Travelmarvel Tour & Cruise Reviews

It was a wonderful trip with friendly fun people. Tour guide and driver were top of the ladder. The only down side was having to sit on a bus for so long because the first part of the trip was so far from anywhere and each other. Motels were very good, food was excellent. Tracey Standing was very easy to work with.

What a fabulous trip with a great bunch of fellow travellers. The itinerary was packed but there is so much to see. I would definitely travel with Travelmarvel again and the booking through Global Journeys was so simple and easy and all done online. I will book again for another trip.

We enjoyed the cruise and the itinerary very much. The staff were very helpful, polite and attentive. The food was good. The boat was nice and modern and the cleaning was of a high standard. It is certainly a nice way to discover a little bit of Europe. The laundry service was reasonably priced, as no irons allowed in the rooms.

You could do as ...read more much or as little as you wanted in regards to tours and exploring on your own. We made some nice friends - tour was predominantly Australian, with a few Kiwis and Americans thrown in.

My only big disappointment was that we paid for a room with a french balcony, so that we could enjoy the views and fresh air. We spent the majority of the days, when the boat wasn't sailing (which was a lot), in darkness, because another boat was nearly always tethered to our side of the boat. And apart from a 1/2 day, it was always on our side of the boat. I don't recall this being mentioned when we booked. This got worse as the cruise went on, as many days were spent in port while the sailing was done later in the evening. Yes, you can go on deck, but we wanted to be able to chill out in our rooms by ourselves occasionally, and enjoy the view. I'm not sure that I would do another cruise because of this.

We also missed out on the Amsterdam canal cruise, due to Mardi Gras, which couldn't be helped, but still disappointing. A highlight was the boat sailing up and down the Danube River at night, so that we could see the very pretty lights of Budapest. Overall, we had a lovely time and experienced lots of lovely and interesting places! I also couldn't fault the staff - they all did a great job.

Seven nights of relaxed cruising. Great weather. Only 25 passengers. Good tour director and boat crew. Fabulous small towns to visit each day.

This cruise was extremely well organised with experienced and friendly guides. The zodiacs were a challenge at first but after a few days and gaining confidence in the driver it wasn’t as daunting. Some days it wasn’t possible to view the scenery behind you from the zodiac. Food, crew and fellow passengers were excellent.

Much to my surprise, this "tour" by Travel Marvel was in fact 2 subcontracted tours to local African providers and appeared loosely "co-ordinated" by Travelmarvel. As such, it was more like 2 distinct tours, with 2 different companies, one for southern Africa, the other for Kenya and Tanzania. The latter part was wonderful - Albatross Tours in Kenya ...read more and Tanzania did a wonderful, fully professional job with an outstanding knowledgeable guide and drivers, well crafted plans, excellent communication and implementation. Accommodation was excellent and transport also great - although there were some VERY long days (8 hours+) in 4wd's on dreadfully rough tracks which were tough on all of us and saw many of the older, less fit members of the group having to miss sections of the trip due to fatigue. Albatross would easily gain a 5 Star revue for their share of the trip.

Unfortunately, the same could not be said about Giltedge Travel who were responsible for the first part of the trip from Capetown or Kruger to Chobe River. Our Giltedge tour leader was a poor communicator, disorganised and not a good ambassador for Africa. After introducing himself to we 3 who joined the trip in Kruger he said that everyone on the original trip was sick with vomiting and diarrhea and to stay away from them! What a welcome!! He constantly criticised everything about Africa and expressed his strong desire to leave. His true interest was in photography and he spent most of his time in game parks taking photos for his own photographic business. Itinerary plans were clumsy at best - with large amounts of time devoted to standing around and waiting, or travelling back across areas we had already travelled.

Starting the tour in Kruger was a particularly awkward (and expensive) starting point, and should have started in Johannesburg when the rest of the group flew via there to Kruger. On day 2, after joining the group in Kruger, 3 of us were told we could not travel with the group to Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe and would, instead travel on our own to Zambia - NOT Zimbabwe!! Our tour leader was unable to tell us the logistics of how we would be able to get from Zambia to Zimbabwe to meet up with the rest of the group and "assumed" it would all be OK. The 3 of us were extremely stressed and anxious by the whole concept of splitting the group and us having to make our own way.

On enquiry to Travelmarvel about what was happening we were told not enough seats had been booked on the flight for the whole group - despite the fact that we had booked more than 12 months in advance. Travelmarvel argued that the itinerary is a "guide" and that they reserve the right to alter it if necessary. We would never have believed that the small print meant being split away from the group and sent to another country - where we were not even covered by our travel insurance. Travelmarvel blamed Giltedge, Giltedge blamed Travelmarvel! In the end, we were met in Zambia and assisted by 4 different locals, across 3 different immigration borders and with 3 different means of transport in a long and arduous journey. When we finally got to meet up with the tour director, he told us to hurry and catch up with the group who had already started to walk around Victoria Falls. His instructions to us were to keep on the path and meet him at the coffee shop. The "path" turned out to be 4km long and an hour walk through some difficult terrain - guess he couldn't be bothered to walk - or tell us anything about the Falls. He'd already told the other group who travelled with him and couldn't be bothered to let the "stragglers" know.

The one highlight of the southern part of the trip was the 2-night stay on the Chobe Princess - an extra well worth the $$$. The time on the boat was wonderful, fabulous accommodation and food, an outstanding crew who listened to our interests and tailored the sightseeing to our wishes. They too had nothing to do with Travelmarvel but were operated by a separate company again, fortunately a FAR superior company to Giltedge - or Travelmarvel.

Our changeover from the southern part of the trip to the East African part was also a total mess. We were picked up from the Chobe Princess at 10.30 supposedly for our flight to Nairobi. We were taken to the lobby of a hotel in Chobe township, from where our tour leader left to fly back to South Africa, leaving us to wait .... A coach finally arrived for us at 4pm (5 hours after being dropped off in the lobby and after our tour leader had left!) We arrived into Nairobi, on time, as scheduled, at 10pm. A very slow transfer to the hotel, plus briefing and necessary re-packing of bags, saw us able to go to our rooms at 1.30am before an 8am departure for our Kenyan section of the trip.

It was a long, and expensive, tour to Africa. Africa never failed to disappoint, Wonderful, warm, helpful people, magnificent scenery, and amazing encounters with animals - especially in the East African section of the trip. Would I return to Africa - YES- definitely! Would I travel with Travelmarvel - NO - definitely not. Africa is a difficult area to travel in and the need for well planned, communicated and implemented plans is a must. Travelmarvel didn't demonstrate any of these qualities. Even their briefing notes attached to the final itinerary provided misleading, inaccurate and contradictory information - about luggage, currencies, health requirements, items to pack. Fortunately, there are many other companies that travel to Africa and they would certainly be where I would look again in the future. Many thanks to Georgie of Global Journeys who tried to help us with Travelmarvel. It was much appreciated - even though Travelmarvel's response was not!!

We went on the Travelmarvel 15 day tour - Cape Town to Chobe Adventure . The tour was well balanced, providing time in Cape Town, where we went up Table Mountain, drove around the coast road for some stunning scenery and saw penguins at Boulder Beach, then we went to Victoria Falls which were spectacular and had the opportunity of going on safaris ...read more in Kruger and Chobe. It was such a thrill to see elephants, lions, giraffes, buffaloes, hippos and numerous animals close up. Highlights were watching a pride of lions stalk a buffalo and seeing elephants rolling and frolicking in the mud. We also saw a cheetah just walking next to our vehicle. The accommodation was of high standard. Only thing I would recommend is not paying for additional tours through Travelmarvel as they were cheaper if you booked them yourself. I booked the tour using Global Journeys ( this was the second trip through the company). A big thank you to Georgie who saved us quite a bit of money by telling us to wait for The Black Friday sale. Nothing was too much trouble, all my questions were answered promptly and I would definitely recommend Global Journeys to other travellers.

As usual Global Journeys provided an efficient service and we would certainly use them again. However, although the tour had its high spots, we were generally underwhelmed by many days of unending travel leading to uninteresting destinations. In particular we were looking forward to Kalgoorlie but apart from driving to the Super Pit lookout and reservoir ...read more we didn’t see anything else despite there being numerous attractions available. We left the following morning for Esperance at 7.30am when we feel we could have had a visit to a museum in Kalgoorlie to learn more about the gold mining. The driver seemed to want to leave very early each morning to beat the crowds - there weren’t any crowds! Leaving Kalgoorlie at 7.30am, we had morning tea at 8.30am and lunch at 10.30am which didn’t seem very well planned. We arrived in Esperance at 3.30pm! However, overall the accommodation and food were excellent. Highlights of the trip were Wave Rock, wildflower walk and talk, Valley of the Giants and aerial walk, Cape Leeuwen Lighthouse and Margaret River wine tasting and farewell lunch. We don’t think we would choose to use Travelmarvel again and couldn’t recommend this tour to any of our friends. The Tour Leader was very pleasant but didn’t seem to add anything extra.

We had an amazing trip on Travelmarvel Vega from Amsterdam to Budapest. Such a relaxing holiday with first class service at all times from all the incredible staff on board and tour guides on land. Thank you all so much.

The tour was fabulous. So much to see and do. Scenery was magnificent and our tour guide Celine went out of her way to make sure we saw and did as much as possible.

We really enjoyed our river cruise with Travelmarvel from Budapest to Amsterdam in April 2024. We stayed a couple of nights before the cruise at Hotel Vision which was across the road from the Danube River and the dock where we met our cruise. We booked this accommodation ourselves. The hotel was excellent. The map that Travelmarvel provide which shows ...read more where to meet the ship in Budapest is not that accurate. The ship docks the day before the new cruise starts, so it was easy to check out where to go by walking along the river and finding the ship. There are lots of river ships docked in Budapest so be aware the ship might move a little overnight but it will be in the same general area. Budapest is a beautiful city and well worth having a few extra days there. The night cruise to see Budapest all lit up was amazing on the first night that we were on the ship. Amsterdam however was overwhelming. It was incredibly busy - bikes, trams, buses, people all crowded together. We were glad to leave as soon as the cruise was over.

We travelled on the Vega. It was a beautiful ship. It just glides through the water, you hardly know you are moving. The cruise director, Janos, was fabulous. Nothing was too much trouble, and he was very organised. There are a few optional excursions that you can choose to go on, which are an additional cost. We did 3 of them and found them worthwhile. There is no pressure to participate, the alternate option is to stay on the ship which is no hardship.

The food was great. Beer, wine and softdrink was included at lunch and dinner and glasses were really filled up for as long as you are dining. It was great to unpack and just enjoy the cruise. Most days you woke up you were in a new town or heading towards one.

We are around 64 years of age and I think we would have been in the youngest third of the passengers. There were some quite fit 70+ year olds on the cruise. Age doesn't define the ability to be active. There were also some less active older people who were very adequately catered for. When we left the ship to go on bus or walking tours there was nearly always a buss or tour for the gentle walkers who were less mobile. There was exercise, stretch sessions on the ship every morning for those that wanted to participate.

Travelmarvel did their best to cater for all the guests and ensure everyone had as good a holiday as possible.

We had a great time on this river cruise despite Emirates losing our luggage, which we didn't get back until the last day of the cruise. Tracey was helpful when flights were cancelled in Dubai (this was mayhem) and we missed 2 days in Bucharest due to this. We got to the boat just in time. The cruise director, Roland, looked after dealing with our luggage ...read more and the hotel manager, Nicu, made sure our clothes were cleaned and returned to us in the morning. We were able to purchase clothes at the next port. This was our first river cruise. We thought there would be a lot of elderly on board but it was a good mix, but mostly retirees. Our french balcony room was great, cleaned daily and spacious. The food was nice and excursions enjoyable. We would definitely do another river cruise.

This was our first trip to Japan which we booked through Global Journeys and Travelmarvel. This was a trip managed by Great Train Journeys in the UK. We thoroughly enjoyed this trip with like minded travellers from the UK, Australia and US. It is perfect for 1st time travellers to Japan with an attentive English and Japanese tour guide. The overall ...read more tour was well balanced, with the right amount of time spent exploring by ourselves, good hotels and food choices. The tour covered all the main attractions of the cities included. We highly recommend Global Travel who we continue to use for our holiday bookings. They are prompt, pay attention to detail and are always proactive. We would have no hesitation in recommending Global Travel, Travelmarvel or Great Train Journeys.

We enjoyed our cruise very much. The service provided by the crew was excellent, without exception. The meals provided were fabulous. Special mention for the Cruise Director who ensured all activities and excursions were very well organised. We enjoyed good company, good wine and plenty of opportunity for relaxation between excursions. Our cabin ...read more was very comfortable as was the bed. We would be very happy to travel with Travelmarvel again. Booking with Global Journeys was very straightforward, and Maisie was very responsive to my emails.

Booking was a breeze through Global Journeys, Tracey was very wonderful and patient with me, regarding booking and booking flights and accommodation before and after the tour organized. Travelmarvel tour was great it was a small group of 18 and we all got along really well, the organization for the trip and what it entailed run like clockwork. We were ...read more able to see the Northern lights 3 nights in a row in Yellowknife!!! It was a fantastic trip highly recommend to anyone!

This holiday had been well thought out as every day was another exciting experience. It was well balanced with great tour guides and local guides who looked after all our needs. I would certainly recommended this holiday as there were so many different kinds of experiences. Very impressed with beautiful accommodation in every city.

The cabin on the lower deck was absolutely fine and on the same level as the dining room so easy access for all meals. Relaxing on the sundeck as the boat cruised along was amazing. The itinerary was quite busy and we enjoyed meeting other travellers to share travel stories. We hired a tuk tuk at the end of the tour to see more temples independently ...read more which was super easy, safe and enjoyable.

Having done a tour of Tasmania 12 months ago with AAT Kings, I enjoyed the island so much that I took a tour there again, but with another company. This time it was Travelmarvel, which is the discount arm of APT. It was noticeable really only in the accommodation sense, but the sights of course do not change. The highlights this time were places ...read more that I had not been to, which included the Tasmanain Devil Unzoo, Bicheno ( Where the driver's family seemed to have owned most of the town at one stage), and the Nut in Stanley. Other highlights which I had been to before were Port Arthur and the Bruny Island cruise, this time in rough weather. One tip is to possibly arrive the day before the tour officially begins. I intended to arrive on the morning of the tour but the flight from Melbourne was cancelled so I had to book another flight for the next day and so missed a full day of touring. Hannah at Global Journeys, as always, was a pleasure to deal with in organising the tour.

A lovely cruise with TravelMarvel. Unfortunately the water levels were too high in parts but the Tour Director and Ship's Captain were amazing in rearrangement the itinerary at short notice to accommodate as many Christmas markets as possible. Our docking was always walking distance to the attractions. Just too much food!

Nirmelar and I are happy that we booked with Global Journeys and Travelmarvel. Hannah from Global Journeys has always been prompt in answering my questions and giving me very helpful advice. This was my 3rd booking with her. In future I am looking forward to book with her if I decide to travel again.

Our driver and tour guide, Rob Mace of Travelmarvel, ...read more was also very helpful. We travelled ‘worry free’ with him. I have already given my review to Travelmarvel. Overall I personally thank Hannah and Rob and appreciate their help and support to make our tour an enjoyable one.