Trip Cancelled

[kristilew]

In the mail this afternoon, after getting the call from Disney, got a lovely letter from Tauck. Some excerpts:

"...Tauck is well positioned to weather what will be a difficult year for the travel industry. ...We have zero debt and significant financial resources....we have always taken a long-term perspective....the resulting stability and controlled growth have served our customers well."

"You can be assured when you book your next vacation, your deposits and future travel plans are safe and secure with Tauck."

They have a very astute PR department, hmmm?

 

[sayhello]

Well, now they've cancelled Southwest Splendors for June 16 departure. The CM was very smarmy, giving a line about wanting us to have the best experience, which required a large group. Having been reading this thread and dreading the call, I'm afraid she got an earful from me about their poor planning. (I did apologize later, I know she's just reading from a script.)

This certainly helps our budgeting for this year, as we had been up in the air whether to plan for a 2010 trip. We will definitely not be making any future ABD trips until they can get their act together.

What a sour taste after such a good experience last year. I think they just really miscalculated with this economy. (and didn't we all to some extent?)

We may be able to work out going on the June 20 departure, we'll just have to see. She couldn't even guarantee that one would go, so we may just take our money and run, and do our own version of the trip.

Anyone else get calls today?

Oh, kristilew, I'm so sorry to hear this! Southwest Splendors was such a marvelous trip, and I know you were looking forward to it. If Southwest Splendors during the early summer can get cancelled, I guess anything can! I'm sure it's the economy, but it does show poor planning on ABD's part...

I hope it works out you that you can go in another timeframe. Maybe you should call ABD back, get another person, and try again for the "upgrade" to the Galapagos! Mention you know others who have gotten that offer...

Sayhello

 

[sayhello]

In the mail this afternoon, after getting the call from Disney, got a lovely letter from Tauck. Some excerpts:

"...Tauck is well positioned to weather what will be a difficult year for the travel industry. ...We have zero debt and significant financial resources....we have always taken a long-term perspective....the resulting stability and controlled growth have served our customers well."

"You can be assured when you book your next vacation, your deposits and future travel plans are safe and secure with Tauck."

They have a very astute PR department, hmmm?

I think you should fax that lovely letter to ABD! Help them get a clue!

Sayhello

 

[Tozzie]

kjd, as much as we'd love to finally meet you .....we have another family who has planned their annual Sedona trip around our ABD, and DD heads to camp for the rest of the summer in early July.

Phil, I'd love to know what you said to get them to agree to the Italy trip at the same price as the Costa Rica trip. I asked if they would do that for subbing the Galapagos trip on the same dates as our original SWS and all they would do is an early booking and loyalty discount. If we could have gotten that trip for such a deal, we would have been thrilled, and happy to pay the airfare difference. (and we would have left our friends in the Sedona dust in a heartbeat!)

kristilew sadly goes off to adjust her siggie

It is more than likely the price difference the italian trip the difference is about $600 pp the difference in Southwest Splendors and Galapagos Island is almost $2000 pp

 

[PlutoPony]

In the mail this afternoon, after getting the call from Disney, got a lovely letter from Tauck. Some excerpts:

"...Tauck is well positioned to weather what will be a difficult year for the travel industry. ...We have zero debt and significant financial resources....we have always taken a long-term perspective....the resulting stability and controlled growth have served our customers well."

"You can be assured when you book your next vacation, your deposits and future travel plans are safe and secure with Tauck."

They have a very astute PR department, hmmm?

Have been following ABD discussions for some time now, and was getting close to going ahead and booking. Watching how Disney is handling their low registration trips vs. other companies has pretty much pushed me away and into looking at other options.

Does anyone have recent experiences with Tauk, Globus and the others? How does ABD compare in general?

TIA!

 

[clarabelle]

Here is a post that might give you some insight on Tauck


http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1926919

 

[Bobo912]

Have been following ABD discussions for some time now, and was getting close to going ahead and booking. Watching how Disney is handling their low registration trips vs. other companies has pretty much pushed me away and into looking at other options.

Does anyone have recent experiences with Tauk, Globus and the others? How does ABD compare in general?

TIA!

I know some people are very frustrated about their trips being cancelled and I sympathize with them. I have to say that I am completely satisfied with the way ABD handeled my cancellation. They have been helpful and courteous and I am very happy with the way things have worked out so far. I would have been upset if the trip had gone off as planned with only 5 or 6 people and my son had been the only child. One of the attractions of ABD trips for us is having other kids along. I have been fortunate and I hope everything works out as well for the rest of you.

 

[Phil1019]

Hi, I got ABD to offer me the Viva Italia trip because I was persistent and angry with ABD since I was told two weeks prior that my trip was just about full. I asked them which trips were a definite go for the week that I had booked Costa Rica . The agent kept stating she wanted to work with me. The agent put a supervisor on the phone and I reiterated my request. I was told that she would have to check with her supervisor and get back to me. I did not hear from her until the next day. She told me several times that I was extremely lucky that Disney would offer me this trip for the same price except for the airfare. But again I WAS VERY PERSISTANT. You have to ask like you are expecting it. Hey , the most they can say is no! So---- give it a shot!

 

[kristilew]

We've rebooked Southwest Splendors for the June 20 departure. Anyone on that one?

Our friends we are going to Sedona with on the front end luckily had not booked their airfare yet and were amazingly accomodating to us, thank goodness.

We're hoping this one actually goes, as we literally do not have any other options in 2009.

After this, we will take at least 2010 off from ABD, and watch to see how they handle things next year, if they learn from this year, etc.

to everyone still working on it or still waiting for the other shoe to drop

 

[PlutoPony]

Thanks for the link to the Tauk discussion.

Interesting, on their website you can check availability of each tour/date. There are very few showing full or limited availability.... they may be having similar problems filling their tours this year.

 

[lakerz5]

We've rebooked Southwest Splendors for the June 20 departure. Anyone on that one?

Our friends we are going to Sedona with on the front end luckily had not booked their airfare yet and were amazingly accomodating to us, thank goodness.

We're hoping this one actually goes, as we literally do not have any other options in 2009.

After this, we will take at least 2010 off from ABD, and watch to see how they handle things next year, if they learn from this year, etc.

to everyone still working on it or still waiting for the other shoe to drop

I am so happy for you...hope you have a wonderful time. You must be so relieved

With all the board postings we put our Backstage Magic on Christmas break..but as you found out, even with school breaks there is no guarantee. Glad it worked out for you

 

[sayhello]

So I get to add myself to the ever-growing list. My Sep 5, Adults Only Glacier National Park and Canadian Rockies ABD has been cancelled. There were only 2 families booked. I had to ask the rep to call me back, as I was on my work phone with a user, so I don't have any details or options yet. That's 7 months in advance. I'm thinking of asking if they will switch me to the Alaska trip at the same cost. There are no other Adult only departures for my trip, and the Alaska trip that leaves 2 days before is Adults only.

Or maybe I will just get a refund and cut my losses...

Sayhello

 

[disneytraveler]

I can understand how you feel on the cancellation. I have not had an ABD trip cancel on me yet. However, many years ago i booked a tour with a company to go to Ireland . It cancelled twice in the same month.
Fortunately i was flexible and work was able to do reschedule me so i could rebook it on the 3rd week. The company just could not fill the buses during the other tours.

 

[slg]

Perhaps ABD is doing lots of cancellations now in anticipation of low bookings so that they can organize the contracts for cms, hotels and drivers. I'm sure they also have a commitment and contract for them they have to honor. So, once all the dust has settled, maybe there will be less cancellations later than there have been in the past.

I just wish I knew if our tour was a definite go. So far I haven't found anyone one these boards going on it. July 22 Ireland....last time I checked, there were 12-13 people booked. So if anyone is looking for a trip...check that date out!

 

[kristilew]

slg, that thought occurred to me today as well.

As tough as it is on us to be up in the air, it must be truly awful for the guides to not know if they can count on a job for the rest of the year. From that perspective, I think it is good service to their employees to get things as consolidated as possible, so they can go ahead and be looking for work if needed.

And the hotels and day tours need to know if they'll need to run specials to fill rooms, etc.

I really hope they can weather things and get it together.

Sayhello, I posted on the other thread as well, but so sorry about your trip. I know you were back and forth having a hard time deciding, so it must be double hard to face a change after making a deliberate choice like that.

I do remember how, when the trips first came out in August, we were all a little disappointed. Kind of "meh." I wonder if that happened with a lot of people and combined with the bad economy to lower bookings?

 

[sayhello]

Sayhello, I posted on the other thread as well, but so sorry about your trip. I know you were back and forth having a hard time deciding, so it must be double hard to face a change after making a deliberate choice like that.

I do remember how, when the trips first came out in August, we were all a little disappointed. Kind of "meh." I wonder if that happened with a lot of people and combined with the bad economy to lower bookings?

Thanks, kristilew. I'm not certain how I feel about the trip being canceled. I know there was a period of time when I considered canceling. But then I re-read the itinerary, and remembered what about it had finally appealed to me. But I've been having some health issues (a blood clot in my leg!) and was a little leery of the more "primitive" hotels on the Canadian Rockies trip. So when ABD called, I wasn't really upset. I would have enjoyed it, but I don't know that I was ever 100% sold on the trip like I was with Southwest Splendors.

The Alaska trip does sound good; it stays in some really nice places, too. I'll be happy with that trip, I think, if I get it. I'm really not interested in Europe this year. I guess I'll just wait and see.

I do remember how, when the trips first came out in August, we were all a little disappointed. Kind of "meh." I wonder if that happened with a lot of people and combined with the bad economy to lower bookings?

I think that's very likely.

Sayhello

 

[pipch]

To be fair to ABD no one knew what was going to happen last October. In August when these dates were released the world had not come to a stand still and world and personal finances were in a better place!!

I remember when we were in Costa Rica last year the guide told us of numerous cancelled dates - early in the season, which were not cancelled until very late in the day. I would like to give them the benefit of the doubt and suggest that this year they are just trying to improve and give people far more notice.

I hope next year that they reduce the number of dates made available.... then we will all complain because we can't get the trips or the early booking discount!!
It does seem that the surest time to travel is the school holidays, which I know does not help the adult only travellers...... sorry