talentscout16

March 16, 2018

We just returned from our HAL Volendam cruise with a stop in Nha Trang. Mr. Pham was very helpful pre cruise in booking my group

we arrived, exited the port and walked to the assigned meeting point where we met our guide Mr Hien. we were asked to come off the ship as a group but one couple didn't meet us so we wasted 30 minutes waiting for them. we got to the van and they were seated waiting for us

This tour was one of the best tours as we stopped to see local people in their own environment.

The itinerary was wonderful. Our guide Mr Hien was great - he did everything he could to make our day great. the boat ride, lunch, home visits, etc were all great. only one place was closed in our off port time - 12pm arrival.

Book with Dung Pham for a great tour experience.

December 31, 2017

I was ready to book with Semarang Tour to Borobudur - has anybody used them or can you recommend someone else

I cant find ANY feedback on this company

thanks

June 30, 2017

I am the OP and it is not a group rate but a MA resident rate.

I will stay away from these vouchers in the future.

They used to be SO much better

I got a refund of my $100

I also paid the $900 deposit

for some reason Celebrity just would not honor it

June 30, 2017

Yes this is how it is SUPPOSED to work.

you pay $100 on board and either book a cruise then or apply it to a future cruise you book.

It didn't work this time.

I booked a MA resident rate with NO amenities.

It was very inexpensive.

I then tried to apply my $100 voucher to get the 2 promised amenities and CELEBRITY said NO.

Either take the resident rate and no amenities

OR

take the much higher rate with the amenities

This is the FIRST time I experienced this.

I took the lower resident rate while my TA fought with everyone at Celebrity.

By the time he exhausted everyone he knew, the cruise rate with the amenities had increased exponentially - a few weeks max.

I called Resolutions and Captains Club and my TA continued to try.

I was ready to cancel when CC finally came through with more OBC, and a higher rate.

I was ok with this but NEVER got to use the voucher

Hence I said WHY BOTHER buying it on board if it cant be used EVERY TIME for the best rate available

June 27, 2017

Celebrity came through today and adjusted my rate and amenities.

thank you Celebrity:)

June 26, 2017

Why buy a Celebrity voucher for your next cruise on board your current sailing? They tell you that you get OBC and amenities for just $100, the cost of the deposit on your next sailing.

What they DONT TELL YOU is that the cruise you book in the future will cost you HUNDREDS of dollars more than the price you should be paying. SO IN EFFECT, you are putting a deposit down NOW to pay MORE later for ...your cruise.

Why not just pay less later when you are ready to book?

This just happened to me on the Celebrity Constellation.

I got a rate from my travel agent and asked to use my voucher that I purchased for $100.

He told me that if I used the voucher the rate would be substantially higher. I held a reservation at the lower rate while he called everyone at Celebrity to try to get the lower rate using my voucher.

By the time my travel agent exhausted every he could call at Celebrity, what happened?

The rate went up more than $400.

Now the pricing is ridiculously more and the GO BETTER, GO BEST, GO BIG (how confusing is this to the consumer) rates are more.

I called Resolutions at Celebrity myself several times and spoke to Lacey. She told me she couldn't help me with rates but could help my travel agent.

He was offered a rate $270 MORE than he was offered without Resolutions last night.

So there is no rhyme or reason to cruise pricing.

I am now looking at other cruises on the same dates as Celebrity seems to not care about its customers.

Don't get caught up in buying these vouchers on a cruise for $100.

It will cost you more in the long run.

I learned the hard way.:(

May 30, 2017

Better late....

This was a great cruise

Ports were great

Tours were great

Food was great

The only thing that wasn't so great was the rep assigned to us.

Not super helpful. Not available a lot. Came by name gently with daily bulletin.

Wifi not so great

We were seated in dining room by nationality/language

8 Americans. Awesome table. Made new friends and spent time in port together

I'd do it again

May 30, 2017

hi we are booked on this sold out sailing. We have friends who want to join us. Any ideas on how to find out about cancellations without calling every day?:)

October 15, 2016

just back from a cruise on the Little Prince.

We were picked up promptly at the airport and taken to our Bucharest hotel.

Very nice centrally located accommodations.

We met our guide the following morning, Sylvia, an awesome guide.

We went to Brasov and spent 2 nights in Transylvania - central and nice hotel.

Sightseeing was great.

Drove back to the ship and boarded.

First impression of our cabin - no way will we survive the cruise.

A/C not working and the room smelled moldy.

We were given a fan and after more complaining were downgraded to a cabin next to the laundry/engine room. It had A/C so we were happy.

Guides and siteseeing was great.

Dining room food was good - handled my allergy well.

Staff was great too.

There was a singer/pianist in the bar and one outside entertainment one evening.

Lots of additional tours you can pay for.

Wifi was VERY sporadic. free but hard to access.

Dock locations not very central in some ports like Vienna.

Sometimes had to walk through 1 or 2 boats to get to shore.

Not sure I would sail on this ship again but booked a Viking for my next river cruise.

no pool. 2 exercise bikes on upper deck. never saw them used. chaise to sit out on. smokers on upper deck.

gratuity pool was odd. you put them in 2nd day before departure and they were given to the Captain. did staff get any?

gratuities were paid to Captain by nationality.

we had Finns, AMericans and Danish.

June 8, 2016

My friends and I are sailing on the little prince September 2016. Can't wait

April 5, 2016

I am very impressed Tony.

The history is so helpful too.

3rd time in Venice and you know so much more than me.

I cant wait.

Talent

April 3, 2016

Tony

so glad you were able to get to the BOS without a guide as that is the first thing I want to do in the DP. I will have tickets for early entry, right after 7am Mass next door, but prefer not to use a guide.

Talent

I cant wait

April 3, 2016

Great info Tony. Did you take a tour? We just want to go at our own pace and see Doges and Bos without a guide. Thanks god sharing. talent

April 1, 2016

Great news.

I will reserve entrance tickets now and try to cross the bridge on my own.

THanks so much

Talent

April 1, 2016

so as long as I purchase a Doges Palace ticket, I can get onto the Bridge of Sighs on my own without a guided TOUR. I know I must get into Doges Palace first but wanted to be sure I don't need a tour for the Bridge. Thanks so much

April 1, 2016

I will be in Venice in May for my 3rd time I want to go onto the Bridge of Sighs but prefer NOT to have to buy a ticket for the secret itinerary tour or any other tour.

Does anyone know if this is possible to do on your own?

Grazie

Talent

March 29, 2016

I read on the tickitaly site that you can see Doges Palace AFTER but never saw anything about before. What did you experience in 2014? Thanks. heading there in May

Talent

March 9, 2016

we used them in France and had an awesome day with a GREAT driver/guide in a minivan. Highly recommend and will use them again for sure

Talent

January 20, 2016

booked this for September 2016 and will post an update when I return

November 5, 2015

Can someone share their experience on the ship. I am looking at a 10 day cruise from Romania to Vienna with a 3 day Transylvania option in Seotember 2026.

Thanks

January 12, 2015

hi did you end up using them and how were they? Thanks for help with Label West/ Talent

April 21, 2014

We booked Ben Jebara M.Tahar after reading about him on CC. I emailed him 11 months before our arrival and confirmed a private tour in a micro bus which fits from 9 to 12 seats. Ben was prompt to reply and professional via email. We were SO Excited to tour with Ben in Tunisia.

A few months out I noticed someone else on CC mentioned they were booking Ben for the same day. I IMMEDIATELY emailed him to ask if he was OUR private guide or this other groups'. He assured me he was OUR private guide and that he was hiring a different guide for the other group (travel agents).

We arrived in port and after a long walk to where his driver was waiting (he didnt speak English and Ben was not there) - we were 5 older women and were not sure IF we should get in the van (no micro bus) with this strange man or not. We finally did after he called Ben on a cell phone and Ben assured us it was safe. The van was not 12 seats as promised. It was a regular van and smelled of smoke. It was older and not at all what we expected for $400 US. Another comment about safety from Ben.

** It's a pity that nobody in your van felt comfortable,I can understand your fear since you're in a different country.But I know that you where in good hands and safe beyond the lack of communication with the driver.

We drove away from the ship and stopped in town to pick Ben up. He joined us in our van with water for everyone - he said it was the gift of life and we thought all was going to be great.

We arrived in Carthage and that is where we realized Ben was handling two groups - the other group was much younger and could move at a quicker pace than us (the reason why we booked a private guide and told him in advance of our physical limitations). There was a second guide and they took turns telling us about what we were seeing in Carthage. Ben was very knowlegeable but knowledge doesnt make up for not getting the tour I reserved a year before. Why didnt we just do our own trip? Probably Ben was hoping for business from the travel agents in the other group.

At some point they lost my group and the two guides went ahead with the travel agent group. We did find them before we went into a museum there.

When we left Carthage for the American War Cemetary, Ben was NOT in our vehicle and never came back in our vehicle for the entire duration of our PRIVATE TOUR. I pulled him aside and said we felt left out with no guide in a van with a driver who didnt speak English. Nothing changed.

The American War Cemetary was closed and we looked through a fence and saw nothing. Why didnt Ben know this was closed? Good question.

We stopped to see the ancient aqueduct and a mosque from a distance and went to Sidi Bou Saïd. one of my friends wanted to sit down so Ben took her to the coffee shop we would meet at after we walked around town on our own. We walked around and then returned to the coffee shop for a tea Ben bought us - very tasty. Here the two groups were mixed and there was only the one guide - Ben.

We stopped at a cemetary for babies and Ben explained the history to us all - this was not part of our tour but probably part of the other groups tour. It was interesting.

Next we headed to the medina. En route I noticed we passed Gammarth Beach (where we were promised a camel ride but with Ben in the other van we had nobody to tell). We were now doing the other groups itinerary and NOT OURS that we booked a year prior. The van dropped us off a few blocks away and Ben kept saying we are almost there as we walked to the medina. He knew in advance one in my group couldnt make the walk but didnt think to have the van drop her at the door. By the time she got there she had to sit in a coffee shop.

Ben led 3 of us into the medina and kept telling us not to shop now but on the way out. At some point we looked around and Ben was gone. Where? He went to look for his other group and never told us he was leaving us. We found out way out and waited more than an hour for him to show up.

This is what he wrote me about this incident

** I usually give my clients a free time for shopping,I give them the directions and show them the meeting time

I also tell them that I'll be around if needed.

He told us to walk back to where we were dropped off and I asked him to have the van pick us up - everyone was exhausted from standing around for an hour. He complied. here is his comment.

** I was taking in consideration that you where much older and slower than the other party,so I was walking in front of you then stop and wait for you,I do recognize the walking challenges,it's not my first experience with persons who have a walking problem especially they can't figure out the distance. If you where in a regular tour,the bus will remain at the parking and never come to pick you up as I did when I noticed that one of the ladies was tired.

I asked about the 2 synagogues he promised to show us and the camel ride. He told the driver to take us to a synagogue and then to the beach for the camel ride. He never came with us and we weren't sure if we would make it back to the ship on time. We stopped at the synagogue and then it started to rain when we found the camel location. We rode the camels in the rain on the beach.

One of my friends legs came too close to a wood pole and she was bleeding the entire camel ride. She had to visit the infirmary on the ship when we got back. Did Ben know this? No. He was nowhere to be found. I'm sure he was with his other group.

I emailed him about my disappointment when I got home. he replied that the camel ride was NOT included even though his email to me said

Yes you'll have the opportunity to experience a camel ride in the resort of Gammarth

Each of his comments to my questions was vague and non committal. He may have been a good guide 25-30 years ago. I personally could NEVER recommend Ben as a private guide. he just doesnt understand people.

Good morning dear Deb,

Thank you for your e-mail,my apology for the slight delay.

Yes your small party of 5 persons is still confirmed for the day tour planned for Sunday,Marsh the 9th 2014.

Actually I had a request from another group of 6 persons,also from 2 persons ( Travel Agents ).boarding the N.C.L Jade.

I informed both of them that I have already a confirmed booking of 5 persons ( your party ) and mentionned to them that as you have among the group a old person with some walking difficulties and you wish to be on your own.

So the alternative option if the wish to confirm the day tour is that my colleague Radhi who's a professional Tour Guide with over 35 years of experience will assist me and I'll allocate 2 different approriate vehicles.

Let's keep in touch,I will keep you up dated if the obove persons ( the 6 persons & the 2 travel Agents ) will confirm.

Looking forward to hearing from you,I wish you a nice day.

Ben

I can not recommend Ben and he was one of the two worst guides we had in our almost 28 days in Europe

April 21, 2014