How Globus scores
Nearly a century old, still Mantegazza family-owned, and the flagship brand within a family that also includes Cosmos and Avalon Waterways. Its scores reflect a genuinely mainstream, premium-adjacent position.
These are fit scores, not review scores. They measure who a trip actually suits, not whether Globus runs a good tour.
Two honest notes. Itinerary flexibility scores well specifically because of Choice Touring — a real, price-included mechanism, not a vague marketing claim. Independence from conglomerates scores solidly because it's simply true: Globus remains privately owned by the founding Mantegazza family nearly a century in, a genuine contrast to TTC's brands, several of which are now Apollo-owned.
Choice Touring — picking your day, not just your trip
Most escorted tours run one fixed itinerary for the whole group. Globus built a real mechanism to break from that on most of its trips.
On nearly 80% of Globus itineraries across Europe and North America, the company offers Globus Choice Excursions — on a given day, travelers pick between multiple included options rather than following one schedule set for the entire group. It's a genuine structural choice, not an optional-activities menu sold on top of the base price; the choice is built into what you've already paid for. If one traveler wants a museum visit and another wants a walking tour of a different neighborhood, both are covered without either paying extra or missing out.
People often confuse this with Costsaver's Choice Experiences — a different company entirely, TTC's budget brand rather than a Globus sibling — but the names sound like the same idea when they're actually close to opposites. Globus Choice Excursions are already paid for; Costsaver Choice Experiences are what you pay for once you're there. If you're cross-shopping the two, that distinction matters more than almost anything else on either page. See our full Costsaver guide for the pay-as-you-go version of this same idea.
What happened to Monograms
Globus recently sunset Monograms, its long-running independent-travel brand, replacing it with Independence by Globus and Globus Independent Tours and City Stays. According to the company's own chief marketing officer, "while the name Monograms is going away, many of the itineraries are not" — the underlying trips largely continued, just under new branding within the Globus name directly rather than a separate sub-brand. If you've booked with Monograms before or seen it referenced in older reviews, know that it's now folded into Globus's own independent-travel lineup.
Three sizes, each confirmed separately
| Tour type | Group size |
|---|---|
| Classic | Motorcoaches can seat more than 50, but Globus caps these tours at 45 — the actual average runs closer to 36. |
| Small Group Departures | Offered on roughly three-quarters of Classic itineraries as an alternative booking option, averaging 24 guests on the same trip. |
| Small Group Discovery | Destination-specific caps, not one global size: Europe departures average 15 with a cap of 18, while North America and Africa departures average 18 with a cap of 24. |
Most Classic itineraries let you choose between the standard departure and its Small Group Departure option at booking — it's often the same trip, just a real choice in group size rather than a separate product you have to seek out.
Solo travelers — Escapes can be unusually good, but check the exact departure
Solo travelers make up roughly a fifth of Globus guests, and the company handles the single supplement with real specificity rather than a blanket policy. Globus regularly offers no-single-supplement pricing on select Globus Escapes departures, particularly in its off-season Europe program, subject to availability — it's genuinely good when it applies, but it isn't automatic on every Escapes date, and capacity for waived-supplement rooms is limited per departure. Outside those specifically designated departures, standard single-room pricing applies unless another promotion happens to be running.
Who Globus fits — and who should look elsewhere
You want real say over your daily activities without paying extra for it — Choice Touring genuinely delivers this on most itineraries. You want a mainstream, widely available escorted tour from a company that's stayed independently family-owned nearly a century. You're comfortable choosing between Classic and Small Group Departures on the same trip rather than needing a separate small-group product. Or you're traveling solo in the off-season and want to check specific Globus Escapes departures for a waived supplement, subject to availability.
You booked with Monograms before and are looking for that exact brand — it's been folded into Independence by Globus and Globus Independent Tours, so search under the new name. You're traveling solo and want the supplement waived automatically; even within the Globus Escapes off-season window, it's select departures with limited capacity, not a guarantee, and most of the rest of the year it doesn't apply at all. You want the smallest possible group as standard; even Small Group Departures average 24, larger than several small-group specialists on our comparison. Or you're specifically drawn to Cosmos's lower price point — Globus is the premium sister brand, not the budget one.
If you asked us to pick
If daily flexibility genuinely matters to you, ask specifically whether your itinerary includes Globus Choice Excursions before assuming every Globus trip works this way — it's nearly 80%, not all. If you're weighing group size, check whether a Small Group Departure option exists on the same itinerary before assuming you need to book a separate, pricier small-group product. And if solo pricing is a deciding factor, ask specifically whether your preferred Globus Escapes departure is one of the select dates with a waived supplement rather than assuming the whole off-season window works that way.
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Quick answers
What is Globus Choice Touring?
On nearly 80% of Globus itineraries across Europe and North America, you can choose between multiple included excursions on a given day rather than following one fixed schedule — the choice is built into the price, not sold as an upgrade. It's a genuinely distinctive mechanism, not just a marketing label for optional add-ons.
What happened to Monograms?
Globus sunset the Monograms brand name and replaced it with Independence by Globus and Globus Independent Tours and City Stays. Many of the same itineraries continue under the new name — the company says the trips themselves mostly didn't change, just the branding.
How big are Globus tour groups?
It depends on the product. Classic tours use motorcoaches that can seat more than 50, but Globus caps them at 45 and the actual average is closer to 36. Small Group Departures, offered on about three-quarters of Classic itineraries, average 24. Small Group Discovery is destination-specific: Europe averages 15 with a cap of 18, while North America and Africa average 18 with a cap of 24.
Does Globus charge a single supplement?
On most tours, yes, though solo travelers make up roughly a fifth of Globus guests. Globus regularly offers no-single-supplement pricing on select Globus Escapes departures, particularly in its off-season Europe program, subject to availability. Outside those specifically designated departures, standard single-room pricing applies unless another promotion is running — neither is a blanket company-wide policy.
Who owns Globus?
The Mantegazza family, who have run the company since Antonio Mantegazza founded it in Switzerland in 1928. Globus is the flagship brand within the family's wider portfolio, which also includes Cosmos and Avalon Waterways — a genuinely independent, privately held company, unlike several operators on our comparison now owned by outside investors.