Is Penguin Travel worth it? The data verdict
Penguin Travel rates 4.40★ across 438 verified reviews — genuinely good, short of exceptional. The complaints below are consistent enough to take seriously before booking.
Where Penguin Travel scores
What travellers consistently praise
- Outstanding, attentive tour leaders
- Well-paced, varied itineraries
- Skilled, reassuring drivers
- Good group atmosphere and camaraderie
- Smooth handling of logistics and border crossings
The consistent complaints
- Inconsistent quality of local guides
- Accommodation only middling in places
- Food unremarkable rather than a highlight
- Poor flexibility/costly when trips are disrupted
Both lists distilled from the same verified review base — we publish the bad with the good.
In travellers' own words
“My trip to the 5 Stans was brilliant and I thoroughly enjoyed it. The guide Stoyan was superb - nothing was too much trouble and he always offere”
“Our main guide throughout the trip, Stoyan, was superb. He deserves a raise! The tour provided a satisfactory overview of the five countries. The local guides varied in their capacities. You know, these local g”
“Penguin you know we did not make the trip. We got caught in Melesa the category 5 hurricane in Jamaica. We asked you to change our trip from November to March and you said we would have to pay another $4000.usd”
“This tour was like a platter of multiple items to taste. We visited 8 countries in 14 days. Means we just sampled important locations in each country. Now with this knowledge we are going to choose our favorite places and go for l”
