I have never written a review of any form on a website before however I wanted to inform people that they should not choose to go on the glass bottom boat trip with Mundo Marino, Denia.
I am a PE teacher and have led many water sports trips. I am experienced sailor and do not usually suffer from any form of sea sickness.
On Tuesday 29th July my father and I went on the glass bottom boat trip at 4.30pm in Denia. My father had booked it so that we could have a fun day out together which we rarely get to do these days. We arrived at about 4.15 and were told that there was a possibility that we wouldn't be able to go out because of the rough sea. However at 4.30 we were told that the sea was fine to go out on.
Within about 10 minutes of being out on the sea it was apparent for all to see that the decision to go out was the wrong one. The sea was so rough that the boat was being buffeted all over the place. The water sprayed over the sides of the boat soaking some of the customers. There were times when I thought that there was a possibility that we could capsize.
It was at this point that members of the customers began feeling sick. The majority of the group required sick bags including my dad who has never felt sea sick before. As stated earlier I have never felt sea sick but I certainly did on this occasion. The old lady next to me and a young girl were sick. Despite knowing this the two young man no effort was made to go back to port. Knowing that we would not be able to make it to the secluded bay and knowing that we would not be to snorkel because of the rough sea we stayed in the same spot for at least half an hour. The small hatch on the floor was opened. The glass measured approximately 100cm x 30cm. I believe it to be false advertising to call it a glass bottom boat and only have such a small piece of glass at the bottom of the boat. Needless to say no fish were seen because of the state of the sea. It was only when my father requested that we go back to port that we eventually did. However knowing that we were going to get back early the captain decided to fill time and let the young children to steer the boat. Although this was a nice thing to do it was not appropriate as it was very apparent that a lot of the people on the boat were feeling very sick as they had sick bags held to their mouths. To make matters worse the captain then took the group on a tour of the harbour and even stopped outside the company's office and called his colleague out of the office and asked him to take a picture of us on the boat.
When we docked 6 of the groups of 18 went to the ticket office and asked for a refund. The young lady working at the ticket office refused to give us a refund. She did offer us another of the trips offered by the company however we were leaving Spain the next morning. After the experience that we had just had just endured I'm sure that you will understand that we never wanted to use the company again. She pointed us to the terms and conditions that stated that they can't control matters that are out of their control such as the weather. However I stated very clearly that they were in charge of the decision as to whether we went out on the sea in the first place. I stated to them that it was extremely obvious that it was the wrong decision. It was very clear right from the outset that the sea was too rough and that we would never had been able to go snorkelling or see any fish. The weather did not change between when the captain first went out to assess the water and when the group went out to sea. The young lady did not agree with me much to my amazement.
To charge me and my dad 45 Euros for a totally unpleasurable experience where we both felt incredibly sick and at times unsafe, where we did not see any fish and did not snorkel was unacceptable. I believe that the decision to go out was based on the need to make profit and not on the safety, well-being and enjoyment of the customers. They knew that they would have to reimburse the customers if we did not go out, so therefore in order to make a profit they made a decision that was to the detriment of the customers. It is my belief that the inexperience and unprofessionalism of the two young men in charge of the boat led to a completely unsatisfactory experience for the customers. The fact that we were not given a refund added insult to injury. read more
