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Both Contiki and Intrepid offer world-class tours with unique travel style options. Contiki mostly attracts young adults while Intrepid provides tours for all adults. There are several differences between the companies that may play a crucial role in your decision-making.
Go through our clear and detailed comparison guide for useful insights that will help you pick the right one for you.
| Feature | Contiki | Intrepid | Verdict |
|---|---|---|---|
| What tours are available? |
|
| Both offer tours worldwide. |
| Do tours include flights? | Flights to and from the start/end point are not included. Flights during your tour are. | Flights to and from the start/end point not included. Flights during your tour are. | Both include flights during your tour but not before or after. |
| Can I price match? | No | No | Neither provide price matching |
| Are lay-by or payment plans available? | You can lock in your dates for a deposit of $200 per person. The remaining amount needs to be paid 45 days from the start of the tour. | A deposit of $400 is required to confirm your place. The full payment is due 56 days prior to departure. | Intrepid requires a higher deposit amount and allows less time to make the full payment. |
| Are there booking/charge fees? | No | No | Neither charge booking fees. |
| Is there online chat? | Yes | No | Contiki offers online chat. |
| Is there a loyalty scheme? | Up to 5% off your next Contiki trip or rewards with its sister brands including Trafalgar, Insight Vacations, Uniworld River Cruises, Busabout, Haggis Adventure, Shamrocker Adventures, Lion World Travel, African Travel, Brendan Vacations and AAT Kings. | $2,200 travel credit after nine trips with Intrepid or its sister brands – Geckos Adventures, Peregrine, The Family Adventure Company and Adventure Tours Australia. | Loyalty discount on Contiki can be redeemed from the second trip onwards. |
| What ages is it for? | Only for 18-35 year olds. | Available for all travellers above 15 years of age. Minors need to be accompanied by adults. | Intrepid offers tours to a wider age group. |
| Is there a single supplement? | Yes, at an additional cost. | Yes, at an additional cost. | Both offer an optional single supplement. |
| What are my payment options? |
|
| Contiki offers a wider range of payment options. |
We researched several tours with comparable itineraries on Contiki and Intrepid, and found that Intrepid tours are costlier than Contiki’s. For example, at the time of writing an 11-day tour from Los Angeles to San Francisco starts from $2,543 on Contiki, while a tour with similar itinerary costs $2,725 on Intrepid.
The Contiki tour has a group size of approximately 45 people while the Intrepid tour has a maximum group size of 13.
The verdict: Contiki offers cheaper tours. In this case, this is due to a larger group size than Intrepid.
At the time of writing, Contiki is offers over 350 tours while Intrepid has 800+ tours as it accepts a wider age group and has multiple travel themes.
The verdict: Intrepid offers more tours.
Cancellation policy: Contiki has a more relaxed cancellation policy than Intrepid.
The latest you can cancel your trip with only losing the deposit is 45 days with Contiki and 56 days with Intrepid. If you cancel the tour one month prior to departure, you can get up to 75% of the trip cost with Contiki but Intrepid offers zero refunds.
| Days cancelled prior to departure | Cancellation fee based on your purchase price |
|---|---|
| 45+ days | Deposit only |
| 45-22 days | 25% |
| 21-8 days | 50% |
| 7-1 days | 75% |
| Days cancelled prior to departure | Cancellation fee based on your purchase price |
|---|---|
| 56+ days | Deposit only |
| 55-31 days | 50% |
| 30-0 days | 100% |
Contiki offers a variety of discounts including an early payment discount, last-minute deals, a 5% past passenger deduction, discount for booking with friends and multiple-trip price cuts. Last minute deals on Contiki vary from 10% to 30% on some tours. You can see a full list here.
Intrepid only offers last-minute deals and loyalty discounts. Deals range from 15-40% off depending on the tour and timing..
The verdict: Contiki has a wider variety of deals but the discount on tours is comparable on both sites.
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Lock in your next adventure today with a tour deposit that you can use towards another date or a different destination if you need to change your plans later.
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