Has anyone used Viator for tours?

We are cruisng the Panama Canal on the Norwegian Star Feb 2018. One of our ports is Puerto Quetzal in Guatemala. We are in port for 10 hours,. Most of the ship's excursions are to Antigua. The only excursion we are interested in is the Volcano Hike however it has an activity rating of 3. Given the last time we hiked, I developed a severe plantar faciitis in my foot that took months to resolve, I am not sure I want to climb over 8000 feet! We found some private tour companies and were interested in going on the Hot Springs Tour through a company called Viator. They are the booking company who schedules the tour through a local tour company. The Hot Springs tour is through a company called Gray Line. They guarantee you will be returned to port in time for your sailing. Has anyone used Viator or Gray Line for a tour? And if you have gone to the Hot Springs in Guatemala, were they worth the visit?

Yes I have used Viator.

The key is to read up about the actual tour company which you can on Trip Advisor and by doing Google searches.

You may also want to post on the Ports Of Call Board.

Keith

I have, but not while on a cruise. I'd have no problem using them again. Whether they'd get you back to the ship on time, I can't help you with that.

I have used them for multiple trips and have had good and bad experiences.

The bad: booked a jet boat ride, upgraded to wet deck seats, checked all conditions as we had children. Got there and was told no can't have those seats. The actual company's rules were stricter, Viator were broader. Company wouldn't refund the difference, so had to go through Viator. Did get the refund though.

The good: we did a b2b and cruise 2 had to change itinerary and found out on changeover day. we had 2 tours booked at different ports. Emailed Viator straight away and tours cancelled and refunded before the week cruise ended. Another tour in Cozumel (cruise 1of b2b) didn't turn up. Emailed the same time as the other one. As they had to verify this one it took just over a week.

We had about 4 others that worked out great!

From what I could see Gray Line might be a bus company as every tour that used a bus was from Gray Line.

Would I use them again? Unsure, I would use the site to see what is available and see if I can book directly with the company.

Used them once in Italy it was fine .The funny thing is they send me big thick mag. at least 5 or 6 times a year with all there tours all over the world.

I wouldn't use Viator as I prefer to deal direct with whichever company is actually operating the tour.

In my opinion it's better to book directly with a company than through a middle man. I have had some "not great" experiences with Viator, including having them cancel one tour on me due to "lack of participation" but they didn't bother to email or try to contact me until i showed up at the meeting place.

Other times they fail to tell you that the tour you book will be conducted in multiple languages -- had that happen twice in two different countries. It's annoying because it takes longer to listen to three languages at each point of interest and also the tour guests who were not English speaking were quite rude about speaking to each other during the guide's English remarks making it difficult to understand them.

We used them once and the excursion was one of the best we have taken. Having said that, it was a private excursion rather than a group one.

I also had a tour booked through Viator and they cancelled it without my knowledge. We waited for hours at the meeting place watching bus loads of tours leave and it was only after the kindness of another tour contractor that she contacted the tour operator and told us that it had been cancelled. It made for a very disappointing stop.

When I returned home I discovered that Viator had sent me an email 2 days before the tour advising me that it had been cancelled. I was on a cruise ship then and had no way of receiving that email.

The tour costs were refunded. I won't use them ever again as we basically lost the port day.

Just used Viator, last August, for two private tours in Bora Bora. Both tours were excellent and everything was as promised. However, as others have mentioned, if you can find out which tour company you will actually be going with, I'd probably book directly with that company instead of using Viator as a go between.

Viator is a quality reseller of tours. There can be problems using a reseller (see above). If a tour gets canceled it can be quite an effort to get money back from them as they have to go to the provider and there really isn't much incentive for Viator to do so.

Since you seem to know who the provider is, why not go directly with them? Gray Line is a huge, international tour company

Yes I have used Viator.

 

The key is to read up about the actual tour company which you can on Trip Advisor and by doing Google searches.

 

You may also want to post on the Ports Of Call Board.

 

Keith

Thank you Keith. I have been researching Gray Line. Didn't find much but what I did read was positive.

Thank you all for your responses. I have already been looking into Gray Line. We may just play it safe and go to the beach. There is a taxi stand right at the terminal that only goes to and from the beach and is very reasonable from what I have been reading. Can't go wrong with a beach day!

Outstanding company--really did a great job was not disappointed.

We used them while on a cruise and had a great time. It was to scuba and helicopter ride back to port. The helicopter came out, but ended up having mechanical issues. We rode the boat back and had an amazing time, so we didn't miss the helicopter too much. They had us back in plenty of time to make it back to our cruise and Viator easily refunded the portion for the helicopter. I'm about to book another one through them for our December cruise. I just make sure I read all of the restrictions as well as the reviews. If there aren't any reviews I'm not willing to the be first guinea pig.

Never used them on a cruise, but used a Viator guide in Lithuania this summer and was very pleased with him.

Viator is just a tour booking agency. They do not actually do any tours. Also, if you have any questions re a tour, they generally do not have any answers. use them to try to find a tour I am interested in and then track down the company that is actually doing the tour. That way the tour company does not have to split the money with Viator.

DON

Viator is just a tour booking agency. They do not actually do any tours. Also, if you have any questions re a tour, they generally do not have any answers. use them to try to find a tour I am interested in and then track down the company that is actually doing the tour. That way the tour company does not have to split the money with Viator.

 

DON

I’ve used them 3 times. San Juan PR, great foodie tour. Easter Island, I would rather have gone direct to a smaller outfit, personal guide. But for a 16 people in a 16 person bus, it was ok. Venice, an after hours tour of San Marco Basilica, ok. As with Easter Island, Viator was more able than I would have been.

However, every other Venice offering they had could have been done DIY or through a guide service for 1/3 the price. In sum, they are my fallback if I really want something and can’t figure a direct contact. But not my first choice.