Shahanaz /SIN (GRPS) review by Sandeep
Will Recommend to Others
Just completed a 4 member family trip from Bangalore to Central Europe covering 9 countries and back via TripFactory (which had further coordination with ORN in Europe). The overall trip was good and all 4 of us enjoyed every bit of it. Let me start with what went really good.. first and foremost was that it was a really wise decision to go with a group tour since it was first time for most of us and there was too much to cover in 12 days. Managing the logistics ourselves would have been very challenging. It was a luxury to get Indian meals everyday on time. Changing hotels, finding transport and moving across multiple countries, getting right guidance about tiny things like which shop to buy things from, right spot to get a better photo shoot, where to get free washrooms (!) etc could be extremely difficult if we plan the trip on our own. The itinerary was very well planned as it covered almost every important must see attraction across the countries. The mode of transport across countries and cities was meticulously arranged to balance the cost and comfort appropriately. All sought after activities like river cruise in Paris and Amsterdam, boat ride in Rhine falls, cable car and cogwheel train in Zurich, Gondola ride in Venice were well planned. Additionally, we also got a experience of Tram ride after Ad-Hoc group decision.. the intercity bus journeys were very comfortable taking a break every 2 hours.. so never felt a fatigue. Hats off to the tour manager Mr Rohan Apke who knew exactly what people were expecting. Another good thing was that I was able to get my itinerary slightly customised and the related expenses were accordingly adjusted. Tour manager was kind enough to coordinate correctly so that our customised trip gets merged with main group at the end of the day.
Now about what really didn’t go well and could have been easily avoided - Most importantly the communication from local representative. The person must proactively provide detailed information on time. Remember not everyone is aware of the details and customs of specific country beforehand. Also, being part of tourism and hospitality business, it is utmost important for the representatives to always pickup the phone call and respond to queries immediately. It creates a lot of anxiety when there’s no clarity of the plan or when things change at the last moment. In my case, there were multiple instances where there was a clear lack of communication which resulted in chaotic situations. First, the visa appointments were not taken on time even after there was clear instructions provided. There was a great confusion on visa documentation at the VFS collection centre which resulted in wasting full day instead of what could have been just couple of hours. I feel TripFactory must work towards building their rapport with Vfs center so that travellers get a smooth experience. Next, I kept requesting for the written confirmation on my customised itinerary which I never received even until the trip started. Though there was verbal confirmation but I had other linked activities which I could not complete because of lack of this written confirmation. Although, it worked out well after the trip started except for one or two things which were not entertained. And finally, the level of anxiety reached the peak when I got a call a day before travel date requesting to push the travel dates by 3-4 days.. this is the last thing anyone would expect especially if you are travelling with a family which requires a lot of coordination and planning which can’t be deferred until last day.
So barring these few critical glitches, the trip was wonderful.. but TripFactory must definitely work towards coming over such issues so that travellers get a smooth experience. I am still recommending TripFactory because my overall experience by end of the trip was very satisfactory.
Now about what really didn’t go well and could have been easily avoided - Most importantly the communication from local representative. The person must proactively provide detailed information on time. Remember not everyone is aware of the details and customs of specific country beforehand. Also, being part of tourism and hospitality business, it is utmost important for the representatives to always pickup the phone call and respond to queries immediately. It creates a lot of anxiety when there’s no clarity of the plan or when things change at the last moment. In my case, there were multiple instances where there was a clear lack of communication which resulted in chaotic situations. First, the visa appointments were not taken on time even after there was clear instructions provided. There was a great confusion on visa documentation at the VFS collection centre which resulted in wasting full day instead of what could have been just couple of hours. I feel TripFactory must work towards building their rapport with Vfs center so that travellers get a smooth experience. Next, I kept requesting for the written confirmation on my customised itinerary which I never received even until the trip started. Though there was verbal confirmation but I had other linked activities which I could not complete because of lack of this written confirmation. Although, it worked out well after the trip started except for one or two things which were not entertained. And finally, the level of anxiety reached the peak when I got a call a day before travel date requesting to push the travel dates by 3-4 days.. this is the last thing anyone would expect especially if you are travelling with a family which requires a lot of coordination and planning which can’t be deferred until last day.
So barring these few critical glitches, the trip was wonderful.. but TripFactory must definitely work towards coming over such issues so that travellers get a smooth experience. I am still recommending TripFactory because my overall experience by end of the trip was very satisfactory.
