We just finished a "4 hour" private boat tour through Capri boat service with drivers Salvatore and Mario. Our experience had wonderful moments and ended in a really disappointing way. I think it's important for others to know what to expect.
Our tour started 50 minutes late which was not at all the fault of the company--our own separate ferry from Positano to Capri was running extremely late. However, when we communicated with the company, they generously offered to extend our end time from 2 pm to 2:15 pm. We were very thankful.
The tour started and our guides were so kind, welcoming and accommodating. They pointed out landmarks, played fun music and provided rosé. They even offered to take some wonderful photos of us which was also super appreciated.
Finally, we passed the blue grotto and they asked if we wanted to wait in the long line of boats or skip it. We asked, "if we skip it what is the alternative plan?" They said "more time on the boat! We can spend these minutes in line or on the water exploring more." We chose the latter.
We shouldn't have done that, because 20 minutes later, we were pulling back into port in Capri. I asked, "it's 1:22, where are we going?" He said, "Do you want to swim some more? The tour is over but you can swim." So in reality, there was no more to explore. We were offered to park in the middle of the busy port and swim (for the third time).
I wish we had known to choose the blue grotto instead of the disappointing alternative. I also wish we weren't made to feel silly about the tour being "over" over 40 minutes early. We paid for a 4 hour tour and got under 2.5 hours on the water (only 50 minutes of which was the fault of the ferry). However, we still tipped them of course.
We asked the staff upon return about a partial refund given the enormous time discrepancy. She called the driver who said, "they wanted to go back." The staff then said, "there's nothing I can do."
Just a giant bummer after a brief beautiful couple of hours on the boat to then be met with such an abrupt and premature ending as well as hostility and no hospitality.
With a giant abundance of options for boat tours in this area, I advise choosing a different company. I hope to be proven wrong with a refund to meet at least the cost of a three hour tour (and even that we didn't actually experience fully). So far though, the staff at this location seem to have zero interest in offering solutions (or even the tiniest apology). We own a business of our own and if we paid staff who responded to issues this way, I'd definitely want to know. And as a tourist here with options for where to spend money, it's important for future travelers to know as well. read more