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Kensington Tours vs Jacada Travel: which is better for a private tour?

By Richard Jasinski·Updated 4 November 2026

Kensington Tours sells privately guided trips tailored to each traveller, with a private local guide chosen with a Destination Expert. Jacada Travel plans bespoke, private journeys to more than seventy countries across six continents, with a concierge based in the region visited.

Kensington Tours vs Jacada Travel: which is better for a private tour?

Kensington Tours suits travellers who want a privately guided trip with a published from-price, such as 10 days in Kyushu from US$13,735 per person; Jacada Travel suits travellers who want a bespoke private journey to any of more than seventy countries, looked after by a concierge in the region.

Lake Tekapo in the Mackenzie Basin, New Zealand
Lake Tekapo in the Mackenzie Basin, New Zealand. Photo: Krzysztof Golik, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

What does each company sell?

What each company's own website says, read 3 November 2026.

  • Kensington Tours: Sells privately guided trips tailored to each traveller's needs. Source
  • Jacada Travel: Plans bespoke, private journeys to more than seventy countries across six continents. Source

How private are the tours?

What each company's own website says, read 3 November 2026.

  • Kensington Tours: Some activities inside its private trips are shared, for example a guided walk on Waiheke Island in New Zealand in a small group of no more than 8 participants. Source
  • Jacada Travel: Its journeys are bespoke and private; its pages describe no small-group departures to join. Source

Who leads or plans the trips?

What each company's own website says, read 3 November 2026.

  • Kensington Tours: Each traveller has a private English-speaking local guide, chosen with their Destination Expert to suit their interests and needs. Source
  • Jacada Travel: Its trips rely on a network of local partners and specialist guides who act as storytellers and cultural ambassadors. Source

Who looks after you during the trip?

What each company's own website says, read 3 November 2026.

  • Kensington Tours: Its Madrid to Valencia trip comes with 24/7 in-destination support from its local office. Source
  • Jacada Travel: A Jacada concierge based in the region being visited takes care of the details during the trip. Source

What do they cost?

What each company's own website says, read 3 November 2026.

  • Kensington Tours: Its Kyushu Active Adventure and Hot Springs trip in Japan runs 10 days from US$13,735, priced per person in US dollars on a double occupancy basis, about US$1,374 per person per day; it is a custom-designed trip and prices can change. Source
  • Jacada Travel: Its website, read 3 November 2026, does not say.

What is included?

What each company's own website says, read 3 November 2026.

  • Kensington Tours: On its New Zealand Signature trip, two internal flights, Rotorua to Christchurch and Christchurch to Queenstown, are not included in the price and must be bought separately. Source
  • Jacada Travel: Prices include a cost for fuel and local taxes, estimated at booking confirmation. Source

What are the deposit and cancellation terms?

What each company's own website says, read 3 November 2026.

  • Kensington Tours: A deposit of 30% of the total price of the whole travel programme is due at booking, subject to its separate cruise and villa terms. For trips without a cruise or villa, every cancellation carries a $350 per person administrative fee: at 90 days or more before departure the rest is refunded, at 60 to 89 days the 30% deposit is lost, at 30 to 59 days 50% of the price is lost and at 29 days or less 100%, plus supplier fees. Source
  • Jacada Travel: When booking more than 90 days ahead, a deposit is due at booking confirmation with the balance 90 days before departure. Cancelling more than 91 days out costs the deposit only, 61 to 90 days 50% of the quoted price and 60 days or less 100%; the page leaves day 91 unspecified. Source

How is my money protected?

What each company's own website says, read 3 November 2026.

  • Kensington Tours: Its website, read 3 November 2026, does not say.
  • Jacada Travel: Its website names no ATOL, ABTA or bonding scheme. Jacada does not sell package travel or linked travel arrangements, so its bookings are not covered by the European Package Directive 2015/2302 or the UK Package Travel Regulations 2018. Payments are collected by itrvl, an independent payment processor, which is not liable for loss from a supplier's insolvency or a failed distribution of funds. Source

What do reviewers say?

Each platform's figure for each company, never added together.

  • Kensington Tours: Google: 3.9 out of 5 from 46 reviews. Read 3 November 2026; each platform's figure stands on its own.
  • Jacada Travel: Google: 4.4 out of 5 from 55 reviews; Trustpilot: 4.9 out of 5 from 2,621 reviews, newest 2 November 2026. Read 3 November 2026; each platform's figure stands on its own.

Kensington Tours vs Jacada Travel: the questions people ask

Are Kensington Tours and Jacada trips private?

Kensington gives each traveller a private English-speaking local guide, though some activities are shared, for example a Waiheke Island walk in a group of no more than 8 participants. Jacada's journeys are bespoke and private, with no small-group departures described.

Where does Jacada Travel go?

Jacada plans bespoke, private journeys to more than seventy countries across six continents.

How much does a Kensington Tours trip cost?

Its Kyushu Active Adventure and Hot Springs trip runs 10 days from US$13,735 per person, double occupancy, about US$1,374 per person per day.

Who guides Jacada trips?

A network of local partners and specialist guides who act as storytellers and cultural ambassadors.

Who helps during a Jacada trip?

A Jacada concierge based in the region being visited takes care of the details.

What deposit does Kensington Tours ask for?

30% of the total price at booking, with a $350 per person administrative fee on every cancellation.

What does it cost to cancel with Jacada?

More than 91 days out, the deposit only; 61 to 90 days, 50% of the quoted price; 60 days or less, 100%. The page leaves day 91 unspecified.

Is my money protected with Jacada?

Its website names no ATOL, ABTA or bonding scheme. It does not sell package travel, so bookings are not covered by the UK Package Travel Regulations 2018 or the European Package Directive 2015/2302. Payments go through itrvl, an independent payment processor that is not liable for loss from a supplier's insolvency.

Where can I check these facts myself?

Every line on this page links the page of the company's own website it was read from, read 3 November 2026.

Is any company on this page paying to be here?

No. No company on this page is a partner of Uncompromised Travel; none paid to be on it.

Built to answer the question in the main heading. What is shown: what each company published on its own website, read on 3 November 2026, with links to the pages read, with its Google and Trustpilot figures where the listing carries the company's own name, from the Uncompromised Travel luxury tour operators table. Cards are in alphabetical order. Photos show the places named in their captions, not any company's trips. No company on this page is a partner of Uncompromised Travel. How this site earns · How we work.

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