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Price based on Shared Room
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- Gold Operator
- Penguin Travel
- In-depth Cultural
- Immerse yourself in rich history and local traditions
- Group Tour
- Join a group and forge lifelong friendships
- Fully Guided
- An experienced guide will be with you for the entire tour
- Medium Intensity
- Travelers should be comfortable with somewhat-demanding activities
- Guided in English
- Group Size 6 - 22
- Ages 10+
Places You’ll See
Highlights
- Enter the land of Game of Thrones in stunning Dubrovnik
- Shop for souvenirs at the old Turkish bazaar in Sarajevo
- Climb the Vitosha mountain and gaze down at Sophia
- Admire the incredible medieval literary centre of Ohrid
Itinerary
- Introduction
- Day 1 Sofia (Bulgaria)
- Day 2 Sofia –Belgrade (Serbia)
- Day 3 Belgrade - Sarajevo (Serbia/Bosnia and Herzegovina).
- Day 4 Sarajevo (Bosnia and Herzegovina)
- Day 5 Sarajevo- Mostar - Blagaj Tekija - Trebinje (Bosnia and Herzegovina)
- Day 6 Trebinje- Durbovnik(Croatia)
- Day 7 Dubrovnik – Herzeg Novi – Kotor (Croatia/Montenegro).
- Day 8 Kotor – Pec (Montenegro/Kosovo).
- Day 9 Pec – Prizren (Kosovo).
- Day 10 Prizren – Tirana (Kosovo/Albania).
- Day 11 Tirana – Ohrid (Albania/Macedonia)
- Day 12 Ohrid - Skopje (Macedonia)
- Day 13 Skopje – Sofia (Macedonia/Bulgaria).
- Day 14 Departure
What's Included
- Accommodation
- Guide
- Meals
- Additional Services
- Transport
- Free eSIMTourRadar offers the lead traveler (the person who booked) a free 1GB eSIM for the trip. The eSIM is redeemable only through the TourRadar app 72 hours before departure.
What's Not Included
- Flights
- Insurance
- Optional
- Additional Services
Customer Photos
Operated by
Penguin Travel
Number of tours
40
Age Range
18 to 80 years old
Response time
within 1 day
Response rate
100%
Established in 1989 in the heart of Copenhagen (Denmark), Penguin Travel rose...
Read moreCustomer Reviews
- Overall RatingExcellent
- ItineraryExcellent
- GuideExcellent
- TransportExcellent
- AccommodationGood
- FoodGood
- JWJames· October 8th, 2025We enjoyed the places we visited and the itinerary. Good way to travel to see a lot in a short period of time.Show moreTrip date: September 2025
- NNone· September 23rd, 2025The tour went to many spectacular places. Accommodations were very comfortable. The guide was very knowledgeable and helpful. Most all stops had guided city tours. The group was good for the most part. Baggage and stairs were a complaint for some in the group. The listing specifically states that there would be stairs and also to pack accordinglyShow moreTrip date: September 2025
Lisa· September 21st, 2025The trip was well-organized and fast-paced. Activities were limited to 2-3 hour city walking tours. The trip is overstated at 14 days. We didn’t even meet on day one or 14. Sofia was entirely left out of the sightseeing. Day one should have included a city tour at minimum along with a quick meeting and coordinated dinner. This is how the Silk Road tour was organized. Tipping local guides was kind of a mess with no direction or organization by our tour leader. Border crossings were an inevitable part of the trip, but luckily they were pretty painless (unlike the Stans where all of our luggage needed to be scanned by security at each border crossing).Show more
Trip date: September 2025- PAUL· September 21st, 2025All was fine except for the guide who expended the most minimal of effort. Since the guide makes a tour, her performance undercut this tour.Show moreTrip date: September 2025
- Mark· September 19th, 2025Fantastic tour covered all the highlights of the balkansShow moreTrip date: July 2025
- Dr. Peter· July 3rd, 2025This was a wonderful tour. I could not have done half the things we did if I tried to plan it myself. We had a knowledgeable Bulgarian guide, Georgi, and he helped demystify a lot about all the different conflicts and things about these countries and their rich histories. We had a great group of experienced travelers, and a comfortable bus on which we traveled almost 2000 km. We had local guides and walking tours in most of the cities. Videos of everything can be found on IG or TT under TrvlZaddy. I highly recommend this trip, and I will likely be booking more with this company.Show moreTrip date: June 2025
- MDMarina· June 30th, 2025We had a wonderful tour. Our tour leadre Georgi was professional, knowledgeable, friendly and fun company. Driver Bobby gots us around all 8 countries safely. He was quiet but friendly. Accommodation varied but good standard. Breakfast varied and gave us a taste of local cuisine. Arranged city tours where informative & interesting. Highly recommend this trip of former Yugoslavia countriesShow moreTrip date: June 2025
- JSjanet· June 1st, 2025The Balkan tour is a great tour visiting 8 countries in 14 days, yet it is not tiring. The schedule is good and not so hectic. Lots of rest time. Hotels are right at the centre town (3***) old but clean. Some have no elevators. The guide is good considering it was her first tour and was still a student. Overall, with the value and experience, I recommend this tour to everyone.Show more
Penguin Travel commented on this reviewThank you for your feedback! We're glad you enjoyed the Balkan tour and appreciated the balance of the itinerary, your recommendation means a lot to us!Trip date: May 2025 - Georgia· May 31st, 2025The tour guide Teia was the best! She made the trip even better. Unfortunately she couldn’t be with us for 2 days of the trip as penguin travel didn’t tell her about a visa she needed!! It was a very quick tour through the balkans and some places maybe didn’t need to be on the trip. E.g don’t need a night in Trebinje but an extra night in Dubrovnik! Overall it was good and the bus driver Bobby was great too!Show morePenguin Travel commented on this reviewThank you for sharing your experience! We’re so glad to hear you had a great time with Teia and Bobby. We apologize for the visa mix-up, and we appreciate your feedback about the itinerary - we’ll take your suggestions into account for future tours to... Show moreTrip date: May 2025
- SMStephen Leslie· May 31st, 2025Great scenery and wonderful old cities. Pity about all the border crossings.Show morePenguin Travel commented on this reviewThank you for your feedback! We’re looking forward to having you join us on another exciting trip soon! Safe travels until then!Trip date: May 2025
Dates & Availability
Select departure month and travellers
- From Saturday11 Apr, 2026To Friday24 Apr, 2026EnglishFilling FastFrom:NZ $2,441 per personMultiple Room TypesLocal Payment$410
- From Saturday25 Apr, 2026To Friday8 May, 2026EnglishFilling FastFrom:NZ $2,441 per personMultiple Room TypesLocal Payment$410
- From Saturday9 May, 2026To Friday22 May, 2026EnglishFilling FastFrom:NZ $2,441 per personMultiple Room TypesLocal Payment$410
- From Saturday25 Jul, 2026To Friday7 Aug, 2026EnglishFilling FastFrom:NZ $2,441 per personMultiple Room TypesLocal Payment$410
- From Saturday5 Sep, 2026To Friday18 Sep, 2026EnglishFilling FastFrom:NZ $2,441 per personMultiple Room TypesLocal Payment$410
- From Saturday19 Sep, 2026To Friday2 Oct, 2026EnglishFilling FastFrom:NZ $2,441 per personMultiple Room TypesLocal Payment$410
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What our customers ask about this tour
The content in our FAQ section is subject to change.- G
Gillian
Asked on September 27th, 2025I am a solo female traveller, will I be paired with another female who is traveling solo for accommodation or do I have to pay the single supplement?
Penguin TravelOperator•Written October 2025Booking so early we can not guarantee there will be another woman who is travelling solo and who is willing to share. For the moment we will have to confirm the reservation with Single supplement added. Closer to the date of travelling, if we find another woman who is willing to share we will remove the Single room supplement from the booking and we will make the booking into TWIN room sharing.
- J
Jennifer
Asked on September 24th, 2025Would you provide me with hotel confirmation on booking and full payment as I require the same for Schengen visa purpose
- Penguin TravelOperator•Written September 2025
We do not have to provide you with hotel confirmation on booking and full payment, as you do not have active booking with us, which means your booking in the hotels does not exist. That means confirmation can not be sent, respectively. You can pick any of our dates in the next year.
- J
Jenna
Asked on July 17th, 2025Confirm if sharing a room, beds will definitely be twin.
- Penguin TravelOperator•Written July 2025
We will make sure to accommodate in a TWIN room (two separate beds).
- J
Jenna
Traveler•Written July 20251) Is it possible to stay in the same hotel as tour begins (Budapest Hotel in Sofia)? Can we book this through you or separately? 2) Will free airport transfer be available if arriving early? 3) Will there be time for laundry during tour? 4) In Kotor and Ohrid, will there be time to go swimming in the lake?
- Penguin TravelOperator•Written July 2025
We use hotel Budapest in Sofia. We can book additional overnight stays. Cost is 90 EUR per room. Transfer can be arranged for 20 EUR per car. Recommend bringing enough clothes for whole trip as hotels have limited stays. Some limited free time in evenings after city tours.
- J
Jenna
Traveler•Written August 2025Confirm €90 per night is for 2 people in standard room?
- Penguin TravelOperator•Written August 2025
Yes, the price per room
J4 more answers - M
Max
Asked on July 14th, 2025our age is 75 is it suitable for us?
- Penguin TravelOperator•Written July 2025
The tour is intensive, as each day the hotels are changed.
- K
Kenneth
Asked on July 6th, 2025Will our age above 70 crete issue for this trip? Is this trip very demanding physically?
- Penguin TravelOperator•Written July 2025
The tour is not very physically demanding but each day you will be travelling and changing the hotel. Unfortunately, the date 6 SEP is fully booked.
- J
Jade
Asked on July 6th, 2025Are there any additional costs for the tour? Since I have to apply for a Schengen visa, please inform which country should I be applying to for the visa? What document is provided by Penguin Travel for the visa application?
- Penguin TravelOperator•Written July 2025
The tour price is 1390 EUR + 320 EUR for the single supplement. We can help with a letter from our side stating your travel itinerary and dates, accommodation and service. The country which will issue the visa is up to your choice, please make sure the visa includes all 8 countries included in this tour.
- J
Jade
Traveler•Written July 2025Do you have any tour which covers Eastern Europe on a single Schengen visa?
- J
Jade
Traveler•Written July 2025Unfortunately the countries which are part of the Balkan Kaleidoscope require separate visas - it is not possible to travel on a single Schengen visa. It will not be possible to apply for all the visas and get them in time before the travel date. Hence I was inquiring whether you have a tour covering Eastern Europe which requires a single Schengen Visa.
- Penguin TravelOperator•Written July 2025
The countries included in the Balkan kaleidoscope tour are ok to travel if you have Multiple entry Schengen visa. Maybe will be the best if you try to apply for Multiple entry than a Single one. You can reach the Bulgarian embassy as they are also certified to provide a Multiple entry Schengen visa. We have tours in Eastern Europe, covering Romania and Moldova together, but I am not 100% sure if they will not require also a Schengen visa.
JJ3 more answers - C
Chloe
Asked on June 13th, 2025Can you please tell me the name of the hotel in bulgaria where the tour starts and whether i get there directly or i get picked up from the airport.
- Penguin TravelOperator•Written June 2025
10 days before the official starting date we will send you the voucher with all information needed regarding transfer, accommodation, guides etc.
- L
Lisa
Asked on June 7th, 2025Could you please confirm that we will be leaving from Sofia, Bulgaria on Sep 20 and departing on Oct 3. What time will we be available for our flights on Oct 3? How do we book the optional pre-tour hotel and airport transfers?
- Penguin TravelOperator•Written June 2025
You will be leaving from Sofia on Sep. 21-st and depart on Oct the 3-rd. So you can arrive any time on Sep. 20-th and depart any time on Oct the 3-rd.
- A
Alice
Asked on June 4th, 2025Would you please confirm if the departures of July 26th and September 6th are guanranteed
- Penguin TravelOperator•Written June 2025
Yes, both departures are guaranteed
- A
Alice
Traveler•Written June 2025What are the rules of the airport transfer? What is the approximate start/end time on the first/last day of the tour? What is the first hotel on the tour?
- Penguin TravelOperator•Written June 2025
The airport transfer is included when it is on the first/last day of the tour. The tour starts on the second day from Sofia at 8:30 am, and the last night is also in Sofia. The first hotel in Sofia is Budapest Hotel Sofia.
- A
Alice
Traveler•Written June 2025To make sure I understand the transfer rules correctly, all I have to do is share the flight details with you on the first/last day of the tour, and you will take care of it, right?
- Penguin TravelOperator•Written June 2025
Yes, this is correct. However, please let continue with the communication in your official reservation. Also, a message with all details and instructions will be send to you.
A4 more answers - K
Kate
Asked on May 29th, 2025First I need to know if you this tour will be available in 2026. Second, what is the single supplement?
- Penguin TravelOperator•Written May 2025
Yes, the tour will be available in 2026 as well. The single room supplement is 320 EUR. When you book, we will add it as a mandatory additional fee. However, once you let us know if you are willing to share or not, we will note it and start looking for someone to pair you with. If we find such a person, the supplement will be removed.
- K
Kate
Traveler•Written May 2025I need to know what the single supplement in CAD is.
- Penguin TravelOperator•Written June 2025
We quote our services in EUR since we are based in Europe. The fee is then calculated in CAD according to the official rate.
K2 more answers
Price based on Cheapest Room
Price based on Shared Room
Price based on Private Single Room
Price based on Private Double Room
Best price guarantee Learn More
Good to Know
Tour ID: 85180
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