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Private & Custom Tours

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Private & Custom Luxury Tours

Luxury Private Tours

Travel with whomever. Whenever. Welcome to private and custom travel with Classic Journeys.

Take one of our award-winning tours, exclusively with your inner circle. Just say the word and we’ll fine-tune details to make it your trip of a lifetime.

Or, commission a custom vacation. Pick a region that is special to you (whether it’s to reconnect or discover your heritage, or just the next place on your bucket list), And you’ll get a seamless and turnkey experience at a great value. The sky’s the limit: you wish it, we’ll bring it to life, crafting everything completely from scratch, and personalizing it to perfection.

Ready to explore? Let’s go!

Private trips for families.

This isn’t just a family trip, it’s your family trip. Whether you’re taking over a villa-hotel for an all-generations reunion, seeking parent-child bonding in a spectacular location, or something totally different—our private family trips revolve entirely around your brood’s needs.

Personalized Vacations for Private Groups

Discover new places with old friends: We’ll move mountains to create the kind of vacation everyone enjoys to the maximum, whether you’re a group of four or forty.

Destination Weddings & Honeymoons

Maybe it’s a Tuscan villa , Portuguese castle , or the middle of the Moroccan desert . A romantic escape for just the two of you, or a celebration with whatever sized wedding party you choose. However you dream of spending your wedding day and the days surrounding it, you can count on us to make every moment magnificent.

Private Tours with Classic Journeys

Private Tours With Classic Journeys

Your people. Your dates. Turn any of our published itineraries into a private trip on any date you want.

From One to Whatever

With a private trip, you can choose any group size. Adventure solo, bring someone special, or invite the whole extended family.

Do the USA Your Way.

Gather loved ones from all over. Take the road trip you always dreamed of. Discover the National Parks, or iconic towns. Feel worlds away from home.

See the World, Without Sharing the World.

The most exclusive grand tour of Europe, ever. Adventure Asia as you always wanted. Peru, personalized to perfection…

You talk, We’ll Listen.

Then we’ll create a custom trip of a lifetime, totally tailored to your desires.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a private tour.

The definition for a private tour is an itinerary run exclusively for you and your family or friends. On a private trip, everybody you travel with will be somebody you know. Private tours are more flexible when it comes to your group size, travel dates and what your trip includes.

What is the difference between public and private tours?

Public tours run on scheduled dates, whereas a private tour can depart on any date that suits you. Anyone can join a private tour, whereas a private tour is exclusively just you and your friends or family. Public tours have a limited group size, whereas private tours can have as many or few guests as you like.

What does a private tour include?

Private tours with Classic Journeys include:

• Local tour guide, English speaking
• Luxury hotels with invisible check in
• Meals with wine
• Private access events
• Your wish list

How do I book a private tour?

1.    Complete our private trip planning form 2.    One of our Travel Experience Specialists will phone you to make sure we have everything on your wish list. 3.    We send you a bullet pointed itinerary and pricing for your review. 4.    You approve the itinerary and pricing, or make any edits that you want. 5.    Reserve your trip of a lifetime with a deposit.

How much does a private tour cost?

Every private tour is priced differently because it’s completely unique. For an idea of how much your trip will cost, complete our private trip planning form and we’ll get back to you with the details.

Are private tours expensive?

Guests are often pleasantly surprised that Classic Journeys can offer a private departure for less than you would pay for another company’s standard tours. In some cases, we can even offer a private departure for less than you would pay for other companies’ standard tours. The starting point—the published price of a Classic Journeys public tour—is lower than what many companies charge for their comparable tours.

How long is a private tour?

A long weekend tour can be three or four days, while a round-the-world trip might take several months! The best thing about private tours is that they can be completely planned around how long you want to travel. Let us know the duration that works best for you, and we’ll create an amazing itinerary to fill it.

How are custom tours created?

Classic Journeys is relatively unique in that we work with local guides and hoteliers in the region that you’re planning to visit. Once you’ve told us your wish list, our Tour Operations team get to work, brainstorming with our own team of local guides to handcraft your itinerary for you.

Can I choose the destination for my private tour?

Yes! We can create an itinerary entirely tailored to the destination, or destinations you want to visit. Whether it’s a country you’ve seen on our website, or somewhere no one seems to run scheduled trips.

Can I choose the activities for my private tour?

Yes! Let us know if there are any specific activities you want to enjoy on your tour, we can also suggest our favorite things to do and see in your destination, based on decades of experience.

Can I choose the accommodation?

Yes! If you have a specific hotel or lodge in mind that you would like to stay in, we can incorporate it into your tour. We have great relationships with the best hotels all over the world, so there is a good chance your chosen hotel is one with whom we already have a relationship.

Is my private tour guided?

Yes, all private tours are led by our local guides, who live in the destination you’re visiting and have better insider knowledge than anyone. If you want to explore independently on some days, we can incorporate this into your itinerary

How do I find a private tour guide?

Our trips include a private tour guide, who’s there throughout your trip. Tours by locals is one of the things that set our trips apart from other companies, who fly in tour leaders who don’t understand the region like a local does, or have local guides who are only around for parts of your trip.

Can my private trip include a destination wedding?

Yes. We can arrange one of our amazing travel itineraries around your dream wedding ceremony, or create a custom destination wedding trip completely from scratch. With over a quarter century of travel experience, and insider expertise from local guides who live in our destinations year-round, Classic Journeys can put together a personalized wedding trip for just the two of you, or a wedding party of any size.

Can I book a private trip for a honeymoon?

Yes! Turn any of our itineraries into the trip of a lifetime for two, or talk to us about your ideal honeymoon destinations, hotels and activities and we’ll customize the perfect honeymoon to celebrate your marriage. Maybe it’s a tour of Europe’s most romantic cities, an adventure though Southeast Asia, or something else entirely—tell us your travel bucket list and we’ll make sure your married life gets off to a spectacular start. ​​

Who books private tours?

• Multigenerational families wanting to spend quality time together • Couples celebrating a honeymoon or anniversary • Groups of friends wanting to explore a destination together • Special interest groups who want their trip to have a very particular focus • Companies creating incentive trips to reward top-performing employees or clients • Celebrities, politicians, even royals who appreciate the complete discretion of a private trip

What are the best private tour destinations?

The most popular destinations for our private tours include these destinations that are trending right now: • Joshua Tree • Alaska • Iceland • Italy • Montana • Galapagos • Costa Rica ​​​​​• Peru

Related Trips

Tuscany & the Cinque Terre Cultural Walking Adventure

• Starting at $6,195

Portugal Cultural Walking Adventure

• Starting at $6,295

Bryce, Grand Canyon & Zion Cultural Walking Adventure

• Starting at $5,245

What Our Guests Are Saying

Privacy overview.

A Guide to Tipping for Travelers

Andersen Ross Photography Inc / Getty Images

Tipping correctly can save you time, embarrassment, and money. While traveling, many people will offer their services to help make life easier, but it can sometimes be hard to tell who's just doing their job and who expects a tip.

Tipping is payment for a service rendered, but tipping can also be an act of gratitude for someone who goes beyond the call of duty, like a concierge securing front-row seats to the hottest show in town. Choosing not to tip will send a clear message that you have been dissatisfied with the service you've received.

These tipping guidelines are for the United States only. Expectations (and tipping amounts) can vary quite a bit from country to country. Check the travel guide for the particular country you will be visiting for the proper tipping etiquette.

Hotels and Resorts

Occasionally, you might stay at a hotel or resort with a no-tipping policy. In this case, you might find that you are already paying for service by way of a resort fee or service charge added your final bill.

• When valeting your car, tip $1 to $2 to the attendant when he retrieves your car. You can also tip when dropping your car off, but this is optional.
• You don't need to tip the doorman when he opens the door for you, but if he hails you a cab, you should tip $1 to $2.
• Tip bellhops and luggage porters $1 to $2 for every bag they bring up to your room. At a luxury hotel, you might tip more, as much as $5 per bag.
• For housekeeping, leave a daily tip of $1 to $5 per day, depending on the type of hotel and the size of the mess you've made.
• If you order room service, you'll find most hotels already include a service charge on the bill. If there's no service charge, tip 15 percent.
• The hotel concierge exists to help guests, so it's not necessary to tip if they give you directions or make a restaurant recommendation. However, if the service has been especially valuable, such as getting reservations to a restaurant that claims to be totally booked, tipping $5 to $20 is reasonable.
• Be sure to check out our guide for tipping in Las Vegas as well.

In general, more and more cruise lines are moving away from traditional tipping and adding service charges, which will be split evenly among the crew. It varies from line to line, so make sure to ask about their tipping policy before you book your next cruise.

• If the cruise line automatically adds the service charge to your account, you may be able to adjust it lower or higher as you deem necessary. The recommended amount is $10 to $20 per passenger for every day of your cruise.
• Baggage handlers work for the port and not the cruise ship, so you should tip $1 to $2 per bag or $4 to $5 per party.
• Like at a hotel, you can leave $1 to $5 per day for housekeeping in your cabin.
• You will most likely have different servers every day, but if there is someone that stands out (like a bartender who remembers your drink order), feel free to hand them a small token of appreciation.
• Upon any delivery to your cabin, like room service or a special request, you should tip $1 to $3 per visit depending on how much you order.
• Tipping the head waiter isn't necessary, but you can give $5 to $10 if they accommodate a special request or go above and beyond.
• Onshore excursions, you should tip your guides based on the level of personalization from $2 to $10.
• For children's club counselors, tipping is not necessary.
• It's the ship captain's job to command the ship and, occasionally, socialize with guests. Tipping is not necessary and would most likely be refused.

Restaurants and Bars

Whether you're enjoying a night out on the town or just popping down to the hotel lounge for a nightcap, standard tipping practices still apply when you're traveling.

• Tip your server 15 percent to 20 percent of the bill based on the pre-tax total of the bill or more if you enjoyed the service. If a service charge has already been included, feel free to leave without tipping.
• Bartenders should be tipped $1 per drink served, even if they're just pouring beer or wine.
• Tip the sommelier 10 percent of your wine costs, even if it's a less expensive vintage.
• If there is a bathroom attendant, who doesn't just hand out towels but also keeps the bathroom clean, drop a few coins in the tip jar or tip $1 per visit.
• When collecting your things at the coat check, tip $1 per item checked.

Transportation

Depending on how you choose to get around when you travel, you might be expected to tip.

• It's customary to tip cab drivers 15 percent to 20 percent of the fare.
• If you use a rideshare app like Uber or Lyft, you're not obligated to tip the driver, but it's considerate to give $1 to $2 for a short trip or more for a long-haul ride.
• If you arrange an airport shuttle transfer, tip $1 for every bag handled.
• Tip limousine drivers 15 percent to 20 percent, unless a service charge is included.

How much you tip a tour guide varies depending on the tour's length, size, and overall quality. In most countries, tipping your guide at the end of a tour is standard practice and will be rarely turned down.

• For a tour that only lasts a few hours, tip your guide 10 percent to 20 percent the cost of the tour. How much you tip also depends on the size of your tour, so you should tip more for a more personalized experience.
• For a multi-day tour, you should tip your guide $5 to $10 per day on the last day.
• If there was a driver in addition to a guide, tip them $1 to $5 per day.
• For free tours, which are offered in many large cities , you should tip between $5 to $10, depending on the quality of the tour.

Spas and Salons

If you purchase an individualized service at a spa or salon, you'll be expected to leave a tip. Some spas might already include a service charge, so make sure to ask about this at the front desk when you go to pay.

• For a spa treatment like a massage or a facial, tip 15 percent to 20 percent if no service fee has been included. If you're getting the treatment at a discount, your tip should be based on the original price.
• There's no need to tip if you're visiting a spa with common facilities like saunas or hot springs without purchasing an extra treatment.
• Medical spas might have more complicated treatments, like botox injections. Usually, tipping is not allowed for these kinds of services.
• Hairstylists and manicurists should be tipped at 15 percent to 20 percent.
• If someone else washes your hair, you can give them a $1 to $5.

Golf Courses

If you decide to go for a round of golf on vacation, you might run into these tipping scenarios.

• On a golf course, the bag boy takes your clubs when you arrive and sets them up in a golf cart for you. He will also wipe them down before you leave, so tip $1 to $2 on arrival and $2 to $5 as you leave.
• If you arrive without a tee time and the starter fits you in, you can tip them $1 to $5.
• Caddies should be tipped 50 percent of the caddie fee, adjusted higher or lower for your satisfaction with their service.
• A forecaddie works for a group of golfers and should be tipped $20 to $25 per player.

A Guide to Tipping in France

A Guide to Tipping in India

A Guide to Tipping in Ireland

A Guide to Tipping in Chicago

A Guide to Tipping in New York City

A Guide to Tipping Hotel Employees

A Guide to Tipping in Germany

A Guide to Tipping in Portugal

Tipping in Iceland: The Complete Guide

Guide to Tipping in Las Vegas

How Much You Should Tip in Amsterdam

A Guide to Tipping in the United Kingdom

A Guide to Tipping in Mexico

A Guide to Tipping in Nepal

A Guide to Tipping in Peru

A Guide to Tipping in Asia

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USA Tour Companies

Looking for an unforgettable USA tour? Book a fully-organized trip with the best tour companies in USA and let the tour operator take care of everything for you. Check out the tour details and read 190026 reviews from our customers to help you choose the perfect tour for you.

List of USA travel companies & tour operators with 190026 reviews

G Adventures

• Excellent - 19,058 reviews for USA tours

the tour itself was amazing. The national parks do not disappoint. The travel accomodations were very cramped and uncomfortable. I am only 5 foot tall and I was cramped in this 14 passenger van. Food opportunities were limited.

Fantastic experience - efficient use of time, great itinerary. Well-informed and interesting guide who is also just a great person.

Bindlestiff Tours

• Excellent - 1,442 reviews for USA tours

Amazing tour I did the tour end of March amazing trip. A little colder than I expected but I still had an awesome and fabulous time. I regretted I did not take the helicopter tour for the Grand canyon. Zion is also beautiful do anticipate the shuttle bus ride that theres a lot people and could take you up more time as theres very long line up. Antelope canyon was my highlight for this tour its incredibly beautiful. Take the Navajo guided tour- you won't regret it. Hogan was very patient with us and very informative. Highly recommended.

I cannot recommend this trip enough. It was the best I've ever been on! Bindlestiff took us to so many places and saw so much and yet, it didn't feel rushed at all. The magnitude of National and State parks that we covered was remarkable, and I thoroughly enjoyed the time spent in each. The group was very small- only 6 people. As a solo traveler, this was perfect because it allowed us to get to know each other and the friendly vibes felt so natural (no loneliness here!) Besides the sights, the obvious best thing about this trip was our guide, Joseph. He was the perfect balance of knowledgeable and fun, always making every effort to answer our questions, provide his own anecdotes and accommodate any of our special requests or preferences. Joseph is incredible and a true professional. The accomodation throughout the trip was excellent- all my needs were met and exceeded. Most hotels provided breakfast and, in the few incidences that they didn't, readily accessible alternatives were available. At first, I was concerned that picnic lunches would reduce the amount of time that we had to explore the sights. This wasn't the case at all. Joseph ensured that all lunches were well-catered and smoothly run. Originally, I'd planned to organize and self-navigate a trip similar to this all by myself. I am extremely glad that this plan didn't work out. Bindlestiff is an amazing company. If you are on the fence about booking this trip, don't be! You, like me, won't regret it for a single second.

Intrepid Travel

• Excellent - 11,681 reviews for USA tours

My son and I had a great hiking adventure on the Sedona tour! The scenery was stunning, the hikes were fun! Tolman was an excellent guide, who was very knowledgeable about the area, he had great hiking tips, and he picked some enjoyable challenging hikes for us! He was also an excellent cook! He prepared us some great meals! His positive outlook on everything helped the group of strangers on the trek quickly bond which led us all to have a great hiking experience!

Judd was excellent, and very knowledgable, he was very prepared and i would recommend Intrepid to my friends and family

• Excellent - 132 reviews for USA tours

Great tour, good group size too

The tour was great, especially our guide Pasquale, who brought more flavour to all places we visited and did his best to show and teach us everything, meet everyone’s expectations and create a great atmosphere. Our driver Jacob also was very kind and supportive. Hotels had a good standard and necessary itinerary adaptions were on spot. In my point of view, the only shortfall was tour start and end (meeting/drop-off) points; which would work quite better starting and ending in a hotel, also offering pre and post tour accommodation for the ones arriving early or leaving late. Meeting points in public spaces when you have luggage is not comfortable and might cause problems to travellers. All the rest was great!

Southwest Adventure Tours

• Excellent - 94 reviews for USA tours

Guide was knowledgeable and helpful. It was a good group

This was a wonderful experience brought to life by a passionate and caring tour guide.

• Excellent - 1,881 reviews for USA tours

Excellent. Great guide, driver, weather, hotels, food. Great itenirary. Love love this trip.

Optional excursions were reasonably priced. Suggest you put together other places in each city as a walking guide or short taxi or uber ride. Example access to close by museums open late and could walk to from hotel. Free time activities and what they are and where located is helpful.tour guide can offer to accompany a group interested to explore more during free leisure tome.Provide more detail info about the logistics of site visits. Niagara falls..suggest more water proof gear clothing and shoe types etc. Terrain to expect when visiting certain sites and possible alternatives.climbing and how difficult-easy or more strenuous or advanced climbing activity. Overall, small groups so much better than filling up bus. Thank you for giving single travelers their own bus space. Would love to watch more travel videos on longer driving distances.

BrushBuck Wildlife Tours

• Excellent - 23 reviews for USA tours

Although the tour was very expensive- over $2000 for 3 days is over the top- it wss a great experience, saw lots of wildlife and the guide was outstanding

What an amazing experience this was; from the greeting and pick up by our guide/driver, to the phenomenal sights and the historical references that accompanied them! I am so pleased. This was an exceptionally planned tour that successfully met all of my needs. I would not change a thing and look forward to future adventures with them.

Infinite Adventures

• Excellent - 118 reviews for USA tours

It was my first group trip and also my first camping trip. I have to say it was one of the best trips I've been on. It was an adventure! We were lucky enough to see the Northern Lights at Remote Camp. Tory and Dave took care of everything and made sure everyone had a great time. No matter what problem you had, they always helped each other! Dave cooked delicious food, we had marshmallows by the fire in the evening and it felt like family. It's a great tour and I can only recommend it to anyone! It certainly wasn't my last tour with Infinite Adventure! Many thanks to Tory, Dave and Natalie (who you could ask any question you wanted to know beforehand) for this unforgettable time! :)

Jump on the bus with Infinite Adventures for a magnificent Alaskan expedition! Dave and Tory are excellent guides and will keep you informed about the areas you visit and give expert advice. I found this to be a truly joyful experience!

• Excellent - 74,881 reviews for USA tours

This was our second trip on Globus and both experiences were fantastic.

I was skeptical of a group tour, particularly by coach. The experienced guide, Jason, along with driver Shauna, changed my view completely.

Insight Vacations

• Excellent - 625 reviews for USA tours

My first experience with an organized tour like this. Expense alone will limit future trips. Much more walking than my wife was prepared for. This alone reduced her enjoyment. Tour guide was very knowledgeable and thorough with his planning and execution. Andrew has a fun personality and very personable. One item that disappointed me was the shuttle from airport to resort at both ends of the

Insights Tours are always amazing and this one was no exception. Nice balance of free time to relax and experience Hawaii on your own with visits to places on the islands to experience the culture. Learned a lot of Hawaii’s history throughout our visit. Overall a lovely experience and would highly recommend if you want to visit Hawaii and learn more about the islands.

National Geographic Journey…

• Excellent - 253 reviews for USA tours

Good time with lots of riding in the van going to interesting places

We had a wonderful time. The tour was well planned and well managed. The CEO was excellent ..good driver, good communicator, had good knowledge of the local attractions and made great recommendations for restaurants. The group we were with was also a very pleasant group which made the experience that much more enjoyable. That said, would have loved to see the accommodations updated.. most except the Denali cabins were old and "weathered".

Bucket List Group Travel LL…

• Good - 14 reviews for USA tours

Had a wonderful time - a lot of hiking, seeing the sites in Alaska and viewing the Northern Lights.

The tour was amazing, great and tour guides:).

• Excellent - 19,641 reviews for USA tours

Could have had more included activities

The tour had a few bumps. It would have been better if there were some included meals. There was no information about some of the excursions such as where the island tour stopped.

• Excellent - 860 reviews for USA tours

This was a fast but nice tour and Dave was a good guide. Only in LA i thought we should have had more time but it was perfect for a Solo Travler

I enjoyed this trip . The coach is good.Hyannis first day break fast was good.coverage is good.Hyannis golf resort stay is superb.providence city halt in hotel graduates is excellent.Fall colours coverage is very good.coach guidance is okay.overall the trip is very good.

The Coyote Trip

• Excellent - 10 reviews for USA tours

From a speedboat to the Statue of Liberty to fireworks on 4th July in Washington to hiking to Yosemite Falls, this trip showcased the very best the USA has to offer. I went on the 21 day Full Cyote trip from New York to San Francisco with my brother. With such a packed itinerary of included activities, it offered great value for money. The guides in every region we visited were excellent. A particular shout out to Ryan, who added in extra stops and experiences based on the group's interests. Other highlights included the Grand Canyon, Washington's museums, whale watching in Boston, cycling across the Golden Gate Bridge and sunset in Griffeths Park. I met a great group of people on the trip, and I wouldn't hesitate to book with the Cyote Trip again.

Great tour. We were a group of 7 and had lots of fun. Tour guides were really nice and friendly and itnwas a great combination of nature and the big cities.

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International Versions

• Deutsch: Reiseveranstalter für USA Reisen
• Français: Voyagistes proposant des séjours en États-Unis
• Español: Estados Unidos (EUA) Compañías de Circuitos
• Nederlands: Reisorganisaties en Touroperators in USA