Small Ship & Expedition Cruises Tour & Trip Reviews

Avoid!!!! False Advertising, horrible communication, shady resort promotions. This place was bought by a company called Apple Travel I believe a few years ago and the company turned to garbage, quickly. Customer service is horrible, no one knows anything about anything and will just pass you along to the next person until you get frustrate and decide you are going to try another day.

The package I paid for did not have a lot of the perks that they promised in the contract.

We purchased an excursion and when we got to Mexico the excursion was discontinued. Cheap Carribean has a customer service email and phone number for while you are on your vacation. THE NUMBER DIDNT WORK and no one to this day got back to my multiple emails in a time I was really in a pinch.

Just bad news, save your money and use a different company. Go to the better business bureau website if you really want to see how bad this company is

Recently returned from a Viking Rhine trip on 10/14.
The good:
Rhine water levels were good, no issues. Service on the vessel was A+, excluding one attendant with “attitude” at the front desk. Entertainment was low key but acceptable. Viking succeeds in creating a laid back atmosphere. Viking is like a clock - they run on time. Cabin was nice and shower was exceptional. Most (not all) tours were informative, guides ranged from good to excellent. Tour buses were top shelf with experienced drivers.
The not so good:
All 6 in our group were disappointed with the food (not service but food) all week excluding breakfast. All felt the food offerings got “old” real fast. Food appeared to be prepared in advance and then reheated. Plenty of TV movies, tv and internet reception poor all week.
Most concerning
Viking, customs, and airline never asked to see our proof of vaccination. While Viking did a excellent job in keeping the boat itself clean and sanitized we had an issue on one of the bus tours. A unmasked woman sitting directly behind my wife was sweating & coughing non-stop. Not a occasional sneeze or cough, it was obvious this woman was ill. At the first stop multiple riders relocated to seats as far away from this individual as possible. Regrettably, Viking said/did noting.
Viking claims they are not the Covid police and if we felt compromised we should have put on a mask. Absolutely ridiculous that Viking felt we should have masked but took action to pull this woman aside, require her to mask with a suggestion to see a physician. Again - we’re not talking about normal coughing and sneezing- this woman was visibly ill. Viking was willing to put 30 travelers at risk rather then ask a visibly ill woman to mask up. It’s Vikings boat, tour, bus but they say and do nothing.
Of course 2 of 6 in our group contracted Covid.
Viking had a obligation to do everything within their control to protect us as best possible. In this instance they didn’t even try.
Not trying to trash Viking, just being truthful.

My son had covid and had to stay at the hotel for an extra week. We tried to extend the American Airlines ticket but they told us to contact Cheap Caribbean. We tried calling for days but no one answered the phone nor they're emails and we lost the money for the tickets. Would never recommend Cheap Caribbean to anyone. The lack of communication is very bad.

Boat had faults not reported to us – no read out on fuel gauge ( which we found out before we left), no read out on log, and the wind readout failed. Dicky float switch on auto bilge pump was reported – told to “turn it off” – and we were told how to remove an airlock from the fresh water system (we needed to, which implies they knew there was a fault).

The boat is a poor design: in practice the Bimini can’t be lowered, so helmsman can’t see the mainsail when it’s being raised; anchor locker had to be kept open when anchoring; and while airy and spacious inside there’s insufficient stowage for personal gear even for a one week holiday.

Little thought for the customer : the fridge was turned off between charters as a matter of policy, so you start with a warm fridge; no cleaning materials left from the previous charter as “a child could poison itself”. We were provided with Heikells Ionian Pilot and a chart – but no additional local information and questions were rebuffed with ‘it depends how good a sailor you are’. The echo sounder datum was set 1 metre below the keel – and it seems that was true for other boats too. So we missed out on places we could have safely gone.

The base staff were pleasant but no one could answer any questions off their script – that was always someone else’s job. Emails to the base went unanswered – apparently because the manager had been sacked ( can no one else read emails?). Head office was texting me for my sailing qualifications 6 days into the charter – they’d been shown them and taken copies at the start.

We had a good holiday, but that’s because of Corfu not because of The Moorings

This company cancelled our trip 3 times due to COVID. The most recent cancellation was less than 10 days notice. When we tried to re-book this time for a later date (our fourth reservation with them), they charged us over $10,000 more for the EXACT same itinerary even after their 100% guarantee says they have a voyage-for-voyage exchange on cancelled trips and we would be able to exchange the trip for the same itinerary. Now they've changed their rules to say they only have 1 date available that's approved for "exchanges." So our original booking, which was the week of Christmas, now has to be some random week when conditions are not as good and we won't even see Antarctica in the season we wanted. For the EXACT same itinerary as we already booked and paid for (and they kept the money for over 2 years for, while continuing to cancel our trips) they want 10k+ more to book. This is a scam and these people have kept our money for going on 3 years now with absolutely no intent to honor their "guarantee." This company has been a nightmare from the beginning and I highly recommend you book with someone else.

I wish I read these reviews before I booked. Since I have yet to get to a destination, I cannot speak to the destination. But, if you're smart you'll book your vacation with anyone but Cheap Caribbean. Use an agent, use AAA, use AARP.......I've had TERRIBLE CUSTOMER SERVICE from this organization. There have been problems with our flights, yesterday I spent 4 hours on hold waiting for service. Let me repeat that, 4 hours on hold! Today, still on hold for 2 hours. They have No staff. The "customer service" is disgusting. The annoying "tips" they provide vs. on hold music is like nails on a chalk board. I repeat, do yourself a favor, use another 3 party for booking. One that you can reach within minutes, not hours.

We have used Cheap Caribbean for many vacations, and if everything goes well, you will be fine. But, if there are any problems, good luck! You are on your own to make it work! We had a trip planned for November 2020 with Cheap Caribbean and also purchased enhanced insurance because we were told we could cancel for any reason and get a full refund. COVID hit and it was not safe to travel, so I called in September to cancel and our Hell began! When I called, I was told we would only get 75% of our money back, even with the insurance. I was even told to call the insurance company myself! Instead of loosing any money, I put the trip on credit with Cheap Caribbean so I wouldn't loose any of our money. When I called to rebook, I was told the credit had to be used by one date and the airline credit had to be used 5 months before that. They told me there was nothing they could do to extend my flight credit and I would have to call the airlines myself. Cheap Caribbean was my booking agent! They took my money, and yet when there was a problem, I was put in charge of calling all agencies involved. After more than 32 phone calls and emails and more than 38 hours on hold with Cheap Caribbean, the airlines, the insurance company, and the transportation company, we finally went on our trip! On top of all the issues, Cheap Caribbean booked us on Spirit airlines and never told us we had to pay extra for carry on bags, boarding passes, and seats! Also, our flight was changed without our knowledge and because of the change, we lost an entire day of our paid vacation. I was asked by one of the many customer service agents what I was asking for and I told her I would like an extra day at the resort to compensate us for the day we lost. That never happened, even though I met someone on the plane who received an extra day from them. On the Cheap Caribbean website it states "they are committed to your satisfaction, from the first click through your entire trip!" They are NOT! They take your money as the booking agent and then you are on your own! I had a contract with Cheap Caribbean and they did not honor it! Do not use them to book your trip!

Unfortunately, we have to give a star to enter a review. I wish I could give NEGATIVE STARS.

Due to Covid-19 we were unable to go on our honeymoon, let alone get married. We tried for weeks to reach someone, but waited on hold for hours, only to be hung up on WHILE WAITING ON HOLD. When we finally were able to reach someone, they. put us on hold and then HUNG UP ON US.

These people never wanted to even talk to us. They just KEPT our money!!! THEY WERE THE ONLY COMPANY WHO DIDN'T ACCOMMODATE TO THE CURRENT ISSUE. They also did not even speak to us regarding our booking. We have been calling for a month now. WHAT THEY ARE DOING IS ILLEGAL.

BE ADVISED, THEY HAVE ALREADY BEEN INVOLVED IN LAWSUITS.

DO NOT BOOK WITH THEM. THEY WILL JUST STEAL YOUR MONEY!!!!!

This greedy and unethical company is being sued for keeping money from school children and their parents after the company canceled trips due to Coronavirus. They have a pattern of canceling trips and keeping your money and you get nothing! They only care about money and not earning it.

Worst customer service experience. I tried to book a trip a few days ago the agent (Amanda Surkin) that answered the phone told me that I needed to book my reservation with her but that she would only be in the office for 30 minutes but I would be able to contact her via email. I sent her the detail reservations and requested she tell me what my deposit would be so I could call her and complete the transaction on a record line.She took 72 hours to respond to me, at which point the cost of the trip increase by $600. She took no responsibility for it and didn't even try to apologize. I'm extremely disappointed with the experience.

Worst customer service experience. I tried to book a trip a few days ago the agent (Amanda Surkin) that answered the phone told me that I needed to book my reservation with her but that she would only be in the office for 30 minutes but I would be able to contact her via email. I sent her the detail reservations and requested she tell me what my deposit would be so I could call her and complete the transaction on a record line.She took 72 hours to respond to me, at which point the cost of the trip increase by $600. She took no responsibility for it and didn't even try to apologize. I'm extremely disappointed with the experience.

Both Cairo and Amman hotels in poor locations and rundown. 2 star places as bathrooms are very run down, hallways smelly. Guides not professional, Jordan guide was sleeping on bus and talked very little. Egypt guide should too much interest in one couple ....not good.
No water provided on long bus rides...should be free, had to pay for it. Had to buy several linches and eat on bus...should be a sit down meal. Some buffets were mixed in with many other tour groups which makes for a lot of noise...was like herding cattle to a pen.

My wife and I just returned from a wet season trip with International Expeditions (IE) to Lima and the Amazon.
It was tremendous:
1. The diversity of wildlife is extreme and up close and personal.
2. The vastness of it all approaches infinity.
3. The staff and guides were top drawer professionals.
The IE mother ship (Zafiro) is in great condition and very comfortable, clean and welcoming. The staff is friendly, helpful, supportive, knowledgeable. The naturalists/guides are the best. Experts in the wildlife and flora and good-natured and personable.
Yes, it is hot and humid, but very bearable. Yes, there are mosquitoes at night, but again very manageable. (We've all experienced much much worse in the US.)
In the wet season (50 feet higher water than in dry season) you don't get to walk as much as you do in dry season because terra firma is so much further into the rain forest than you can reach in a boat. But we did get to visit villages and walk in the rain forest.
We swam. We went out every morning and afternoon in the skiffs to explore smaller rivers and lakes. Sloths, monkeys, iguana, boa, anaconda, caiman, tarantula, piranha, frogs, toads, and more bird types than you can count.
Wow - What a Show!

We booked a bareboat charter in BVI a little more than three years ago. There were various, serious issues regarding the boat which I reported to Moorings as they occurred. Nobody took it serious. Upon our return and after several reminders, Moorings finally reverted and offered us a discount on our next charter. As I had already spent too much time on the matter, I did not challenge the compensation offered.

When we this year wished to make use of the discount, it turned out that it had expired. I wrote Moorings and asked whether the discount still could be applied. They replied that they normally don’t extend the duration but that they would speak with customer service (whom I was corresponding with in the first place). This is now three months ago and I have still not received a reply.

We paid for a 3 week luxury river cruise but received a large group bus trip across Europe with many days of packing and unpacking. I called our Viking representative when we received an email message just 2 days prior to departure that mentioned a possibility of problems with low river levels. I was assured that everything was "normal" In reality, as we learned later from ship personnel, nothing has been normal for at least 3 months. About 2 weeks prior to departure, we received by mail, lovely personalized booklets describing all the details of our voyage on the Viking Lif, which we were to board in Russe, Romania. Instead, we boarded the Viking Aegir but not at Russe, because the Danube was too low. Instead we rode buses upstream to a port on the Romanian side directly opposite our first scheduled stop at Nikopol, Bulgaria. We had a beautiful cruise through the Iron gate gorge, but after three more scheduled stops in Bulgaria, Serbia, and Croatia, our voyage was terminated in Mohacs, Hungary, an unscheduled place two days short of reaching Budapest. So we were herded into buses for a 1.8 hour ride each way to our scheduled stop at Kalocsa. The next day we retraced the journey to Kalocsa and continued an extra 1.5 hours to reach Budapest. We lost the entire morning in Budapest and spent the night at the Marriott hotel. The next day we lost the entire afternoon in that city because we had to take a 4 hour bus ride to Vienna. Where we were put aboard the Viking Embla. Our voyage on that ship ended two steps later at Passau Germany. After a day in Passau we went upriver for a short distance and it seemed that we had entered the canal to take us to the Main river. But much to our surprise, it was a dead end channel for an industrial port. We spent two days there with our balcony room moored tightly against another Viking ship so there was nothing to look at but the scenery at that site was even worse than looking at someone else's window and the balcony was unusable anyway due to the unpleasant odors at that site. The pattern continued with a long round trip bus ride the next day to our scheduled stop at Regensburg and a 3 plus hour trip the following day to Nuremberg where we finally boarded the Viking Lif. A crew member told us that the Lif had not traveled east of Nuremberg for 3 months. We sailed from Nuremberg to scheduled stops in Bamberg, Wurzburg, and Werthiem and then our voyage terminated for good at an unscheduled port in Mainz. Once again we endured a long round trip journey to our next scheduled stop at Koblenz, followed by a 10 plus hour bus trip (with lunch and a walking tour in Cologne) to Amsterdam and a night in a hotel. Despite a promise that our bags would be in our rooms (they did take great care to provide us with tags so they could easily keep our bags organized) all the baggage was dumped in the hotel garage and it took a good 15 minutes of searching to find it and then take it to our rooms ourselves. There is much more, but it would only be more descriptive of the misery of this trip. We know Viking didn't cause the low river levels, but they did not need to lie to us and make us suffer because of it.