Tauck no more

[jafslg1]

jafslg1 in Ormond Beach, Florida

[nana541]

jafslg1 in Ormond Beach, Florida

 

My that was helpful .... Care to explain your posting???

[jafslg1]

After returning from recenty Tauck Rhine /Mosel rivers cruise, we and many others felt that Tauck handled the flood situations very poorly. Specifically, they knew of conditions from previous cruises but didn't give us any options but to continue with what turned out to be a bussing tour. That was our first and last Tauck anything. So much for customer satisfaction.

[nana541]

It would be helpful to know the date of your cruise and the embarkation city. So sorry to hear you had a bad experience from a well thought of conpany.

[SeagoingMom]

Though I have no experience with this problem, you can read lots of CC boards with complaints about how every tour company/river cruise line handled this unprecedented meteorological event. No one is happy. It is not just Tauck.

[Ozjohnno]

Like others I too would appreciate knowing the cruise date as I searched the Tauck site's forums to see if the OP had posted there and todate has not. Tauck had cancelled and refunded many cruise dates during that period and obviously had the same logistic problems as all the cruise companies but this is the first "complaint" I've read. Can we have a more expansive review please?

[nana541]

Like others I too would appreciate knowing the cruise date as I searched the Tauck site's forums to see if the OP had posted there and todate has not. Tauck had cancelled and refunded many cruise dates during that period and obviously had the same logistic problems as all the cruise companies but this is the first "complaint" I've read. Can we have a more expansive review please?

 

I believe the OP sailed on Tauck's May 26 Rhine River. So at this point none of the companies knew the extent of the historic flooding that was coming.

I found this info by going to the OP's profile and looking at his prior posts on CC.

 

This sailing was at the beginning of the mess and I think later cruises were cancelled. Would be nice if the OP returned!

[MarkBearSF]

Like others I too would appreciate knowing the cruise date as I searched the Tauck site's forums to see if the OP had posted there and todate has not. Tauck had cancelled and refunded many cruise dates during that period and obviously had the same logistic problems as all the cruise companies but this is the first "complaint" I've read. Can we have a more expansive review please?

 

I guess given the subject title, the OP just doesn't wanna Tauk about it.

 

(Some people just aren't big Taukers)

[Ozjohnno]

I guess given the subject title, the OP just doesn't wanna Tauk about it.

 

(Some people just aren't big Taukers)

 

I like that .... well said ....:)

[grand isle joe]

I always thought a big company like Tauck could lower the river levels.....who knew?...........:cool:

[beverlyjack]

Though I have no experience with this problem, you can read lots of CC boards with complaints about how every tour company/river cruise line handled this unprecedented meteorological event. No one is happy. It is not just Tauck.

 

I have yet to see one complaint regarding the high water on this forum for Grand Circle, one of the largest river cruise operators in Europe and Conde Nasts #1 rated river cruise line. They had to have encountered the same problems of the others, but, apparently, they dealt with them to the satisfaction of their customers. We have traveled with the company 14 times, including 6 river cruises and have never had a problem that they nor dealt with to our satisfaction.

[Host Jazzbeau]

I have yet to see one complaint regarding the high water on this forum for Grand Circle, one of the largest river cruise operators in Europe and Conde Nasts #1 rated river cruise line.

 

Maybe that's because Grand Circle is hardly ever mentioned on CC in any context. They may be big, but they aren't big here.:)

[Tauck]

After returning from recenty Tauck Rhine /Mosel rivers cruise, we and many others felt that Tauck handled the flood situations very poorly. Specifically, they knew of conditions from previous cruises but didn't give us any options but to continue with what turned out to be a bussing tour. That was our first and last Tauck anything. So much for customer satisfaction.

 

Hello jafslg1,

 

At Tauck, we are committed to delivering the best travel experience possible, and our guests’ security, safety and enjoyment are our utmost concerns.

 

When your tour on May 26th began the water levels were at normal sailing levels and we were able to proceed as planned. As the high water levels rose quickly impacting the rivers at the time of your Rhine/Moselle river cruise our crisis team immediately assessed the best possible options for our guests, and presented the amended itinerary, which we still believe equals a great vacation experience… We are sorry to hear that you are dissatisfied with our decisions and we look forward to speaking to you more about them. Please feel free to contact our Guest Relations team at guestrelations@tauck.com to discuss further.

 

 

Best,

Tauck Guest Relations

[beverlyjack]

Grand Circle is not widely know because they do not advertise in mass media, use mass mailings or sell through TAs. They sell entirely by travelers recommendations and mailings to people who have asked to be put on their mailing list. On our most recent cruise, on the Seine, about 95% were repeat cruisers or traveling with repeat cruisers. This approach allows them to operate with probably the lowest marketing expenses of anyone in the industry.

[franski]

Grand Circle is not widely know because they do not advertise in mass media, use mass mailings or sell through TAs. They sell entirely by travelers recommendations and mailings to people who have asked to be put on their mailing list. On our most recent cruise, on the Seine, about 95% were repeat cruisers or traveling with repeat cruisers. This approach allows them to operate with probably the lowest marketing expenses of anyone in the industry.

 

They also don't market outside the US - so the passenger mix is quite stable/homogenous when compared to the other lines. That is exactly what some people are looking for in a travel experience, while others look for a greater mix of nationalities.

 

Fran

[Osnab]

I always thought a big company like Tauck could lower the river levels.....who knew?...........:cool:

 

Literally - Literally - I laughed out loud.

Felicia

[SeaTheWorldBySea]

I have yet to see one complaint regarding the high water on this forum for Grand Circle, one of the largest river cruise operators in Europe and Conde Nasts #1 rated river cruise line. They had to have encountered the same problems of the others, but, apparently, they dealt with them to the satisfaction of their customers. We have traveled with the company 14 times, including 6 river cruises and have never had a problem that they nor dealt with to our satisfaction.

 

IMHO there were no Grand Circle complaints posted here because no one on a GC cruise during the flood problems spread the word to other passengers that they should post on cruisecritic and bash GC.

 

Because of the number of first time cruisecritic posters bashing Viking, IMHO that is exactly what happened to Viking. The unhappy Viking cruisers banded together, exchanged e-mail addresses and one of them suggested they post their unhappy experiences here. I don't know if it benefited them, but Viking seems to have done the best they could for damage control. I would like to think cruisecritic will not be used that way in the future.

[SeaTheWorldBySea]

Literally - Literally - I laughed out loud.

Felicia

 

Me too. You would have thought that all the cities and towns along the way could have banded together with the river cruise companies and taken control of the situation. Instead, people had their homes and businesses flooded and others had their river cruises totally ruined. I hope it is another 500 years before that kind of disaster presents itself and that if/when it does RC lines get out their history books and handle it better than they did this time.