 - 5 Star
Budget
Premium & Luxury
In Their Own Words We asked the travel companies themselves why you should travel with them
Choosing AAT Kings for your Australia or New Zealand holiday guarantees you’ll benefit from the insider secrets, off-the-beaten-path destinations and authentic interactions with local characters that only 100 years of experience can provide. With over a hundred years’ experience in sharing Australia with our guests, AAT Kings holds exclusive access to some truly unique locations, secret trails and roads less travelled that add so much value to the overall travel experience.
At AAT Kings, our on-road staff are best in class. Our Travel Directors, Driver Guides and Drivers are hand-picked for their passion, experience, and enthusiasm for the spectacular countries we live in. There is truly no one better to share with you the best destinations across Australia and New Zealand. We have been perfecting our itineraries and products for over 100 years, so the benefits gained from travelling with us are unrivalled. With over 150 expertly crafted holiday itineraries to choose from, we offer something for everyone.
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 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.
Recent Reviews
4.5
Wow..what a great trip we have just enjoyed with AAT Kings, thanks to Hannah and her colleagues at Global Journeys. We met some wonderful people and were in the capable hands of two lovely young ladies..Anna and Ash. Too many highlights to mention, but on a very personal level, travelling along the Stuart Highway past the stations our son worked on ...read more as a teenager in 1998 comes to mind. Thanks for all your help. The trip of a lifetime.
Loved the trip. A bit rushed. Too many early mornings and long days. Would love it if it was more spread out. The accommodation was excellent. Food and drinks were great. Fellow travellers were exceptionally friendly. NT is one place you must see. We went from 16 deg to 35 deg. Tour director and bus driver kept everyone upbeat with funny ditties and ...read more jokes. Yes - I would recommend AAT Kings.
Itinerary was good. Accommodations and included meals were good. We had a knowledgeable tour director and a safe driver. This trip covered two UNESCO sites namely Kakadu National Park and Uluru National Park. I enjoyed the Field of Lights and the natural wonder of sunrise over Uluru.
Fabulous trip only 1 hotel was issue at Tenant Creek, but trip was amazing, our tour guide Dave was amazing, his knowledge and nothing ever to much trouble for him, Fabulous guy, and our bus driver Mac, kept us safe with his skill of driving, and his jokes. One of our best trips,
I had a wonderful time travelling with a lovely bunch of people on this AAT Kings tour of the South Island of New Zealand. Most of the accommodation was wonderful and the included dinners were great. Our tour director and driver were fantastic. The only drawbacks were that the front page showing the itinerary with scenic stops was misleading as it ...read more was showing that Mt Cook was a sightseeing stop which never happened as whoever drew the route to Mt Cook was incorrect and would have had to get there from Omarama. Also we were only given 30 minutes to walk there and back to see Franz Joseph Glacier. I did not enjoy the train journey and when embarking we did not get time to look at the station. Overall it was a great tour but more time for the essential sightseeing stops would have been great. I also enjoyed the extra optional tours on offer such as The Glenorchy Lord of the rings tour and the Kiwi Bird Park.
My Tasmania Icons bus trip was just excellent. Visited places on my bucket list, plus more. Guide Carolyn Tipper has so much local knowledge as she lives in the state! Met some very nice travelling friends and plan to catch up in the future. Climate was great, humans can' t control that, Carolyn said March was a good time to visit, agree. Accommodation ...read more was beautiful, clean & well presented. Staff working at reception, restaurants very helpful & friendly.
4.7
We were very glad to have had the opportunity to do this cruise. The staff on the ship were outstanding. Great itinerary, excellent food. We rated APT at mostly 9 and 10 in their assessment form. Our only suggestion was for an option to receive the daily program sheets as pdf a attachment to an email. We photographed them anyway for travel diary ...read more purposes.
Being the only foreigner travelling with this lovely group I cannot praise enough the courtesy among the group members / fellow travellers. Thanks to Eleanor ( Elli) our super competent and super friendly driver/ guide/ savior.... It was simply a great pleasure to cover this enormous stretch of Aussieland.
A well organised adventure. Good mix of people that mixed well. Tash and Grant, guide and driver, organised and good communicators. Accommodation comfortable, clean and special in Cairns and Port Douglas. Food good no matter where we were.
Travelling days were planned so not too long, with highlights each day. Helicopter trip over “the tip” gave ...read more a wonderful overview of the top of Australia, followed by ferry trips to Thursday and Horn Islands. Cultural Show on Thursday Island and discussion with organiser after offered an insight into efforts being made with the youth to carry on the culture. APT a comfortable and informative way to visit a part of Australia usually only available to “ road warriors”.
Travelling days were planned so not too long, with highlights each day. Helicopter trip over “the tip” gave ...read more a wonderful overview of the top of Australia, followed by ferry trips to Thursday and Horn Islands. Cultural Show on Thursday Island and discussion with organiser after offered an insight into efforts being made with the youth to carry on the culture. APT a comfortable and informative way to visit a part of Australia usually only available to “ road warriors”.
Great trip - Broome inclusions were brilliant, flights good and the APT team were fantastic! Cruise was beyond our expectations- excellent food and service, great accommodation and wonderful crew who looked after us superbly - I could not recommend this trip highly enough!
Our Kimberley Coastal Expedition and 3 Day Broome add on (thanks to APT), was a fantastic trip. We travelled with APT who used the Ponant Luxury Expedition ship the Le Laperouse. We went out each day exploring the Kimberleys on zodiacs and had an expert naturalist with us to share their vast knowledge on this beautiful region. We saw loads of wildlife ...read more ranging from turtles, crocodiles, sharks, fish, birds, as well as aboriginal art and fantastic scenery. The ratio of crew to passengers was 1:1 so service was fantastic. The meals and entertainment on board were great and we really enjoyed our daily briefings in the theatre each afternoon. We would like to thank Rachael from Global Journeys, the APT team of Margie and Lauren, all our naturalists especially Kiwi Ed and the Le Laperouse crew, for making this a memorable holiday.
Spoilt by too much rain, we didn’t actually cruise - APT and ship’s staff were good but the holiday served its purpose - cruising is not for us. Pick-up and pre cruise arrangements were abysmal - in stark contrast to other cruises doing the same thing. On board we found the food was good (but not brilliant), the cabin excellent but the passengers were ...read more all quite old - we felt a bit out of place. Dining was also necessarily hectic and, if you wanted to dine alone as a couple - it was not possible unless you got room service. Many of the excursions felt too rushed (3-hour coach ride for a 2-hour visit) but weather was largely to blame as we couldn’t dock as planned. We found the flexibility of planning yourself and self-driving enabled better use of time. Some of the exclusive visits were excellent - the Sound of Music Show and the Vienna Recital being extremely worthwhile. Overall, staying twice as long at each stop would be our own preference. Global Journeys support throughout was good and we would consider again - but not for another 10 years.
Popular Trips
15 Days Budapest to Amsterdam
Operator: APT
From 7,930
Save 1,785
22 Days Victoria to Vancouver
Operator: APT
From 16,146
Save 1,505
