Top Italy Budget History Trips & Packages 2025/2026

What travelers are saying

"We purchased two backpacks from Rick Steves Europe. One of them arrived damaged and unusable. Their website says that you must contact them if you receive damaged merchandise. I have attempted to email them through their website and I have left 3 voicemails (nobody answers the phone, ever!) and nobody has contacted me back. At this point, it seems like I've been ripped off. Buyer beware. Extremely disappointed."

What travelers are saying

"I've been on 13 trips with STI and I've had a great time and met a lot of wonderful people on all of them. What I really like is the STI process for encouraging togetherness which includes (1) members meeting the day before the trip to have drinks and dinner so that when you start the trip the next day you feel comfortable with the other members, (2) a Breakfast Club for members who want to meet for breakfast, (3) Happy Hours each night before dinner, (4) eating together each night, (5) Theme nights for members , and (6) separate excursions for members. Another good feature of STI trips is the concierge who makes arrangements and schedules activities and helps to resolve any problems that occur."

What travelers are saying

"I've traveled with this company 4 times and find the value and service outstanding. If you are on a slim budget try the " last minute" opportunities. We got an incredible deal on a river cruise two months out."

What travelers are saying

"THE ABSOLUTE WORST. Dishonest, incompetent, fraudulent. We booked a trip to Europe with them, and it was a mess from start to finish. The flight that we paid extra for (it's worth the extra money for me to fly nonstop) was changed by the airline to include a stop, but Gate 1 wouldn't refund the extra amount they charged me for it. They also refused to call Delta about the flight change - even though Delta told me that all Gate 1 had to do was call to request the change back to a nonstop flight for me (at no extra charge). After I called Gate 1 out on this, they suddenly claimed that they HAD called Delta, but that they didn't know when and didn't know who they spoke with, and they couldn't call with me on the line. They also promised me a $450 credit to make up for the extra night of hotel I could not be used because of their incompetence, and said they would apply it to my account. However, they did not actually issue that credit. When I brought it up, they told me that since I'd made final payment prior to their issuance of the credit, they weren't going to give it to me anymore. Excuse me, but YOUR inability or failure to do what YOU promised to do is not my fault or my problem. This is further evidence of incompetence, dishonesty, and fraud. Gate 1 clearly does not care one bit about their customers or their reputation. Gate 1 should go out of business. I'm reporting them to the various state agencies for their dishonest business practices."

What travelers are saying

"I've traveled with this company 4 times and find the value and service outstanding. If you are on a slim budget try the " last minute" opportunities. We got an incredible deal on a river cruise two months out."

What travelers are saying

"UnCruise is an amazing dream!! The crew, the sales team, the office team, all go out of their way to make sure your experience is unforgettable. We were on the August 1, 2020 cruise. Even tho things didn’t go quite the way we planned, UnCruise was unbelievable. We will be back. UnCruise was my first ever cruise. They will be the only company we ever cruise with."

What travelers are saying

"We purchased two backpacks from Rick Steves Europe. One of them arrived damaged and unusable. Their website says that you must contact them if you receive damaged merchandise. I have attempted to email them through their website and I have left 3 voicemails (nobody answers the phone, ever!) and nobody has contacted me back. At this point, it seems like I've been ripped off. Buyer beware. Extremely disappointed."

What travelers are saying

"We purchased two backpacks from Rick Steves Europe. One of them arrived damaged and unusable. Their website says that you must contact them if you receive damaged merchandise. I have attempted to email them through their website and I have left 3 voicemails (nobody answers the phone, ever!) and nobody has contacted me back. At this point, it seems like I've been ripped off. Buyer beware. Extremely disappointed."