Travel Department Reviews

Wonderful tours led by an exert tour guide Emad 'Dodi'. The standard of accommodation in Cairo, Cruise Ship Radamiis II on the Nile and Swiss Beach resort in Hurghada was most satisfactory and food and service of a very high standard. A most enjoyable holiday.

We really enjoyed our holiday to Tuscany with the Travel Department. Everything went so smoothly from pick up at the Airport to excellent excursions to Florence,Siena,Lucca, Pisa and not to forget the old town of San Gimignano. All coordinated by the lovely Tabita. Nothing was a problem for her and she was always there to give assistance. The hotel in the centre of Montecatini Terme was old style but very clean with a 5 course meal every evening. The group of 50 really mixed well and many made friends for life. John and Pauline Quirk

The holiday fully matched our expectations.We have been with The Travel Department on six occasions and have always had excellent Local Guides but Margaret, our Guide in Roses, was in a class of her own. She was relaxed, friendly and helpful at all times but her knowledge of the areas visited was outstanding and her ability to inform with relevant details out of this world.

Great tours. Lovely hotels. Wonderful guides. Value for money. Everything well organized. Travel without hassle.

Our tour guide Margaret was absolutely brilliant and worked tirelessly great holiday

Malta trip, April 2025. My first disappointing trip with TD. I’ve been on many trips with TD so can give accurate comparisons: 51 people on the trip, too many for comfort. Every single seat on the bus trips were used and often travel companions had to sit apart. When doing walking tours, it was not possible to hear the guide because the group was too large; group members should be given little devices to hear the guide because it was impossible for all 51 of us to huddle close enough to hear her. There were TD group members who flew in from Dublin, Scotland, Canada and New Zealand, all arriving in at different times on Tuesday and Wednesday: there was no gathering arranged for us to meet our group or even identify who was in our group. we didn’t meet our guide until Thursday, so a first day in Malta without a guide to give advice on how to use public transport, tips on dining or places to visit until the guide was employed to manage our group on Thursday. The guide was knowledgeable however she dipped in/out of our group throughout the 8 days as she was also taking care of other groups on other days. Normally the guides are dedicated to TD group and give loads of tips and advice of options for our private time, this didn’t happen with this guide. So although Malta was a great place to visit, I was disappointed in the company’s management of the group tour, most especially the size which many people like myself felt it was too large. It felt like a huge bunch of school children being herded around by a stressed teacher!

Everything was very well organised. Meeting us at airport, bus transfers, day trips. Guide Anke, was very informative and helpful. Hotel was very clean, centrally located and lovely breakfast.

Extremely well organised, great itinerary, excellent accommodation, top quality transport and, above all, a fantastic guide...Katerina Papadopalou. She really knew her stuff snd was so patient and kind. Holiday of a lifetime..many thanks. William and Madeline O'Brien

Our tour guide Tabita was a real gem, her knowledge, her care, infectious character was a delight. We had a truly amazing experience. The hotel was lovely and the meals were lovely - 5 courses. A lovely holiday in the Tuscan region. We made new friends and it was a wonderful experience.

It was great having everything organised for you. We had a wonderful guide. I also enjoyed the days we had off.

Our first holiday with Travel Department UK was great from beginning with our booking and up to its end. We were looked after by the Company beforehand, then our local rep Tabatha, and our amazing Grand Palace Hotel, Monticatini Terme in the most friendly and professional way. We could not believe the 5 course fantastic dinners presented to us every night. Hotel staff were also very helpful at all levels. Tour guides in all the cities visited made us feel welcome and brought out the history of each in a balanced and amusing way. We look forward to booking again with the Travel Dept, perhaps meeting some of our new friends from Dublin in the process. Richard & Erika

I had a lovely trip to Sicily and enjoyed every moment

Our Guide Dodi made the trip for us to Egypt. He was fantastic. A super planned trip. Highly recommend him and this trip to explore Egypt. Definitely 5 stars.

We did the 12 night Egypt holiday with the Travel Department and were blown away by it. The first shout out I need to give is to Michelle Casey. We had some issues with our booking initially but Michelle was brilliant, so professional but also understanding and sorting everything so quickly and efficiently! Secondly, our guide Dodi, was an absolute legend of a guide. Honestly, Dodi was amazing from the moment we met him in Cairo on the first full day. Nothing was too much trouble and the fun and knowledge he brought to our tour really made this holiday. I think he must have some Irish in him as he really gets our sense of humour, mostly anyway 😂 This was our first TD holiday but it won’t be our last, we’ll be booking again soon. If you ever considered Egypt, pick the Travel Department as everything is so seamless in an otherwise chaotic looking country. The sites are amazing and it all blew us away!

12 Day-Egypt-Nile-River-Cruise CAIRO-HURGHADA. Thoroughly enjoyed the once in a lifetime trip- it exceeded all expectations, and I would definitely recommend. Our guide Dodi was outstanding—full of knowledge and his fun personality really brought the whole group together with plenty of chat and laughs. Dodi was always on hand to assist (never really off duty) with constant head counts to ensure all in the group were safe and accounted for. No request was any trouble, and his knowledge was so insightful- everyone in the group had good words, respect and praise for him. The selection of food was great and the staff from the hotels to the boat were fantastic- observant to any need. The sites were all breathtaking- photos will never do them justice (book & experience 👍)- it just took a little getting used to the high temperatures. I will never forget the trip and how well we were all looked after- truly amazing 👌 Deirdre Treanor ☘️

Travelled to Lake Garda at Easter. Small group of 24. Resort(Limone) was very well positioned on the Lake. Hotel was excellent. Trips to Venice & Gerona very enjoyable. Could find nothing negative to say about trip.

The whole organisation was terrific- from the time I booked the trip til I came home everything was spot on.

Feeling safe on my holiday as a 1st time solo traveller, our guide Claire was so helpful & so knowledgeable, our guided tours were fab & l enjoyed my 2 leisure days in Nerja too & off course the weather was lovely every day. Would definitely do it again. Caroline McCaul

Alex was a superb guide. Very interesting and knowledgeable.The tour was good value for money and the hotels were excellent.

The Istanbul city break experience was memorable because the hotel chosen was ideally situated for access to food outlets and shopping. The guide was excellent and was able to give detailed information about the many iconic sites visited as well as advice about places to eat traditional dishes Bus travel in a comfortable bus cut out the stress of trying to reach locations on public transport. All in all a great experience.