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  • Tour Operator of the Year Gold Award 2022 – AITO (Assoc. of Independent Tour Operators)
  • Best Travel Company for Arts and Culture Holidays Silver Award 2021/2022 – British Travel Awards
  • Tour Operator of the Year Silver Award 2019 – AITO (Assoc. of Independent Tour Operators)
  • Tour Operator of the Year Silver Award 2018 – AITO (Assoc. of Independent Tour Operators)
  • Tour Operator of the Year Gold Award 2017 – AITO (Assoc. of Independent Tour Operators)
  • Tour Operator of the Year Silver Award 2016 – AITO (Assoc. of Independent Tour Operators)
  • Tour Operator of the Year Gold Award 2015 – AITO (Assoc. of Independent Tour Operators)
  • One of the world’s “Top Ten Learning Retreats” – National Geographic Traveller

A multi-award-winning family-run travel company, Peter Sommer Travels offer expert-led archaeology tours and cultural tours for small groups. In spring 2023, 2018 and 2016 we received the UK’s Tour Operator of the Year Gold Award and in February 2020, 2019 and 2017 the Silver Award from AITO, the UK’s most prestigious and leading organisation for specialist tour operators.

Take a gulet cruise or private gulet charter along a turquoise coast and enjoy total relaxation, beautiful food, and superb swimming – the perfect vacation. Or discover some of the finest archaeological sites in the world on our spectacular ‘Exploring’ land adventures such as Exploring Crete Tour, Exploring Hadrian’s Wall, Exploring Sicily, Exploring the Peloponnese or Exploring Macedonia.

Expert Tour Guides:

A team of the finest guides, archaeologists and historians, vividly bring the past to life on our land-based escorted tours and gulet cruises. Friendly and knowledgeable, they are natural enthusiasts steeped in the history and culture of Croatia, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Turkey and the UK.

Why we Organise Gulet Cruises and Escorted Tours

In 1994, Peter Sommer walked 2,000 miles across Turkey, retracing the route of Alexander the Great, and in the process fell in love with the country, its archaeology and the Turkish people. A British archaeologist and documentary maker led his very first archaeology tour in Turkey in 1996. Since then, Peter and the team here at Peter Sommer Travels has been organising unique archaeological and cultural tours and gulet cruising holidays, escorted by the finest experts.

“Want a truly personal travel experience with a knowledgeable, witty, friendly guide, and small groups? Consider joining of Peter Sommer Travels’ tours.”
Tom Brosnahan, originator of the Lonely Planet and Frommer’s travel guides to Turkey and creator of turkeytravelplanner.com.

Small Group Tour Operator:

A UK-based specialist tour operator, we offer cultural vacations and holidays with a professional and above all personal touch. On our small group expert-led tours we take only small groups of like-minded people typically between 10 and 16 on our gulet tours (max 18 on our Cruising the Cyclades/Dodecanese trips) and between 10 and 18 on our land tours – travelling in an easy-going informal style.

Private Gulet Charters:

Alongside our scheduled gulet cruises in Croatia, Greece and Turkey, we also create bespoke gulet cruising holidays to order. Our private gulet trips feature comfortable and stylish boats, painstakingly prepared itineraries, a perfectly balanced mix of relaxation and activity and of course – delicious food, all accompanied by our expert guides and local guides. We provide a range of fully crewed boats, maintained to the highest safety standards, ranging from 4 to 11 cabins (6 to 22 guests).

Private Group Tours: Tailor made Land and City Tours

Our tailor-made expert-led land tours can focus on a single region or city, or we can create a bespoke itinerary for you that weaves together several different regions within one country or several different countries. From family-run boutique hotels and country houses to 5 star luxury hotels, we will find the accommodation that most closely suits your needs. We pride ourselves on our flexibility and capacity to arrange all aspects of your journey so you can travel and explore with all the details smoothly taken care of.

We strive to offer the finest small group cultural tours. If you have any questions, please get in touch. We’ll be delighted to help.

We are a trusted and longstanding member of ABTA (The Association of British Travel Agents), The Association of Independent Tour Operators (AITO), the American Society of Travel Advisors (ASTA) and a number of other travel industry bodies.

AITO Tour Operator of the Year 2015 Gold Award AITO Tour Operator of the Year 2016 Silver Award AITO Tour Operator of the Year 2017 Gold Award AITO Tour Operator of the Year 2018 Silver Award AITO Tour Operator of the Year 2019 Silver Award Best Travel Company for Arts and Culture Holidays Silver British Travel Award 2022

See the independent reviews of our tours as submitted directly by guests on the website of AITO (The Association of Independent Tour Operators)

Select a Destination

Greece tours

Greece Tours

A country of fascinating archaeological sites, superb landscapes and seascapes and great hospitality: cruise through the Greek Islands on a gulet, such as our small ship Cyclades Cruise, follow in the footsteps of Alexander the Great on our Macedonia tour, Explore Athens, or discover a myriad of wonders on our tours of the Peloponnese, or our Crete tours.

Explore Greece
Italy tours

Italy Tours

Tremendous cultural riches, breath-taking beauty, vibrant lifestyle and world-famous cuisine: Discover Italy! Experience a city tour of Rome, an exploration of the whole island of Sicily, a gastronomic tour of Sicily, or learn Italian while enjoying the art and cuisine of Sicily in ancient Syracuse.

Explore Italy
Croatia tours

Croatia Tours

A grandiose Adriatic Coast and countless islands; an immensely varied cultural heritage, beautiful medieval harbour towns, splendid ancient monuments, great wines and superb cuisine, mixing elements from the Mediterranean and the Balkans, West and East. Discover Croatia on one of our cruises!

Explore Croatia
Turkey tours

Turkey Tours

Experience a fascinating country, straddling two continents and home to many cultures from prehistory to present. We offer 1 and 2-week expert-led gulet cruises on the turquoise coast, food tours, family tours, walking holidays and cultural vacations exploring Istanbul, Cappadocia, Ephesus and much more.

Explore Turkey
UK tours

United Kingdom Tours

A fascinating island: prehistoric mysteries, Roman traces, a warlike medieval past, and the splendours of more recent ages, all set in a country of contrasts, from verdant rolling hills to rugged mountains. Come and see the best of Britain with Peter Sommer Travels.

Explore the UK
Ireland tours

Ireland Tours

Embedded within the beauties of the “Emerald Isle”, Neolithic tombs, Celtic forts, Early Christian monasteries, lovely villages and much more await you. Experience Ireland, its landscape, history, traditions and hospitality, on a very special tour through time.

Explore Ireland

Select a Tour

Gulet cruises

Gulet Cruise & Charter

Take a gulet cruise holiday in Croatia, Greece or Turkey. Gulet cruises offer relaxation, beautiful food and superb swimming. We’ve added expert guides, archaeological adventures, wonderful walking and culinary forays to make them truly cultural experiences!

Gulet Cruise & Charter
Family tours

Family Tours

Our family tours are designed to be relaxing and stimulating, fascinating and fun. Led by an expert guide, you’ll explore the world of the Greeks and Romans in colourful detail and have the opportunity to relax on a beautiful gulet, swim, snorkel and kayak.

Family Tours
Private charters

Private Trips/Land Tours

Take your family and friends on a fully-crewed gulet charter along the coast of Croatia, Greece or Turkey or explore some of the finest regions and classical cities in the Mediterranean on a tailor-made private land tour.

Private Tours
Exploring tours

Exploring Tours

Bespoke land tours, designed to showcase the best of a region’s or city's archaeology, culture and gastronomy, based on our experts' in-depth knowledge and experience. Profound explorations of landscapes and cityscapes, of past and present. The perfect tours to understand a place and its spirit.

Exploring Tours
Food tours

Food Tours

Gourmet delights and traditional cuisine, local ingredients and authentic recipes, fine wines and delicate specialities. Approaching a region, its history and its people through their produce and preparations – a uniquely enjoyable way to explore, offering cultural insight and culinary pleasure alike.

Food Tours
Walking tours

Walking Tours

Our walking tours are a more active kind of travel. Experience the natural beauty and human heritage of historical regions on foot. From coastal footpaths to goat tracks up in the hills and from age-old cemeteries to monumental ruined cities, these tours provide stimulation and relaxation for mind, body and soul.

Walking Tours
Extend your stay add-on tours

Extend your stay

Discover our range of add-on tours that offer you the chance to extend your travels immediately before or after one of our tours or gulet cruises. Take one of our guided cultural tours of Athens or Rome and experience the wonders of these incredible cities.

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Read our Blog

Read Our Blog

The Peter Sommer Travels Blog offers a rich array of stories, news and thoughts to do with the areas we travel and with archaeology, history and culture in general. News on recent discoveries, reading suggestions, the occasional recipe and much more, accompanied by fine images from our travels.

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Travel Videos

View Travel Videos

Watch a selection of videos about our gulet cruises. If you’ve not yet been on one of our cultural gulet trips, sit back, relax, and prepare to have your appetite whetted. We hope these travel videos give you a real sense of our gulet holidays, whether you would like to come on one of our scheduled tours or have a bespoke private charter created for you.

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Accreditations

AITO Tour Operator of the Year 2015 Gold Award AITO Tour Operator of the Year 2017 Gold Award AITO Tour Operator of the Year 2018 Silver Award AITO Tour Operator of the Year 2019 Silver Award Best Travel Company for Arts and Culture Holidays Silver British Travel Award 2022 Member of AITO The Specialist Travel Association Member of ABTA the Association of British Travel Agents Member of ASTA The American Society of Travel Advisors Member of ABTOI the Association of British Travel Organisers to Italy

Rated as Excellent on Aito Reviews with over 500 reviews