Scenic Opiniões 38

Very difficult company to deal with. After two failed attempts at going on a cruise due to Covid. (nobodys fault). I was given an undertaking that I could have my cruise payments refunded at 30 June 2023. Some 2 years after the second cancelation. Good luck getting Scenic to honour that commitment, they just continue to make empty promises. Unfortunately I will have to take legal action against them to recover my money.

I recently did the Jewels of Europe tour on the Scenic Jewel which began in Amsterdam on 28th of July and brought my son and his family. Altogether there were 7 of us.
I have also booked for 17 people December 2014 for the 7 night Christmas market tour.

Please take this feedback in the manner it is intended and I hope it will be helpful for future planning.

First of all the staff were absolutely amazing. Nothing was too much trouble and this helped make our trip very enjoyable.

Now some areas that could be definitely improved.
1) The food for the evening meal was not good. I understand they have a small kitchen but there is very little variety and whenever we ordered the options of salmon, steak or chicken, they were always well over cooked and dry even when we asked for it to be rare or medium rare.
2) Bread rolls were so tiny and tasteless, Nice large bread rolls would be great
3) One day we had just been in beautiful German wine country where we all got a chair lift over miles and miles of vineyards. That evening we were offered Australian and American wine. I asked if it was possible to have wine from the region we had just visited, and they said sure, but this should have been standard practice and we should not have been offered Australian and American wine.
4) It would be nice to have table cloths at night. We were often tied up next to other boats and could see they had table cloths which made the meal more special
5) Portobellos was closed half the time meaning we only had one turn in there. Suggest opening every night as the meal quality was much better and that way everyone could get 2 opportunities to eat a higher quality meal

6) The machines to talk to listen to the tour guides were terrible. We spent 20 minutes of each tour trying to get them working In the end I just stayed close to the guide so I could hear what they were saying. My brother did same cruise 2 weeks before me and he agreed, Everyone on his trip had same problem. Even the tour guides said other companies use much better and more modern systems, so would be great to replace these.

7) Even though it is small, the massage/facial room is still charging top prices for a treatment but the ambiance was not good. This small space needs to be made a lot more relaxing and spa like. ( Im in the beauty training industry so this really bugged me as we work with small rooms and it is easy to do, good bed, battery candles etc, nice things on wall.

8) I also suggest a dress code for the evening meal, jacket for men, long pants, women well dressed.This raises the level.we were on the trip of a lifetime, and having people in thongs at dinner and shorts ( men and women) lowered the quality

As I said, the staff were amazing. I could not fault them, but the suggestions above would be easy to implement and raise the professionalism and quality of Scenic experiences

My Fiancé and I were booked to travel to the Antarctic in December this year. I had to cancel as I have a diagnosis of Liver Cirrhosis and need to have scans etc. They wrote to me and said that we would be refunded in 8 weeks. I thought that was a little bit of a long time but never the less waited. After the 9th week I got in touch. After agreeing the refund, they then wanted proof of my illness! This is private information but I obliged. I was told that the refund would be in my account within 3 days. A week later there was still no refund. I made a good 8 calls over the following 4 weeks to address this issue. They said to me that they wanted proof of bills that I had to pay. Then in my last recorded (with their knowledge) call they wouldn’t let me have their customer complaints email address. I wrote yet another email and said that I would take this to Consumer Affairs and A Current Affair. The refund was for $36,000.00. It was only then that they got in touch by email and processed my refund. Finally. 13 weeks after they agreed it. I’ve read on reviews of people waiting 3 years for the same. The abject lack of understanding and customer care with this company is simply non existent. You can never get past the people on their general number - they simply wont put you through. I will never sail with them anywhere. Be warned. They will hang on to your money even if you are ill and need the refund. Disgusting behaviour.

After visiting Antartic in 2020 with Scenic, they canceled two other trips that year. Scenic decide to keep the tour payment in full for the first trip. Booking those canceled trips in 2022, Scenic canceled both tours within weeks of the departure dates, without reasons given. Now in june 2023, after months going on a year of refund requests, Scenic refunded the 2020 tour payment. Scenic kept the 2 years of earned interest on our money.

River cruise ran late. Scenic promised a partial refund under their "guarantee". Since January Scenic has concocted excuse after excuse to delay our refund. Be vary wary travelling with Scenic.
We were loyal to Scenic, taking multiple river cruises and land tour, but not anymore. Prices remain premium, but quality and service are now bargain basement.

This particular cruise ship lacks entertainment for guests. No small band, no comics, no shows, no casino. The tours are also very short timeframe and the ship usually docks in the afternoon in mosts cities leaving very little time for guests to leave the ship and enjoy the places you are visiting. Not much information is provided by cruise regarding tours, times, docking etc. everything is a guessing game

I personally would not book this cruise line again

From absolutely loving Scenic, in the past, to now being utterly disappointed in their untrustworthiness. Shame on Scenic. Our twice deferred trip finally went ahead, then before departure was curtailed due to inability to supply the tour extension content. We were encouraged to make our own accommodation arrangements for being stuck in a destination three more days than Scenic were able to accommodate us on the understanding we would be reimbursed by Scenic for the three days of hanging around. That was a joke. In the end, the reimbursement made, did not even cover part of one night of the hotel costs in the very hotel that they would have used could they have secured the booking. Money is owed to us and I doubt we will ever see it. We had this offer from Scenic in writing, which subsequently their staff choose to ignore. We were always willing to spend on on Scenic, booking Royal/Owners/Panorama cabins, This a back to back cruise and pre and post tour extensions. We shall not be availing ourselves the displeasure of Scenic again. Shame because we were thinking of booking Scenic Eclipse before this happened. So very disappointing. We shall take our money elsewhere now.

Our booking experience was horrendous. Apparently Their website had been hacked making it impossible to contact anyone as all numbers we called just rang out. We did get in touch with someone after being on hold for over 3 hours. We booked our trip of a life time and we were very excited. We received our booking via email only to find our names spelt wrong so we spent hours trying to contact your booking department to get that changed. We received our invoice promptly we paid and then didn't receive a receipt for a week later and several emails and phone calls later. Not once did your staff apologizes for the delays just ignored our complaints. Very poor service

We chose Scenic as they advertised 5 star cruising, top service and luxury. We didn't get that.

On arriving at the airport we were a bit unsure where to go - Viking had staff at every gate and several at the meeting place (Amsterdam) we actually asked the Viking representative where the Scenic representative was ! We met up with other passengers and waited, our one representative turned up 30min late ! (with no apology)

On boarding our boat -Crystal- was disappointing, she was old, tiered and smelt of sewage. this smell stayed around for 4 days and then the whole boats toilet and shower system went down for a few hours !! Spider webs, bugs, leaking showers, ripped seats, missing chess pieces - Not very luxurious.

To get a drink at night was a drama it took at least 30 min to get served. To Scenic's credit the food was amazing.

24 hour butler service! Well we did get to meet our butler who introduced themselves to us when we boarded. We were ill two nights and decided to eat in our room. I rang our butler service to get our dinner delivered to our room only to be told that they where very busy and would get to us when they could, the second night we ordered again only to be told the same thing they where busy -I'm sorry what happen to 24 hour butler service to get you anything you need!! that night we only received one meal I rang to see where the other meal was only to be told very rudely that what I ordered wasn't on the menu - it was as I was looking at the menu on the TV - I was told that they would see what they could do - nothing arrived.

To top of all off the cruise was cancelled due to low water But to Scenics credit they did refund us which we appreciate. I am writing this to let you know that we where looking forward this trip
That I personally have dreamed of doing for years and we bitterly disappointed and I'm sorry I will not recommend Scenic to anyone thinking of doing a Europe river cruise

We paid 5 star price for a 3 star cruise

Have just been informed that our fully paid Europe River Cruise for July 2023 has been brought forward by two days! With flights and other travel arrangements locked in, this means either missing the first day or two of an 8 night cruise or paying a large sum to change flights at the second busiest time of the year. Scenic have “generously” offered to pay just half the cost of the changed flights leaving me well out of pocket and with a very poor opinion of this travel company. Are they on a downward spiral with their treatment of customers?

I have been trying to contact them for several days to make changes to a booking. Wait times are anywhere from 40 minutes to over an hour. They can’t answer questions and place you on hold. They have written and stated they would make contact on a day with an update and they don’t. This is beyond frustrating when you are charged a premium for the cruise. This companies customer service and engagement is nonexistent.

Very disappointed with the Grand Australia tour. (For UK guests on,
Poor communication beforehand, things are changed because Australia has not fully re-started (according to the Tour manager) and we have missed out on some things.
We’re very disappointed with this trip overall. It is not the luxury experience we’d expected. Very little is included once you’re on the tour, very few meals, slow porterage, very few trips/activities. With very few exceptions (Kangaroo Dundee, School of the Air and RFDS), it seems like the Free choices offered are almost the only trips. Lots of things require pre-booking independently and you need a good level of fitness to be able to join lots of the trips, as most need you to walk between 10-20 mins to join them, where you’ll be left in your own with people from other groups/independent travellers and be expected to find your way back to your hotel on you own.
It seems like Scenic are cutting back, and paring things down to the minimum. We’re not as busy as I’d expect to be, and things, so far, seem to be badly timed so we waste time and reduce our chances of getting the most out of this beautiful country. Again, lots of people grumbling and several first-time guests say this will be their last.
We’d booked to go on the Camel riding trip in Uluru. What we didn’t realise was that the camels are close to the resort. As the resort is 20km away, the view from the camels would be quite poor. I was able to swap to a dawn view of Uluru and had an informative morning, and a short walk. I could have taken the camel trek as we were back by 8.30. Apparently, camels cost 80AUD. Maybe that could have been thought about by Scenic.
Those who had chosen the camel ride had thought they would go very close to this iconic sight - the highlight of the tour and, whilst they enjoyed the ride, didn’t get close to the site. But they did get a chance to go in the bus in the afternoon to get almost as close as the trek and dawn group managed to get. Again, maybe this could have been explained properly.
The sunset experience was a disaster. No one arrived to set up our drinks and nibbles whilst we enjoyed the sunset. We were offered a drink with dinner to make up for it, but all felt this was insulting and we pushed for drinks with dinner (dinner is around 89AUD pp). It was insulting as Scenic say they offer unique experiences… and we stood by groups which included tours by Saga who thoroughly enjoyed the copious bottles of champagne brought by the same hotel group who were supposed to be organising our own celebration, and laughed at our discomfort. We certainly felt like the poor relations, despite paying over £2k pp more.

In Alice Springs, Brownie’s bus always had lots of water - but we were otherwise expected to buy our own throughout the tour. Brownie was a far better guide than our own - far more informative and pleasant to listen to.

Melbourne- Crowne Promenade
Excellent room. No complementary bottles or water jugs in room. Fridge was full of products to buy (small bottle of water 5AUD). Coffee was decent, but tray not replenished. Nice dressing gown. TV dreadful - movies were all pay to view. Good breakfast.
But - only given one free choice activity plus the Promenade dining. Don’t do Yarra River cruise as a free choice - it’s easy to do from the hotel during the free day. People loved the Penguin trip and I deeply regret missing it. To do the cruise independently, it would cost around 59AUS, whereas the trip to see the islands is much longer, is more difficult to do independently, and costs around 179AUD. The tour manager walked us down to the trips, but we had to make our own way back.
Promenade dining - there’s a 95AUD allowance, which is almost impossible to dine without paying an additional amount.
Cost cutting seems to reign supreme . No transfers are made for almost any of the trips (fine if you can walk 15- 20 mins easily) and find your own way back. We are not given tours of any of the places early on, so we can’t see much without finding out for ourselves. In far too many places, we miss so much because we’re not given a free walking tour or bus tour. In Melbourne, we had to pay an extra 60 or so AUD for a walking tour in the free day. This is not what we expected.
Very few meals are included, and there seems to be problems booking places for restaurants.
Descriptions of free choice trips aren’t always accurate. I do think Scenic could make a note about how long they last, the approximate start and end times, and if some options are easy to arrange for free time. It seems as if Scenic have cut back on activities and guests have to do a lot more for themselves (at extra cost). Now, this isn’t a problem for some, but others budget carefully to experience luxury for a few weeks of the year, and might not expect large additional expenses once on the trip.
Many won’t go with Scenic again.

We have not yet made it to the cruise. That’ll be in May 2023.

Scenic took our deposit and were great to deal with. That’s where the good experience to date ended.

We are doing other things while in Europe and need to make arrangements now. We need Scenic advice on flights for the cruise before we can make arrangements.

I have called Scenic a number of times and waited at least an hour without being answered. I have tried their webchat, as suggested while waiting on the phone. No one is there to chat to. I have emailed a number of times and been advised that they are busy and will get back in 2-3 working days. Three weeks later I have heard nothing.

We received a letter from their CEO explaining that Scenic has encountered problems in recent times. He apologised and promised things are improving. Clearly this is rubbish.

Do not deal with this company. They do not offer 5 star experiences. It is impossible to contact anyone, phones and emails are not answered. Even a personal letter sent by recorded delivery to the chief executive has not been acknowledged.
During our recent Danube cruise due to low water levels it was necessary to change ships. Unfortunately when we arrived on the second ship we found that we had been allocated a cabin of a lower grade. No one had the courtesy to advise us of this change and when we complained to the cruise director we were told that we would have to take the matter up with our travel agent when we returned home.

Cruise from Amsterdam to Budapest change boats 3 times because of this I missed the part I really wanted to see the Rine valley,we spent 5hours on a coach then another 4hour further down the river.

I have a major concern I would like to bring to your attention.
My partner & I conducted a RAT test (which was negative) prior to departing Darwin on 20 June, on a Scenic Tour of Top End & Kimberley.
Unfortunately, my partner was COVID positive by a RAT test when we reached Mercure Kakadu Crocodile Hotel on 22/6.
Once we advised the Tour Director, Mark of our circumstances he told a web of lies to everyone.
1). He told Management of the hotel that we had a family emergency and were leaving the tour to return home.
2). He told the remaining passengers on the bus, that we were leaving the tour because of a family emergency.
3). They then proceeded through NT & WA, with the indigenous communities being put at risk because I believe my partner caught COVID from someone on the bus.
I have followed up with Scenic that they have complete disregard for everyone with these lies they are happy to tell.
My concern is the fact when we left our room at the Mercure Crocodile Hotel, two young men then went inside to clean the room.
We then sat in the hotels reception waiting for a lift back to Darwin for flight home as we were unable to get suitable accommodation to isolate.
I’m angry that a “so called” reputable company can get away with these lies when we were completely honest.
I believe you should be aware of this indiscretion by Scenic Tours.

we booked a river cruise to Vietnam/Cambodia for September 2020. Evergreen cancelled our trip due to the China virus and although presenting medical documentation to state we can not take the vaccine, Evergreen/Scenic are refusing to refund the monies we paid for this trip. Very poor Evergreen/Scenic..(Booking Ref. 670928). , Section 5. Cancellation, delays and changes to Your Itinerary. It clearly states at para 5.4 if Evergreen Tours (i.e.. Scenic Tours) delayed for more than 7 days FOR WHATEVER REASON, the customer may terminate the contract and has the option to request either a full refund or a credit towards future tours. Despite numerous attempts via email, Donna Willis (Guest and Corporate Affairs Manager) has FAILED to furnish a direct response to a number of questions I have put to her...

You never know more about a company than when something goes wrong. Covid hit, and Scenic put the walls up. Where customers who were cancelled (the company cancelled, not the paying public) have to fight protracted battles through consumer and tribunal systems to get a refund - which was stated in Scenic’s own Ts and Cs. Scenic have rejigged their Ts and Cs which manifestly favour themselves, and virtually remove all option of a refund. Surely this is in contravention of consumer law? If I order a product and the company doesn’t deliver, I’m entitled to a refund UNLESS it’s Scenic, in which my money is kept with them for a couple of years. They’re keen to tout their Australian origins, but the concept of mateship has passed them by. The battle to recoup our money costs time, money, and mental health. They couldn’t care less. They estimate up to 6 months to repay customers. However, the majority of customers paid them promptly, and if we’d said ‘we’ll get to it later’ they would have cancelled and kept our deposit. If they get customers in the future, I would: (joke! Would never use a company this unethical again) negotiate the Ts and Cs so it’s equitable. They cannot hold all the cards. Pay using a method you can obtain a chargeback with in the off-chance they cancel and you have to jump through hoops to get your money back. I’m bitter and poorer for dealing with them. Add insult to injury: comment on their social media, and they remove or hide it. Heaven forbid anyone should think they’re not amazing!

I understand that the company invokes disaster clauses to avoid giving refunds and then attempts to look like/to be good corporate citizens by offering credit vouchers. They claim those vouchers will be refunded if unused in December 2022. But the product we purchased (a Baltic Cruise) is not being offered again. We will be unable to use that voucher for the experience and know that right now. It’s a large amount of money to withhold.#600873