Has anyone used "Viator" as a tour company?

[NikkiOh]

"Viator" offers a variety of tours in various European cities. The prices are quoted in $dollars, and there is an 800 phone number for more info.

 

But I haven't seen them mentioned on these boards. Has anyone used them? Any info would be appreciated.

 

Thanks!

[eh2zed]

Have used Viator in various parts of the world. Always been satisfied. Viator is not the actual tour provider however. Viator selects certain tours for each City they provide them in and contracts with the local provider. With Viator you can purchase on line and get the coupon emailed to you to redeem with the local operator.

Viator tours typically start in a city centre not at a pier. You need to get to and from the starting and ending location. Their tours might include hotel pickups but not at a pier.

We have always been pleased with their tours and particularly the price.

[harrodsfan]

We have used them all over the world. Very good. no problems..but as mentioned you do need to get the where the tour leaves from the ship.

[NikkiOh]

Viator will pick you up at the pier in Naples.

[cruisemom42]

I've used Viator a couple of times and in my experience, the tours I've gotten have been merely "okay" not great.

 

In Lisbon, we did 2 Viator tours. One of them was conducted in 3 different languages; made it hard to follow the narrative (this was not mentioned in advance). On the other one, the tour was not accurately described. I asked for and received a partial refund for this tour -- the guide left us alone in Fatima for far longer than necessary and neglected to take us to another town that was specifically mentioned in the tour description online.

 

In Rome last December I booked a walking tour through them for convenience. The tour was canceled because I was the only one to have signed up. What annoyed me, however, was the fact that neither Viator nor the actual agency bothered to send me an email OR contact me by phone (I had provided my cell number), so I wasted a good bit of a morning getting to their location, all for naught. They kept trying to substitute something that I totally did not want, rather than provide me with a refund.

 

So in short, be aware that problems can exist. Often (I've heard from others) tours are in multiple languages. Sometimes the tours are not as described. Viator seems pretty willing to make restitution, but it may involve some back and forth, and meanwhile you've not gotten the tour that you expected....

[agabbymama]

I used Viator for my Med cruise in Oct '08. I booked the Ho Ho bus in Rome at a great price and paid in advance in US dollars. I also booked a walking ghost tour and another walking tour with gondola ride in Venice.

 

I like that it was paid for in US dollars before we went. The US dollar and EUR exchange rate was terrible at the time, plus the convenience of having it all paid for before we ever left.

 

We had no problems redeeming our vouchers and the tours were good.

[aussiecruzer]

I used Viator for a tour in Dubai and was happy with them. They are basically a booking agency, and use local tour operators. You are told who the local tour operator is after you book and pay.

[jpthomas27]

Viator will pick you up at the pier in Naples.

 

You may be refering to the "private tour" offered by Viator in Naples. This is true, but I believe that this is the exception because they are providing a private driver for just you or your party.

 

Generally speaking, Viator tours are not private, but small groups, which is why they have meeting places that are centralized.

[Bruin Steve]

We used Viator in Madrid in 2005 when we were there for a "pre-cruise" stay before flying up to London to catch the Constellation out of Dover...

 

We did two tours with them...one to Toledo, the other to Segovia and Avila...both "full day" group tours...For each, we had a group of maybe 12-18 people (Not ours, put together by Viator from whoever had signed up for that day)...The guides, we thought, were fairly good and spoke excellent English, lunch was included...and they picked us up--BUT DID NOT DROP US OFF--at our hotel...We were left at the end of each tour at their terminal in central Madrid...Our hotel, the Emperatriz, was about 1.5 miles away, up near the US Embassy...

 

The prices were very reasonable and we thought it a good value for the money...

[cheru]

"Viator" offers a variety of tours in various European cities. The prices are quoted in $dollars, and there is an 800 phone number for more info.

 

But I haven't seen them mentioned on these boards. Has anyone used them? Any info would be appreciated.

 

Thanks!

We used Viator in Venice for their " Venice Gondola Ride and Serenade" last November. The price was 1/3 of the ship's tour. We had to get to the site by ourselves but it was no problem. Our gondola ride was wonderful and the two musicians were in our gondola. It was amazing! We would recommend Viator and especially that tour to everyone. The bonus was paying in US$ and paying before we left home. The "serenade" was the best part of our ride and a gondola ride would not be the same without the music! We went at 3:30 PM as it was November and the sun was beginning to set as we were finishing. In the summer they also have evening rides as well as afternoon. Don't worry about booking with Viator!!

[Engineer_Lady]

Has anyone used Viatour for a full-day drive down the Amalfi coast? If so, how'd you like them? They offer a tour that includes only a driver (with minimal English skills), or a guide (for significantly more money).

 

Here's a link: http://www.viator.com/tours/Naples/Private-Tour-Sorrento-Positano-Amalfi-and-Ravello-Day-Trip-from-Naples/d508-2958AMAPV

[cruisemom42]

Viator is not a tour company themselves, they just consolidate a lot of local tours in one place to make it easier to find and book them. For any tour that's a considerable amount of money, I'd think you would be better off booking directly with the tour company because you can ask for references, etc. You may also have more recourse if something goes wrong.....although to be fair I've had issues with Viator-booked tours a couple of times and they were both resolved (one easily, the second not so easily.....)

[ljamesw]

We used Viator while in Rome pre-cruise in 2008. Our paperwork said to call a local # 24 hrs ahead to confirm the time of hotel pickup. When called from our connection in Chicago, was told there was no pickup and had to get to their location. When I called Viator they knew nothing and refused to refund our money. The whole reason for booking with them was to save time/money. A taxi ride would be approx 40E RT. Since it was impossible to get a new tour, we went. Found out they were picking up people from certain hotels but since we were the only two, decided not to waste the fuel. The guide was okay but complained it was "hot" all day. It was only in the high 80's (we had been having over 100 for a few weeks). The dropped us off by the Vatican (since we would not be returned to their area). When I complained about all of this in an e-mail and tried to post it on their website, I was blocked - they will only allow good comments. They finally offered a 10% discount for our "trouble". I would not use them again. Contact your local hotel and ask them who they use. You will probably get a better deal and a direct hotel pickup.

[luv2shoppe]

I have used Viator on every European cruise I have taken. Their prices are reasonable and they are reliable. I have never experienced any problems with any of their operators.

 

I used them in London last Fall, then booked tours in Spain and Italy as well. I am going to use them again when I return to Spain in April.