Academy Travel - Sydney, New South Wales

John Wharton

We first went to Italy with Academy in 2007 on the Grand Tour, including a private tour of the Sistine Chapel. They have the right approach for seasoned travellers, good hotels well located, no short overnights, incredibly knowledgable tour leaders, great and varied itineraries, small groups max 16. They always use a 40 seat coach where access to departure and destination is physically possible so plenty of comfort. We've just been with them to Tassie, next month off to NZ and then Chicago for a tour of Frank Lloyd Wright architecture. March 2024 a 2 week residential in Venice staying in a small family run hotel near St Marks, we've stayed there before and loved it, look forward to Venice in a quiet time to see in depth.
We do use other companies and our local agent, but Academy hits the sweet spot for us, highly recommended.

Trevor Newman

We recently did the Academy Travel 'Rome Study Tour' (had wanted to do it before Covid). It was amazing! The accommodation was very central to the Monti district, handy for public transport, laundry services and great eating options. Our Tour Leaders were great. The daily briefings, outings, historical site visits, churches, museums, were all very interesting and engaging. This tour really explores and picks apart all the various layers of Rome's history, from ancient Romans through to Italian Unity and Fascism. If you love Rome and want to get more intimate with the city I would thoroughly recommend doing a comprehensive and focused tour such as this.

Allison Bennett

After a COVID induced break from travelling I resumed my travels with the Sicily and Aeolian Islands tour in October 2022. This was my fifth Academy tour and it was up to the usual high standard. The smaller group size and the local tour manager were welcome additions. Minor changes of plans were handled seamlessly. The tour moved at a fast pace but there was ample free time. Group meals were varied and excellent and hotels were of a good standard and conveniently located, and transport arrangements all worked. Highly recommend this tour and the Malta extension.

Randy Goldberg

My partner & I have travelled extensively with Academy Travel since 2001 and still enjoy the memories of the various tours as well as catching up with the friends we have made in our travels. The level of expertise of the tour leaders as well as the diversity and scope of the experiences while on tour sets the Academy Travel offerings apart from the other tour companies. Not only have we seen wonderful places and experienced the culture and food of the various locations we have visited, we came home with actual knowledge that we acquired on our tours through lectures, experienced educators and local expertise that make for amazing experiences. Small groups sizes and minimal hotel moves has always been an attraction for us as we can get to know the people on the tour and enjoy our free time at our leisure.

Any of our overseas travel is normally based around an exciting Academy Travel tour so we are always checking the website and reading the magazine for future travel suggestions. We are looking forward to our next tour to Sicily & Malta in October 2016.

Kerry Gestier

We have travelled frequently to destinations in Italy and Spain with Academy and have absolutely loved the experience. Everything is so well organised, accommodations have been superb and their staff are knowledgeable and enthusiastic. Our most recent tour was to the lakes and villas of Northern Italy this year - it was fabulous. The tour group comprised interesting and sociable people and we enjoyed their company thoroughly. If you are seeking an experience of new places, art, architecture, history with generous helpings of great food and wine, Academy Travel will have the trip for you.

Briar Gregory

The Art in the Outback tour appealed to me and it was wonderful! The tour leader was not only knowledgeable and interesting, but also attentive and very helpful. The assistant went out of her way to make our tour as easy as possible for all of us. The other tour members were great travelling companions and I enjoyed every single minute!

Geoff Douglas

Excellent small group tour company specialising in tours for the thinking person. My tour of Rome was lead by an A/Prof of Ancient History (USYD). The Academic tour lead was supplemented by a full time local Italian tour leader who dealt with on the ground logistics - bookings, tickets, guidance for use of public transport, etc. Highly recommended.

Peter Francis

We have travelled with Academy Travel on five occasions and hope to do more trips with them in the future.

We love the idea of an organised tour with itineraries planned, transport organised, superior accommodation and tour leaders explaining the significance, the history and the culture of the places visited. This is Academy Travel.

We love the idea of travelling with a small group, meeting new companions on tour, staying at boutique hotels, eating and drinking like locals not tourists and visiting places of interest well off the beaten tourist routes.

On our trips so far we have done huge variety of things, all included in the tour price. As well as seeing all the ancient sites, the museums, the churches and the art, we have gone up mountains in cable cars, visited private residences, explored the marble mines in Carrara, had an after hours tour of the Vatican museums, experienced thermal baths, had dinner in all sorts of exotic places, visited vineyards and cellars, attended local concerts, celebrated birthdays with a glass or two of Prosecco, reached the top of Mt Etna and Mt Vesuvius, entered Venice by water taxi, sampled the local grappa, limoncello and the wines of every region visited. We have stayed in delightful villages such as Camogli, Vico Equense, Asolo, Bellagio, Taormina as well as smaller boutique hotels in the major cities.

We have had a lot of fun travelling with Academy, met some very interesting people and learnt a lot at the same time.

However, what we really like about Academy is the Tour leaders. On every trip we have had tour leaders who really love the country we are touring and understand its people, culture and history. When touring with them you feel like a local not a tourist. Their expert knowledge of the places we are visiting is first class and they really enhance our travel experience.
A great tour does not just happen, especially in Italy where the best laid plans often hit snags. On tour, the tour leaders work really hard planning and making arrangements, often after hours, to ensure the tour is a success and each person has a good experience. They go out of their way to see that everybody on tour is included especially those travelling alone.

Highly recommended

Jennifer & Peter Francis