Home > Compare Tour & Adventure Operators > Cosmos vs Costsaver
Cosmos vs Costsaver
Compare the travel styles, pricing, destinations and popularity of Cosmos and Costsaver.The Low Down
A lot of our clients aren't too fussed about their accommodation (as long as it's clean and comfortable) and are more interested in the destination. Over 1,200 past client reviews with an average 4.5 out 5 star rating, is impressive. Why? Great value and interesting itineraries. Part of the Globus Family, there are further great discounts to be had.Accommodation is 3 to 3/12 star, but a lot of our clients are pleasantly surprised at the quality. Hotels are often located out of the city centre, so prepare your trip budget to allow for transfers or taxis if you want to explore the cities on your own. Allow extra funds for some meals and excursions not included in more premium inclusive itineraries. Like our past clients, we feel very comfortable recommending Cosmos.
CostSaver is Trafalgar's affordable range of coach tours. Comparable to Cosmos in price and quality, their focus has always been on Europe and the UK, but have more recently launched a range of new itineraries in the US, Canada and South America. If you are looking for an affordable touring option, then CostSaver is a great option, and if you've travelled with any of its sister brands like AAT Kings, Trafalgar or Insight Vacations further savings are available.The price for that affordability - while all the must-see sights are included, there are lot of optional excursions which can add up quickly if you choose to do them all. If that's likely, perhaps a more inclusive Operator like Trafalgar or Insight is best. However if you like the freedom to explore on your own, and are after a relaxing and hassle-free holiday, then Costsaver is a great option.
Stats
No. of Trips
183
No. of Departures
2,916
Avg. Trip Length
13 Days
Avg. Price Per Day
$311
Accommodation
3 - 4 Star
Budget
Affordable
Trip Styles Coach Tours
No. of Trips
111
No. of Departures
2,262
Avg. Trip Length
12 Days
Avg. Price Per Day
$281
Accommodation
3 - 4 Star
Budget
Affordable
Trip Styles Coach Tours
In Their Own Words We asked the travel companies themselves why you should travel with them
At Cosmos, we like to think of ourselves as experts in ‘thrillology’ – the art of bringing you an experience, time and time again. With over 50 years of ‘wow’ under our belts and no sign of slowing down, we know how to curate value touring holidays that you’ll never forget; creating the experiences you’ve always dreamed of and showing you the ones, you never thought of. Our job is to take care of the planning and logistics, so that all you have to focus on is living your dreams!
We know lasting travel memories don’t have to cost the earth. Our value tours cover all the essentials, while providing you the building blocks to tailor your dream holiday. We plan and include all the essentials – your quality transport, accommodation, sightseeing, many meals and the very best Travel Directors, leaving you the time to tailor your trip your way.
As an active founder and supporter of the TreadRight Foundation, you’ll travel confidently knowing we support the protection and conservation of the places we visit. We tread far, but always tread lightly. Having won the 5 star gold award for highest travel satisfaction, from the independent review provider FEEFO, you can be assured you’ll get an unbeatable holiday at an unbeatable price. Value is in our blood, and thanks to our Ready To Go Rate, you’ll be confident that when you book, the price you see is the best it’ll be. Travel the world without a hassle in the world.
Recent Reviews
4.4
We are not new to Global Journeys and our fabulous consultant, Jemma. We will continue to use them for future travels. The Cosmos tour of the western National Parks covered an enormous area. We travelled in early May and it was just perfect. We still had snow on the mountains, beautiful days and the wildlife coming awake after winter- stunning! Our ...read more tour director, Daryl and driver, Mark were professional and very experienced making the journey comfortable and interesting.
France is great, lots of historic buildings and gardens, just marvellous. Unfortunately public toilets are very few in my view. Learned how to use their public transport which was on time mostly. Hotel accommodation was not great, really small rooms, some air-conditioning wasn't working. Tour director was good, tried to cheer us up with her singing ...read more too. We made some good friends, trying to keep in touch with.
We had good prompt service from Rachel at Global Journeys and a wonderful Tour Guide, Tina, travelled with us - very happy, funny and knowledgeable, however, it went downhill from there. As train enthusiasts we had a few disappointments along the way.
Cosmos brochure stated that the highlight of the tour would be travelling on the Glacier Express ...read more and Bernina Express. We did not step foot on the Bernina Express, no explanation given, very disappointing. Eight hour day on the Glacier Express was very long, not allowed to wander anywhere to stretch our legs or take photos except in our carriage. Thank goodness for the amazing scenery. We read that the bar/dining carriage has special non-glare windows so you could take clear photos of the amazing scenery - we were not allowed to enter that carriage so photos from our seats were not as good as they could have been - we asked different train staff members if we could just sit there to take photos, did not want any service... no not allowed.
The day before our 8 hour journey on this train we were told there would be no food service on board so we needed to shop for our lunch and snacks the day before leaving Zermatt. Strange for such a prestigious train not to serve lunch etc. On the day however train staff came through our carriage to take orders for lunch and was told we all had already purchased our food the day before. Train staff were confused and disappointed - as we were as there was obviously food service available - would have been much nicer than a day old sandwich.
Tour accommodation started very nicely at Novotel Zurich, most hotels after that were obviously chalets for skiers than general tourists. Had a bad back by the end of our tour due to old beds that needed replacing. Special mention of the accommodation at Zermatt: half the group stayed in the listed hotel, the other half were taken across the road to a different building. During conversation on the train the next day it was discovered that those travellers 'across the road' had a coffee machine, kettle, fridge... the rest of us had nothing but a bed and bathroom. No fridge to put our food for the train trip - was told by hotel staff to put our bag of food on the ledge outside our window, will be cold enough! Agro hotel staff were not helpful or sympathetic at all.
Cosmos needs to book a different hotel in future. Also this hotel was the provider of the second group dinner as part of our tour package. It was the most disgusting meal we have ever had. McDonalds two doors down the road did a booming trade that night. The third dinner in the tour package was supposed to be the farewell dinner on our arrival back in Zurich - it did not happen and no explanation or apology was given. The obvious attempt to cut corners did nothing but damage the Cosmos brand. There are lots of tour companies that run Swiss rail tours, Cosmos needs to lift their game.
Cosmos brochure stated that the highlight of the tour would be travelling on the Glacier Express ...read more and Bernina Express. We did not step foot on the Bernina Express, no explanation given, very disappointing. Eight hour day on the Glacier Express was very long, not allowed to wander anywhere to stretch our legs or take photos except in our carriage. Thank goodness for the amazing scenery. We read that the bar/dining carriage has special non-glare windows so you could take clear photos of the amazing scenery - we were not allowed to enter that carriage so photos from our seats were not as good as they could have been - we asked different train staff members if we could just sit there to take photos, did not want any service... no not allowed.
The day before our 8 hour journey on this train we were told there would be no food service on board so we needed to shop for our lunch and snacks the day before leaving Zermatt. Strange for such a prestigious train not to serve lunch etc. On the day however train staff came through our carriage to take orders for lunch and was told we all had already purchased our food the day before. Train staff were confused and disappointed - as we were as there was obviously food service available - would have been much nicer than a day old sandwich.
Tour accommodation started very nicely at Novotel Zurich, most hotels after that were obviously chalets for skiers than general tourists. Had a bad back by the end of our tour due to old beds that needed replacing. Special mention of the accommodation at Zermatt: half the group stayed in the listed hotel, the other half were taken across the road to a different building. During conversation on the train the next day it was discovered that those travellers 'across the road' had a coffee machine, kettle, fridge... the rest of us had nothing but a bed and bathroom. No fridge to put our food for the train trip - was told by hotel staff to put our bag of food on the ledge outside our window, will be cold enough! Agro hotel staff were not helpful or sympathetic at all.
Cosmos needs to book a different hotel in future. Also this hotel was the provider of the second group dinner as part of our tour package. It was the most disgusting meal we have ever had. McDonalds two doors down the road did a booming trade that night. The third dinner in the tour package was supposed to be the farewell dinner on our arrival back in Zurich - it did not happen and no explanation or apology was given. The obvious attempt to cut corners did nothing but damage the Cosmos brand. There are lots of tour companies that run Swiss rail tours, Cosmos needs to lift their game.
We had a great trip and all aspects of the tour were well organised. While there was a fair amount of information that we had to provide for each component of the trip and visas had to be sought from the Canadian and the United States governments the outcome was well worth the effort. We would certainly utilise Global Journeys and Georgie if we consider ...read more a further holiday.
We truly enjoyed this trip, our first with Cosmos. Special thanks to Ines Turro our tour director, very knowledgeable and accommodating. Unfortunately we missed Alhambra complex due to some technicality but Ines tried to make it up with a mini tour. Our tour group was a happy bunch, still keeping touch after our tour, sharing pictures. Would love to ...read more book for another holiday when time permits.
We have been wanting to do this tour for some time and it didn't disappoint; because of the long winter, most of the lakes and fjords in Norway were frozen and it was such a spectacular sight. Booking with Global Journeys was easy and Hannah was very efficient, helping us each step of the way. Our TD was very friendly and knowledgeable. The hotels ...read more were comfortable although out of the way in some cities. Would have been nice to have had a central hotel in Oslo given the short time spent there. The included dinners were hit and miss - breakfasts were simple but good variety. Most memorable day would be when we were in Fagernes and it snowed!
4.4
Our tour was very smooth and predictable. The tour director and driver were both very professional, easy to get along with, patient, and organized. The tour director was very knowledgeable of history and culture and her comments added a lot to the tour. I loved that the group of 44 people was very diverse with many various ages, ethnicities, and ...read more nationalities represented. The coach was a very comfortable brand new Mercedes coach that made travel great.
So a combination of a fabulous itinerary, excellent tour director, great driver, reasonable accommodation, a good mix of people, & great weather all made for a near perfect tour. I was surprised that the tour commenced in Las Vegas with the most spectacular attraction (The Grand Canyon) a very high bar for the other stops to match but each of the parks ...read more had something different to offer and I was disappointed in none (although the last couple of days we were in the coach for very long periods). One of the "optional" tours to Badlands NP should be part of the standard itinerary as it's not to be missed (and there's no alternate - except to do nothing). So all in all a great tour.
Also pleased to say all of the pre-tour work from the initial enquiry, quote, bookings, pre-tour information provide by Rachael (Global Journeys) and by Costsaver (Tour operator) were also seamless with timely and full responses leaving little to worry about except what the weather will be or what to pack.
Also pleased to say all of the pre-tour work from the initial enquiry, quote, bookings, pre-tour information provide by Rachael (Global Journeys) and by Costsaver (Tour operator) were also seamless with timely and full responses leaving little to worry about except what the weather will be or what to pack.
This was our first Costsaver tour after having travelled with Trafalgar before. This tour is amazing! We saw so much in a short period of time. The value for money is really good and everything is organised for you. The hotels were warm and comfy and mostly centrally located. Highlights for us were: Irish dinner and entertainment, ferry crossings, Edinburgh, ...read more York and Waterford. The local guides were so knowledgeable and entertaining.
Our travel buddies were such a fantastic group and we all got along super well. The tour was only half full, so we had loads of space to spread out. Our tour director went above and beyond and the driver got us all around safely and quickly. Visiting in winter is great because it’s heaps quieter, but some things are closed. We can’t wait to travel with Costsaver again! Massive thanks to Georgie for her amazing organisation and making booking this trip easy.
Our travel buddies were such a fantastic group and we all got along super well. The tour was only half full, so we had loads of space to spread out. Our tour director went above and beyond and the driver got us all around safely and quickly. Visiting in winter is great because it’s heaps quieter, but some things are closed. We can’t wait to travel with Costsaver again! Massive thanks to Georgie for her amazing organisation and making booking this trip easy.
Very good tour with Costsaver. Five countries in 2 weeks with two nights spent in each city wasn't nearly enough, but gave a good insight into each place. The pace was good with not too many 'travelling' days to get from one place to the next. Our tour director Mike was excellent, providing detailed commentary and guidance with lashings of English-Czech ...read more humour and a dose of commendable Photoshopping skills to boot!
Hotels were good to very good (with the best being in Warsaw of all places), and as expected for Costsaver, most were a bit far from the centre of the city (about half an hour away) but easily serviceable by public transport in all the cities. Provided dinners were so-so, with most hotels serving a perfunctory chicken and rice/potato dish, but Hotel International in Prague were surprisingly great with a well-prepared buffet selection instead of the aforementioned chicken and rice/potato.
The only thing we found excessive were the number of optional tours offered; we didn't do any because we did our own thing, but for those who did all or most of the optionals, that left very little time to self-explore (and in fact, there were times when an hour here or there was all those people got to explore on their own). Otherwise it was a highly recommended tour if you want to see some of Europe's most understated and underrated cities.
Hotels were good to very good (with the best being in Warsaw of all places), and as expected for Costsaver, most were a bit far from the centre of the city (about half an hour away) but easily serviceable by public transport in all the cities. Provided dinners were so-so, with most hotels serving a perfunctory chicken and rice/potato dish, but Hotel International in Prague were surprisingly great with a well-prepared buffet selection instead of the aforementioned chicken and rice/potato.
The only thing we found excessive were the number of optional tours offered; we didn't do any because we did our own thing, but for those who did all or most of the optionals, that left very little time to self-explore (and in fact, there were times when an hour here or there was all those people got to explore on their own). Otherwise it was a highly recommended tour if you want to see some of Europe's most understated and underrated cities.
What a fun and exciting getaway to some fabulous cities in a short amount of time. If you want to see a lot in a limited timeframe, this trip is for you! The guide was extremely knowledgeable and there was just the right amount of interaction with travellers. I enjoyed meeting people from all over the world. The accommodation was much better than expected ...read more and the breakfasts were super. I would recommend travelling at this time of year (mid October) as the weather was still fantastic and you didn't see the crazy crowds of summer and holidays.
During this trip I visited too many National Parks : Grand Canyon, Zion, Bruce, Teton, Yellow Stone and Badland National Parks & more. All were very beautiful. The scenery along this trip was awesome in Autumn. It was more spectacular than I expected. Most of hotels were excellent. No any complaint for this budget tour. The tour Director Stephen and ...read more the driver Ariane were fantastic. I really enjoyed 2 weeks time with them and other guests in this trip. I also would like to thank Global Journeys and especially Jemma who organised my wonderful trip.
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