Just purchased 2 return tickets, from Kingsford Smith, to China. $636 per ticket...bargain!
It could've been cheaper you know.......same airlines, same dates, but did you know there's a darstardly trick, some online brokers play on you......they think it works on their hapless customers, but I'm here to tell you......NOT ON ME!!
When contemplating an overseas trip, I normally check a few sites, and compare the fares.
Flightcentre, Webjet, Jetstar, Expedia,. Skyscanner, Air Asia etc....I'm a registered user of all.
Did you ever notice that, after comparing fares, the original fare (say the cheapest), which you were interested in, is no longer available?? This is a ploy, to get you to book ASAP.
I originally found the exact same fare as the one I bought, except it was only $577 each on Skyscanner, but when I returned to the site later that evening, it was no longer available. No matter how much I tried, I could not replicate that $577 return Guangzhou.
I defiantly went to Expedia, and bought their fare, for $59 more!!!
To Skyscanner.......not my idea of doing business.....I'll probably never use you again.
Now Hotel booking websites are not what you'd expect. Forget any site that advertises on TV all the time.....they pay so much to have these ads streamed to you......how can they afford it? They recoup these costs by pretending to save you money!
Go ahead, and research the hotels you like, but do not book, until you've looked at the same hotel at several site first. My favourite is Agoda,com. I've used this outfit since 2009, not exclusively, but for 90% of my hotel bookings, as they have been definitely cheaper.
Jetstar and Travelzoo both have excellent specials, but limited promotions.....just have to be lucky.
Of course, AirBnB can be used for that different type of holiday, were you want to "live" the country you're visiting..
Enjoy!
Thursday, July 20, 2017
Saturday, June 24, 2017
Prague Card - Just don't do it!!
Just returned from a great road trip covering 8 Eastern European countries, and I must say, "Everyone should go and enjoy the wonderful cities, sights, and warm people of the post USSR / Yugoslavian Europe". Sure France, Italy, Spain and Germany hold enduring fascination for us all, but the crowds and the prices can really detract from your enjoyment!
(I retired about 4 years ago, so I need to control my spending, as I intend on living another 2-3 decades, and want to continue to travel until I have both feet in the grave!)
Eastern Europe will come as a very pleasant surprise, to those of you, that have already had your wallet linings torn out in Paris or London....
I landed in Dubrovnik, after a 28hour flight from Kingsford Smith Airport. This entailed a stop at Singapore, then another at Frankfurt. Flights were easily booked online through Expedia.com, and cost only $1400AUD return, including 30kg of checked luggage, and all meals and drinks. Thank you Singapore Airlines, Lufthansa, and Croatian Air for a great flight.
Upon landing at Dubrovnik, I made my way the the offices where the rental car companies had "gathered" (outside the terminal, at the edge of the car park, were about a dozen or so, de-mountable offices, one of which was Avantcar. I utilised a booking agent in Sydney, Auto Europe, to arrange this rental. I wanted something modest (cheap), but with extras. It needed to accommodate four adults, and their associated luggage, for a five week driving tour. Our Itinerary, started in the south of Croatia, Dubrovnik, and travelling anti clockwise, through, Bosnia, Serbia, Slovakia, Hungry, Czechia, Austria, Slovenia and back to Croatia, driving down the Adriatic Coast.
I know, you counted only 7 countries.....I'll explain later....
The car I chose, was a Skoda Octavia, four door sedan, manual. This came in at $1270AUD for 32days hire. Luckily, my travel insurance through 1Cover, included "Excess Insurance" for car hire, so I saved $$$'s there. Anyways, when picking up my car, the kind gentlemen, advised, that he did not have any Skoda's, but had something better for me.....a brand new Renault Megan Talisman! Now this baby came with a 2.0l turbo diesel, matched to a 6sp manual box, and was fully loaded with every option and full leather interior....One happy camper here! We opted for extra insurance, "total premium cover" as this also included another GPS, and charges for border crossings and extra driver fees ($360AUD). Packed into our new chariot, set the GPS to our first AirBnB in Dubrovnik, which should've been 25min away, and came to what we thought was a toll booth......but no motorway??
"Passport please! Where are you going?"...I answered,."to Dubrovnik, we have a reservation..."
Yes, we had blindly followed directions of the GPS, and it had led us to the border of Montenegro. This would make our itinerary of 7 countries increase to 8.....
Our AirBnB accommodations averaged $25AUD per person per night for the duration of our holiday. Food was another $25AUD per person, and tours and spending money on top.
This leads me to the tours, and the related costs.
I can heartily recommend the Dubrovnik Card, as this included the tour of The Wall, which is a must do, and is very expensive if you single this out. We opted for the two day card (48 hours) and were granted access to 6 museums and 3 galleries also, and had free public transport to boot. Great value.
When in Budapest, again we bought a two day Budapest Card, which gave us entry to Buda Castle, numerous museums and galleries, but also Danube River cruise, and two walking tours, and, then we availed of the two day Hop On Hop Off bus tours. Great deals on both these tourist aids.
Now to the point of my blog.......the Prague Card......such a disappointment, and the only "blight" on an otherwise, faultless holiday.
From the start, there were hairs standing up on the back of my neck....58euros for a two day pass...that's almost $90AUD per person! This was easily the most expensive of all the tourist attraction/aids, and, it was stipulated that the two days, was, two calendar days...NOT 48hours!
Seeing we arrived to pick up our Prague Cards, late in the afternoon, the tourist office, advised that we should start using the cards the next day. She also recommended the bus tour of Prague, which was included in the price, so off we went to find the booking office, located at the Old Town Square. This was easy, as it was a little red booth sticking out like dog's balls, but the lady inside was full of indifference......"Do you have four seats available for tomorrow morning's tour at 10:30am?"..........."Booked full"..came the curt reply.
"Do you have any seats on the earlier tour....the 9:45am tour?"....."yes" came another curt reply...."Ahhh, ok, I suppose we should book for the tour then!".......no response from the curt lady in the red booth that stuck out like dog's nutz...."You got card?".....ahhhh it speaks again..!
We didn't know it then, but it would become abundantly clear, in 36 hours time, that this was a mistake!!
We enjoyed the morning's tour, and the delights of the Astronomical Clock, Town Hall tour, Powder Tower, King Charles IV Bridge, and the quaint but pricey coffee shops (lattes will set you back $7AUD easily), and fell back to our abode, spent, but full of excitement for our next day's activities.
We visited the Turkish Fort, standing on the banks of the Danube, and decided to stop in at the small gallery, after all, it was free entry with the Prague Card.....
Problem.....the card would not validate....the kind ladies allowed us in regardless, as the card had dates after all, and today's date, was the second day.....
We visited a second gallery, and again, the card would not validate our entry.....again, the kind ladies allowed us in, but said to me, that there was a problem with the cards....
Wanting to rectify any issues, we walked back to the tourist office in the city, and informed the office of the failure of the cards....they advised us that they had "expired"...!!!!
She checked the cards' usage, and said....."You used them 2 days ago!!....these are now expired!"
I explained that they were used to book a tour only, and that we had not gone on any tour, nor travelled on any bus, or tram, we had not availed any entry to anything......
She rang the offices of the Prague Card, and spoke to their manager, and came back to us...
"You made a mistake.....there's nothing we can do......you used the card when you booked....and that was counted as a day!!!"
I'm normally a pretty calm fellow, I mean, I'm over 60, I've seen lots of things and done heaps too, but when I see a blatant disregard for customer service, especially when it entails a very pricey tourist card.....I mean 58euros.....that's not a small amount, and they could easily fix it with a keystroke, and reactivate our cards for the remained of the day......geeze!!!
So my fellow travellers, if you ever visit Prague, and I hope you do. Enjoy the wonderful sights, soak up the culture, and re-energise your inner being with the beauty of the Danube.....and do not risk destroying this blissful event, by dealing with those shysters from the Prague Card!
Being retired, and a great advocate of "Grey Power", I will not rest until this business goes down the gurgler, where it belongs!!....this is my forth forum where I've vented my distaste for that mob.
1st - Trip Advisor
2nd - Product Review
3rd - Whirpool Forums
(I retired about 4 years ago, so I need to control my spending, as I intend on living another 2-3 decades, and want to continue to travel until I have both feet in the grave!)
Eastern Europe will come as a very pleasant surprise, to those of you, that have already had your wallet linings torn out in Paris or London....
I landed in Dubrovnik, after a 28hour flight from Kingsford Smith Airport. This entailed a stop at Singapore, then another at Frankfurt. Flights were easily booked online through Expedia.com, and cost only $1400AUD return, including 30kg of checked luggage, and all meals and drinks. Thank you Singapore Airlines, Lufthansa, and Croatian Air for a great flight.
Upon landing at Dubrovnik, I made my way the the offices where the rental car companies had "gathered" (outside the terminal, at the edge of the car park, were about a dozen or so, de-mountable offices, one of which was Avantcar. I utilised a booking agent in Sydney, Auto Europe, to arrange this rental. I wanted something modest (cheap), but with extras. It needed to accommodate four adults, and their associated luggage, for a five week driving tour. Our Itinerary, started in the south of Croatia, Dubrovnik, and travelling anti clockwise, through, Bosnia, Serbia, Slovakia, Hungry, Czechia, Austria, Slovenia and back to Croatia, driving down the Adriatic Coast.
I know, you counted only 7 countries.....I'll explain later....
The car I chose, was a Skoda Octavia, four door sedan, manual. This came in at $1270AUD for 32days hire. Luckily, my travel insurance through 1Cover, included "Excess Insurance" for car hire, so I saved $$$'s there. Anyways, when picking up my car, the kind gentlemen, advised, that he did not have any Skoda's, but had something better for me.....a brand new Renault Megan Talisman! Now this baby came with a 2.0l turbo diesel, matched to a 6sp manual box, and was fully loaded with every option and full leather interior....One happy camper here! We opted for extra insurance, "total premium cover" as this also included another GPS, and charges for border crossings and extra driver fees ($360AUD). Packed into our new chariot, set the GPS to our first AirBnB in Dubrovnik, which should've been 25min away, and came to what we thought was a toll booth......but no motorway??
"Passport please! Where are you going?"...I answered,."to Dubrovnik, we have a reservation..."
Yes, we had blindly followed directions of the GPS, and it had led us to the border of Montenegro. This would make our itinerary of 7 countries increase to 8.....
Our AirBnB accommodations averaged $25AUD per person per night for the duration of our holiday. Food was another $25AUD per person, and tours and spending money on top.
This leads me to the tours, and the related costs.
I can heartily recommend the Dubrovnik Card, as this included the tour of The Wall, which is a must do, and is very expensive if you single this out. We opted for the two day card (48 hours) and were granted access to 6 museums and 3 galleries also, and had free public transport to boot. Great value.
When in Budapest, again we bought a two day Budapest Card, which gave us entry to Buda Castle, numerous museums and galleries, but also Danube River cruise, and two walking tours, and, then we availed of the two day Hop On Hop Off bus tours. Great deals on both these tourist aids.
Now to the point of my blog.......the Prague Card......such a disappointment, and the only "blight" on an otherwise, faultless holiday.
From the start, there were hairs standing up on the back of my neck....58euros for a two day pass...that's almost $90AUD per person! This was easily the most expensive of all the tourist attraction/aids, and, it was stipulated that the two days, was, two calendar days...NOT 48hours!
Seeing we arrived to pick up our Prague Cards, late in the afternoon, the tourist office, advised that we should start using the cards the next day. She also recommended the bus tour of Prague, which was included in the price, so off we went to find the booking office, located at the Old Town Square. This was easy, as it was a little red booth sticking out like dog's balls, but the lady inside was full of indifference......"Do you have four seats available for tomorrow morning's tour at 10:30am?"..........."Booked full"..came the curt reply.
"Do you have any seats on the earlier tour....the 9:45am tour?"....."yes" came another curt reply...."Ahhh, ok, I suppose we should book for the tour then!".......no response from the curt lady in the red booth that stuck out like dog's nutz...."You got card?".....ahhhh it speaks again..!
We didn't know it then, but it would become abundantly clear, in 36 hours time, that this was a mistake!!
We enjoyed the morning's tour, and the delights of the Astronomical Clock, Town Hall tour, Powder Tower, King Charles IV Bridge, and the quaint but pricey coffee shops (lattes will set you back $7AUD easily), and fell back to our abode, spent, but full of excitement for our next day's activities.
We visited the Turkish Fort, standing on the banks of the Danube, and decided to stop in at the small gallery, after all, it was free entry with the Prague Card.....
Problem.....the card would not validate....the kind ladies allowed us in regardless, as the card had dates after all, and today's date, was the second day.....
We visited a second gallery, and again, the card would not validate our entry.....again, the kind ladies allowed us in, but said to me, that there was a problem with the cards....
Wanting to rectify any issues, we walked back to the tourist office in the city, and informed the office of the failure of the cards....they advised us that they had "expired"...!!!!
She checked the cards' usage, and said....."You used them 2 days ago!!....these are now expired!"
I explained that they were used to book a tour only, and that we had not gone on any tour, nor travelled on any bus, or tram, we had not availed any entry to anything......
She rang the offices of the Prague Card, and spoke to their manager, and came back to us...
"You made a mistake.....there's nothing we can do......you used the card when you booked....and that was counted as a day!!!"
I'm normally a pretty calm fellow, I mean, I'm over 60, I've seen lots of things and done heaps too, but when I see a blatant disregard for customer service, especially when it entails a very pricey tourist card.....I mean 58euros.....that's not a small amount, and they could easily fix it with a keystroke, and reactivate our cards for the remained of the day......geeze!!!
So my fellow travellers, if you ever visit Prague, and I hope you do. Enjoy the wonderful sights, soak up the culture, and re-energise your inner being with the beauty of the Danube.....and do not risk destroying this blissful event, by dealing with those shysters from the Prague Card!
Being retired, and a great advocate of "Grey Power", I will not rest until this business goes down the gurgler, where it belongs!!....this is my forth forum where I've vented my distaste for that mob.
1st - Trip Advisor
2nd - Product Review
3rd - Whirpool Forums
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