Cosmos Tour Reviews
The 2,012 Cosmos Tour reviews listed below are from past clients of Global Journeys that have travelled with Cosmos. Each review has been individually verified by our team.
The 2,012 Cosmos Tour reviews listed below are from past clients of Global Journeys that have travelled with Cosmos. Each review has been individually verified by our team.
I rated the accommodation down because of my experience at the hotel Milan au Luc in Stresa. All the other hotels were lovely, even if the Lake Garda one was nowhere near the lake. My hotel room in Stresa was small, with a lowered ceiling to 6 foot high only with a 2 foot wide x 2 foot deep shower. It was claustrophobic, to say the least, and far from read more relaxing. Also, this European thing about single travellers and therefore single beds is archaic and out-of-date. What sane adult sleeps in a single bed by choice and gets a good night's sleep? We don't at home, so why when on holiday are we subjected to such stupid conditions? I roll over and fall out of bed, so doesn't make for a relaxing night's sleep and feeling refreshed when on holiday. And the Stresa hotel gave me a choice of a room with a narrow (child sized) single bed or a room with a slightly larger bed, but not double size. Also, the tour guide touting for his and the driver's tips at the end, to me as an Australian, frankly embarrassing! I think how, when and what to tip is up to the discretion if the individual making the tip. However, the driver did an amazing job on those narrow, windy Northern Italian roads and was a gentleman in assisting us off the coach each and every time we disembarked. The tour guide was pretty good - funny with an almost British sense of humour. My only other disappointment was the amount of time spent on Isola Bella - I personally would have loved more time. The optional tour highlights for me were the Lake Garda day, Mt Tamaro and the dinner on Isola dei Pescatori. Whilst I enjoyed the 3 island cruise and stop on Isola Bella and Isola dei Pescatori, it was too short - maybe do the cruise bit and drop people off at Isola Bella and dovetail in with the lake's ferries for passengers to pick their own time to leave and go to the next island, and what time they choose to be back at Stresa. Just a thought. Overall, I really enjoyed the tour especially as this was the first time in 23 years I did a big group tour and not a speciality small group tour. The lakes are beautiful and this tour provided the opportunity to see the best of all the 3 lakes.
Well organised and the tour guide was wonderful 2
Central Europe
Cheryl Cavanagh, Australia, Jun 2014
Hannah was very helpful in assisting me with the organisation of this tour and was more than happy to arrange a further 2 nights accomodation after the tour ended. I had no problems on the tour, it was well organised and the tour guide was wonderful and went out of her way to offer any assistance if it was required. I would totally recommend Global read more Journeys when booking travel.
Enjoyed the tour and would recomend it to anyone 1
Eastern Us & Canada Grand Vacation
Wendy & Ian Bennett, Australia, Jun 2014
We enjoyed the Eastern USA and Canada tour and would recomend it to anyone. There were lots of extras included such as the local guides and entry to a few things, accomodation was overall good and could not praise our tour guide enough - he made everything so easy. We are looking forward to doing another tour soon.
Fantastic, informative, amazing and life changing 2
The Best of Europe
Carole Irving, Australia, Jun 2014
Georgie you gave me great service and I was thoroughly informed along the way. The first day of our tour, the tour lady was confused and dumped us all at the train station and told us to get to Brussels by ourselves. We were separated however, on arrival in Brussels, we found each other. For the rest of the tour it was fantastic, informative, amazing read more and life changing. The bus driver was fantastic and most importantly our Tour Director was fantastic till my last day. Unfortunately he didn't support me in helping to get in contact with my brother when we were 3 hours late, due to him forgetting his case at the previous hotel. We were great to him and rallied around to all put in some money to help with the taxi, however, when I asked if he could contact the Paris hotel to let my brother know we would be late, he did not. I wasn't impressed with this at all and also the lateness when I asked specifically when we would arrive in Paris. Every other day we were on time. This did not hinder my tour at all, Ruben was great with having to deal with some clients who complained about how fast paced the tour was and that we should change things just for them. I then continued my holiday with family and still enjoyed my experience overseas. I will definitely recommend Global Journeys, because people are always concerned about booking online and not with a real person. Thank you for your support and help, if the feedback can be passed onto Cosmos that would be appreciated.
The pace was fast but loved it! 1
Canadian Masterpiece with Rocky Mountaineer & Alaska Cruise
Kerry Perini, Australia, Jun 2014
Loved this Cosmos tour, our tour guide Elaine Wright was excellent. Will be hoping to do another tour with Cosmos in the future - the pace was fast but we manged - just loved it!
Outstanding tour 1
Canadian Masterpiece with Rocky Mountaineer & Alaska Cruise
Marcia Priddis, Australia, Jun 2014
Outstanding tour, great fellow tourists, great value for money. Tour was organised very well, only downside was not having our details for the cruise sent through to cruise liner for online booking. (Ed. Thanks Marcia, I presume that's why you rated Global Journeys as 'average'? Just so you know, that was Cosmos' responsibility (as the Operator), but read more we are still very pleased you enjoyed your journey!)
I did the Focus on Scandinavia tour in June 2014. It was the first time I'd ever travelled solo, and I had some concerns about it - which were all completely unfounded as I had the most brilliant time! I would definitely recommend paying the extra and going for the single supplement. To me Cosmos, and this tour, totally exceeded my expectations of what read more a budget coach tour would be like. Others on the tour seemed to have some disappointments, but you get what you pay for and I honestly believe it was great value for money. I'd previously done a Trafalgar tour, so I didn't know what to expect from Cosmos. It actually wasn't that different, other than there's less inclusions (which for me is a bonus as I like to wander around on my own). The optional excursions were always there if you wanted them. Apart from the Copenhagen and Stockholm hotels being very far out of town (near airports) the accommodation was mostly central, especially in the smaller towns. I joined the tour on Day 3, as I wanted to stay more central in Copenhagen. Cosmos and Global Journeys were super accommodating with this request. Our Tour Director was Alessandro Giudice, and our driver was Arne. They were both great. The first and last days of the tour really don't include anything and some said the first evening (meet and greet dinner) was disappointing as the TD didn't facilitate conversation or really introduce themselves. Probably only a concern if you were travelling solo.
Some of the hotels were definitely better than others. Stand-outs in terms of modernity were Oslo, Bergen and Karlstad. Others were a bit kooky, but that is all part of the experience I guess! Don't expect air conditioning and be prepared for the Scandinavian way of showering (no screen or curtain, and water can go everywhere). If you're paying the Single Supplement, you'll often get the smallest rooms but I have to say you don't really spend much time in them. The included dinners were so-so, quite often they're were buffets which I guess they do to appeal to as many people as possible. Almost all of the breakfasts were good, with cooked and continental options. I thought I'd forgo the included dinners, but given how expensive Scandinavia is, I soon changed my mind and went to them all! For this reason I also did any optionals that included dinners (entree, main, dessert and one alcoholic drink) as there is no way I could have got the same value if I did it myself. What can I say about the scenery? Well, its just stunning!! Norway TOTALLY blew my mind. It was majestic - with snow capped mountains, might fjords, and stunning waterfalls. The fjord cruise was wonderful and the view out of the coach was just WOW. The local guide in Oslo and Stockholm were really great - very insightful and really gave you an idea of what life was like living in those cities today. We even had free wifi on the coach while we in Norway, something that Cosmos were trialling apparently.
Bergen is a lovely town, very walkable and if you are independent, just see it yourself rather than getting locked into organised tours. The tourist centre is near the Fish Market, and you can get all the info you need. The Bergen Card is a great way of seeing lots of things at a discounted rate. Bryggen can get very busy with cruise ship passengers, so go and see it very early in the morning or later in the evening. Mt Floyen also gets busy with tourists in the day, so I went up the funicular late afternoon. The views are spectacular. Do it! Others on our tour did. Grieg's house but said they'd have preferred to stay in Bergen.... and there's always the Hop On Hop Off bus. The old town in Stockholm is a wonderful place to explore, and do try and get out on the water if you can. I'd HIGHLY recommend staying at least 2 extra nights in Copenhagen and Stockholm before/after the tour if you can, but go stay somewhere central so that you really 'feel a part of it'. Thanks to Georgie Walpole who was an absolute dream to deal with. Do this tour - you won't regret it! I'll even do it again someday I think! Now... where shall I go next?
Some of the hotels were definitely better than others. Stand-outs in terms of modernity were Oslo, Bergen and Karlstad. Others were a bit kooky, but that is all part of the experience I guess! Don't expect air conditioning and be prepared for the Scandinavian way of showering (no screen or curtain, and water can go everywhere). If you're paying the Single Supplement, you'll often get the smallest rooms but I have to say you don't really spend much time in them. The included dinners were so-so, quite often they're were buffets which I guess they do to appeal to as many people as possible. Almost all of the breakfasts were good, with cooked and continental options. I thought I'd forgo the included dinners, but given how expensive Scandinavia is, I soon changed my mind and went to them all! For this reason I also did any optionals that included dinners (entree, main, dessert and one alcoholic drink) as there is no way I could have got the same value if I did it myself. What can I say about the scenery? Well, its just stunning!! Norway TOTALLY blew my mind. It was majestic - with snow capped mountains, might fjords, and stunning waterfalls. The fjord cruise was wonderful and the view out of the coach was just WOW. The local guide in Oslo and Stockholm were really great - very insightful and really gave you an idea of what life was like living in those cities today. We even had free wifi on the coach while we in Norway, something that Cosmos were trialling apparently.
Bergen is a lovely town, very walkable and if you are independent, just see it yourself rather than getting locked into organised tours. The tourist centre is near the Fish Market, and you can get all the info you need. The Bergen Card is a great way of seeing lots of things at a discounted rate. Bryggen can get very busy with cruise ship passengers, so go and see it very early in the morning or later in the evening. Mt Floyen also gets busy with tourists in the day, so I went up the funicular late afternoon. The views are spectacular. Do it! Others on our tour did. Grieg's house but said they'd have preferred to stay in Bergen.... and there's always the Hop On Hop Off bus. The old town in Stockholm is a wonderful place to explore, and do try and get out on the water if you can. I'd HIGHLY recommend staying at least 2 extra nights in Copenhagen and Stockholm before/after the tour if you can, but go stay somewhere central so that you really 'feel a part of it'. Thanks to Georgie Walpole who was an absolute dream to deal with. Do this tour - you won't regret it! I'll even do it again someday I think! Now... where shall I go next?
Tour was very well organised 1
Leo Alcano, Australia, Jun 2014
Overall the tour was very well organised and commendations to the Tour Director and driver for keeping us well entertained in between sights. Undoubtedly there are many more aspects of Germany, particularly certain places, that we would've liked to explore and experience more. But this tour is as it is called - 'Highlights'. Nothing really to complain read more about that weren't unavoidable. For a 'low cost' tour it's certainly more than that and a real value for money. Very highly recommended.
Definitely recommend this tour to anyone 1
Trans-American Adventure
Jason Taylor, Australia, Jun 2014
All three of us had wonderful time. The tour Director (Jason) was the best we could have hoped for and went well out of his way to make everyone's journey perfect. The driver (Dave) was also just the loveliest person and did everything he could to make us all see everything. I would definitely recommend this tour to anyone. We saw soooo much. Even read more though we were fully aware this was a budget tour, we didn't have high expectations for the accommodation, however were pleasantly surprised. A real life changing holiday!
We just loved everything about this tour!! 1
Trans-American Adventure
Robin & Lynne Lerch, Australia, Jun 2014
Wow, what a trip!! Our 2nd trip with Cosmos & we were not disappointed. Our tour director Jason & bus driver Dave are the best! These two guys are so so good! If you want to see a fair bit of the USA, this is the trip for you. We just loved everything about this tour, the hotels, the cities, & the National Parks, they are to die for!!!! Even went to read more Canada side to see Niagara Falls. Loved the optional excursions. Great stuff Cosmos & Michelle from Global Journeys.
This tour was our first and the start of many. We loved everything about it, so much so, that we are missing America so much and want to go back there as soon as possible. We are organising for about 18 months time. Yes there were little things that bugged us, but this trip had everything from the big cities to the national parks to the small country read more towns. Each hotel had something different and were very comfortable. Loved the cabins at the grand canyon. Met some really nice people who we have kept in touch with since the end of the trip. Our Tour Director Jason Capalongo, was awesome and made the trip every bit as exciting and fun as we had hoped. Dave the bus driver, was just as awesome, taking us to places that alot of drivers wouldn't have done, so we were spoilt. So much happened on the trip that even Jason was surprised, so many good things. Thank you Georgie for your assistance with booking this trip, you made it easy and as this was our first overseas trip, you did whatever you could do to assist us. I would definitely travel with Cosmos again and book through Global Journeys. I have mentioned Global Journeys to a number of my friends, so hopefully they will book with you in the future. In closing, this was the best trip and we were so happy we did it. By the way, we got married in Vegas and had so much fun in doing so. Just a note: if you are expecting 5 star hotels, then you might want to look elsewhere, this is a low budget trip and the accommodation is very sufficient and very comfortable for the price you are paying.
Saw so much more than expected and enjoyed every minute 1
England, Scotland & Wales
Edda Cody, Australia, Jun 2014
Thumbs up to our tour guide Gavin and driver Percy. They were the best. We saw so much more than expected and enjoyed every minute.
Global Journeys handled the bookings very well 3
John McIntosh, Australia, Jun 2014
I should mention I am a professional Tour Guide and Driver, working for companies like Scenic, Evergreen, FJ Tours and Boutique Tours in Australia, NZ, Canada & Great Britain. Tour was Ok but way too much time on the coach. Our main driver, Enzo was great but other drivers a bit ordinary. Overnight cruise to Greece & back is closer to 24 hours. The read more included breakfast on the vessel was greasy bacon & eggs, no alternative. San Marino - Venice was not the coastline as described in literature but on an inland motorway. Carcassonne was amazing. Central Park Hotel, Sorrento was well below standards and could pass as Fawlty Towers. Breakfasts were spartan and dinner was awful. The TV in the room was the smallest I have ever seen. The towels were like sandpaper. Staff were surly. Hotels & meals in Olympia and Rome were tops. San Marino Hotel was great too and we had the added bonus of a parade and cannon salute. Hotels in Koln & Amsterdam were well out of town and we saw nothing of Koln. Lake cruise at Lucerne should be p.m as the morning mists had not cleared. The restaurant manager in Venice Hotel did not like the fact that I sent the white wine back as it was warm. He dumped a huge bucket of ice in the middle of the table and would not accept the fact that I don't eat pasta. Very rude. The final dinner in Amsterdam was not worth EU45 pp. Global Journeys handled the bookings very well. Many thanks!
All aspects of the tour were a very high standard 6
Andrew Hill, Australia, Jun 2014
From my first contact with Global Journeys to the end of the tour I found all aspects of the tour to be of a very high standard. Airport transfers, pre and post tour accommodation and the tour itself were well organised and stress free and had one knowing they were in good hands. Booking of the tour, flights and accommodation by Georgie proceeded smoothly read more and efficiently and prompt email replies to my queries were appreciated. The tour director, Michael, was a font of knowledge about the places we visited and provided commentary in an appropriate manner at a rate that most tour members, I spoke with, appreciated. The main driver, Enzo, as well as Mario, were incredible and negotiated many tight bends and narrow, busy streets with great skill and mastery. Michael, Enzo and Mario were each very approachable, friendly, likeable and always of good humour and cheer. They conducted themselves professionally with the care and well being of the group always a major consideration. Most of the local guides I also found to be of similar character. I enjoyed the pace of the tour which was needed to do all that the tour promoted. The short time we spent in some places served to whet my appetite to return for a longer stay. I could not fault the included breakfasts or evening meals and enjoyed all that was on offer. Accommodation was generally of a high standard in regard to quality and location. Overall I thoroughly enjoyed the All About Europe tour (previously named European Masterpiece) and the company of all the tour members and Cosmos employees. On returning home I described the tour as 'an enjoyable adventure and party' which lasted for 27 days. (Ed. Itinerary amended slightly in 2019)
Excellent value and an exceptional experience 1
The Canadian Rockies with Alaska Cruise
Vispy & Dinaz Mehta, Australia, Jun 2014
My husband and I had a wonderful tour with Cosmos including the Holland America cruise. Our tour director John Gargrave was a wealth of knowledge and lifted the tone of the tour to another level. He was polite, helpful and with his extensive knowledge the information he shared was both informative and entertaining. Overall the package from Cosmos was read more excellent value and an exceptional experience.
The trip of a lifetime for me and would highly recommend it 2
Cindy McCloud, Australia, Jun 2014
Our tour guide was fantastic. She was very friendly and knowledgeable. Most of the hotels were average - one without air conditioning which was so needed, especially spending 2 nights there in the humidity. Free wifi should be offered in every hotel. The coach was comfortable and should have free wifi, as well as maybe having available travel pillows. read more Other than that the tour was a trip of a lifetime for me and would highly recommend it especially traveling to Europe for the first time. (Ed. Thanks for the feedback, Cindy. For a better class of hotel, WiFi on the coach and a few more tour inclusions then perhaps you should consider travelling with Cosmos's sister brand Globus next time - of course that also comes at a higher price.)
We had a very good time 2
Ngoc Lan Le, Australia, May 2014
We had a very good time. Both the tour director and the driver were excellent. The tour was fantastic, however it was a pain entering Russia. We were given visa exactly two days stay in St. Petersburg's. The tour director had to check all our visa again to make sure that the date was correct. It is expensive for a two days visa. Some of the group members read more said that they received the travel document quite late and had to pay extra to get their visa on time for the trip. Thanks to Yvonne we received our travel document well ahead. Thanks Yvonne for your diligent and first class service. We were apprehensive about booking our trip with Global Journeys because we are in Sydney and thus cannot have face to face contact. We are now happy and feel confident to book our travel with Global Journey again.
Thoroughly enjoyed the tour from start to end 4
Trevor Emmitt, Australia, May 2014
Thoroughly enjoyed the tour from the start in London to the end in London, but cream of the tour was when we teamed up with our Tour Director Zsolt and Coach Driver Giorgio without who, we would not have experienced such a delightful and fun filled holiday. We were blessed to have a small group (24) of travellers - Zsolt made a point of telling us that read more we were not tourists, we were travellers and a very happy band of brothers and sisters, we were, just one big happy family. I will definitely be booking another tour through Europe and only hope that when I do, that both Zsolt and Giorgio are with that tour group. Cosmos are very fortunate to have these two men in their employment as they went out of their way and in my opinion, over and above their duties. As I mentioned before, I thoroughly enjoyed the total trip and now return home to convince my wife to join me on the next adventure. Made so many friends on the trip who I think will remain lifetime friends. I would also like to mention the fabulous local guides at the different cities/towns we visited. There were a few little hiccups along the way like some hotel a/c not working and other minor faults but Zsolt was right onto it to ensure the comfort of those persons affected. Thank you Cosmos & Global Journeys for the great tour.
Returned with some amazing photos and life experiences 4
Western Wonders
Lavinia Verduci, Australia, May 2014
A chance to see the Grand Canyon... I really enjoyed the layout of the Western Wonders tour on paper and anticipated a great time. What I completely forgot about was to consider the temperature at the time of the tour. It didn't strike me that I was doing a desert tour until I landed in LA! As someone who hides indoors in airconditioned comfort when read more it hits the high 20's I was completely unprepared to find the majority of the tour would be in the high 30's/low 40's - even though it was just at the start of summer. It was such a simple oversight but it impacted on the whole trip - inappropriate clothes, inappropriate footwear, inability to explore on foot as much as I anticipated (and I'm a GREAT walker). Thankfully the coach carried bottled water for purchase at a very reasonable price. The stops were also very well arranged - plenty of opportunities to explore new sights and cities. Some of the accommodation sites lacked air conditioning or room fridges - and so next time I travel into similar climes I'm prepared to pay a little extra for my creature comforts. Similarly with breakfasts. I wont travel again on a package where it's not included (but that's a purely personal thing). Trying different routines and things is one of the benefits of travel. My tour guide, Linda Perez, was extremely helpful and knowledgable. The trip would not have been the same without her. I'd happily tour with her again. Though I'd avoid Hunan Homes' Chinese reastaurant in San Francisco (which she raved about)... I don't think that they expected our party to be so large so squashed more of us onto tables but did not proportionally increase the servings. A few of the serving dishes emptied before completing the circuit of the table. I wasn't the only one who went out for a burger afterwards! Pity, because what was served was actually tasty. Personally speaking, I've travelled a Cosmos tour (Canada) with a lot more extras for not that much more money per day. That's the benchmark I'd set for considering future tours. Some of the Western Wonders tour had quite comfortable accommodation, but a couple of nights were definitely under 3 stars (maybe 2.5). This wouldn't influence my recommending the tour to anyone - I'd just make them aware that sometimes the bathrooms wouldn't have exhaust fans or fridges in rooms were optional extras. Everywhere the linen was clean and there were plenty of pillows. This time the tour selected was influenced by the finishing date of another trip. It's made me aware that staying a few extra days in a city is a worthwhile expense rather than taking the first available connecting tour. That being said, I'm extremely glad to have taken this tour and have returned with some amazing photos and life experiences, plus I've met an interesting assortment of fellow travellers. I couldn't have done this staying home.
Tour was value for money 3
Leigh McTaggart, Australia, May 2014
Generally the trip was very good. While one cannot visit everywhere, the biggest dissapointment was going on an average boat cruise on the River Sienne ( which wasn't really 'exciting') & missing out on the Effiel Tower & not stopping or visiting the Arc de Triumph. Our guide did a good job for us & I feel everyone liked him. Over all I feel the tour read more was value for money. I would go Cosmos again to certain destinations.
