Home > Compare Tour & Adventure Operators > Collette vs Insight Vacations
Collette vs Insight Vacations
Compare the travel styles, pricing, destinations and popularity of Collette and Insight Vacations.The Low Down
While new to the Australian market in 2017, Collette have actually been operating since 1918. Offering coach touring and small group explorations around the world, you won't find too many Aussies and Kiwis on their trips yet, but clients of ours that haven taken the plunge over the last season have come back with very positive reviews. Collette is very popular in the US and now has offices and support in Australia, Canada and the UK too. Collette market their trips as 4 star accommodation with 5 star service and inclusions - so if that sounds like your cup of tea, then how about this - Collette also includes a roundtrip home to airport chauffeur service for those within a 40km radius of Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide, Perth, Canberra, Darwin, Cairns and Hobart airports.
Upmarket coach touring, with 4.5+ star accommodation, maximum group sizes of 40 on a full size coach and more leisurely paced touring itineraries. The pricing of Insight's trips tends to attract travellers in their 60's and 70's. If you're tall, then you should seriously consider Insight, as their coaches been reconfigured to allow up to twice as much legroom as on a standard coach. Insight have recently launched trips through South America, and expanded their range of Gold Luxury Vacations, where you can expect the ultimate in luxury and refinement.We find that the feedback we get back from past clients is sometimes a little critical, and we feel this is because of the very high standard some of our clients are expecting due to Insight's positioning in the market. On every multi-day journey, there will always be little annoyances, but as a whole package the team here definitely recommend Insight worthy of your consideration. If you've travelled with any of its sister brands like AAT Kings, Trafalgar or Uniworld further savings are available.
Stats
No. of Trips
189
No. of Departures
5,881
Avg. Trip Length
11 Days
Avg. Price Per Day
$555
Accommodation
4 Star
Budget
Premium
No. of Trips
427
No. of Departures
3,530
Avg. Trip Length
12 Days
Avg. Price Per Day
$655
Accommodation
4 - 4.5 Star
Budget
Premium
In Their Own Words We asked the travel companies themselves why you should travel with them
At Collette, we consider everyone who travels with us to be our personal guest. Every moment matters to us because we know it matters to you. This may be because at heart we are a family owned company that has been in business for 100 years. It may be because our team are passionate about sharing their own love of travel and uncovering mysteries.
Choosing Collette comes with benefits that take your guided travel experience to another level. Our inclusive tours provide you more value for your money and more of what makes travel special. Let us show you the world!
At Insight Vacations we have been creating magical travel experiences for over 40 years, showcasing the most outstanding destinations and curated experiences in Europe and North America.
Why are we different to any other operator? It’s our unique Insight experiences. It’s our authentic and varied dining options, it’s travelling in smaller groups on customised coaches with twice the legroom, it’s staying in the right hotels in the right location, all brought together seamlessly by our exceptional travel directors. In essence: All the sights, and the insights….up close and personal…in comfort and style.
Travel is such a joy and a personal passion for myself and every member of our team. We’re so proud of the quality, service and value we provide and invite you to try it for yourself. Talk to Global Journeys to find out more about travelling in style and booking your next holiday with Insight Vacations.
Recent Reviews
4.4
Hi. If I’m going to be completely honest here, I was somewhat disappointed in this tour, don't get me wrong there were some fab times we had as well. Day One- the "included" breakfast was utterly terrible to the point where we didn’t eat it, and to the fact that we were sharing the breakfast buffet with another tour. The badlands was great we had a ...read more wonderful time here. The wall drug slop stop, for the money we eat in cafeteria? Couldn't understand this.
The night we were taken to another sub average hotel to eat yet another average meal, again I stress the point for the money spent, a) we are given a limited choice of food, b) told there are no modifications. c) the meal that was served wouldn't have fed a two year old, it was cold and average, a sharing plate of processed meats as a start.
Day Two & Three - Someone made the executive decision to take us elsewhere for breakfast which was very nice. The sight seeing was great, however I soon realized that we are not allowed to really stop in the bus in a National Park (I could be wrong here) or were we allowed off the bus, again my point to the money spent and all photos being taken from the window.
Day Four & Five - Tour was great, a lot more driving than I anticipated, Cody was great, would have been even better along the way if we were told that there are other things going on in the town i.e. Rodeo, but no, our meal was in a bistro of a hotel. Given there are so many places to eat along the way yet, the included meal is in the hotel.
Day 6 - This is the day that I calculated we were driving in a bus for approx. 8 hours. I’ll say no more the accommodation here was great the hotel staff and food were lovely.
Day 7 - Was great until we went to heart mountain (this could have been day 6). I would strongly suggest that this is an optional stop, I did not see this on the itinerary nor did I want any part of this, I actually can not describe how mortified I was at what I sat through, If you wanted to top off a good week, this just knocked it all over. I feel this was the most inappropriate tour stop I have ever encountered. At this point to be honest I was pretty much over the whole tour, I avoided the chuck wagon dinner (thank god) I was told I would have not been impressed, people were having to be driven back down. So overall I was very disappointed
Food- 1/10. Tour Leader - 10/10. Coach Driver- 10/10. Overall tour experience 3/10. If I’m going to be honest, I would probably never book with Collette again. Other tour members were saying that had been on many Collette tours and never had anything so sub par. Sorry to be so negative, but I’m being honest.
Reply From Collette:Thank you for choosing Global Journeys and Collette for your recent America’s Cowboy Country tour. We are grateful you took the time to provide valuable feedback concerning your tour experience. Your comments about the tour are being reviewed by Collette’s Product Development and Product Design Teams for this region. All feedback is encouraged as it allows us the opportunity to identify areas of concern and strive to make the necessary enhancements. A member of our Traveller Relations Team will be contacting you to review your concerns.
The night we were taken to another sub average hotel to eat yet another average meal, again I stress the point for the money spent, a) we are given a limited choice of food, b) told there are no modifications. c) the meal that was served wouldn't have fed a two year old, it was cold and average, a sharing plate of processed meats as a start.
Day Two & Three - Someone made the executive decision to take us elsewhere for breakfast which was very nice. The sight seeing was great, however I soon realized that we are not allowed to really stop in the bus in a National Park (I could be wrong here) or were we allowed off the bus, again my point to the money spent and all photos being taken from the window.
Day Four & Five - Tour was great, a lot more driving than I anticipated, Cody was great, would have been even better along the way if we were told that there are other things going on in the town i.e. Rodeo, but no, our meal was in a bistro of a hotel. Given there are so many places to eat along the way yet, the included meal is in the hotel.
Day 6 - This is the day that I calculated we were driving in a bus for approx. 8 hours. I’ll say no more the accommodation here was great the hotel staff and food were lovely.
Day 7 - Was great until we went to heart mountain (this could have been day 6). I would strongly suggest that this is an optional stop, I did not see this on the itinerary nor did I want any part of this, I actually can not describe how mortified I was at what I sat through, If you wanted to top off a good week, this just knocked it all over. I feel this was the most inappropriate tour stop I have ever encountered. At this point to be honest I was pretty much over the whole tour, I avoided the chuck wagon dinner (thank god) I was told I would have not been impressed, people were having to be driven back down. So overall I was very disappointed
Food- 1/10. Tour Leader - 10/10. Coach Driver- 10/10. Overall tour experience 3/10. If I’m going to be honest, I would probably never book with Collette again. Other tour members were saying that had been on many Collette tours and never had anything so sub par. Sorry to be so negative, but I’m being honest.
Reply From Collette:Thank you for choosing Global Journeys and Collette for your recent America’s Cowboy Country tour. We are grateful you took the time to provide valuable feedback concerning your tour experience. Your comments about the tour are being reviewed by Collette’s Product Development and Product Design Teams for this region. All feedback is encouraged as it allows us the opportunity to identify areas of concern and strive to make the necessary enhancements. A member of our Traveller Relations Team will be contacting you to review your concerns.
Collett tour itinerary was excellent Hotel stays were not bad, some bedding was poor quality. Tour bus was horrible, small bus with little comfort, shocking suspension, very rough. Meals were very good. The island of Salina was the best.
Cruising the islands was the true highlight of this trip. We loved going ashore in the evenings and exploring local fare in a great variety of restaurants. The boat was excellent with friendly staff, good food and a relaxed pace down the coast. We enjoyed swimming off the back on several occasions. Ports were getting busy and early June is as late as ...read more you would want to take this trip. Or wait till October. Have a decent budget for onshore meals. Our only gripe was a bit of penny pinching by Colette, with only one glass of wine with included dinners and rather expensive options. Would still do it again in a heartbeat.
My friend and I had a great time on this tour. We loved our tour manager Rosario, he was excellent and showed us elements of Sicily & Malta that we could never have done on our own. We also loved our bus driver Antonio, he also was excellent and had the added bonus of being a great musician, entertaining us when he finished driving for the day, much ...read more appreciated! We met new friends in our lovely group of 22, they were fun and interesting, mostly from USA with a couple of other Aussies. We were very sorry to leave them all & plan another tour for hopefully next year. Our hotels, guides & pre planned meals were all top notch. Thank you.
It was our first time in Norway and we’re so glad we chose this tour. The number of people in the group was just right. We enjoyed all the excursions we had in all the places we visited: from Oslo to Flam to Loen to Bergen. We were able to experience Norway’s National Day in Bergen which was a real treat. The trip to Geiranger village/Geirangfjord was ...read more something special too.
Accommodations selected were in the best possible location, close to the where the actions are. Our tour director was approachable, knowledgeable and very helpful. Everything went alright for us in this tour and would not hesitate to recommend this to our friends and relatives. We took the post-tour extension to Iceland too. Great place to visit but our local tour guide there was not as great as the one we had in Norway. Apart from that we enjoyed our trip overall.
Accommodations selected were in the best possible location, close to the where the actions are. Our tour director was approachable, knowledgeable and very helpful. Everything went alright for us in this tour and would not hesitate to recommend this to our friends and relatives. We took the post-tour extension to Iceland too. Great place to visit but our local tour guide there was not as great as the one we had in Norway. Apart from that we enjoyed our trip overall.
A fast paced tour showing what Italy has to offer. Commencing in Rome we basically had 2 nights stay at Sorrento, Florence, Venice and Stresa. We had stops along the way to such places as Pompeii, Pisa, and Verona. My highlight was the 1 hour bus trip each way up to Simplon Pass in the Swiss Alps whilst staying in Stresa. We had 42 in our group and ...read more it was a very friendly tour consisting of 35 Americans and 7 Australians. Clarissa was our fantastic Tour Leader and Gian Carlo was our excellent coach driver. You have to be reasonably agile and fit for this tour as there is a lot of walking on uneven cobblestone streets and paths. Although there was a lot of distance covered every couple of days, it was a great tour and we would travel with Collette again.
4.5
Everything about this tour was excellent. Coach was very comfortable, only 1 hotel in Rome was very tiny the rest were good. Tour guide very knowledgeable and caring. The itinerary was just right and not rushed. Global Journeys "Georgie" did an excellent job of our selection process, we'll be going with her next time we book. Insight vacations of course. ...read more They're the best.
The Britan and Ireland tour - our second trip back to back with Insight, again exeeded our expectations. Insight Vacations have done an amazing job with this tour too, which we both thoroughly enjoyed.
The tour leader and the driver are great. I'm having a great time. Enjoying the sites seeing for the first time. I really recommend if you want to visit Germany for short period of time.
Would highly recommend this tour, everything ran smoothly. 3 Caterina and Rosemary, VIC, Australia, May 2024
Would highly recommend this tour, as everything was organised. The tour director and coach driver delivered a high standard of customer service.
The European Grandeur tour has exeeded our expectations. Insight Vacations have done an amazing job with this tour which we both thouroughly enjoyed.
We loved the variety of experiences on this trip. From the busy sights of Rome, Florence, Pisa and Venice to the charm of Lake Maggiore, Cinque Terre and the grandeur of the Dolomites, we saw Italy at its best. The pace was just right and tour guide excellent. The only downside was rather repetitive fixed menus for dinner in the early stages of the ...read more trip, which improved as we moved away from the busiest centres. Organisation by Global Journeys was great and everything clicked into place.
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