Just back from a great 2 week holiday in Lindos. The only complaint was the absolutely useless performance of the Olympic Holidays reps from start to finish of the holiday.
Normally we go away on DIY holidays but this year because it was late in the year before I could get time off work we booked a package with Olympic flying with Monarch. The package industry seems to rate the services of a rep as a major advantage of booking with them, so let's look at the advantages we gained.
Flight out fine and on time. We get on the coach to resort and are told there will be no rep on coach, not a problem the driver knows where he is going. We arrived at Lindos reception where we were dropped with about a dozen other people.
Lindos is a pedestrianised traffic free village. You are taken from Lindos reception on foot to your accommodation by your rep and your baggage is taken there by the baggage men on their little buggies. The only problem was there was no rep there so we spent a nice hour chatting in the boiling sun until our rep finally came strolling up the hill to take us to our accommodation and be reunited with our baggage which had already been taken by the baggage men. When we arrived at our apartment we were unable to go in as it was still being cleaned, because Olympic had allowed the previous occupants for a fee, to keep the room until 6pm despite the fact we were always due to arrive in the village at 5:30pm. We didn't much in the way of an apology for this; maybe this would have been given at the welcome meeting the following for which there were plenty of plugs for. Needless to say we didn't bother to go.
Anyway we managed to avoid the need to see the rep until departure day was looming. Normal procedure is that on the Monday before a Wednesday departure your rep calls around late afternoon early evening to tell you what time your bags after out for pick up and the time your coach leaves. Any way no rep shows up so at 9:30pm we went out. When we got in an the early hours of Tuesday morning there was a note telling us that if we wanted this information we should go the Olympic office on the other side of the village between 10am and 10:30am Tuesday morning. So Tuesday morn off we went to get the times, only no rep in the office. Waited until 10:45 and then back to the apartment to pick up the stuff for the beach, only to find while we and others had been up at the office as requested the rep had been wandering around the village delivering notes with containing the information she had asked us to collect from the office.
Departure day arrived, coached back to the airport. On arrival at the airport we were informed there was a 3.5 hour delay on our flight. So the 360 or so people on our flight queued at the check in desks. For some reason the people sat behind these desks would not check people in. No information was being given by the numerous Olympic reps as to what was happening. A couple of phone home and I found out that the plane that should have taken us home had suffered a lightning strike the day before and had been taken out of service because of damage. Monarch meanwhile had no other spare plane big enough to get everybody on, and could not charter one big enough, so were now trying to arrange 2 planes to make the journey. When I asked our reps about this it was denied and said to be "Chinese whispers". Anyway after about 1.5 hours stood in the queue they began to check us in. When we checked in we found we now had a different flight number then on our tickets. No explanations for any of this came from the reps.
Anyway through to the departure lounge and our flight number is not on any of the screens in the airport. After an hour or so our new number appeared leaving at 10pm instead of 5:30pm (our original departure time) with our original flight leaving an hour after us. About the time we should have been boarding our flight disappeared of the screens again. No announcement, no information and more to the point no plane. Eventually the flight number reappeared, the 2 planes arrived (Chinese whispers) and we departed at 01:15 after almost 12 hours at the airport. When we were onboard the captain confirmed over the PA system what I had found out 9 hours before, he also said that we should all have received a letter stating this at check in. My complaint about this is not the delay, these things happen. It is the wilful withholding of information even to the point of denying what is happening when you get that information from a reliable source. This is what causes anger and resentment amongst the passengers. Basically it seemed to me that as it was the end of the holiday they just wanted us out of their hair. I would be curious to know what the people delayed on the outbound that day were told at Manchester.
Sorry if this is a bit of a rant. I am also aware that this standard is not indicative of reps throughout the industry.
My complaint about this is not the delay, these things happen. It is the wilful withholding of information even to the point of denying what is happening when you get that information from a reliable source.
How many complaints do TOs receive with the resultant cost in answering them that fall into this category? Most of us can accept that things sometimes go wrong without any blame being attached. Customers in all walks of life simply wish to be kept informed.
fwh
I'm not going to comment on the majority of your post, just the part about being advised of departure times.
We've travelled with Olympic quite a lot over the last 2 or 3 years (Corfu, Goa (3 times), Zante) and I find it very strange that Olympic don't post departure times where their information boards are, but instead insist you see the rep at a specific time to collect your details.
I'm unable to work out what 'value-add' this gives the customer.
It was also very inconvenient to have to stay in the apartment until 12noon to meet with when we would rather have been out somewhere else during our holiday. Expecially, as the flight changes met this had effectively become a 6 day holiday.
We didn't attend the welcome meeting as we have been to Crete several times before, so only found out by chance that we needed to meet the rep that day. Otherwise we would have had to visit the Olympic office.
Claire
This is a method we used when I worked as a rep, particularly, as I say when the coach didnt have a rep on board, due to everyone being at the airport etc.
OK, not so much 'value-add' more like 'cover your arse' as far as the holiday companies are concerned.
The 'value-add' for the customer is that you know when the bus is coming and you aren't left in a resort at stupid o'clock in the morning all by yourself with no way of getting to the airport, I actually happen to think that it is very good customer service and common sense.
If it's such good customer service and common sense, I wonder why ALL Tour Operators don't do this?
In fact all I wanted to check was that check was still 5am, as we had hired a car for the week. The rep refused to tell my husband and said we would have to wait until the next day at 12noon. She then told us that we should have informed they we weren't using the transfer as drivers are paid per passenger.
They were informed before travel and I also told the rep at the coach I was supposed to use on arrival.
I think less people are using the services of their rep, in the past we have regularly not seen a rep for a whole holiday, and this is making Olympic approach quite out dated.
Always looked at the notice boards for coach pick up times and never had a problem.
We were always put of by welcome meetings when they tried and pushed excursions.
Would always hire a car and do them by ourselves anyway.
In Cyprus, there are 3 or 4 flight days a week and many flights out of Pafos & Larnaca airports. It would be impossible to post pick up times for all on the boards without total confusion.
Some of the 5 star hotels don't allow boards.
It stops the less well travelled from getting it wrong and also looking at the wrong TO board. (I have seen this many times) Not everyone is a seasoned traveller even in this day & age.
Its good to actually have a piece of paper with your name, flight number, pick up location and pick up time on.
It helps to weed out the guests who are taking a taxi/hire car/lift to the airport and won't need a transfer but have not previously told the rep. Thus not having a coachful of guests waiting while the rep looks for them.
Loubychew
I can see you point that having a piece of paper prevents confusion. But I do think there could be a better way of doing this than having to meet you rep at a potentially inconvenient time of day.
I had the same problem myself this year in Cyprus. I was out with friends and had to hurry back to the hotel so I wouldnt miss the rep.
Kath x
had to hurry back to the hotel so I wouldnt miss the rep
an experienced traveler like yoursel Kath
the only time we see the rep is if we have a problem never go to welcome meetings they are usualy held during valuble drinking time
As you know my visit this year was for a very emotional reason, and waiting for the rep was the last thing on my mind.
Kath x
I have also been on holiday with Kosmar, Manos and before they went, Goldensun, all of whom employed this method. I am not saying they still do, but they did once.
In addition the idea of relying on reception staff to tell you is not practical either. They are busy enough without this to deal with, this is a reps job, this is one of the many, many different reasons that reps are employed.
I really fail to understand the problem with seeing the rep to get the times, it isnt a question of inconveniencing the holidaymaker for a few minutes it is a question of making sure the holidaymaker isnt inconvenienced later on.
The rep is normally seen at the welcome party (if you need the knowledge), but having to hang around on the penultimate day of your holiday to see the rep at say 5pm, is something Im not agreeable to.
Why cant it be done on the normal rep visits in the morning ?
Kath x
Then we will have to agree to disagree, I think they are right to do it. If you have never repped before you will have no idea how frustrating it is to arrive at a hotel/ apartment and nobody is there for the pick up. You have to check rooms, bars, restaurants, pool areas all whilst leaving other passengers on the coach waiting. Then when said guest who wasn't there arrives at the airport it is always the coach that never turned up, not their fault for not being there. and if it doesnt have a rep on board can you really see a Greek coach driver wondering about the place looking for you, beacause if you can, then you are totally naive, it simply wouldnt happen. I applaud Olympic for there common-sense.
I really fail to understand the problem with seeing the rep to get the times, it isnt a question of inconveniencing the holidaymaker for a few minutes it is a question of making sure the holidaymaker isnt inconvenienced later on
But it's often NOT just for a few minutes, peakta.
It might mean that you can't plan a full day out because you have to be back to see the rep.
Maybe you have to trail all the way back from the beach to see the rep - in some of the Olympic properties we've stayed in, that could have meant a 20 minute walk back to the property and then 20 minutes back again.
I didnt realise that being somewhere to get some information was such a bind for people.
Remind me again just whose holiday it's supposed to be.
Claire's experience of not being given to the information until 12 noon just goes to show how inconvenient (yes, a bind!) this can be.
If that is the system that the operator uses and they find it works, and I see no reason why it shouldnt, then live with it.
The OPs cannot win, if they arent there every 5 mins then they are berated for poor service, when they do ask for you to visit (for the customers benefit I might add) they are also wrong as it is inconvenient to you.
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