What Globus & Cosmos does

The Globus family of brands, marketed externally as 'Globus & Cosmos,' is a privately held, family-controlled global tour operating group that has operated continuously since 1928. The company is organized around three consumer-facing sub-brands: Globus (first-class escorted touring), Cosmos (affordable, value-priced touring launched in the 1960s), and Avalon Waterways (luxury river cruising introduced in the 2000s). Its catalog spans 6 continents, 70 countries, and 543 vacation packages, with additional specialty offerings including Globus Faith (religious vacations), Choice Tours (customizable excursions), Escapes (off-season travel), Undiscovered tours (hidden-gem destinations), and Storyteller Cruises (celebrity-hosted river cruises).

The group's underlying technology is consumer-facing rather than proprietary-core: brand-specific direct-to-consumer websites, B2B travel agent portals, regional phone sales centers, and a suite of on-trip mobile applications (CosmosGO, AvalonGO, GlobusGO, MonogramsGO). Data security relies on 3DES encryption and HTTPS, with credit card processing outsourced to third parties. The most differentiated physical asset is the Avalon Waterways fleet of river cruise Suite Ships with Open-Air Balconies; on land, the company operates motorcoach fleets and built a network of hand-picked hotel supplier relationships.

The business model is straightforward package sales: all-inclusive escorted tours, independent travel arrangements, and river cruises priced on a quote basis by destination, season, and tier, sold directly through brand websites, regional call centers, and indirectly via a global travel agent channel. Distribution is operated through owned regional entities in the United States (Group Voyagers, Inc., Denver), Canada (Lontours Canada Ltd., Toronto), the United Kingdom (Cosmos Tours Ltd., Richmond), Australia (Circuit Travel Pty Ltd., Sydney), New Zealand (Auckland), and India (Bengaluru). The founding Mantegazza family remains in control, with no external institutional investors disclosed, and the group is described in source materials as the 'worldwide leader in escorted travel' with more than 30 tourism and aviation sister businesses serviced by 5,000+ professionals globally.

Name

Globus & Cosmos

Legal name

Cosmos Tours Ltd

Website

https://globusandcosmos.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1928

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The Globus family of brands is a privately held, Mantegazza family-owned global tour operator founded in 1928, offering escorted tours (Globus), value vacations (Cosmos), and luxury river cruises (Avalon Waterways) across 70 countries, serving individual leisure travelers through direct sales, travel agents, and regional offices.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Littleton

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices6 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Personnel, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Escorted Tour Packages: The company generates revenue through the sale of all-inclusive escorted tour packages under the Globus brand, offering first-class touring across seven continents with front-row access to legendary landmarks, hand-picked hotels, and seamless transportation.
2. Value-Priced Tours (Cosmos): Cosmos brand offers affordable, value-packed vacation packages targeting cost-conscious travelers, generating revenue through tour package sales across Europe, Americas, and global destinations.
3. River Cruises (Avalon Waterways): Avalon Waterways generates revenue through luxury river cruise packages featuring Suite Ships with panoramic staterooms, fine dining, and enriching shore excursions on major European rivers and other destinations.
4. Independent Tours and City Stays: Following the consolidation of Monograms into Independent tours and City Stays, the company offers customizable independent travel arrangements including religious vacations (Globus Faith) and off-season travel escapes.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Globus & Cosmos, the Globus family of brands, operates escorted tour packages, independent travel arrangements, and river cruises under three core sub-brands: Globus (first-class touring), Cosmos (affordable value-priced touring), and Avalon Waterways (luxury river cruising). The portfolio spans 6 continents, 70 countries, and 543 vacation options, with supplemental offerings including Globus Faith religious vacations and Independent Tours & City Stays. Distribution occurs through direct-to-consumer websites, regional phone centers, travel agent portals, and regional distribution companies across the US, Canada, UK, Australia, New Zealand, and India.

Product overview

Globus & Cosmos is the Globus family of brands, a travel conglomerate comprising three main tour and cruise sub-brands: Globus (first-class escorted touring), Cosmos (affordable value-packed touring), and Avalon Waterways (luxury river cruising). The portfolio spans 6 continents, 70 countries, and 543 vacation options. Additional offerings include Globus Faith (religious vacations), and specialty features like Choice Tours (customizable excursions), Escapes (off-season travel), Undiscovered (hidden gems tours), and Storyteller Cruises (celebrity-hosted cruises). The company also operates mobile applications (GlobusGO, CosmosGO, AvalonGO, MonogramsGO) for on-trip services. Founded in 1928, the company has grown from a single rowboat operation to become a worldwide leader in escorted travel.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Globus Escorted Tours First-class escorted tour packages offering expertly designed itineraries across seven continents with front-row access to legendary landmarks, hand-picked hotels, seamless transportation, and insider expertise from expert guides; for affluent individual travelers.
• Cosmos Value Tours Affordable value-priced vacation packages targeting cost-conscious travelers across Europe, the Americas, and global destinations; offers dream destination experiences at accessible price points.
• Avalon Waterways River Cruises Luxury river cruise packages featuring modern Suite Ships with panoramic staterooms and Open-Air Balconies, fine dining, and enriching shore excursions on major European rivers and other global destinations.
• Globus Faith Religious Vacations

Quantifiable outcome

• 543 vacation options available across all brands
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves14 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Collette: Family-owned escorted tour operator offering guided vacations across all seven continents. Comparable multi-decade family ownership, similar tour package structure, and overlap in North American customer segments.
• Tauck: Family-owned luxury tour and cruise operator offering high-end escorted tours and small-ship cruises. Closely comparable in family ownership, premium positioning, and inclusion of river cruise inventory.
• Uniworld Boutique River Cruise Collection: Luxury river cruise line with all-inclusive itineraries on European and exotic rivers. Directly comparable to Avalon Waterways in vessel design philosophy, luxury positioning, and bundled excursion model.
• Contiki: Specialist tour operator for 18-35 year old travelers, offering guided group tours globally. Comparable in tour packaging and operational model, but with a younger demographic focus that contrasts Globus's older-skewing customer base.
• Insight Vacations: Premium and luxury escorted tour operator, part of The Travel Corporation (TTC) family. Directly competes in the upper-tier guided touring segment with comparable all-inclusive itineraries and group sizes.
• Abercrombie & Kent: Luxury tour operator offering high-end guided tours and small-group expeditions. Comparable in premium product positioning, custom itinerary design, and appeal to affluent experiential travelers.
• Trafalgar Tours: A leading global escorted tour operator offering guided vacations across multiple continents. Direct competitor in the first-class escorted touring space, sharing a similar agent-distribution model and demographic focus.
• Viking Cruises: Dominant river and ocean cruise operator with strong escorted-tour extensions. Direct competitor in the river cruise category, where Avalon's Suite Ships compete, and an emerging threat in destination-focused cruise-tour packages.

Broad incumbents

• Expedia Group: Major online travel platform encompassing Expedia, Hotels.com, and Vrbo. Not a direct tour competitor but a structural threat as consumers shift to self-directed, OTA-mediated travel planning versus guided tour packages.

Emerging players

• EF (Education First) Tours: Large-scale tour operator with strong footprint in educational and group travel, expanding into adult leisure tours. Comparable group-tour infrastructure and global destination reach, though skews to institutional customers.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/globus
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/group-voyagers-inc

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Subsidiaries6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Globus & Cosmos