European Cavalcade Reviews

What an amazing trip from start to finish. The Netherlands was fresh and with spectacular views where Rome was warmer in August but the history and places we visited were some of the greatest ancient ruins I have experienced. Tour guide was out standing with the greatest knowledge of the visited countries. The bus driver was a gem. Accommodations were ...read more of high standard and breakfasts plentiful. I recommend this trip to everyone and all ages. Would definitely travel with Costsavers again. Travelled with a mixture of people who were awesome.

The title was our tour director's saying at every stop and it became our slogan and inspiration to look forward to what new things we could learn, see or experience. Although not my first trip to Europe, it was for my family and it was awesome to experience it all over again. The trip offered all the standard highlights you should see as a first or ...read more new traveler.

Most of the hotels were average at best, with a (very) few which was really not great. The ski lodge outside Lucerne was amazing. Most breakfasts were great, but the included dinners were very basic except for the Christmas dinner in Lyon, so we found we did spend more money on food than expected. In our family of four, we do have quite a few food in tolerances and even though our tour director tried very hard to accommodate, it is not always easy or possible.

Most of the specialist guides were good to excellent, except for the one we had in Rome. Free time provided is adequate, but when deciding to go on a coach tour like this, it should be expected that schedules are tight and the focus is on the experience and environment. A point to call out; we celebrated our 20th wedding anniversary as well as my 50th during the trip and our tour director had made it extremely special.

It was an amazing experience, the tour director Raymond was well organised and very knowledgeable. Our driver and the tour group was the best crowd to spend 18 days with.

My partner and I thoroughly enjoyed our tour with Bern as our travel director. We visited all the major famous sights Europe has to offer, and more! While the days were long and demanding at times, it was totally worth it when we arrived at landmarks before all the other tour buses! The tour is designed for you to do as little or as much as you’d like, ...read more so my tip is make the holiday yours and get creative while being driven all over Europe! P.S. don’t be afraid to stray from the group and catch public transport once in a while!

Well, what a great adventure for us. From our initial booking with Yvonne to our wonderful Tour Director Bern and Driver Guiseppi, we did not have to worry about anything. The bus was comfortable, included meals were better than expected and with free time offered in so many wonderful places - it would be hard to beat. We were so lucky with beautiful ...read more weather and a great tour group made up of people from all over the world. We will definitely book again with Global Journeys and Trafalgar for our next adventure. If we can get Bern again as a Tour Director- that would be awesome!

A truly had a wonderful trip. We were a full coach and got on well. Most of us coming from the southern hemisphere were experiencing of first white Christmas and were prepared for it to be a lot more colder than what we experienced and although we didn't get to see fresh snow falling we did get to see it. (Attached photo is the view from my room in ...read more Switzerland). Lucerne and Mount Riga were definitely the highlights and I did like Venence where we went to the glass factory and watched an amazing glass blowing demostration as well going to the island of Burano famous for lace making.Other interesting places we went to were a French Perfume factory in Eze and the whilst in Inesbruk we had a tour at Swarovski Crystals. Pompeii was amazing and a beautiful day the added some sculptures around the grounds created a wonderful atmosphere. The best meal I had was in the Italian hills of Tuscany at a medieval winery in Sant' Andrea in Percussins. They brought out a whole rib eye and flambe it in front of us. It was New Year's Day when we were in Florence so unfortunately the museums were closed but we did get to try on some lovely Italian leather jackets and I brought an 18 carrot gold necklace to enhance a family heirloom. This was what made the trip special because if for some reason the itinerary needed to change we still experienced seeing interesting things.

We had a wonderful holiday our tour guide Sarah was very helpful and had everything well organised at all times. It was a busy tour but we saw so many amazing things. Coach and drivers were both very good.

If our hotels are going to be out of town, then I would rather them be further out of town but with better amenities than just far enough to make visiting town difficult but with poor amenities. Also, every hotel should be family friendly. In some hotels they were obviously a cramped two-person room made even more cramped with an extra bed for a child. ...read more In Pompeii (which for me was going to be the highlight - it's the whole reason we picked that tour) the coach driver got lost and we turned up 30 minutes late. The local tour guide very clearly cut down our time in Pompeii because he had other tour groups to cater for. So we spent ages just sitting outside the ruins drinking orange juice and doing nothing. Then when I get on the coach again I found out that a few of the other tour passengers got to go back inside and look at the ruins during this time. No one told us. I was very upset as was my family. These things aside I loved the tour, but it does upset me that the key thing I wanted to see on the tour was ruined.

Our European Cavalcade experience really was the trip of a lifetime. Everything on our bucket list was ticked off!! We had a fantastic tour guide, Esther and very safe driver Mario. They contributed to a very memorable trip. We saw a lot more in 18 days than we would have expected. We skipped queues, and were at places early enough to see what was important ...read more before the huge crowds. We did nearly all the optional tours which we recommend because then you experience everything there is to do in that location. The pace was great. We went as a family with teenage children and had plenty of free time. It is surprising how much free time you have to relax or explore on your own. Esther was very knowledgeable, informative and helpful, and we learnt more on this trip than we did in all our years of school! Mario kept the bus impeccably clean and we felt safe with his driving. The accommodation ranged from average to fabulous. We always had a comfortable bed and clean room/ensuite. The included meals were good, and the optional tour meals were exceptional. The group we travelled with all got along and have each become friends and we hope to keep in touch. Overall we highly rate this tour and would do it again and again.

We saw so many incredible places in such a short time. Tour organisation was exceptional - after experiencing many things together with the group we still got to have free time for sightseeing, relaxing, or shopping! From chilly and conservative Germany and Austria to bright and crazy Italy and romantic France, this trip was unforgettable.

Excellent tour made even greater by our tour director Martine. Her insight and knowledge about the places made it nice and easy for us to navigate about as a group or on our individual free time. We've seen and been to places that's not easily accessible if we've done it on our own.

This was a fabulous tour which far exceeded our expectations, the tour director, coach driver and optional tours were wonderful, we were looked after extremely well to make sure we had a good time, we would thoroughly recommend this tour to everyone.

We had a wonderful time - just getting over jet lag now! We couldn't fault Trafalgar at all - everything ran smoothly and we were amazed at how well organised everything was! Our tour guide Michael Doherty was fantastic with his broad and comprehensive knowledge. Our bus driver Maurizio, was also amazing - very safe and clever driver, getting us to ...read more where we needed to be safely and on time! We saw so much in such a small amount of time, and would have loved to stay at some places much longer. It was a great tour in giving you a taste of every country and an idea of where you would like to come back to. Thank you Global Journeys for your service - it has been wonderful. Every time we had a query, you were able to give us the answer quickly Hannah - we appreciate this and all of your help. It helped make the whole experience a wonderful one!

I did a Trafalgar tour about 20 years ago, and though it was good I was by the end very stressed and tired from the early mornings, late nights and constant moving from place to place. Even though I was much more prepared, I wasn't to sure of how this tour would turn out. I just new it would be at least good anyway. My friend that I was touring with ...read more was all excited because it was her first European group tour. I was much more reserved about it. It turned out to be the most amazing, fun & eye opening 18 days I have ever spent. Went to so many wonderful places and had so many beautiful experiences filled with laughter, friendship, excellent food & lots of bear & wine. Yes I was tired at the end, but it was a happy tired. The worst part of the tour was the drive back from Paris to London as it marked the end of the Magical Mystery Tour. I will definitely do a Trafalgar tour again. Mmm where would I like to go next year...

Booking online made me a bit apprehensive but Georgie Walpole has just been wonderful in assisting me and my friend process this trip. Last minute, my friend needed a document sent to the French Embassy in the Philippines for her visa application and Georgie never hesitated to directly send the document via email. Thanks again Georgie. The tour was ...read more wonderful and exciting. Our tour director, Gerry (Gerald) Baines was such a jolly guy - he had a lot of knowledge, not only of the places we went to (10 yrs experience), but even the history of people from those places. I even teased him 'Mr. Knowledge Overload'. Gerry was very accommodating, knew everyone's name and always concerned for our safety and enjoyment. He always had tips of what to eat, what to see, where to buy souvenirs on each destination we went to. He marked out the tour progress on our maps when we moved from one city to the next, and was very diligent in setting departure times. In our group, there were 50 tourists, and would you believe about 80% Aussies. There were 9 people from South Africa, 2 guys from NZ, 1 Canadian and my friend Evelyn from the Philippines. Everyone was friendly so we got along fine. The swapping of seats was our daily chore as we had to remember where we sat last. As each one moved to the front-most seat, there was an introduction session, telling everyone who we were and sharing funny or embarrassing stories. The bus was comfortable and clean, but somehow the lights inside the bus were not turned on when we go through tunnels (a lot of them going to Paris). The hotels we stayed in were really nice except the one in Lucerne, Switzerland. The rooms were so tiny and didn't have air-conditioning. Everyone was complaining about the heat. We tried to leave the windows open but there was too much noise outside. Being a first-timer in Europe, it was a mystery as to what I would see at each stop.

Even while on the road, I tried not to sleep as there were so much beautiful scenery to see(wish we could have stopped at some), and Gerry was doing his information update. Sunflowers were in bloom and filled the fields which was a sight to see. The castles in Germany were a marvel, so many of them. And who would go to Germany and not have a sausage? It was a nice train and cable car ride to see the snow-capped (only a few as it was summer) from Stanserhornbahn, Switzerland. In Innsbruck, Austria my friend and I were fortunate to catch a concert in the townhall, caught the last 2 songs for the night. It would have been wonderful to see more of Rome, but as the summer heat was getting intense, I personally preferred to be indoors. The Pantheon provided that bit of shade. We passed by the area of Genoa and it was just a wonder to see how they built highways on concrete stilts between mountains. The Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore (Duomo) in Florence, Italy is my favourite site. My jaw dropped when I saw this structure, it's so beautiful. Paris of course was the highlight of this tour as it was my birthday when we went up the second level of the Eiffel Tower. Gerry was so thoughtful and offered me a drink at the cafe near our hotel for my birthday and we were able to chat a bit. Also that night, while most of our tour mates went to watch a show at the Moulin Rouge, a family also from Sydney invited us to join them for dinner. We didn't join all the optional tours but we were able to venture out on our own, discovering more things. Wish we could fit everything during this tour. Overall it was an enjoyable experience. I'm already planning on a second tour to further explore Europe, probably in 2015 and this time I'll bring a better camera!

I would never usually book this type of organised tour, however I booked this tour purely because I didn't have the time to organise the logistics of the trip myself. And, while subject to the ridicule of my friends, who have been to Europe several times over, I stuck to my guns...and am I so glad I did! While my expectations were not high (as I have ...read more always organised my own travels in the past), I was very pleasantly surprised! My chief concern was being on a coach with 46 strangers...this turned out to be a highlight. What a wonderful, eclectic mix of people! In the initial stages I found the coach travel infuriating, but as soon as I resigned myself to the fact that this was exactly what I had signed up for, I relaxed and went with the flow. It is known as the 'Calvalcade' for one reason, and it certainly lived up to the title. So my advice is, take responsibility for your choice! It is yours alone and there are other options. If you want a leisurely tour, then this is not for you! Our tour director Raymond (Ray) Padilla was personable, funny, knowledgeable, approachable and professional. We adored him! Our coach driver Andrea', in our collective view, is the best driver in the world, no exceptions! We saw so much in our 18 days that it was hard to comprehend, but that is exactly what this tour is about and why I selected it. For me it was a 'taster' and now I know exactly where I will re-visit, sooner rather than later. As a senior school history teacher I appreciated Ray's ability to retain the vast complexity of European history and while he modestly claimed to 'know a little about a lot', I knew 'a lot about a little' and so was happy to come away having learned much about the historical, social, cultural, political and religious contexts of Middle History, outside my areas of specialisation. Well done Ray, A+! I have one gripe, and that regards the ambiguity of the language on the intinerary. This needs to be articulated with with greater transparency. Also the optional extras were not always worth the cost and so alternatives should be clearly conveyed so that people are aware of their options when not participating. While the hotels were always better than expected, I think all of us would have happily preferred a hotel 'down grade' to be closer to town in most locations. To his credit, Ray always helped us to organise alternatives when not participating in the optional extras. Overall this experience was one of the most enjoyable experiences of my life, and while trying to be objective and critical, all that comes to mind are the fabulous memories!

Three of us went on this tour starting on 12 December 2012 and we had a great trip and saw lots. When reading about the trip we were a little concerned about the amount of time we would spend on the coach in particular we were concerned about day 2 and 3 but we were pleasantly surprised as they turned out to be one of the better days. The travel on ...read more Christmas Day was an absolute bore though. The tour had a good mix of ages - 5 schoolies of which my daughter was one of them, a few in their 20s, 30s, 40s,50s etc which made the trip better as we met others. Our first coach driver Mario was a scream and added to our entertainment, he was worth his tips as he cleaned the coach regularly so everyone was made as comfortable as possible as we were on it for 18 days. However, he had to be replaced with another coach driver while we stayed in Sorrento, the new coach driver seemed to want to stop regularly to have a smoke which irritated everyone, he cleaned the bus less than Mario and at times did not secure the coach when were stopped leaving other tourers stuff at risk. Needless to say he was not tipped. The coach on the driver side was quite comfortable however on the passenger side was quite cramped as it had another door and toilet in the middle of the bus to contend with so instead of removing one row of seats they overcame the problem by providing absolutely no leg room. Luckily there was only 34 on the trip when the capacity is 49 allowing everyone to spread when it was their turn on that side of the bus. I would hate to do this trip in summer with a full coach load. A winter trip is brilliant - not to mention every European city was decked out in Christmas decorations which were brilliant. Well done Europe. I have left the best to last - our tour director Ester she has been with Trafalgar for 30 years the first 20 years as Contiki tour director. What a scream she was. Very informative, entertaining and cared lots for her group and made sure everyone was having a good time. You could always find her at the office (she spells it B A R) it was obvious she loves her job and what ever Trafalgar pays her as a base salary before any tips should be doubled. All in all we had a great time with a great bunch of tourers and a great Travel director, the first coach driver was good value. My only recommendation is to do this trip in the winter.

Thanks Georgie and Global journeys for helping us experience our Europe Tour. We had a wonderful time and would highly recommend it to anybody who wants to experience as mush as they can in 17 days. Firstly our Tour Director Emile, and coach driver Angelo, know their business and do it well with precision, we cannot complement them enough. Trafalgar ...read more Tours have done a wonderful job putting together the itinerary. We did do all the extras bar 1, and would highly recommend them to anybody. Highlights would have to be Amalfi Coast, Italy. We loved Positano and Sorrento. For a low cost tour, we had no complaints about the accommodation provided or meals, they were to a high standard, and perhaps higher than we expected. Once again thanks Georgie for our memorable experience, cant wait to do another tour in the near future!

So much better than what I expected!

I had a wonderful time, although very tired at the end as it seemed to be go, go, go. We had lots of free time, in some places it was too long in others too short. Unfortunately most of Europe was having an Indian Summer which caught all of us out as we had packed for cool to cold weather so my suggestion would be to suggest to any other travellers ...read more doing this tour at this time of the year packing for all kinds of conditions eg. 1/2 & 1/2. I met some wonderful people from a wide range of backgrounds and seeing that I was the only one travelling alone I was made very welcome and never left out of anything and they all looked after me even though I was quite capable of doing so myself, I just let them look after me. The bathrooms in a few of the hotels were a bit on the small side especially for those travelling as a couple but I was fine. The food was delicious and definitely too much (3 course meals each night). I have one complaint is that sometimes we arrived at our hotel late and only had time to put our carry-on luggage into our rooms before having to head to the restaurant for our dinner, some of us would have liked to have time to at least freshen up a little before having to go to dinner. I'm not sure what Trafalgar can do about that situation. Apart from the bathrooms, weather and arrivals at the hotels, as I said before i had a wonderful time and would recommend this tour.