pre paid for private tour and guides

[xcomet]

Hi fellow CC members,

On all the private tours I have taken , I have never had anyone ask for payment in full for a tour until I dealt with Barcelona private guides and London private guides. So, questions are....

1. Is this normal?

:confused:

2. If they no show, can I dispute the charges on my card?

[maryann ns]

All I can say is I would not pay in advance. There must be other companies. Or write to them and say you are unwilling to pay in advance and see what they say.

 

On our Mediterranean cruise two companies wanted an advance deposit and I talked them out of it.

[Krazy Kruizers]

I agree.

 

No way would I pay the full amount or even a deposit in advance.

 

Look around for other companies.

[5326jan]

We have paid deposits ahead of time. I don't like it, but can understand why an operator would want something up front. What if they turn down other business and YOU be a no show? They may be able to pick up another group at the port, but if they have planned a tour based on your requirements, it would be inconvenient for them to re-group. We only use "vetted" tour guides that have an excellent reputation on Cruise Critic and Trip Advisor.

 

On the other hand, I would be uncomfortable paying in full ahead of time. When we have put down a deposit, it is no more than the price for the two of us. If I gamble, I only want to do it with our money, not expect others from our roll call to risk their money based on my arrangements. We usually arrange a tour for 6-8, so at the time of the tour our portion is paid and we only need cash for what we choose to tip.

[chipq]

I have no problem with a tour co. asking for a deposit to hold the seat on the tour. That makes sense. Still I review the cancellation policies to make sure I can get a refund of my deposit if the ship were to miss the port. Now this is all based on experience in the Caribbean and Mexico. I have not tried the Med yet. I think whether paying in full or paying a deposit it is important to know the cancellation policy.

 

 

http://luv2cruise.blogspot.com

[mizLORInj]

I would not pay in full in advance. I prefer to send a deposit, and still check refund policies.

We had paid 1/2 up front for a CC group tour in Guatemala. The port stop was cancelled hours before our arrival due to a transit strike in Guatemala, and the tour company refused to refund our deposit even after several of us from our roll call contacted them.

Most of the tours we now book (thought not in Europe) don't even ask for a deposit.

And we have never been a no-show.

So if a company asked for full payment up front, I would have to say to them that based on a negative past experience, I am not willing to pay up front but I will be there to pay in full upon the tour's commencement. If my plans were to change I would surely let the tour company know I am not coming.

[hubofhockey]

I have found it to be different, depending on where you are going.

 

I never paid any deposit for any tour or excursion on anything in the Mediterranean, other than a small amount for a walking tour that I met up with in Rome outside the Forums.

 

For British Isles, I found the market to be somewhat different. Tour operators were looking for deposits. I didn't want to lose out on a tour just because it required a deposit. If the tour operatators are well vetted with good reviews, I would make a deposit.

[rmurray847]

In my somewhat limited experience (have booked 5 private tours so far), it varies a bit. In most cases, they company takes a credit card number to use in case I don't show up and don't cancel. I think of this much like a hotel reservation. The tour guide blocks his day, shows up at the port and I never arrive. He's out a day of revenue, so of course he should be able to charge me. Most of the tour companies actually prefer you pay in cash when you go on the tour (after it is all over).

 

Only once did I have to actually physically pay a deposit and it was to my tour company in Egypt. And it was only 10%...so it didn't cause me too much worry.

 

If I were in your shoes, I'd shop around a little bit to see if requiring advance payment is typical for the specific town you're going to. So many things seem to vary widely from country to country.

[bbwex]

Usually, you pay at the time of the tour, but I have had to pay one share of a private tour to reserve it. Would I do that in all cases -- no, but in the one case, it is a very reputable person, who came exceptionally highly recommended, and he wanted us to pay for two people to hold him for the dates we wanted, and then we can add others and pay the rest at the time. On another occasion, another highly recommended tour operator (recommended highly by Rick Steves) simply asked if we wanted to pay now or then, and I opted for then and there was no issue.

 

Would I pay in full in advance for someone I didn't really have that much background on? Likely not.

 

At the same time, things vary a little bit, and you have to play things as they come along.

[Kartgv]

Even if you only do a deposit, check your credit card policy on disputing a charge. Ours requires that you notify them that you want to dispute a charge within 60 days of the closing date/statement date that the charge appears on. The suggestion would then be that you don't pay the deposit so far in advance that you couldn't dispute the charge if necessary.

 

If you do have a problem with an older charge, it doesn't hurt to try to get a refund - sometimes they make an exception, depending on the circumstances. Several years ago when Aloha Airlines folded up with no notice, we got a refund of our full fare that had been charged 4 months earlier.