Victoria K.
1 Reviews
Awful experience from booking. Details were vague and confli…
Awful experience from booking. Details were vague and conflicting at time of booking. Email confirmation noted 72 cancellation policy, longer than any I saw for tours on the island. Also noted incorrect pickup information (listed Hilo pickup even though I booked the Kona option). 48 hrs before my tour (after cancellation window had closed), they left a voicemail to confirm my meal option and pickup time. They also noted that although I had booked the Mauna Kea Stargazing tour, we would not be going to the summit and would not even be turning onto the mountain. They had some “special” spot at 6500 ft. Seems a bit shady to keep this information until after cancellation is closed. They asked that I give the drive a 15 min window. As such, I arrived at my pickup location 15 mins ahead of my scheduled time. I sat and waited for 35 min, no tour bus. I called the number only to be told to just keep waiting and that he would be there soon. I think the 15 min window is already generous, I’m not a fan of others wasting my precious time in paradise. After waiting nearly 45 min, the bus arrived. The guide’s first comment to me was something about traffic being unusual. Except the issue causing traffic had been in place my entire stay (9 days at this point). You can’t tell me your company has not encountered this condition in the past 9 days. Had I been contacted, I would have gladly walked to meet the bus a few blocks away to completely avoid the gridlock. Instead, I was no contacted and when I reached out I was told to just hold tight. The next comment was some sort of jab about just being happy. Sir, you’ve failed to meet the agreed upon obligations. I ask that you don’t tell me to ‘just smile’. The guide then sped away to a restaurant north of town. I use the term restaurant loosely. I thought the shack was a bait shop when we walked up. The fish tacos were 2 stale tortilla with less than 2 oz fish on each and more ranch dressing than fish, served with a half dozen greasy tortilla chips. While we waited on dinner, our guide set up a solar telescope to view the sun. This was one of the few highlighted details of the tour noted at time of booking. Except it was all of 12 secs looking at a glowing orb. We lined up like kindergarteners to each peer through the telescope, no disinfectant. This would be less concerning if not for the orchestra of coughs experienced in the 10 min ride from Kona to the dinner. All the while our tour guide decided to share his opinions on a number of things- how ‘these younger generations just don’t want to work, aren’t very smart’, how he ‘loves his wife but’ she nagged him to get his hearing tested. Turns out he was essentially deaf and needed hear aids but it took the old hag to hound him to get the medical attention he needed. How dare she! Most concerning, he went into detail about how the company was fat with cash before the pandemic but that now they don’t have available funds to replace the parkas offered at the stargazing spot. That the zippers would break and they were unable to afford repair. Really makes you feel safe riding in a dated van to a ‘special’ secluded dark spot to sit in the cold for hours, doesn’t it? Also, why are we spending hours hearing about your take on the world? I paid $251 for an educational tour. There is so much more you can be sharing, informing the group instead of alienating folks. At this point I decided that I’d rather walk the 3.3 mi back to my hotel and get to bed early to allow myself a good night’s sleep than listen to Richard’s philosophies on life. I told the guide I would be walking back to town and wished him a good tour. He responded asking if I was looking for the restroom, I said no, repeated myself loudly and left. SO HAPPY with that decision. Who knows what I missed but I am confident it would not have been worth my time. I shared feedback after, no response. I booked tours w 2 other outfits during my stay, both were stellar. I strongly recommend looking into Kailani Tours- same price for twice the time with such attention to detail, incredible! – via 
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