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Reviews 3.7.

1,724 total

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Scam of a Tour Company

This company scammed our school out of a 5 day tour to Italy which we had to pay $5000 each for, booking us with an airline that canceled our connecting flight till Monday when it was supposed to leave Thursday of the week prior, stranding us in Dallas till then. The airline barely agreed to provide a hotel for the inconvenience, and Explorica never made an attempt to accommodate. Due to this, we got one day in Italy, with no refund or price adjustment offered. They also do some sketchy things in the way they charge for tours. DO NOT USE THIS COMPANY!!!

Date of experience : 30 May 2024

Helpful and courteous

Brenden was so helpful throughout the entire process. He offered suggestions and always checked I. To see how things were going up until the trip. The trip was good. New York was disappointing and not worth all of the days. It could have been cut down 1 day.

Date of experience : 26 May 2024

Athens and cruise to the Greek Islands

I had joined a group trip to Athens and a cruise to Mykonos, Kusadasi, Patmos, Crete and Rhodes. Three nights in Athens were fabulous. Our tour guide Georgios gave an exceptional tour of Athens and ending our trip with an authentic dinner and dance. Georgios made sure that all our travel plans were met with great accommodations. Georgios connected with the island tour guides to ensure we were seeing all of the historical sights. Georgios was very thorough in making sure everyone was accounted for and safe. Georgios ended our trip with seeing us off at the airport until we went through security. The flight, Lufthansa was excellent.

Date of experience : 12 April 2024

Again everyone had a great time. Our tour leader Simone was great and Larry the bus driver was great. This was my third trip and you guys are 3 for 3.

Date of experience : 27 May 2024

The tour guide was unorganized

The tour guide was unorganized. We had several miscommunications. The first we wanted to stay at Universal until it closed and then have dinner. We were told that was okay and when we left, we were told we gave up our time for dinner for a longer time at the park which was only an hour. The tour guide arranged for pizza at the hotel, but no drinks. We were given the leftover money the next day to apply to our lunches, but getting the money was difficult as the tour guide could not figure out how to break the money up. The tickets took an hour to get because they were not printed out ahead of time and Universal would not accept the electronic ticket. We had to show our school credentials to get the tickets. On the second day the tour guide seemed to be planning the trip day by day instead of having everything scheduled and set up ahead of time. We had to wait to get our tickets, he picked Whole Foods in Beverly Hills to buy lunches the second day. We had to ask the bus driver for a better place as Whole Foods is extremely expensive and not kid-friendly. Very little interaction, he did not describe what was around. He did not guide us as we would have expected. We got more information from the bus driver. He seemed to be frustrated and defensive when we asked questions regarding different places instead of whole foods when we had no place to store things just a cooler bag which he was purchasing then. We feel that we could have done better with the bus driver and gone without the tour guide. This tour is vastly different than our experience in DC last year. That was very organized and educational and fun. This was not.

Date of experience : 19 May 2024

Barcelona, Madrid, Sevilla, Malaga

Our tour Director, Jessica made every difference in our whole trip to give 5 stars!!!! We had some hiccups dealing with $$/business side/communication on the planning/finance side. ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ Expertise in the country tour director, JESS!! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ tour Guides in the cities and monument special tour ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ restaurant choice ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️recommend for upgrades For groups with big eaters and sizes of rooms

Date of experience : 25 April 2024

No responsibility

This was my son’s first trip without his family. He went with two teachers and other students from his school. The experience of seeing other countries was amazing he says, but the travel was rushed and there were last minute hotel changes. He lost his passport at one of the hotels, and when it was located explorica did nothing to retrieve it. Mom, across the world, had to coordinate getting it back to him. That meant he missed coming home with the group. Our family had to pay for the return trip for him and his teacher. Which was almost as much as the entire trip. Trip insurance saysReturn airfare and passport shipment fee are not covered under the plan provisions. Our Family is beyond disappointed with explorica.

Date of experience : 15 March 2024

Love Explorica

I've traveled 3 times with Explorica to Québec, Costa Rica, and France & Spain and each time has been affordable for students. The quality of activities and tour guides has been exceptional. The students love these trips and look forward to them each year.

Date of experience : 28 April 2024

Great Experience!

We had a great experience all around. Antonie is the best tour guide in the business, she was super flexible and met all of our needs! Food and lodging were great, the bus and bus driver were wonderful. Can't wait to start planning our next adventure

Date of experience : 05 May 2024

This company doesn't work well with marginalized people. The itinerary was all over the place. Our tour guide was just fine. The restaurants chosen for us were either "fine" or a complete mess.

Date of experience : 22 April 2024

This was my 12th trip to Costa Rica with students. It was by far the best trip we have ever had! Our tour guide Raquel was friendly and extremely organized and the food and lodging was excellent!

Our tour was planned to perfection. Our tour consultants Nicole and Pam were fantastic and answered all of our questions and communicated with us during the entire planning phase. Our tour guide and bus driver made our trip to Costa Rica a memorable one. Attention to detail, well planned excursions and adventure, with excellent food and lodging made this trip the best! Thank you Explorica for making this a trip to remember for all of our teachers, students and parents. Pura Vida!

Date of experience : 23 March 2024

Still waiting for refund, 31 days later

After I paid the full balance of my Explorica account, over $2k+, 1-week before it was due, this company then took the same amount out of my bank account 7 days later, leaving my account at a negative balance. I did not authorize this transaction. I am now on day 31, still waiting for my refund via a mysterious check that I have been told was "in the mail". I have made multiple phone calls and emails trying to escalate this refund, only to be lied to. Their business tactics are shady and opaque.

A Amazing trip!!!

Beautiful trip overall. Food is 2/10 and the worse is the welcome Paella , which is more like dough with scattered chicken pieces. Hotels are a mixed Sevillas hotel is most-like a cheap hostal with a lot of deficiencies and complicated, poorly designed key system, already mastered in most basic hotels. The tour is fabulous and well planned, the need of “Real travelers ib the corporative iOS necessary to correct things like tour pacing, buss ride time church and free times.

Date of experience : 04 April 2024

AMAZING TOUR DIRECTOR-Christian Adolph

This tour was spectacular for one reason alone, Christian Adolph!!!! He was absolutely incredible!!! He had an amazing itinerary planned for us and then as travel always does, when changes needed to be made, he was flexible, quick, and always positive. He made sure we had the experience of a lifetime. He is extremely knowledgeable and so personable. He took care of us every step of the way and went over and above what was expected of him. We literally cried when we parted ways with him at the airport.

Date of experience : 08 April 2024

The main tour guide was amazing

The main tour guide was amazing, kind, and so very helpful. The other tour guides and the drivers were great and did amazing jobs. Each hotel had good service and clean rooms. The first thing I would say that needed a little change was the meals that were chosen for dinners. I think people should be able to pick from 2 options before hand. So they know what they are getting for dinner meals. The other thing would be the overnight cruise, rooms were decent, meals not so good, and a long time waiting. But over all I had a wonderful time and enjoyed seeing the amazing historical sites.

Date of experience : 19 April 2024

I don't understand this quesiton. Important for what people to know? You or people thinking of using Explorica or parents or students?

The tour guide, Emma, tried her very best, but she was in over her head. She needed more time with a mentor before being in charge of a group by herself. She wasn't familiar enough with Paris or the metro or the airport so there was a lot of waiting and googling. The itinerary and hotels were changed by Explorica after we were given our schedule. The restaurants were far from our hotels so it meant long walks or metro rides late at night. I'm wondering if either the hotel or restaurants could have been changed. 2 meals were the same (crepes) on the trip, we were hoping for more variety. Out of the 8 dinners there were only 2 with vegetables (salad), all the other dinners were meat and carb.

Switzerland, Bavaria and Austria tour

My trip coordinator, Haley Similjan and Claudia Ayala were helpful and patient. Haley even worked with me through Covid, which I'm sure wasn't an easy task! Our tour guide, Ehren Fordyce, was professional, fun, relaxed and informative. He made everything work smoothly, and didn't stress anyone out

Date of experience : 18 March 2024

Explorica arranged a return flight on a…

Explorica arranged a return flight on a Friday that was canceled. It has been three days and the whole group is still stranded in Barcelona. There’s been no communication from Explorica and they have not arranged any flights as of yet… It has been three days of the girls just sitting in a hotel room waiting for a standby flight with no help.

Date of experience : 31 March 2024

Overall tour was awesome - inspiring and highly valuable for all participants!.

Overall tour was great. We loved it. Restaurant food in France was Horrible at worst, mediocre at best, service also poor. Italian restaurants were good, service very good in Italy Hotels were good (2.5 stars) across the board. TOUR DIRECTOR EXCELLENT! PS. The only negative was food at 2 restaurants in France BUT Explorica made good by offering to pay for a pizza party for all participants once we got home. Above and beyond, thank you!

Date of experience : 07 April 2024

Very happy with our experience

We had a great time! Our tour went to London, Paris and Germany. Our hotel in each country was comfortable. They weren't 5-star resorts but we didn't need much considering we only slept and showered there. The breakfast at each hotel was wonderful. Our main tour guide Tom was a Saint! We had some unruly people in our group and he kept his patience even when stupid questions were asked. He tried to make the most out of our trip and even fit in extra tours as time permitted. He was very knowledgeable and professional. The food wasn't bad. Maybe could have been better but we had the place to ourselves in some of the restaurants. It was a lot of walking and a lot of information which I expected and prepared for. We came home exhausted but in a good way. The bus tours were great also. All of the tour guides were friendly and knowledgeable and kept us entertained! We were given time for souvenir shopping. Probably not as much as others wanted but just enough in my book. We made it to all our flights or whatever the transportation of the day was. I really feel like we got the most for our money and would definitely tour with this company again. The only downside is I wish we had an extra day in London and Paris. There was so much to see but I guess that would have been a different tour. Overall, very happy with my experience!

Date of experience : 11 March 2024

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Reviews 3.7.

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Our tour director, Vincent Delmas, was amazing. Our hotel was steps from the metro. Food this trip was very good. Seeing my students discover the art we study in the classroom in real time is always a highlight. We saw all of the major monuments and sites and had the freedom to see some things on our own. Worlstrides/Explorica are the absolute best student travel company.

Date of experience : 09 April 2024

If I could give this airline a negative…

If I could give this airline a negative zero I would. Our school group is flying internationally to Italy/Greece and our flights were all cancelled due to strike with Lufthansa. When rebooking the flight they split my daughter and I on two different flights 8 hours apart. My child has major anxiety, never has flown and now we have been separated. Explorica refused to work with us to correct this change. This has been an awful and most devastating experience.

Date of experience : 10 March 2024

This was the worst experience of my…

This was the worst experience of my life. The tours were awful, the mornings were early and the nights were late. The tour guides were kind but the tours were poorly selected and every day was long. Would not recommend to anyone with less energy than a long distance sprinter. The best days I spent here were travelling between countries, and waiting in another country because of a cancelled layover flight to the country we would be touring.

Date of experience : 23 March 2024

A fair experience

Our group size was perfect but then it was combined with 2 more groups which made it difficult to navigate in Paris and London. We used the majority of the time public transportation vs having a coach bus for our group size. As a result, 2 students got lost and 1 person had their phone stolen. The restaurants chosen were not the best quality. Wish the restaurants had options to chose from.

Date of experience : 16 March 2024

Group size and the time dedicated for shopping were a downer

I did not like the large group size. Traveling with a group of 48 in Japan is not feasible or fair to the tour leader and the rest of the group. Getting 48 people off a train in less than a minute is not feasible. I also did not like all of the time alloted to shopping. The trip to Odaiba felt like a wasted day. My students went to Japan to learn about Japan, not to attend a science museum and go to a mall and eat at an American buffet. On the positive side, the guide was very knowledgeable, the hotels and hotel breakfasts were perfect, and the visits to the gardens and temples and market were great.

Date of experience : 07 April 2024

Better Flight Schedules

We went to Costa Rica with explorica and overall it was very fun! We traveled with four other high schools all from different states and it was exciting to meet new people! However my only compliant is that we are from Denver on the way to and back we did not get a direct flight to Denver even though a school who is not from Denver has a layover there. This is very inconvenient as we have to go to Dallas for a layover meanwhile the other school gets to go to Denver. This flight also being a red eye is very annoying and stupid.

Date of experience : 24 March 2024

Stress Free, but they cut corners.

As someone who used to plan students trips on my own, I loved the elimination of the stress. Everything is planned out and handled for you. But they are CHEAP and cut corners. Dingy hotels, only include tap water as drinks with dinner, awful breakfast options, and no food choices with dinner. For the amount we pay, I expect more.

My Explorica trip in Spain

I liked the various places that we were able to visit as scheduled. At one of the main attractions we were informed at the last minute that tickets were not available to visit the interior of the buildings, only access to the grounds was provided. An extra attraction was added, which was okay but it made one of the other days very hectic. The time for students to explore and shop at some locations was limited. The visit included three days of traveling by bus. Two of these days we had to eat lunch at the red stops along the way, not authentic food. Dinners were not authentic or sometimes acceptable. Some were buffet style with little authentic flair and at the hotel, we stayed rather than in a restaurant. The students who had food restrictions did not have many options. Sometimes they could not eat what was served. I wanted the students to experience the language and regardless of my requests, the tour director and others spoke mainly in English.

Date of experience : 05 April 2024

Aura Tripovich amazing and responsive

Aura Tripovich amazing and responsive! She and Mario (our bus driver) made our trip magical!!! Aura is a is an absolute treasure and made adults and students comfortable, feel well cared for, and she really helped our students understand the deeper meaning of global travel. The reason I did not give you five stars is because one of the hotels did not have any water for period of time. It is a basic necessity that must be met, regardless of the level of hotel.

Date of experience : 25 February 2024

Explorica and the Galapagos Islands…

Explorica and the Galapagos Islands Tour I just got back from a 10 day guided tour of the Galapagos Islands with Explorica. These islands are very difficult to navigate between and Explorica managed our group of 35 people with efficiency and ease. Because the difficult parts of the trip were organized like this, our group members could enjoy the beauty and wonder of the Galapagos Islands without worries. Well done, Explorica! We will use you again!

Date of experience : 20 March 2024

Our tour guide knew the area and was…

Our tour guide knew the area and was also flexible enough to listen to our group's needs. He really did an excellent job. The issues that I had were related to Explorica's poor planning for some booking-related issues. These included missing parts of the tour because they booked activites without flight information (eg. no Louvre visit), a hotel was booked near the wrong airport, and we had an 8-hour layover with a poorly designed activity to be added during this time. Those didn't prevent the experience from being overall positive, it just points to issues with organization and planning on the part of Explorica.

Cheap Company

Prior to the trip there were no issues. Upon arrival things seemed to be fine, however it was very rushed. We had issues with being early to events that needed less time and then many additional hours of sitting around in places that needed little time. We also encountered many issues with a specific Hotel. We were told that the hotels was in Switzerland and it is was actually in France. That wasn't as much of an issues as the fact that the hotel was dirty with bugs and small live animals. One room even had hair clippings in the sink and the bed. We were also not allowed any extra towels for the hotel because they were only a 2 star. The staff is extremely rude. The tour guide was stressed out what seemed most of the time and got lost. These things should never happen.

Date of experience : 08 April 2024

Bad refund policy and customer service…

Bad refund policy and customer service experience We cancelled in September for a school trip the following April and lost a lot of our money ($559) because of their horrible refund policy, even though there was a student who would be taking my child's place on the trip. And on of top of that, we find out six months later by the school, that Explorica had given us money in the refund that was collected by the school from fundraisers for the trip, and told the school to collect it from us. When I called Explorica's customer service, they were a bit rude, and told me their was nothing they could do.

Date of experience : 22 March 2024

This was a bad trip from start to…

This was a bad trip from start to finish. 8 hour layover in Frankfurt. They booked it like this. Horrible food every step of the way unless you purchased yourself. Everything rushed. Do not do the fast paced trips for sure. We were completely exhausted because everything is on this hectic schedule. Do yourself a favor. Book the trip yourself. An Airbnb and just either walk or take a taxi etc. it’s 2023/24. We all have enough common sense to organize this ourselves. Paris is walkable and easy to navigate and so is Rome. Skip this company. They are cheap and don’t take pride in the experience.

Date of experience : 05 June 2023

Our trip to Costa Rica was amazing

Our trip to Costa Rica was amazing! We had lots of excellent activities and excursions. Both our tour guide, Humberto, and our bus driver, Warner, were absolutely amazing. We had wonderful opportunities to experience the culture and try new things. I have an allergy to gluten and while most of the cuisine is naturally gluten free I didn’t feel it was all safe for those with celiac disease. One more thing I believe could be improved was the flights. Not only did we not have a direct flight back to Denver but another group we traveled with who also booked through explorica did (accept Denver wasn’t their final destination) and we had a 4 hr lay over in Dallas before heading to Denver. All of our seats were middle and none of them were together. So just an FYI for anyone booking flights too. The flight booking didn’t make much sense and could most definitely been better.

The hotel locations were decently close…

The hotel locations were decently close to city center/airports. The bus transportation was clean. The food was excellent, decently sized portions and very culturally focused. Our daily guides were knowledgeable and friendly, and our tour director was upbeat and helpful.

Date of experience : 25 March 2024

Cancelled Trip and Missing Refund

This organization cancelled my child's trip when we had almost paid the full amount. It has been almost a month and no communication or refund has been received. In addition, her online account shows no account balance. This is highly dishonest and questionable, in my opinion, and I would not trust this company AT ALL.

Date of experience : 06 February 2024

Explorica Travel in France (northwest)

Our tour guide, Sabrina, was incredible. She bonded with the students and was helpful in planning, organizing, and problem solving. Our bus drivers were equally great. The one problem that we repeatedly ran into, however, was the continual disregard of dietary restrictions. Chaperones had to constantly check for allergies in food, and the variety was non-existent for those with gluten allergies or high blood sugar. The hotels were also inconsistent. Not only did the rooming situations change every day, we also have had really great hotels and very bad ones (especially in the countryside). It's one thing to have old hotels, but it is inacceptable to have unclean hotels with a ceiling full of spiders and other insects. Bathrooms also don't have doors in some cases, which is a huge issue for students traveling. If Explorica can please vet their hotels, that would help us avoid a myriad of issues.

Parents BEWARE

Parents BEWARE. My minor daughter travelled half way around the world on an explorica trip to a camp with no internet connection. We were advised we would receive regular updates via the online Explorica Tour Diary. My daughter has been in Africa for 4 days now and there has not been a single post. We received no confirmation that our child's flight arrived. No cinfirmation that she arrived at the camp. Nothing whatsoever. Had I known there would be no such communication I would have arranged another method. Bit now I cannot reach my child. Exteemely unimpressed with the communication strategy of Explorica. When I contacted Explorica they told me postings were the responsibility of the tour leader but wouldnt tell me who that is or how to contact them. My wife and I are beside ourselves with concern. I would not recommend an Explorica trip to any parent.

Date of experience : 19 March 2024

The Trip of a Lifetime

From the time we boarded the plane until we step back off to go through customs in America, Explorica was outstanding. They dot their “i’s” and cross their “T’s” to ensure that it is a worry free experience that is filled with learning, growing and excitement!

Date of experience : 31 March 2024

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Reviews 3.7.

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Professional excellence!

Explorica and staff took care of every detail for a fantastic trip for 22 pariticpants to Italy and Spain. Our tour guide, Maria, was professional and highly qualified and stayed with us throughout both countries. The students learned so much and had so much fun! We highly recommend Explorica for student travel!

Date of experience : February 15, 2024

Long-time customer

Explorica has been a great company to work with for the last 14 years! I love the ease of finding, personalizing and booking a tour on their website. They have a nice variety to choose from. The service representatives are all very friendly and knowledgeable. When any issues have come up, Explorica has been quick to problem solve.

Date of experience : March 18, 2024

Absolutely amazing experience!

The company put together an absolutely amazing trip that had the perfect balance of connecting with the locations and exploring the area on your own. The tour guide was amazing and the bus driver had the students eagerly asking more questions of him on the local level. 10/10 would recommend.

Date of experience : March 16, 2024

Excellent Experiences

I've participated and run four trips through Explorica over the last eight years and have felt supported through all of them. The staff at the office is supportive and knows their business, our tour guides have been fantastic and our students have had a great travel experience. We even had to make trip adjustments due to COVID and our tour rep was incredibly helpful.

Date of experience : February 25, 2024

Look for another tour group to use

We used explorica for the first time over spring break 2024. Communication leading up to the event was terrible. We were not told of deadlines to secure tickets to attractions, resulting in missed opportunities to see major things, we were not seated as a group on flights, we were not housed near our students at hotels, and hotels told us our tour company pre-booked specific rooms (every hotel). This was also a very over priced option with significant lack of transparency in fees, costs and overall value. Our local guides were ok. one was outstanding, and two were just ok. My co-chaperone and I did a lot of research pre trip and students did a lot of pre-learning, and we seemed to have a better understanding of some of the history and facts, and asked to see things they were not aware of or had never done as they were "out of the normal mass tour group schedules. It was also holy week, no one mentioned to us all the complications that would come with this. We would have liked more authentic group food experiences, vs. always eating at the hotel, or the local spots where all tour groups eat. Our tour director and coach driver however, were excellent.

Date of experience : March 31, 2024

Amazing trip!

Once again, Explorica came through with a memorable, well-organized, safe trip for my students. The trip to Costa Rica was seemless, the tour director and bus driver AMAZING, the activities were just what we were hoping for and the level of care and attention in every aspect of the trip was impressive. I cannot find fault with any aspect of the experience from the initial planning stages through the safe arrival back at school. I will definitely plan our next school trip with Explorica and would recommend them wholeheartedly.

Date of experience : March 22, 2024

I was happy with the tour for the most…

I was happy with the tour for the most part. A few suggestions would have been spending more time in La Fortuna doing more activities in that area instead of outside of that area. Like the night walk, zip-lining, and horseback riding. The horseback riding we did do, wasn't worth the effort. We were on the horses for barely 15 mins, it was dusty and didn't get to enjoy any vistas. We rode up to the first ziplining platform that wasn't far from the main building. In the past, we were on the horses for a long ride through the forests and got to see a lot of beautiful viewpoints. The food was great except for the first boxed dinner and the last paper bag breakfast. I don't think any of the students ate any of the food in those two meals. Our Guide and hotel rooms were great!

Travelled with a group to Prague Nov 2023

Travelled with a group to Prague last month and it was amazing. Todd Cornford met with the group in advance and reviewed all the necessary details to put everyone’s minds at ease before the trip. And our tour guide, Karolina, was simply outstanding. She was so knowledgeable, adaptable, kind and generous. We can’t say enough good things about the experience or people we worked with. 150% would book/use Explorica again!

Date of experience : November 28, 2023

Did not meet expectations

Flights weren't ideal: we were split onto 2 different flights, both with stopovers. Dinners were meager, unauthentic, and not very balanced. Breakfasts, however, were consistently good. Hotels were always far outside of the cities with nothing to do or see nearby. We felt trapped at the hotels, with no viable options to easily get to an from the city centers. Be aware that the bus driver's hours are strictly limited by EU law, which greatly limits the flexibility you have with timing.

Date of experience : June 11, 2023

Travel with another company !! trust me

I have traveled around the world in my life and this was by far the worst company I have ever traveled with. This company did not put a cap on the amount of people in the tour. You can not travel 7 counties in Europe with as many people we had. There was so much sitting around waiting. The tour guide was not helpful, left you guessing what is going to happen every day. Also Explorica told me that I can change my seat (due to medical reasons, I called them before I booked this trip). It was not true, the airlines can not help you because it was booked through Explorica. In addition to half of the site/excursions on the agenda did not happen because of the time constraint. Always chaos, we waited for bus's, Our flights got canceled and to get a group as big as ours home, we were left to fen for ourselves and the airlines where in no shape to help a group that big. Explorica is more than happy to take your money. I would not recommend this company. You are better off booking things yourself 100% or going with another company.

Date of experience : April 01, 2024

Go use EF, you are cheating your kids if you don't!

Students did not receive what they paid for. They were tricked with deceptive advertising making it seem like they were getting one thing, but turned out to be a bait and switch at the end. most fun activities for students were the one not planned by Explorica, but were additions added by Group Leader. Failed to book one student on a flight. Removed experiential activities in order to save money and eat into students' time to explore and see more.

Date of experience : July 13, 2023

A true adventure

The group liked the itinerary and the activities. Food was also great for the most part. There were two areas where I think Explorica could have done better: hotels and the time spent on the bus.

Expect a months-long process to be refunded

Having purchased the Travel Protection Plus insurance plan, I assumed it would be relatively easy to get my $2000 already paid back. I was wrong. Explorica claims it takes 4 weeks to mail a check, but I received the check in 7 weeks. Explorica offers insurance through TripMate, which is a nightmare in itself, and it took 4 weeks for my claim to be denied with reason for denial cited as method by which Explorica paid the airline. Upon calling Explorica about this, they said they will write a check within the next 4 weeks, which will then take 4 more weeks to mail. Very frustrated. Would not recommend to anyone.

Date of experience : January 04, 2024

Student Travel Made Easy

Bryan made the whole planning process easy and we very quick to respond to any and all questions I had. This was the first time I led a trip and Bryan was very knowledgeable and helpful.

Date of experience : April 07, 2024

Amazing Experience!

The trip was organized and easy to plan. Brendan was consistently available and kind in answering all of my questions. Our guide, Alberto, was amazing, as was our driver, Carlos. The students and I could not have had a better experience. I will definitely be planning another trip for next year!

Date of experience : February 20, 2024

Our Explorica trip to Paris and the Cote…

Our recent trip to Paris and the Cote d'Azur with 13 high school students was nothing short of extraordinary, and it was made all the more memorable thanks to our exceptional tour director. From start to finish, our experience was filled with adventure, learning, and unforgettable moments. Furthermore, what truly stood out about our tour director was his ability to form genuine connections with each student. From day one, he knew everyone's names and foster a friendly atmosphere that made us feel like more than just a tour group – we felt like a family. In conclusion, our experience with Explorica exceeded all expectations, and I highly recommend them to anyone considering educational travel. As a seasoned traveler with Explorica, I can confidently attest that their services continue to impress with each trip. Thank you Explorica.

Vancouver/Canada the very best

I have been using Explorica/ WorldStrides for over 15 years and this was one of the best trips. Our tour guild and bus driver made it even better. Explorica helped to create memories to last a lifetime!

Date of experience : March 23, 2024

The trip was amazing

The trip was amazing. The hotels were beautiful, the guide and driver were incredible, and the food was delicious. The only downside was that we were told we would have a flight from a city close to us for the entire time I was planning the trip only to have this change at the last minute leaving us to scramble and change plans. Other than that everything was wonderful.

Date of experience : February 26, 2024

Horrible company, customer service

We were under the impression that if they didn't get the minimum number of sign-ups, the trip wouldn't happen. As a result, the teacher ended up rescheduling the trip to a date that does not work for us. I'm unclear on what funds had been committed to in advance if they didn't have the necessary sign-ups to move forward and why we were still subject to the same cancellation policy when the trip we signed up for is no longer happening. I would understand if we had to cancel our participation. Policy is ridiculous.

Date of experience : November 13, 2023

My trip was supposed to be combined…

My trip was supposed to be combined with my sister's group, and up until the last minute, it was not, so that added a bunch of issues throughout the trip. There were a few restaurants that should have never been used. Our tour director was meh. I would love to go into more details if I thought someone would actually read and/or change things for the future, but I don't feel like spending the energy to do that unless that's true.

Date of experience : June 16, 2023

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Reviews 3.7.

1,724 total

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Our tour director, Vincent Delmas, was amazing. Our hotel was steps from the metro. Food this trip was very good. Seeing my students discover the art we study in the classroom in real time is always a highlight. We saw all of the major monuments and sites and had the freedom to see some things on our own. Worlstrides/Explorica are the absolute best student travel company.

Date of experience : 09 April 2024

If I could give this airline a negative…

If I could give this airline a negative zero I would. Our school group is flying internationally to Italy/Greece and our flights were all cancelled due to strike with Lufthansa. When rebooking the flight they split my daughter and I on two different flights 8 hours apart. My child has major anxiety, never has flown and now we have been separated. Explorica refused to work with us to correct this change. This has been an awful and most devastating experience.

Date of experience : 10 March 2024

This was the worst experience of my…

This was the worst experience of my life. The tours were awful, the mornings were early and the nights were late. The tour guides were kind but the tours were poorly selected and every day was long. Would not recommend to anyone with less energy than a long distance sprinter. The best days I spent here were travelling between countries, and waiting in another country because of a cancelled layover flight to the country we would be touring.

Date of experience : 23 March 2024

A fair experience

Our group size was perfect but then it was combined with 2 more groups which made it difficult to navigate in Paris and London. We used the majority of the time public transportation vs having a coach bus for our group size. As a result, 2 students got lost and 1 person had their phone stolen. The restaurants chosen were not the best quality. Wish the restaurants had options to chose from.

Date of experience : 16 March 2024

Group size and the time dedicated for shopping were a downer

I did not like the large group size. Traveling with a group of 48 in Japan is not feasible or fair to the tour leader and the rest of the group. Getting 48 people off a train in less than a minute is not feasible. I also did not like all of the time alloted to shopping. The trip to Odaiba felt like a wasted day. My students went to Japan to learn about Japan, not to attend a science museum and go to a mall and eat at an American buffet. On the positive side, the guide was very knowledgeable, the hotels and hotel breakfasts were perfect, and the visits to the gardens and temples and market were great.

Date of experience : 07 April 2024

Better Flight Schedules

We went to Costa Rica with explorica and overall it was very fun! We traveled with four other high schools all from different states and it was exciting to meet new people! However my only compliant is that we are from Denver on the way to and back we did not get a direct flight to Denver even though a school who is not from Denver has a layover there. This is very inconvenient as we have to go to Dallas for a layover meanwhile the other school gets to go to Denver. This flight also being a red eye is very annoying and stupid.

Date of experience : 24 March 2024

Stress Free, but they cut corners.

As someone who used to plan students trips on my own, I loved the elimination of the stress. Everything is planned out and handled for you. But they are CHEAP and cut corners. Dingy hotels, only include tap water as drinks with dinner, awful breakfast options, and no food choices with dinner. For the amount we pay, I expect more.

My Explorica trip in Spain

I liked the various places that we were able to visit as scheduled. At one of the main attractions we were informed at the last minute that tickets were not available to visit the interior of the buildings, only access to the grounds was provided. An extra attraction was added, which was okay but it made one of the other days very hectic. The time for students to explore and shop at some locations was limited. The visit included three days of traveling by bus. Two of these days we had to eat lunch at the red stops along the way, not authentic food. Dinners were not authentic or sometimes acceptable. Some were buffet style with little authentic flair and at the hotel, we stayed rather than in a restaurant. The students who had food restrictions did not have many options. Sometimes they could not eat what was served. I wanted the students to experience the language and regardless of my requests, the tour director and others spoke mainly in English.

Date of experience : 05 April 2024

Aura Tripovich amazing and responsive

Aura Tripovich amazing and responsive! She and Mario (our bus driver) made our trip magical!!! Aura is a is an absolute treasure and made adults and students comfortable, feel well cared for, and she really helped our students understand the deeper meaning of global travel. The reason I did not give you five stars is because one of the hotels did not have any water for period of time. It is a basic necessity that must be met, regardless of the level of hotel.

Date of experience : 25 February 2024

Explorica and the Galapagos Islands…

Explorica and the Galapagos Islands Tour I just got back from a 10 day guided tour of the Galapagos Islands with Explorica. These islands are very difficult to navigate between and Explorica managed our group of 35 people with efficiency and ease. Because the difficult parts of the trip were organized like this, our group members could enjoy the beauty and wonder of the Galapagos Islands without worries. Well done, Explorica! We will use you again!

Date of experience : 20 March 2024

Our tour guide knew the area and was…

Our tour guide knew the area and was also flexible enough to listen to our group's needs. He really did an excellent job. The issues that I had were related to Explorica's poor planning for some booking-related issues. These included missing parts of the tour because they booked activites without flight information (eg. no Louvre visit), a hotel was booked near the wrong airport, and we had an 8-hour layover with a poorly designed activity to be added during this time. Those didn't prevent the experience from being overall positive, it just points to issues with organization and planning on the part of Explorica.

Cheap Company

Prior to the trip there were no issues. Upon arrival things seemed to be fine, however it was very rushed. We had issues with being early to events that needed less time and then many additional hours of sitting around in places that needed little time. We also encountered many issues with a specific Hotel. We were told that the hotels was in Switzerland and it is was actually in France. That wasn't as much of an issues as the fact that the hotel was dirty with bugs and small live animals. One room even had hair clippings in the sink and the bed. We were also not allowed any extra towels for the hotel because they were only a 2 star. The staff is extremely rude. The tour guide was stressed out what seemed most of the time and got lost. These things should never happen.

Date of experience : 08 April 2024

Bad refund policy and customer service…

Bad refund policy and customer service experience We cancelled in September for a school trip the following April and lost a lot of our money ($559) because of their horrible refund policy, even though there was a student who would be taking my child's place on the trip. And on of top of that, we find out six months later by the school, that Explorica had given us money in the refund that was collected by the school from fundraisers for the trip, and told the school to collect it from us. When I called Explorica's customer service, they were a bit rude, and told me their was nothing they could do.

Date of experience : 22 March 2024

This was a bad trip from start to…

This was a bad trip from start to finish. 8 hour layover in Frankfurt. They booked it like this. Horrible food every step of the way unless you purchased yourself. Everything rushed. Do not do the fast paced trips for sure. We were completely exhausted because everything is on this hectic schedule. Do yourself a favor. Book the trip yourself. An Airbnb and just either walk or take a taxi etc. it’s 2023/24. We all have enough common sense to organize this ourselves. Paris is walkable and easy to navigate and so is Rome. Skip this company. They are cheap and don’t take pride in the experience.

Date of experience : 05 June 2023

Our trip to Costa Rica was amazing

Our trip to Costa Rica was amazing! We had lots of excellent activities and excursions. Both our tour guide, Humberto, and our bus driver, Warner, were absolutely amazing. We had wonderful opportunities to experience the culture and try new things. I have an allergy to gluten and while most of the cuisine is naturally gluten free I didn’t feel it was all safe for those with celiac disease. One more thing I believe could be improved was the flights. Not only did we not have a direct flight back to Denver but another group we traveled with who also booked through explorica did (accept Denver wasn’t their final destination) and we had a 4 hr lay over in Dallas before heading to Denver. All of our seats were middle and none of them were together. So just an FYI for anyone booking flights too. The flight booking didn’t make much sense and could most definitely been better.

The hotel locations were decently close…

The hotel locations were decently close to city center/airports. The bus transportation was clean. The food was excellent, decently sized portions and very culturally focused. Our daily guides were knowledgeable and friendly, and our tour director was upbeat and helpful.

Date of experience : 25 March 2024

Cancelled Trip and Missing Refund

This organization cancelled my child's trip when we had almost paid the full amount. It has been almost a month and no communication or refund has been received. In addition, her online account shows no account balance. This is highly dishonest and questionable, in my opinion, and I would not trust this company AT ALL.

Date of experience : 06 February 2024

Explorica Travel in France (northwest)

Our tour guide, Sabrina, was incredible. She bonded with the students and was helpful in planning, organizing, and problem solving. Our bus drivers were equally great. The one problem that we repeatedly ran into, however, was the continual disregard of dietary restrictions. Chaperones had to constantly check for allergies in food, and the variety was non-existent for those with gluten allergies or high blood sugar. The hotels were also inconsistent. Not only did the rooming situations change every day, we also have had really great hotels and very bad ones (especially in the countryside). It's one thing to have old hotels, but it is inacceptable to have unclean hotels with a ceiling full of spiders and other insects. Bathrooms also don't have doors in some cases, which is a huge issue for students traveling. If Explorica can please vet their hotels, that would help us avoid a myriad of issues.

Parents BEWARE

Parents BEWARE. My minor daughter travelled half way around the world on an explorica trip to a camp with no internet connection. We were advised we would receive regular updates via the online Explorica Tour Diary. My daughter has been in Africa for 4 days now and there has not been a single post. We received no confirmation that our child's flight arrived. No cinfirmation that she arrived at the camp. Nothing whatsoever. Had I known there would be no such communication I would have arranged another method. Bit now I cannot reach my child. Exteemely unimpressed with the communication strategy of Explorica. When I contacted Explorica they told me postings were the responsibility of the tour leader but wouldnt tell me who that is or how to contact them. My wife and I are beside ourselves with concern. I would not recommend an Explorica trip to any parent.

Date of experience : 19 March 2024

The Trip of a Lifetime

From the time we boarded the plane until we step back off to go through customs in America, Explorica was outstanding. They dot their “i’s” and cross their “T’s” to ensure that it is a worry free experience that is filled with learning, growing and excitement!

Date of experience : 31 March 2024

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Reviews 3.7.

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Costa Rican adventure with Explorica

Explorica planned this trip meticulously down to every little detail! I had so little on my end to figure out. The Tour Director on sight was incredible in giving us exactly what we had envisioned this experience to be. Our travel experience was an incredible value; I can't believe all they were able to pack in for the price!

Date of experience : June 09, 2023

I loved how you had a replacement ready…

I loved how you had a replacement ready for us for Rainier who tested positive at the last moment, and had an amazing replacement ready in Thomas!! Thomas walked us through some picky eaters so well even with it being a challenge!! So great leading us through several cities and countries with ease! I know it was stressful for both of them but they made it relaxing for us!

Date of experience : July 08, 2023

Uncompromising Quality for a Budget Price

A Tour Director can make or break a tour for a company, and Explorica hires good ones! I have had two great experiences. The food and hotels are sometimes amazing and sometimes a little lacking, but overall the good far outweighs the small disappointments. As far as quality for cost goes, Explorica is a lower cost travel company that goes above and beyond to make your trip personalized. Customer Service for the past few years has been the best in the business!

Date of experience : June 11, 2023

Try elsewhere

I would not recommend the Costa Rica trip or going through Explorica. The guides in Costa Rica were so helpful and kind, but in the planning process, we were told that we would not have a lot of down time. When we got there, we had 4 hour chunks of afternoons free with nothing to do. For example, one of the hotels we stayed at was far from town and across from a beach that was not safe for swimming, so the kids had to stay in the hotel. They booked us with super tight layovers, and when we contacted the number for support with getting the kids on an overbooked flight, the associate on the other end said there was nothing they could do. I've heard that other people have had success with Explorica, but I'm not sure that it was for me.

Date of experience : June 22, 2023

Madrid, Barcelona & Rome

The itinerary was really good, we visited very interesting places and most of our local tour guides were amazing. Unfortunately our local tour guide in Barcelona was hard to understand his English. My second suggestion would be regarding food. Breakfast was pretty decent. However dinner was a miss or hit. Some restaurants were good with enough food but others were not. I think Explorica can afford better dinner options. I'm not bling Explorica but one of our buses was without AC and it was a long drive in a 90F weather. Overall our experience was incredible. The Tour Director, Álvaro was amazing. Hope you keep working with him. I will recommend other teacher co-workers Explorica.

Date of experience : June 24, 2023

Outstanding Trip

Outstanding trip. We took 64 to Washington DC and the tours were set up and flexible so we had control over what we saw. Our tour guide Mary and Barbara are solid professionals that made the trip informative and fun to be on. There were a few hiccups but that was at the airport and a restaurant which nobody had control over, so that is not on Explorica. I highly encourage any teacher or admin to look to Explorica for their next trip, as we already have done for the summer of 2025.

The experience was fantastic!

The experience was fantastic. We traveled to Italy and Greece May 2June 3 2023. The trip consisted of college students and a few faculty. From pre trip planning to the travel through Italy and Greece, everything was smooth and seamless in terms of food, travel and accommodations. The tour guide, Christina made the trip with her history and archeology background! I have taken a tour with another company previously, and there is no comparison to this one! I would highly recommend this trip to anyone!

Date of experience : June 05, 2023

There were several things that were…

There were several things that were disorganized and not as described that I felt were important in the culture and education of the trip. One of the places we stayed at was super run down and there were other issues. It was still a great trip but there definitely should be a little more organization.

Date of experience : July 04, 2023

Way over priced for the experience

Booking our trip to Coast Rica was exciting. In the booking, we were told we would go to an Elementary school which was a huge part of why I was going. When on the trip, we were told by the guide that the schools stopped letting visitors come 3 years back due to COVID. Why are they still promoting this? Our flight was delayed arriving to Costa Rica because of storms so we missed an excursion. We had also paid for a Yoga day on the beach that was canceled due to lack of people signing up. When I emailed Explorica upon returning, I was told they were looking into refunding us for the missed excursions and then I was ghosted. No one will respond now. So I paid for excursions that either weren't ever happening or got canceled. The trip was WAY over priced for the experience we got. Will never book or refer people to book through Explorica

Date of experience : June 19, 2023

Italy & Greece

Overall it was a great trip. The highlight was most definitely the Greek islands cruise. Italy was by far too fast and none of us felt like we experienced the things we were there to see. Our time in Florence was cut short and therefore essentially a waste. The walking tours and guided tours were far too long. Explorica needs to consider integrating immersive experiences and activities rather than simply walking the city to look at them. Things like a pasta-making lesson would be far better than looking at something and walking away. Whether it was on the part of the tour director or the itinerary, the pace was far too fast. It took the cruise for everyone to finally slow down and experience the country and culture. With such big groups, perhaps it would be better to have choices or options of activities to experience.

Date of experience : June 18, 2023

The travel support was amazing

The travel support was amazing. Despite airline issues, Explorica worked to make sure we had connecting flights in place before we landed late in London. The guide was very helpful and even humored all of the shopping my group wanted to do.

Date of experience : June 29, 2023

A variety of activities and experiences…

A variety of activities and experiences was very enriching. The local guides on the Galapagos islands were fantastic. We felt safe and felt that the quality of our hotels and transportations was appropriate. Explorica guided me well along the way as we set up the trip and prepared little by little for an entire year. What I would change is more written out or clear information about what would happen from day to day. We would like a timetable for each day on what time we would catch planes, take boat rides, etc. I was not given any clear information other than our guide telling us what came next. Also, some activities got dropped or were rushed. We also did not complete the "tree planting" that I had requested from Explorica, and it was on our itinerary online.

Date of experience : June 30, 2023

Italy and Croatia - May 2023 - Rose State College

This is Lori Morrow filling out this survey as Sherri was unable to travel. I filled out a detailed survey yesterday explaining many of the problems with this tour. We have worked with Explorica since 2012, and this was the worst example of planning on Explorica's part that we have ever seen. We were not given options when our itinerary changed. We were just told what the changes were. We rode almost 4 hours in a bus to Dallas, Texas then got on a plan to Istanbul, Turkey then on another plan to Rome, Italy. The flight path was ridiculous. This is just a small taste of the problems with this tour. I truly hope Explorica or World Strides or whoever changes policies to actually plan the tour we plan, or we will have to use a different company. This trip was a nightmare with so many problems.

Date of experience : May 22, 2023

Awesome adventure

The trip experience itself was unparalleled because of the amazing knowledge and charisma of our tour director and adults. The kids also contributed greatly through their sense of wonder and courage to try new things. The activities and reservations were awesome and flowed perfectly. The only thing keeping this from a perfect score is the lack of response time and sometimes how vague the information was.

Pre trip experience was horrible

Pre trip experience was horrible. Our initial trip was canceled. Trip members accounts we chanced extra instead of being refunded, then had the be refunded twice. During our trip, our Switzerland hotel was canceled so a new hotel was ordered so far out of the was the additional time spent traveling canceled our traditional Swiss dinner. Our first night in Germany, the group we were partnering with got to the hotel early and instead of the temporary tour director staying with them to make sure the room keys were passed out correctly, he left leaving the distribution of keys up to the teacher, so he gave our rooms to his group because he did now what to do. I have have done four other trips with other companies prior to our trip and have never had some many problems and issues. The other group leader from Ohio also said the same and we both agreed we would not use Explorica again.

The tour guide was awesome and very…

The tour guide was awesome and very accommodating and flexible when needed to be. The hotels, food and transportation were great.

Date of experience : April 04, 2024

Loved Charting the Galapagos

We just returned from Charting the Galapagos with 61 travelers. It was a great trip and I felt very supported by Explorica the entire time. There were a few small problems but nothing major and our tour guides were awesome. Would recommend this tour and company.

Date of experience : July 07, 2023

I wasn't happy with how our trip was organized what so ever. I wouldn't plan with Explorica again. They try to pack too much into one day which is all unrealistic. They don't guarantee that you will be on the same floor of the hotel as your students. We were booked 3 floors above them for one hotel and had a student emergency at that hotel. Our tour guide WAS HORRIBLE!! He put our students in danger multiple times. He slapped a car hard as we were passing the street without putting into consideration that the person driving could have come out and attempted to hurt our students. He took students WITHOUT OUR CONSENT to a gas station early morning to buy water. He had a major attitude when we told him we wanted to cut certain activities. He just dropped us off places and said ok see you in x amount of hours. He also was not communicating with the bus driver at all. We had to walk back and forth multiple times to get on our bus. The one amazing thing about our trip was Mr. Luke, our bus driver. He was like a father to the kids. He showed interest in their lives, he paid for their dinners if they didnt have credit cards, he actually spent time with them and gave them life advice. He was incredible. WE ALL LOVED MR. LUKE SOOOOO MUCH!!! I won't be planning at trip with Explorica again, but I would do whatever it takes to get Mr. Luke as a driver the next time we do plan a trip with ANY company.

Date of experience : April 01, 2024

Another great experience with Explorica

I have traveled with Explorica for years and they always do a great job of meeting the needs of my students. This trip was no exception. Our tour director, George, went above and beyond to make sure that our trip ran smoothly. Our upgraded hotels were in excellent locations and the food was authentically Greek.

Date of experience : June 15, 2023

Explorica knows what’s important to travelers!

Another top notch touring experience! Explorica is the best in the business. They know what travelers like and deliver! Whether it was quality accommodations, restaurants or Tour Directors, Explorica does it up right! If you have yet to tour with Explorica, what are you waiting for??! Do yourself a favor and find out why they are an industry favorite!

Date of experience : November 26, 2023