Cosmos Tour Reviews
The 1,984 Cosmos Tour reviews listed below are from past clients of Global Journeys that have traveled with Cosmos. Each review has been individually verified by our team.
We traveled during the Christmas holidays, which worked well with less crowds. We visited some amazing coastal villages. The food was wonderful and George as the tour guides was very experienced and helpful to everyone. The accomodation was truly excellent. Highlights for us included Cuenca and Collioure. We highly recommend it.
Everything went smoothly - even the weather was not too bad, despite predictions of wet, cold and foggy. We even saw the sun on several days. The tour was excellent. Although it was more of a scenic drive, Dominic the tour leader gave us heaps of historical information on just about every village, town and city we passed through. He was very knowledgeable read more and had researched the itinerary well. Grahame the driver was very good - safe and polite on every occasion. Both were English, would you believe.
Despite the fact that people believe that Cosmos chooses hotels well away from city centres to keep down costs, we were surprised to find that several of the hotels were within walking distance of shops and restaurants and were of a generally high standard. The daily breakfasts on tour were very good with plenty of choice and the dinners were huge! The only negatives were that a few hotels were on busy roads or near roundabouts so the traffic noise was loud. I am an insomniac which doesn't help. Next time I will request a quiet room away from the main road but didn't think of that when booking this time.
We booked all the optional excursions (too expensive), but they were very good and we were glad we had booked them. The singer on our final night was disappointing (Taylor's Irish Night) but the food was excellent. The singer seemed to have lost most of his front teeth which made him very hard to understand (despite his Irish accent!). The bonus for us was that all the streets and shops were decorated for Christmas and everybody (both residents and tour participants) were in a festive mood.
I would highly recommend Cosmos and more particularly Global Journeys for the high level of service provided by Georgie. Many thanks to all.
Despite the fact that people believe that Cosmos chooses hotels well away from city centres to keep down costs, we were surprised to find that several of the hotels were within walking distance of shops and restaurants and were of a generally high standard. The daily breakfasts on tour were very good with plenty of choice and the dinners were huge! The only negatives were that a few hotels were on busy roads or near roundabouts so the traffic noise was loud. I am an insomniac which doesn't help. Next time I will request a quiet room away from the main road but didn't think of that when booking this time.
We booked all the optional excursions (too expensive), but they were very good and we were glad we had booked them. The singer on our final night was disappointing (Taylor's Irish Night) but the food was excellent. The singer seemed to have lost most of his front teeth which made him very hard to understand (despite his Irish accent!). The bonus for us was that all the streets and shops were decorated for Christmas and everybody (both residents and tour participants) were in a festive mood.
I would highly recommend Cosmos and more particularly Global Journeys for the high level of service provided by Georgie. Many thanks to all.
Central Europe - a fantastic holiday with Cosmos 3
Central Europe
Jane & David, VIC, Australia, Dec 2018
Had a fantastic holiday with Cosmos. Experiencing the lights and markets of Central Europe, hotels, tour director, bus driver, other travellers were all first class. Would highly recommend this journey. Georgie Walpole once again arranged the booking for us, thank you. Definitely will use Global Journeys again.
The tour director and local guides were very knowledgeable and spoke very clearly. Our only gripe was that the seating rotation was not implemented and our tour director did not do anything to implement or assist. It was really disappointing to be always be seated at the back just because of our mobility issues.
The Cosmos Best of Italy tour was extremely well organised and executed. The communication right from the word go by Madeline Lewis from Global Journeys was absolutely brilliant, and we were also very impressed with the tour arrangements such as confirmation of tour, information on the tour etc. provided.
10/10 for our tour leader, Jian Luca. He read more was a wealth of knowledge, great personality, very vibrant, entertaining, fun and very competent. He had great attention to detail to make sure that he could provide anything we might have needed. In addition, the driver, Stefano, was very competent and about the best we’ve experienced. The local guides were also brilliant. Five star plus.
We loved the entire tour. The program was intense but not overly. Always something of interest, but with enough down time. Very well planned, and the opportunity to see quite a lot of Italy. All the accommodations were clean and comfortable. Each had its own charm.
Our overall rating of the trip is 10/10. We'll highly recommend it to the people we know. The itinerary is excellent because it encompasses all the regions of Italy. Thank you so very much Cosmos & team for having arranged the magnificent trip we took!!
10/10 for our tour leader, Jian Luca. He read more was a wealth of knowledge, great personality, very vibrant, entertaining, fun and very competent. He had great attention to detail to make sure that he could provide anything we might have needed. In addition, the driver, Stefano, was very competent and about the best we’ve experienced. The local guides were also brilliant. Five star plus.
We loved the entire tour. The program was intense but not overly. Always something of interest, but with enough down time. Very well planned, and the opportunity to see quite a lot of Italy. All the accommodations were clean and comfortable. Each had its own charm.
Our overall rating of the trip is 10/10. We'll highly recommend it to the people we know. The itinerary is excellent because it encompasses all the regions of Italy. Thank you so very much Cosmos & team for having arranged the magnificent trip we took!!
An enjoyable and enlightening experience 3
Margaret & Barry, New Zealand, Nov 2018
We enjoyed the cultural experience of India. The tour bookings were excellent. The pick ups were perfect. Accommodation was also excellent. The excursions were enlightening.
I had an amazing time and experience. The coach trip was fun and I was able to meet new people. This trip exceeded my expectations and I would definitely book with you again. I have already recommended a couple of my friends and coworkers to book with you and to visit Ireland! I'll definitely book with you again for my next trip! Also not to forget read more our tour guide and coach driver were AMAZING!!! Thanks very much for the great experience and looking forward to booking with you again next time :)
I am almost blind and have trouble seeing what I am writing so to keep it short, I had a great time and would recommend it as a great holiday.
The best of Spain and Portugal with Cosmos 8
The Best of Spain & Portugal
Peter & Lisa, QLD, Australia, Oct 2018
First of all I highly recommend Georgie and Global Journeys for their attention to detail and pricing, we are a repeat customer and wouldn't even try using someone else for our bookings. The tour itself was very well organised and we were very satisfied with the destinations and sightseeing. The accommodation was good and mostly well positioned in the read more areas that we wanted explore. In a couple of cases where the hotel was not centrally located there was public transport right outside the door. I would recommend this tour.
When we first confirmed our booking for this trip Cosmos sent us a standard form asking about any special needs that we may have. In subsequent correspondence we told them that Rosemary had an issue with her knee and, while walking on the flat was no problem, she did struggle with stairs. From our first contact with our tour guide Perez it was clear read more that Cosmos had fully briefed him about Rosemary’s needs and he was always on hand to give her and Dianne, another guest with similar problems, every possible care and assistance. Well done Cosmos and Perez!
And a sincere thank you to Perez for his knowledgeable commentary, his ability to manage the day to day problems that always occur on a tour and his concern about Rosemary’s ability to cope with each day’s activities. The bus driver and bus boy were always very helpful assisting Rosemary, and other guests, to get on and off the bus.
We thoroughly enjoyed the tour in spite of the sometimes very early starts which were required to beat the sometimes chaotic traffic. The morning spent at the Kanta Elephant sanctuary was undoubtedly a highlight of the trip and the trip to the Saduak floating market was a lot of fun. We saw lots of Buddhist Temples and Buddha Images and were surprised by the variety of architectural styles from traditional stone to gold to the spectacular White temple (Wat Rong Khun) near Chiang Mai.
The driving style of the Thai people was quite an eye opener for those of us more used to the comparative discipline displayed by drivers in Australia and the UK. It got particularly exciting when we were on one of the many styles of Tuk Tuks in Thailand or in the front seat of the coach. The taxi from our hotel in Phuket to the airport was particularly scary.
I would also like to thank the other 30 guests on the coach for their companionship. They were from Australia, UK, USA and Canada. The majority were over sixty years old and we all bonded well together.
It was a bit of shame that for all the Buddhist temples we visited we really did not learn much about the Buddhist religion. Perez did give us some history and background information about Buddha but maybe in the future Cosmos could include a short session, inside a temple, with some Buddhist monks so that we could get a better insight into the teachings of Buddha. The last three nights in Phuket were a welcome opportunity to experience a totally different Thai lifestyle and was a relaxing place to finish our tour.
And a sincere thank you to Perez for his knowledgeable commentary, his ability to manage the day to day problems that always occur on a tour and his concern about Rosemary’s ability to cope with each day’s activities. The bus driver and bus boy were always very helpful assisting Rosemary, and other guests, to get on and off the bus.
We thoroughly enjoyed the tour in spite of the sometimes very early starts which were required to beat the sometimes chaotic traffic. The morning spent at the Kanta Elephant sanctuary was undoubtedly a highlight of the trip and the trip to the Saduak floating market was a lot of fun. We saw lots of Buddhist Temples and Buddha Images and were surprised by the variety of architectural styles from traditional stone to gold to the spectacular White temple (Wat Rong Khun) near Chiang Mai.
The driving style of the Thai people was quite an eye opener for those of us more used to the comparative discipline displayed by drivers in Australia and the UK. It got particularly exciting when we were on one of the many styles of Tuk Tuks in Thailand or in the front seat of the coach. The taxi from our hotel in Phuket to the airport was particularly scary.
I would also like to thank the other 30 guests on the coach for their companionship. They were from Australia, UK, USA and Canada. The majority were over sixty years old and we all bonded well together.
It was a bit of shame that for all the Buddhist temples we visited we really did not learn much about the Buddhist religion. Perez did give us some history and background information about Buddha but maybe in the future Cosmos could include a short session, inside a temple, with some Buddhist monks so that we could get a better insight into the teachings of Buddha. The last three nights in Phuket were a welcome opportunity to experience a totally different Thai lifestyle and was a relaxing place to finish our tour.
Our first insight into China 3
Baz, Auckland, New Zealand, Oct 2018
Our tour was exceptionally organised using planes, trains and coach to see the major "must see" parts of China. The local guides made each place far more meaningful even though we'd taken definitive guide books with us. The tour guide who was with us for the entire time was able to give us continuity and deal with the logistics of each day and how read more we were going to achieve the itinerary with regular toilet stops. We were primed the night before as to what we'd need in the way of wet weather gear by being told the local weather forecast. Anna our guide was the best that we've ever met. She was totally organised and her English was excellent and she lay down her expectations of us like being on time and where we were to meet. She called us Anna's family which gave us all a sense of belonging.
Really enjoyed the experience, accommodation in Vietnam was above expectations and the food was outstanding. The guide Hue was really nice, helpful and informative and in one case he went the extra mile. Only criticism is that there were probably too many museums and temples and too much free time, would be good to see a bit more culture by including read more a visit to a village. The overnight Ha Long Bay cruise was really good, the staff on the boat were amazing and made our trip memorable. The food was way above expectations and it's not often on a trip that we can say that we were over fed. The internal flights were great and well organised, in fact the overall organisation of the whole trip was top class.
Cambodia was very good although we had to come back to earth in regards to accommodation, but the staff again we can't say enough about, so friendly and helpful. The second guide in particular was really informative and helpful and really nice to everyone including the driver, the first guide was rude to his driver which we didn't like. The included sightseeing was good value for money. Overall the trip was fantastic value for money and we would absolutely recommend this trip. Global Journeys is a fantastic company which is why we have done many trips with them.
Cambodia was very good although we had to come back to earth in regards to accommodation, but the staff again we can't say enough about, so friendly and helpful. The second guide in particular was really informative and helpful and really nice to everyone including the driver, the first guide was rude to his driver which we didn't like. The included sightseeing was good value for money. Overall the trip was fantastic value for money and we would absolutely recommend this trip. Global Journeys is a fantastic company which is why we have done many trips with them.
Baltic States and Scandinavia 6
Juli & Lyn, NSW, Australia, Oct 2018
The trip was OK as I expected. Perhaps staying an extra day in Berlin would be perfect. We didn't have much time to explore this vibrant city at all. The rest of the Baltic States are amazing to explore. Thank you for organising such as nice trip.
Italian Showcase tour October 2018 2
Iris, QLD, Australia, Oct 2018
Our long awaited tour of Italy started out being very disappointing but quickly turned into a wonderful experience. The accommodation in Tuscanny - The Toscana Ambassador hotel was quite dreadful. Rooms were of a good size but our bed had a dreadful 'squeaking noise' that woke my husband up whenever I moved or got up. We had a fridge that didn't work, read more we kept getting a smell of cigarette smoke in the entrance way of the room and outside in the hallway all we could smell was sewerage. The breakfast and included dinners were almost inedible (cold scrambled eggs every morning) no flavour in the dinners. Some of the staff were bordering on being rude, we had to ask for salt and pepper or other condiments and were given a very nasty look as if we were putting them out. I have read other comments from travellers on the same tour that share the same views on this so I am at a loss as to why Cosmos continues to use this hotel.
Moving on, the remainder of our tour was brilliant. We had 43 travellers on the tour and everybody got on really well, it was a great group of people. Our tour guide Francesco and Driver Nino were fabulous, really friendly, helpful and courteous, if it hadn't been for them I think the tour would not have been as much fun. All other accommodation was great, meals were very good and tour guides excellent. A real shame it got off to a bad start but after waiting more than 10 years to visit Italy we were determined not to let our experiences at the Toscana spoil our trip.
Moving on, the remainder of our tour was brilliant. We had 43 travellers on the tour and everybody got on really well, it was a great group of people. Our tour guide Francesco and Driver Nino were fabulous, really friendly, helpful and courteous, if it hadn't been for them I think the tour would not have been as much fun. All other accommodation was great, meals were very good and tour guides excellent. A real shame it got off to a bad start but after waiting more than 10 years to visit Italy we were determined not to let our experiences at the Toscana spoil our trip.
We loved our Cosmos Greece tour including the 4 night cruise. Marieke was our tour guide and nothing was too hard for her to make everybody's trip perfect. She went over and beyond expectations to make this trip memorable. The 4 night cruise was a great way to experience the islands and all the other places we visited were incredible.
We enjoyed our 19 Day Ultimate South America Tour. The highlights of the tour were certainly Iguassu Falls and Machu Picchu. We were fortunate that the weather cleared for our afternoon visit to the Brazilian Side of the falls. Unfortunately the weather was not in our favour the day when we visited the Argentinian Side of the falls but our spirits were read more not dampened and we put on our rain ponchos and proceeded to explore. The gods were also with us when we explored Machu Picchu. Wow! this was certainly a big tick for the bucket list.
The tour manager did a great job of organising our group of 34 people with airport check in and baggage collection. The local guides were very knowledgeable and passionate about their local area. In general the hotels were good. We particularly liked the resort at Iguassu Falls and the hotel at Machu Picchu. All included excursions were very good and the included meals were mostly good. Our flight from Lima to Cusco was delayed about 3 hours due to weather so rather than miss out on the markets scheduled for that afternoon the guide rearranged the following day to make sure that we didn't miss out on anything.
We found drink prices in Brazil and Argentina quite reasonable but they are a bit more expensive in Peru. It is a good idea to check prices before ordering drinks. We only did one optional excursion to Petropolis in Rio de Janeiro. We had booked the Bird Park Excursion but this was cancelled due to weather conditions. We tended to do our own exploring in the cities. It is possible to walk to the base of Sugarloaf Mountain from the hotel but we chose to share a taxi with a couple of other guests (taxis are quite reasonable in Brazil and Argentina but avoid taxis in Santiago). As we are over 60 we were able to purchase senior tickets for the cable car.
If you want to see the main highlights of South America without a big price tag then this Cosmos Tour is for you. Thank you to Georgie for organising this tour for us and for making sure that we received our travel documents 3 weeks prior to departure. I particularly like the checklist that Global Journeys use. However, I do think that Cosmos need to change the meeting time for the 1st day of the tour as 2pm in the afternoon is too early in the day. I also think the tour manager needs to email all guests a week out to confirm meeting time.
The tour manager did a great job of organising our group of 34 people with airport check in and baggage collection. The local guides were very knowledgeable and passionate about their local area. In general the hotels were good. We particularly liked the resort at Iguassu Falls and the hotel at Machu Picchu. All included excursions were very good and the included meals were mostly good. Our flight from Lima to Cusco was delayed about 3 hours due to weather so rather than miss out on the markets scheduled for that afternoon the guide rearranged the following day to make sure that we didn't miss out on anything.
We found drink prices in Brazil and Argentina quite reasonable but they are a bit more expensive in Peru. It is a good idea to check prices before ordering drinks. We only did one optional excursion to Petropolis in Rio de Janeiro. We had booked the Bird Park Excursion but this was cancelled due to weather conditions. We tended to do our own exploring in the cities. It is possible to walk to the base of Sugarloaf Mountain from the hotel but we chose to share a taxi with a couple of other guests (taxis are quite reasonable in Brazil and Argentina but avoid taxis in Santiago). As we are over 60 we were able to purchase senior tickets for the cable car.
If you want to see the main highlights of South America without a big price tag then this Cosmos Tour is for you. Thank you to Georgie for organising this tour for us and for making sure that we received our travel documents 3 weeks prior to departure. I particularly like the checklist that Global Journeys use. However, I do think that Cosmos need to change the meeting time for the 1st day of the tour as 2pm in the afternoon is too early in the day. I also think the tour manager needs to email all guests a week out to confirm meeting time.
Alpine Adventure, Bernina & Glacier Express. 5
Alpine Adventure, Bernina & Glacier Express
Fred & Jan, QLD, Australia, Oct 2018
Excellent tour highly recommend this tour.Tour director was excellent and very knowledgeable.Well worth the money. Hotels were of a good standard and very clean only one poor meal in the hotels.The new hotel on tour was very good, great position right on the lake Hotel Lumin.
I thoroughly enjoyed this tour and would recommend it to anyone wanting to get a general overview of the UK. It was a fast pace but we still had plenty of free time to enjoy individual places and thanks to our wonderful tour guide Julieanne, I feel we were able to see the best of each of the towns we visited. The accommodation was great, all except read more the hotel in Cardiff which was rather dated. Madeline Lewis from Global Journeys handled my booking and it all went very smoothly, the documents arriving in plenty of time. Cosmos, the tour operator, was very efficient and highly organised and the added excursions were very well done... especially the dinner and theatre night in London... was truly the highlight of my trip.
This was an excellent way to see Ancient Greece. Lambros the tour director was an abundance of knowledge. Dimitri the coach driver was beyond excellent. We were always informed of what to expect each day. Very satisfied.
Awesome Eastern Cities of Canada 2
Ontario & French Canada with Ocean Train to Halifax
Elizabeth, QLD, Australia, Sep 2018
Our tour guide Sharon and driver Tim were the perfect hosts, a mixture of professionalism and fun. The tour went like clockwork from Brisbane airport back to Brisbane airport. The hotels were exceptional value for money, clean and comfortable. The only minor criticism was the guide on our optional tour of Mont Tremblant and the Laurentian. She was more read more like a strict teacher escorting a group of children than a tour guide. This did not distract from the beauty of the area and the tour was well worth the money. Going via LAX was a bit daunting but this is beyond Cosmos's control. It was an experience and we survived. An extra day in Quebec city would have been a bonus. We are going on the British Isles in depth next year with Cosmos this is a indication of how we feel about Cosmos tours.
