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California Tours & Trips

159 California trips. Tours from 77 tour companies. 239 reviews. 4.7/5 avg rating.

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159 Trips match your criteria (61 - 80 shown)

Highlights of Route 66 with Mother Road Festival & Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta
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Highlights of Route 66 with Mother Road Festival & Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta

By Cosmos
none
4/5 Great
100+ reviews
Group Tour
Lodging level
Premium - 4 star
Physical level
Very Easy
Trip pace
Balanced schedule

Visits

Albuquerque, Arizona, California, Chicago, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, St. Louis, Texas

Themes

50 plus, Cultural

What travelers are saying

"We've taken over 10 group tours using Cosmos and Gate1. This trip last month, 9000 was not very good. -During booking, incorrect information was given about airport-hotel transfers -The whispers (listening devices) didn't work from the get-go, so no whispers were used during the 13 day trip. - Porters are no longer hired to bring your luggage to and from your room. (Very elderly had to handle their own luggage. Our friends had to help many of them.) -A few days into the trip one couple left. At the end of the trip we found out they had covid. Cosmos did not let us know; a few people weren't feeling well and two of our friends then tested positive. -One hotel was awful and not even up to "budget" standards -Many of the stops had castles, churches... but were not included, so be sure to count that in when pricing.  don't plan to use Cosmos ever again. Gate1 is the best in my opinion. When my husband's passport was stolen, they assigned someone to go with him to the embassy, translate, etc...It was above and beyond what we expected  "

Trip dates & details
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16 days From$3,669
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Exploring the Pacific Northwest
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Exploring the Pacific Northwest

By Cosmos
none
4/5 Great
100+ reviews
Group Tour
Lodging level
Standard - 3 star
Physical level
Very Easy

Visits

California, Florence, Los Angeles, Portland, San Francisco, Santa Barbara, Washington

Themes

50 plus, Cultural

What travelers are saying

"We've taken over 10 group tours using Cosmos and Gate1. This trip last month, 9000 was not very good. -During booking, incorrect information was given about airport-hotel transfers -The whispers (listening devices) didn't work from the get-go, so no whispers were used during the 13 day trip. - Porters are no longer hired to bring your luggage to and from your room. (Very elderly had to handle their own luggage. Our friends had to help many of them.) -A few days into the trip one couple left. At the end of the trip we found out they had covid. Cosmos did not let us know; a few people weren't feeling well and two of our friends then tested positive. -One hotel was awful and not even up to "budget" standards -Many of the stops had castles, churches... but were not included, so be sure to count that in when pricing.  don't plan to use Cosmos ever again. Gate1 is the best in my opinion. When my husband's passport was stolen, they assigned someone to go with him to the embassy, translate, etc...It was above and beyond what we expected  "

Trip dates & details
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9 days From$2,389
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The Best of Spain & Portugal
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The Best of Spain & Portugal

By Cosmos
none
4/5 Great
100+ reviews
Group Tour
Lodging level
Standard - 3 star
Physical level
Moderate
Trip pace
Balanced schedule

Visits

Alentejo, Andalusia, Coimbra, Douro Valley, Granada, Lisbon, Madrid, Oporto, Porto, Salamanca, Segovia, Seville, Sierra Nevada, Toledo

Themes

50 plus, Cultural

What travelers are saying

"We've taken over 10 group tours using Cosmos and Gate1. This trip last month, 9000 was not very good. -During booking, incorrect information was given about airport-hotel transfers -The whispers (listening devices) didn't work from the get-go, so no whispers were used during the 13 day trip. - Porters are no longer hired to bring your luggage to and from your room. (Very elderly had to handle their own luggage. Our friends had to help many of them.) -A few days into the trip one couple left. At the end of the trip we found out they had covid. Cosmos did not let us know; a few people weren't feeling well and two of our friends then tested positive. -One hotel was awful and not even up to "budget" standards -Many of the stops had castles, churches... but were not included, so be sure to count that in when pricing.  don't plan to use Cosmos ever again. Gate1 is the best in my opinion. When my husband's passport was stolen, they assigned someone to go with him to the embassy, translate, etc...It was above and beyond what we expected  "

Trip dates & details
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13 days From$2,419
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Highlights of Route 66
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Highlights of Route 66

By Cosmos
none
4/5 Great
100+ reviews
Group Tour
Lodging level
Standard - 3 star
Physical level
Extreme
Trip pace
Balanced schedule

Visits

Albuquerque, Arizona, Bryce Canyon National Park, California, Chicago, Lake Powell, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Monument Valley, St. Louis, Texas, Utah, Zion National Park

Themes

50 plus, Cultural

What travelers are saying

"We've taken over 10 group tours using Cosmos and Gate1. This trip last month, 9000 was not very good. -During booking, incorrect information was given about airport-hotel transfers -The whispers (listening devices) didn't work from the get-go, so no whispers were used during the 13 day trip. - Porters are no longer hired to bring your luggage to and from your room. (Very elderly had to handle their own luggage. Our friends had to help many of them.) -A few days into the trip one couple left. At the end of the trip we found out they had covid. Cosmos did not let us know; a few people weren't feeling well and two of our friends then tested positive. -One hotel was awful and not even up to "budget" standards -Many of the stops had castles, churches... but were not included, so be sure to count that in when pricing.  don't plan to use Cosmos ever again. Gate1 is the best in my opinion. When my husband's passport was stolen, they assigned someone to go with him to the embassy, translate, etc...It was above and beyond what we expected  "

Trip dates & details
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16 days From$3,099
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Yosemite and Sequoia: John Muir's California 2024
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Yosemite and Sequoia: John Muir's California 2024

By Tauck
none
4.2/5 Great
100+ reviews
Small Group Tour
Lodging level
Premium - 4 star
Physical level
Moderate

Visits

San Francisco, Yosemite National Park

Highlights

  • At his first breathtaking view of Yosemite in 1869
  • young John Muir had a life-changing moment – a surge of euphoria as he wandered
  • overwhelmed in the great natural beauty of a landscape unlike anything he had seen before…Follow Muir's path on Tauck's compelling Yosemite tour that traces his trajectory from San Francisco to the Sierra Nevada
  • embracing Muir Woods
  • Sequoia National Park and his beloved Yosemite
Show more

Themes

Cultural

What travelers are saying

"Sad to see a once good tour company stumble and fall into mediocrity. That’s Tauck post-Covid. My May 2023 tour of Normandy, Brittany and the Loire Valley was done on the cheap by Tauck, yet cost me thousands of dollars extra as a solo traveler on a special small-group tour. 

5-star hotels switched to 3 and 4 (without any compensation or explanation)… many more meals “on your own”… lots of “self-guided” tours of museums and chateaux and castles we knew nothing about… airline quality “rubber chicken” dinners, not in hotel restaurants, but in sad and isolated business convention spaces… poorly-trained newer Tour Directors (like the one on this tour) with limited experience traveling outside her tiny Canadian village or dealing with people from diverse backgrounds. She even confessed that this was a second gig job that took her away from her own business back home! You get what Tauck pays for, but unfortunately, not what YOU pay for. 

Speaking to a “Guest Relations” agent was comically pointless. She tried to make everything my fault, which I now understand is par for the course with the “new” post-Covid Tauck. Please reconsider spending huge amounts of your hard-earned money on a tour company that has lost its way and no longer delivers."

Trip dates & details
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8 days From$6,790
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Golden West Adventure
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Golden West Adventure

By Cosmos
none
4/5 Great
100+ reviews
Group Tour
Lodging level
Standard - 3 star
Physical level
Strenuous
Trip pace
Balanced schedule

Visits

Arizona, California, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Santa Barbara, Yosemite National Park

Themes

50 plus, Cultural

What travelers are saying

"We've taken over 10 group tours using Cosmos and Gate1. This trip last month, 9000 was not very good. -During booking, incorrect information was given about airport-hotel transfers -The whispers (listening devices) didn't work from the get-go, so no whispers were used during the 13 day trip. - Porters are no longer hired to bring your luggage to and from your room. (Very elderly had to handle their own luggage. Our friends had to help many of them.) -A few days into the trip one couple left. At the end of the trip we found out they had covid. Cosmos did not let us know; a few people weren't feeling well and two of our friends then tested positive. -One hotel was awful and not even up to "budget" standards -Many of the stops had castles, churches... but were not included, so be sure to count that in when pricing.  don't plan to use Cosmos ever again. Gate1 is the best in my opinion. When my husband's passport was stolen, they assigned someone to go with him to the embassy, translate, etc...It was above and beyond what we expected  "

Trip dates & details
Save this trip to your favorites or other list
14 days From$2,789
More

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Yosemite and Sequoia: John Muir's California 2025
Save this trip to your favorites or other list

Yosemite and Sequoia: John Muir's California 2025

By Tauck
none
4.2/5 Great
100+ reviews
Small Group Tour
Lodging level
Premium - 4 star
Physical level
Moderate

Visits

San Francisco, Yosemite National Park

Highlights

  • At his first breathtaking view of Yosemite in 1869
  • young John Muir had a life-changing moment – a surge of euphoria as he wandered
  • overwhelmed in the great natural beauty of a landscape unlike anything he had seen before…Follow Muir's path on Tauck's compelling Yosemite tour that traces his trajectory from San Francisco to the Sierra Nevada
  • embracing Muir Woods
  • Sequoia National Park and his beloved Yosemite
Show more

Themes

Cultural

What travelers are saying

"Sad to see a once good tour company stumble and fall into mediocrity. That’s Tauck post-Covid. My May 2023 tour of Normandy, Brittany and the Loire Valley was done on the cheap by Tauck, yet cost me thousands of dollars extra as a solo traveler on a special small-group tour. 

5-star hotels switched to 3 and 4 (without any compensation or explanation)… many more meals “on your own”… lots of “self-guided” tours of museums and chateaux and castles we knew nothing about… airline quality “rubber chicken” dinners, not in hotel restaurants, but in sad and isolated business convention spaces… poorly-trained newer Tour Directors (like the one on this tour) with limited experience traveling outside her tiny Canadian village or dealing with people from diverse backgrounds. She even confessed that this was a second gig job that took her away from her own business back home! You get what Tauck pays for, but unfortunately, not what YOU pay for. 

Speaking to a “Guest Relations” agent was comically pointless. She tried to make everything my fault, which I now understand is par for the course with the “new” post-Covid Tauck. Please reconsider spending huge amounts of your hard-earned money on a tour company that has lost its way and no longer delivers."

Trip dates & details
Save this trip to your favorites or other list
8 days From$6,790
Price was last confirmed this year
More
Yosemite and Sequoia: John Muir's California 2023
Save this trip to your favorites or other list

Yosemite and Sequoia: John Muir's California 2023

By Tauck
none
4.2/5 Great
100+ reviews
Small Group Tour
Lodging level
Premium - 4 star
Physical level
Moderate

Visits

San Francisco, Yosemite National Park

Highlights

  • At his first breathtaking view of Yosemite in 1869
  • young John Muir had a life-changing moment – a surge of euphoria as he wandered
  • overwhelmed in the great natural beauty of a landscape unlike anything he had seen before…Follow Muir's path on Tauck's compelling Yosemite tour that traces his trajectory from San Francisco to the Sierra Nevada
  • embracing Muir Woods
  • Sequoia National Park and his beloved Yosemite
Show more

Themes

Cultural

What travelers are saying

"Sad to see a once good tour company stumble and fall into mediocrity. That’s Tauck post-Covid. My May 2023 tour of Normandy, Brittany and the Loire Valley was done on the cheap by Tauck, yet cost me thousands of dollars extra as a solo traveler on a special small-group tour. 

5-star hotels switched to 3 and 4 (without any compensation or explanation)… many more meals “on your own”… lots of “self-guided” tours of museums and chateaux and castles we knew nothing about… airline quality “rubber chicken” dinners, not in hotel restaurants, but in sad and isolated business convention spaces… poorly-trained newer Tour Directors (like the one on this tour) with limited experience traveling outside her tiny Canadian village or dealing with people from diverse backgrounds. She even confessed that this was a second gig job that took her away from her own business back home! You get what Tauck pays for, but unfortunately, not what YOU pay for. 

Speaking to a “Guest Relations” agent was comically pointless. She tried to make everything my fault, which I now understand is par for the course with the “new” post-Covid Tauck. Please reconsider spending huge amounts of your hard-earned money on a tour company that has lost its way and no longer delivers."

Trip dates & details
Save this trip to your favorites or other list
8 days From$5,990
Price was last confirmed this year
More
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California Reviews & Ratings

4.7/5  Excellent
239  Reviews
Write a review
See all California tour reviews
Excellent
159
Great
31
Average
7
Disappointing
3
Terrible
1
L

Lesley

Oct 2015

Written on

I enjoy intrepid but the style of

I enjoy intrepid but the style of travel doesn't suit everyone.

Tour:  Explore Spain & Portugal

C

Carol

Oct 2015

Written on

Good size group, great tour leader (on

Good size group, great tour leader (on this occasion), pretty good value for money on the whole.

Tour:  Explore Spain & Portugal

a

alexandra

Sep 2015

Written on

good balance of guidance and free time

good balance of guidance and free time

Tour:  Explore Spain & Portugal

R

Rodney

Sep 2015

Written on

Inexperienced leadership resulting in some wasted time.

Inexperienced leadership resulting in some wasted time. Too much time traveling in buses and small vans. Our leader was not confident in communicating information to...

Tour:  Explore Spain & Portugal

R

Ric

Sep 2015

Written on

Very knowledgeable, competent, personable guide. Fun and

Very knowledgeable, competent, personable guide. Fun a...

Tour:  Explore Spain & Portugal

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California Tour Selection Trips

  • California is quite expansive, and unless you have an extended amount of time to devote, it’s worth just focusing on one specific area. Try a wine-tasting tour, or a stay at Yosemite Valley Lodge.
  • California is more than just sun and surf! There’s also mountains, snow, vineyards, and desert.
  • Wine tasting is a popular activity for locals as well as visitors. Heed proper wine tasting etiquette to ensure an enjoyable time for all. 

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