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Kim K.
2024.04.08
Verified
My husband and I did a two-week trip from Mexico City to the Yucatan with Vibe Adventures. This trip was executed very poorly. First, it took 2 weeks for the company to confirm my reservation. I was on the verge of asking for a refund of my deposit when they finally responded to my multiple inquiries about whether my trip was confirmed. For the trip itself, we had only 1 person who served as both the guide and the driver. He did not seem like an actual guide, as he only seemed to have information we could read on the signs ourselves, and also told us many places where people had died. Also, he was not a safe driver - went the wrong way down a one-way street, drove over 90 mph (not kph), and almost hit other cars and pedestrians. The car that we rode all over Mexico in was much too small for the group. We had 6 people and all of our luggage crammed into a small SUV. Some suitcases were in the roof rack, but backpacks, purses, jackets, etc were all on the seats and around our feet. The air conditioning did not reach the back, either, so people in the front were freezing and in the back were sweltering. Most of the hotels we stayed at were of quite poor quality. Also, the itinerary the company sent us linked to better hotels in at least 2 situations, showing that they had downgraded their initial plan. I seriously wonder where all of our money went, as the hotels, site admission costs, gas, and salary for 1 guide do not even come close to what we paid. I enjoyed the sites we saw, but definitely would NOT recommend this company.
Dear Kim,
Thank you for your valuable feedback, and we apologize for not meeting your expectations. Rest assured, we take your feedback seriously and will use it to improve our services in the future. Allow us to address some of the points you raised.
As indicated in the tour description and communicated in our email, "We need 3+ participants to confirm the group tour". Your booking for 2 people was the first, hence the automatic 'pending order' email. Once we received another booking (within 2 weeks), we sent you an email confirming your booking as we had met the minimum number of participants.
Regarding the vehicle, our tour descriptions specify that "the type of vehicle depends on the group size and may include a car, a 7-seater, or a minivan". In your case (5 participants plus the tour leader), we provided a 7-seater vehicle with ample space for luggage, securely stored in the roof box while allowing passengers to keep their personal items, such as smaller backpacks with water and jackets, inside the car for immediate use. Each passenger had a dedicated seat, and the vehicle had an AC system for all rows. We will make sure to check the AC before each departure.
As per booking terms that appeared during the booking, this tour does not involve a 'guide' but a 'tour leader' whose role is logistical (which still involves providing live commentary whenever possible) and not that of the typical guide: "The Company selects experienced tour leaders who give participants maximum information on visited places and destinations in general [...]. However, tour leaders do not have to conduct excursions around visited settlements or at individual monuments if not otherwise specified in the Tour description." We will further specify it in the tour description to provide travelers with the correct expectations and ensure the tour leader is more informed about each place on the itinerary.
Regarding driving, as per the tour leader, he took the wrong street once, which did not have a clear road signal (typical for smaller towns in Mexico). However, he did his best to correct his mistake immediately, safely corrected the route, and took the correct street.
As was communicated during our call and stated in the tour description, "All accommodations are centrally located, tourist-class, locally-owned properties with private facilities in each room," where "tourist-class" means 3* or similar, which together with other elements of this description was met throughout the tour. Also, because we usually stay in smaller, locally owned properties, the list of accommodations for each departure can vary based on the actual availability in a particular hotel, which was the case in this departure. We will further
The price of the tour paid by customers is used to pay all explicit (visible to the customer, like accommodation, transportation costs with gas and tolls, the salary of the tour leader with his accommodations and meals, etc.) but also implicit costs (not always visible to a customer but those that take a significant cut as well: transactions costs, commissions to agencies, salaries of the office team - reservations, marketing, etc.).
Thank you for bringing these matters to our attention, and we hope to have the opportunity to serve you better in the future.
Best regards,
Vibe Adventures Team