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What travelers are saying

"When I signed up for the Wonders of Costa Rica at a slower pace. The hotel listed in the itinerary for day 8&9 was a 4 star hotel on the beach called the Punta Leona. I'm not sure when but Road Scholar changed the Punta Leona hotel for the 3 star Villa Lapis Jungle hotel. I was shocked when we drove up to this dump. Others in the group wanted to leave and find another hotel. I had black bugs under that shower mat and the shower did not drain, Spiders on the wall and roaches coming out of the cracked in the bathroom. The bed was a thin mattress on a board and was hard as a rock. The food they put out was covered with a wrap but 15 minutes after the plastic wrap was removed it was covered with fruit flies. I passed on the open food bowls. The walls were real thin and the neighbors were real noisy until 11:30 pm. Others in the group complained about the late night noise, spiders and toilet seat being broken. I'm not sure where this place gets 3 stars. After I saw the roaches, I give it a 1 star. Road Scholar put us up in beautiful hotels and then they take us here. You can do better than this Road Scholar. The end the story, Road Scholar customer service called me about my concern and said they have never used the Punta Leona, (I sent her my itinerary that said PUNTA LEONA). She also said they haven't had any complaints about this Villa Lapis dump. After her call, I'm not sure if I'll ever travel with Road Scholar again. Enough said...."

What travelers are saying

"When I signed up for the Wonders of Costa Rica at a slower pace. The hotel listed in the itinerary for day 8&9 was a 4 star hotel on the beach called the Punta Leona. I'm not sure when but Road Scholar changed the Punta Leona hotel for the 3 star Villa Lapis Jungle hotel. I was shocked when we drove up to this dump. Others in the group wanted to leave and find another hotel. I had black bugs under that shower mat and the shower did not drain, Spiders on the wall and roaches coming out of the cracked in the bathroom. The bed was a thin mattress on a board and was hard as a rock. The food they put out was covered with a wrap but 15 minutes after the plastic wrap was removed it was covered with fruit flies. I passed on the open food bowls. The walls were real thin and the neighbors were real noisy until 11:30 pm. Others in the group complained about the late night noise, spiders and toilet seat being broken. I'm not sure where this place gets 3 stars. After I saw the roaches, I give it a 1 star. Road Scholar put us up in beautiful hotels and then they take us here. You can do better than this Road Scholar. The end the story, Road Scholar customer service called me about my concern and said they have never used the Punta Leona, (I sent her my itinerary that said PUNTA LEONA). She also said they haven't had any complaints about this Villa Lapis dump. After her call, I'm not sure if I'll ever travel with Road Scholar again. Enough said...."

What travelers are saying

"When I signed up for the Wonders of Costa Rica at a slower pace. The hotel listed in the itinerary for day 8&9 was a 4 star hotel on the beach called the Punta Leona. I'm not sure when but Road Scholar changed the Punta Leona hotel for the 3 star Villa Lapis Jungle hotel. I was shocked when we drove up to this dump. Others in the group wanted to leave and find another hotel. I had black bugs under that shower mat and the shower did not drain, Spiders on the wall and roaches coming out of the cracked in the bathroom. The bed was a thin mattress on a board and was hard as a rock. The food they put out was covered with a wrap but 15 minutes after the plastic wrap was removed it was covered with fruit flies. I passed on the open food bowls. The walls were real thin and the neighbors were real noisy until 11:30 pm. Others in the group complained about the late night noise, spiders and toilet seat being broken. I'm not sure where this place gets 3 stars. After I saw the roaches, I give it a 1 star. Road Scholar put us up in beautiful hotels and then they take us here. You can do better than this Road Scholar. The end the story, Road Scholar customer service called me about my concern and said they have never used the Punta Leona, (I sent her my itinerary that said PUNTA LEONA). She also said they haven't had any complaints about this Villa Lapis dump. After her call, I'm not sure if I'll ever travel with Road Scholar again. Enough said...."

What travelers are saying

"Hilariously bad support from outsourced call centers. They flat out bs you making up answers. They did not actually book all the hotels stated in the tour so there were some last minute changes that were very disruptive. The bus was missing luggage liners in the shelf above the seats so stuff was falling out while driving and I was hit by a heavy laptop bag."

What travelers are saying

"Horrible horrible customer service! Or should I say non-existent?! As a world traveller, I have encountered all types of crappy, parroting, cookie-cutter, idiotic answers from customer services over the last decade; however, I have never EVER had a company ghosting customers let alone one whom we have paid tens of thousands of Euros! The pre-booking phase was just fine and smooth, the laid-back attitude of welcoming on the ship without x-ray machines and asking for passports was amazing. But the nice part ended there. The meals, lectures and general service was mediocre at best. The more important thing is the missing of Kvitoya, which was the main point of the cruise for us. Basically the captain did not want to go there, they used the weather as an excuse because the way the expedition leader put it was: “It would be very uncomfortable and we'd be missing a day and a half of activities.” ! So it wasn't that the weather made it impossible, it was a “choice” by the captain. Mind you, it's no longer possible to visit Kvitoya from January 2025 on due to new regulations, so there is no way to make up for this. So it is a huge huge loss for us. Then, comes the worst part. They wrote a logbook with NO MENTION of missing Kvitoya at all! The only place you find Kvitoya in the logbook is in the name of the voyage! Incredible... Then of course comes the even more incredible part: As Kvitoya was the highlight and the main reason why we booked this voyage, we asked for a partial refund. Mind you, the cruise without Kvitoya is much cheaper than what we have paid for. And what did they do?? They basically did not answer at all! After two weeks, I wrote reminding them our request. We were told that we'd be getting an answer, but within 6 weeks. So we waited six weeks, nothing. 7th week, still nothing. In the end, I wrote again and got an apology from the reception desk “for the inconvenience”! Still 5 more days passed and the Arctic Director deigned to answer. It probably would have been better if he hadn't! It was an indignant answer saying how rightful they were, how it took time to “investigate” (as if they're investigating a murder case!), that the trip was overall successful apart from not getting to Kvitoya (Duh! That's the point of the voyage, it's in the name: “Around Spitsbergen and Kvitoya”), apologizing “nevertheless” (implying there was no need for an apology but he was still apologizing!) and offering us a 20 % discount on a future trip stating specifically that it was valid only for “non-discounted” voyages, that is basically trying to sell us yet another trip which would get money in their pockets, not compensating us the least! Not even offering the difference between the voyage without Kvitoya, that is the one we paid for and the one we got. I naturally replied with a refusal of their offer, and legitimately criticized the response. Well... It's been a week now and no answer. So basically, we are ghosted! Never in our lives did such a thing happen that the customer service did not get back to us after 2 months, not even with small companies let alone a company who has charged tens of thousands euros! And being ghosted??! STAY AWAY from Oceanwide! It's easy to be a good company when things go fine. The calibre and quality of a company shows in the proactive way they solve problems and Oceanwide failed miserably on this!"

What travelers are saying

"I am writing on behalf of 20 passengers who sailed aboard the vessel EROS, under the co,mmand of Captain Georgios Paraskevas, during our trip in Greece from August 10-17, which commenced in Corfu. Unfortunately, our experience was marred by several significant technical difficulties that severely impacted our journey. Firstly, we encountered a malfunction with the anchor system, along with an issue beneath the vessel that led to an entire day being lost while waiting for a spare part to be replaced. Additionally, there was a persistent and strong smell of gasoline in the rooms throughout the trip, which we found to be extremely dangerous and unsettling. This issue greatly affected the comfort and safety of the passengers. The cooling system also failed to function, forcing many passengers to sleep on the deck in discomfort. Furthermore, it became apparent that the captain lacked the necessary skills to operate the vessel effectively, as it was primarily managed by the Egyptian crew, who appeared to be guiding the captain in performing essential tasks. This was both obvious and quite alarming to all on board. In summary, we are relieved that the trip concluded without any serious incidents, but we remain concerned about the overall safety and operation of the vessel. Therefore, I would like to inquire if the EROS is fully licensed and regularly inspected in accordance with Greek and EU standards prior to being leased out. Please provide a detailed response regarding this matterAdditionally, several other issues arose during the trip that were not mentioned in our initial email. These include: Persistent and significant flooding of the bathroom floors and leakage of the sewage water making the bathroom usage difficult, exposing us to potential waterborne diseases and extremely unpleasant smell in the cabins and throughout the hallway. A near collision with another sailing boat Collisions with boat during passenger transfers to the beach ( AntiPaxos) An incident at Lefkada beach, where a lifeguard called the police to protest our boat’s disembarkation (Lefkada) Frequent turn offs of the air conditioning along with gas infused fumes and extremely unpleasant sewage smells were forcing passengers to sleep on the deck outside. Even the ships that were docked alongside our ship were complaining about our exhaust fumes (Nidri)."

What travelers are saying

"I am writing on behalf of 20 passengers who sailed aboard the vessel EROS, under the co,mmand of Captain Georgios Paraskevas, during our trip in Greece from August 10-17, which commenced in Corfu. Unfortunately, our experience was marred by several significant technical difficulties that severely impacted our journey. Firstly, we encountered a malfunction with the anchor system, along with an issue beneath the vessel that led to an entire day being lost while waiting for a spare part to be replaced. Additionally, there was a persistent and strong smell of gasoline in the rooms throughout the trip, which we found to be extremely dangerous and unsettling. This issue greatly affected the comfort and safety of the passengers. The cooling system also failed to function, forcing many passengers to sleep on the deck in discomfort. Furthermore, it became apparent that the captain lacked the necessary skills to operate the vessel effectively, as it was primarily managed by the Egyptian crew, who appeared to be guiding the captain in performing essential tasks. This was both obvious and quite alarming to all on board. In summary, we are relieved that the trip concluded without any serious incidents, but we remain concerned about the overall safety and operation of the vessel. Therefore, I would like to inquire if the EROS is fully licensed and regularly inspected in accordance with Greek and EU standards prior to being leased out. Please provide a detailed response regarding this matterAdditionally, several other issues arose during the trip that were not mentioned in our initial email. These include: Persistent and significant flooding of the bathroom floors and leakage of the sewage water making the bathroom usage difficult, exposing us to potential waterborne diseases and extremely unpleasant smell in the cabins and throughout the hallway. A near collision with another sailing boat Collisions with boat during passenger transfers to the beach ( AntiPaxos) An incident at Lefkada beach, where a lifeguard called the police to protest our boat’s disembarkation (Lefkada) Frequent turn offs of the air conditioning along with gas infused fumes and extremely unpleasant sewage smells were forcing passengers to sleep on the deck outside. Even the ships that were docked alongside our ship were complaining about our exhaust fumes (Nidri)."

What travelers are saying

"I am writing on behalf of 20 passengers who sailed aboard the vessel EROS, under the co,mmand of Captain Georgios Paraskevas, during our trip in Greece from August 10-17, which commenced in Corfu. Unfortunately, our experience was marred by several significant technical difficulties that severely impacted our journey. Firstly, we encountered a malfunction with the anchor system, along with an issue beneath the vessel that led to an entire day being lost while waiting for a spare part to be replaced. Additionally, there was a persistent and strong smell of gasoline in the rooms throughout the trip, which we found to be extremely dangerous and unsettling. This issue greatly affected the comfort and safety of the passengers. The cooling system also failed to function, forcing many passengers to sleep on the deck in discomfort. Furthermore, it became apparent that the captain lacked the necessary skills to operate the vessel effectively, as it was primarily managed by the Egyptian crew, who appeared to be guiding the captain in performing essential tasks. This was both obvious and quite alarming to all on board. In summary, we are relieved that the trip concluded without any serious incidents, but we remain concerned about the overall safety and operation of the vessel. Therefore, I would like to inquire if the EROS is fully licensed and regularly inspected in accordance with Greek and EU standards prior to being leased out. Please provide a detailed response regarding this matterAdditionally, several other issues arose during the trip that were not mentioned in our initial email. These include: Persistent and significant flooding of the bathroom floors and leakage of the sewage water making the bathroom usage difficult, exposing us to potential waterborne diseases and extremely unpleasant smell in the cabins and throughout the hallway. A near collision with another sailing boat Collisions with boat during passenger transfers to the beach ( AntiPaxos) An incident at Lefkada beach, where a lifeguard called the police to protest our boat’s disembarkation (Lefkada) Frequent turn offs of the air conditioning along with gas infused fumes and extremely unpleasant sewage smells were forcing passengers to sleep on the deck outside. Even the ships that were docked alongside our ship were complaining about our exhaust fumes (Nidri)."