Anyone using Ramses in the next few months?

[gmadvm]

We had a two day tour with Ramses this past December. As part of our itinerary, we were taken to a perfume shop. Our guide told us how he was best friends with the shop owner and we were going to be well taken care of. We listened to the demonstration spiel and ended up purchasing some perfumes.

 

We were concerned about getting them home, but were promised that they are expertly packaged up. Part of the demo included dropping a lit match in a bottle to show that it is not flammable, and dropping a bottle on the floor to show that they will not break. The perfumes come in glass bottles. For travel purchases, they have a rubber stopper. The whole bottle and rubber stopper is wrapped in packing tape. Glass stoppers are included separately to be used when you get home and unwrap the bottle. Then the bottles are packaged in a box.

 

Well, we got home and discovered 1 bottle had exploded in my luggage, and we did not have any of the glass stoppers that were supposed to come with the bottles. I immediately wrote to our guide to tell him what happened. He wrote back that the shop owner was so apologetic that the bottle had broken, and that they had forgotten our stoppers. He was putting together a replacement package to send immediately. The shop owner put together the package and gave it to our guide to send to us.

 

Now 4 months later, I am still trying to get this package from Ramses. Ramses maintains that the Egyptian postal service won't send flammable items. Even though the contents are not flammable. Fine, then just send the stoppers. I have been told that it will cost $120 to send the stoppers, and Ramses is not willing to do this.

 

The options he gave to me are to:

1. go back to Egypt and pick them up myself.

2. send a friend to Egypt to get them.

3. Ramses will give them to one of their tour members and I can pick it up when they return to the US.

4. Take up the fight with the perfume shop owner myself.

 

I have no idea how a package that weighs probably less than a pound is going to cost $120, but that is what they are telling me. I think Ramses should step up to the plate and take some responsibility for the shop that he endorsed and brought us to. I imagine they will fit in one of those $5 USPS boxes once they get to the US. Is anyone going to be using Ramses that would be willing to carry them to the US and then mail them to me in NH when you get home?

 

On another note, whether you are using Ramses or another tour guide, be very careful about the shops you are taken to. I knew that the guides would bring us to some shops, and that they probably get a kickback for doing so, and that is why I trusted the shop. I figured they used them enough that they would be trustworthy. If you buy anything, watch them package it up to make sure you get what you paid for. We went to this shop on our first day, and we weren't about to unwrap everything in the hotel to make sure it was what we ordered. The boxes were all taped up so we could just pack them and bring them home. In hindsight, I wish we had watched them wrap it all up to make sure it was complete, but we didn't know Oh, and the bottles can break. :)

 

thanks in advance.

gerri

[ElisaS]

Hi Gerri,

 

I am going to Egypt in November, if you like I can pick those up for you.

 

My e-mail address is: espada@ndarchitects.com

 

Elisa

[chrispb]

The places the tours take you to always give cash back to the guides. It's a racket. Just tell the guides no factory shops and do shopping yourself- same stuff as the factories sell but usually cheaper, especially if you have good haggling skills.