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Discovering the world doesn't have to break the bank. Our collection of 2,796 affordable tours include rail journeys, 18-30's trips, active adventures, short breaks and scenic coach tours covering every continent. It's all about the destination, the people you're travelling with and the experiences you choose to enjoy when you get there.
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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 more ‘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!
G Adventures came from a desire to deliver authentic and responsible small group travel adventures that were equally life-changing for travellers and the more communities they visit. And we’re been doing just that for almost 30 years.
Our award-winning trips span seven continents and over 100 countries, giving you meaningful experiences with people, cultures, landscapes and wildlife, as well as offering you the freedom and flexibility to explore on your own.
On all of our tours, you get to know locals every step of the way, from the places you visit and stay to where you eat and drink. You’ll also get to experience our ‘G for Good’ social impact initiatives on-trip, including our industry-leading ‘Ripple Score’. This score measures, as a percentage, the amount of money that stays in the local community through on-trip services like accommodation, restaurants and transport.
Our award-winning trips span seven continents and over 100 countries, giving you meaningful experiences with people, cultures, landscapes and wildlife, as well as offering you the freedom and flexibility to explore on your own.
On all of our tours, you get to know locals every step of the way, from the places you visit and stay to where you eat and drink. You’ll also get to experience our ‘G for Good’ social impact initiatives on-trip, including our industry-leading ‘Ripple Score’. This score measures, as a percentage, the amount of money that stays in the local community through on-trip services like accommodation, restaurants and transport.
Explore has been taking small groups on adventure holidays all over the world for almost 40 years. The expert team, at home and overseas, works together more to create itineraries that leave you feeling that you’ve really explored a destination rather than just visited. You’ll see the highlights, the must-sees, of course. But you’ll also get away from the beaten track, and get a different perspective on your destination. You’ll get closer to a place, its people and cultures.
Our small groups are typically 12 people – small enough to get right into the heart of your destination, but big enough to find like-minded people to share your experiences with. And the glue that holds these groups together is our local tour leaders, who are uniquely placed to add individual and spontaneous moments to each trips – moments that stay with you long after you return home. All sorts of people travel with Explore – our groups are usually a mix of solos, couples and friends. What unites them is their adventurous spirit and thirst for real travel experiences.
We provide authentic small-group travel, designed by experts and led by experts, with sustainability at its heart and a common desire for unforgettable experiences. Whether you’re on a cultural tour of Lebanon, cycling in Vietnam, walking in Italy or exploring Costa Rica with your family, when you’re travelling with Explore you know that you’re in good hands.
Our small groups are typically 12 people – small enough to get right into the heart of your destination, but big enough to find like-minded people to share your experiences with. And the glue that holds these groups together is our local tour leaders, who are uniquely placed to add individual and spontaneous moments to each trips – moments that stay with you long after you return home. All sorts of people travel with Explore – our groups are usually a mix of solos, couples and friends. What unites them is their adventurous spirit and thirst for real travel experiences.
We provide authentic small-group travel, designed by experts and led by experts, with sustainability at its heart and a common desire for unforgettable experiences. Whether you’re on a cultural tour of Lebanon, cycling in Vietnam, walking in Italy or exploring Costa Rica with your family, when you’re travelling with Explore you know that you’re in good hands.
Discover Popular highlights and experiences you can have on an affordable 3 Star tour
This picturesque circuit in County Kerry offer views of the Atlantic coastline, the Lakes of Killarney and mountains sprinkled with colourful farmhouses.
Cruise past forests of Huon Pines that have lined the untouched riverbanks and been reflected off the tannin stained waters for thousands of years.
Feel the misty spray from the roaring cascades as you cruise to the base of Niagara Falls, camera in hand for an amazing photo!
Visit the legendary beaches of Normandy where Allied troops landed more than 70 years ago. Its a moving experience to witness the many sites such as Arromanches, St. Laurent, and the American Cemetery at Omaha.
The world awaits and you can explore it all on a 3 star guided holiday. Itineraries cover the highlights of every continent with a range of included or optional excursions, inclusions and accommodation styles.
Recent Reviews What our clients are saying about the experiences they had on their affordable 3 Star tours
Morocco with a view
New Year's in Morocco
Katherine, MD, United States, Dec 2025
Morocco has a lot to offer. The people are wonderful, the scenery was just stunning. We had sunshine, snow, wind and a little rain and was even blessed with a rainbow in the desert. I can’t say enough about our guide Omar. He was able to answer all of our questions, he treated us to local music and displayed his musical talents. If there was any read more issues he was always there to fix them. It was a great trip.
Wendy Woo's Christmas in Japan tour was amazing. It did rely on a lot of bus rides and a couple of train rides but that enabled us to see places far and wide. The hotels we stayed at were all of a high standard, with most being centrally located. We were exposed to a variety of Japanese foods and all meals breakfast, lunch and dinner, were included read more in the cost. Highlights included: seeing Mt Fuji clearly; dressing in kimonos and making sweets during a tea ceremony, and feeding deer in Nara.
Make sure you can walk
Christmas in Central Europe, Berlin to Vienna
Mom and Daughter Trip, WA, United States, Nov 2025
We did a mother–daughter trip. We can both walk. Some in our group could not, and it really dragged us down. We also can follow simple travel instructions and pivot to make our own plans for side activities and meals; others could not. That said, we had a great time!
Our CEO, Jelena, was great. However, at times we felt that she could have used some read more office support that she could have contacted. We turned a corner to be at a Christmas market that wasn’t there in Berlin. She did a great job of pivoting, knowing some history to tell us, and found a cathedral for us to go in and tour for a moment. She also explained some other monuments that were in the plaza, which was an old site used for Christmas markets but not in 2025.
The small offers that the tour company provided, such as the currywurst, the glüevine, and lebkuchen, seemed to be more difficult with the budget allowed by the tour company than it really needed to be. For instance, people were given too many options: what was in the budget, or add more money, or pay for the deposit on the mugs and get it back if you want, or keep it if you want. It just seemed very confusing for so many people at once. It would have been nice if it had been arranged that we went to a specific booth for each of those items. Maybe G Adventures is able to look into contracting that in the future. Or making a specific reservation for the cakes and coffee in Vienna. Or working it out ahead of time with the restaurant on the meet-up day for a set meal that’s within the budget, so everybody can get a little bit without having to go over budget, get confused, and feel off-put on our first dinner together.
We loved the Christmas markets. We loved the time that we spent. We loved the bit of history that we learned through our CEO. We know that it was one of the first Christmas market tours of the year, and we definitely felt some hiccups, but we had a good group of people that really tried to make the best of it.
I would recommend this tour for anyone in their 20s, 30s, 40s, 50s, and 60s. My mom was fine in her 70s, but others younger were not. I don’t want to sound bad, but if you walk with a cane, a walking tour is probably not the tour group that’s best for you. That’s the experience that 17 people had to endure on our tour. They would have to be able to walk multiple miles and deal with their luggage themselves, because one slow person affects 17 other people, and that really isn’t fair for the 17.
We knew we were going to be staying at smaller places, and they were great and had different personalities. Although the one in Salzburg should probably be looked at for the smell in the restroom, on the flip side that smell made us get out of the room nice and early to find the Thursday market in Salzburg, which was an amazing find and one of the highlights of our trip.
The accommodations were okay. I would give them about two stars at best. Berlin was a little bit better. But for single women traveling, places with a whole lot of graffiti or a strip club across the street were not exactly the safest feeling, and I don’t know if that was actually planned. But it’s how it was, and we did try to travel in groups because of that. There were some very high points and some very “this could be done a little bit better with just a little bit of effort” points as well.
Our CEO, Jelena, was great. However, at times we felt that she could have used some read more office support that she could have contacted. We turned a corner to be at a Christmas market that wasn’t there in Berlin. She did a great job of pivoting, knowing some history to tell us, and found a cathedral for us to go in and tour for a moment. She also explained some other monuments that were in the plaza, which was an old site used for Christmas markets but not in 2025.
The small offers that the tour company provided, such as the currywurst, the glüevine, and lebkuchen, seemed to be more difficult with the budget allowed by the tour company than it really needed to be. For instance, people were given too many options: what was in the budget, or add more money, or pay for the deposit on the mugs and get it back if you want, or keep it if you want. It just seemed very confusing for so many people at once. It would have been nice if it had been arranged that we went to a specific booth for each of those items. Maybe G Adventures is able to look into contracting that in the future. Or making a specific reservation for the cakes and coffee in Vienna. Or working it out ahead of time with the restaurant on the meet-up day for a set meal that’s within the budget, so everybody can get a little bit without having to go over budget, get confused, and feel off-put on our first dinner together.
We loved the Christmas markets. We loved the time that we spent. We loved the bit of history that we learned through our CEO. We know that it was one of the first Christmas market tours of the year, and we definitely felt some hiccups, but we had a good group of people that really tried to make the best of it.
I would recommend this tour for anyone in their 20s, 30s, 40s, 50s, and 60s. My mom was fine in her 70s, but others younger were not. I don’t want to sound bad, but if you walk with a cane, a walking tour is probably not the tour group that’s best for you. That’s the experience that 17 people had to endure on our tour. They would have to be able to walk multiple miles and deal with their luggage themselves, because one slow person affects 17 other people, and that really isn’t fair for the 17.
We knew we were going to be staying at smaller places, and they were great and had different personalities. Although the one in Salzburg should probably be looked at for the smell in the restroom, on the flip side that smell made us get out of the room nice and early to find the Thursday market in Salzburg, which was an amazing find and one of the highlights of our trip.
The accommodations were okay. I would give them about two stars at best. Berlin was a little bit better. But for single women traveling, places with a whole lot of graffiti or a strip club across the street were not exactly the safest feeling, and I don’t know if that was actually planned. But it’s how it was, and we did try to travel in groups because of that. There were some very high points and some very “this could be done a little bit better with just a little bit of effort” points as well.
I loved every moment.
Japan Express – Osaka to Tokyo
Emily and Mary, NSW, Australia, Nov 2025
Wonderful tour. Japanese 'CEO' was so kind and well organized. She made sure we had a great variety of experiences in and outside of the cities. I loved every moment of my tour.
