Europe: The Grand Tour is Collette's latest answer to travelers who want a taste of classic Europe without planning every rail ticket and museum slot. The 14-day, seven-country circuit starts in Amsterdam and winds through Luxembourg, France, Switzerland, Germany, and Belgium before ending in Vienna, all for a starting land price of $4,699. Along the way guests float down Dutch canals, ride Swiss trains, and sample Bavarian and Viennese comfort food-leaving the logistics to Collette's tour managers while they soak in the scenery.
Key Points
- Starts at $4,699 per person, land only
- Visits seven countries in 14 days, Amsterdam-to-Vienna
- Includes 18 meals, 5 centrally located hotels, canal Cruise, Swiss rail ride
- "Choice-on-tour" options in Brussels and Vienna personalize the day
- Post-night stay in Vienna can be added from $140
- Why it matters: bundles hard-to-string destinations into one seamless itinerary
Europe: The Grand Tour Snapshot - How It Works
Collette positions the program in its Classic travel style, balancing guided sightseeing with blocks of free time. The fixed route features two-night stays in Amsterdam, Brussels, Strasbourg, Munich, and Vienna, keeping Hotel changes to a minimum while covering 1,100-plus overland miles. Daily touring leans into each region's hallmark experience: cruising Amsterdam's concentric waterways, tasting Alsatian wines outside Strasbourg, strolling Munich's Viktualienmarkt, and choosing between Vienna's Belvedere or Kunsthistorisches museums. One scenic rail sector through the Swiss countryside replaces a coach leg, adding variety and alpine views.
Europe: The Grand Tour Background - Why It Matters
Grand-tour itineraries date back to 17th-century aristocrats who spent months looping the Continent to polish language skills and collect art. Modern guided versions compress that ambition into two weeks, handling border logistics, luggage transfers, and local guides for travelers who value breadth over depth. Collette-founded in 1918 and still family-owned-has leaned on multi-country Europe circuits for decades, but rising rail fares, museum reservation systems, and post-pandemic capacity caps have made DIY versions trickier. By locking in Hotel blocks and pre-booking time-sensitive sites such as Stuttgart's Mercedes-Benz Museum, the operator restores the grand-tour concept for 2025 travelers who crave convenience.
Europe: The Grand Tour Latest Developments
Collette opened U.S. bookings this week with first departures slated for August 2025. Demand indicators from advisors and Google Trends suggest a growing appetite for "soft-packaged" European Escorted Tours that leave evenings free yet supply daily structure.
Pricing and Inclusions
The lead rate of $4,699 covers double-occupancy rooms, 12 breakfasts, six dinners, motor-coach transport, and the Swiss rail segment. Solo travelers pay a standard Single Supplement; international air can be bundled or booked separately. Optional excursions-Waterloo battlefield ($60) or Schönbrunn Palace concert ($99)-let guests layer special interests without inflating the base price.
Choice-On-Tour Flexibility
Collette's "Choice-On-Tour" feature appears twice. In Brussels guests can join a historian-led walk of Grand-Place or follow the city's Comic Book Route, an outdoor gallery of Tintin-inspired murals. In Vienna, day 13 splits between Klimt's The Kiss at the Belvedere and the imperial collections of the Kunsthistorisches Museum, both finishing with a classic coffee-house pause. The company reports higher guest-satisfaction scores when at least two such choices are embedded.
Post-Tour Options and Advisor Tools
Travelers can tack on a post-night at Vienna's InterContinental from $140, handy for catching evening flights or adding a day-trip to Bratislava. Collette is also hosting a June 25 virtual event for advisors, complete with Q&A and downloadable marketing assets. Advisors earn standard commission plus bonus override on early bookings, part of Collette's broader push to reward trade partners after a robust 2024 sales year.
Analysis
For U.S. travelers, the itinerary knits together countries that normally require at least three separate self-planned trips. The pacing-averaging two nights per stop-limits one-night fatigue while still delivering headline sights. Rail buffs may note that only one Train ride is included, but coach segments streamline border crossings and luggage handling. Weather is another win: by focusing on northern and alpine regions, the tour skirts Southern Europe's peak-summer heat and Overtourism pinch points.
Budget-minded guests should compare the land-only rate against the cost of à-la-carte hotels, rail passes, and attraction tickets; in most August samples the escorted package runs 10-15 percent cheaper once meals and transfers are counted. Travelers who dislike early mornings or group dining should weigh those preferences against the convenience trade-off. Collette's satisfaction guarantee and optional low-cost Travel Protection Plan mitigate financial risk if plans change.
For deeper destination dives-say, lingering longer in Amsterdam's Rijksmuseum-clients could book the operator's Netherlands, Belgium & France Spotlight after the Grand Tour, leveraging Collette's discount for back-to-back programs. Alternatively, independent travelers might pair the escorted loop with a few self-guided days using our Europe tour planning guide for city extensions.
Final Thoughts
Collette's Europe: The Grand Tour revives the spirit of the classic Continental loop while swapping steam trains and trunks for Wi-Fi coaches and rolling suitcases. Its seven-country sweep, flexible day-plans, and cooler-climate routing should appeal to first-timers who want a curated overview and repeat visitors looking to stitch familiar capitals into one stress-free itinerary. Book early for August or shoulder-season slots, budget extra for bucket-list add-ons, and pack layers-Alpine evenings can surprise even in midsummer. Follow this advice and you'll wrap your own grand tour with more memories than moving parts.