We had a reservation for the 4:00 PM mine tour on 8/1. Not being from that area, I called the…read moreweek before while planning our activities for the day, to confirm our family (7 people) had time to complete the Hiawatha Bike Route and make their 4:00 tour. The gentleman I spoke with confirmed both were do-able on the same day. Unfortunately, he neglected to mention that we needed to be at their site 15 minutes prior to the tour. We completed our bike ride but the gps indicated we would arrive at 4:08 PM. Since we were such a large family, I called as a courtesy at 3:50 PM to update our timing. Upon opening the reservation email for their phone number, I saw the request to check-in 15 minutes early.
Kelly, the manager, told me they would not wait for us. She said the guides are retired miners, and she would not ask them to wait - even though we comprised 7 of the 9 attendees of the 4:00 tour. She said we had to arrive in 5 minutes (3:55 PM) or rebook for another day. Unfortunately, we couldn't legally drive that fast and were leaving the area. So, we had to decline those options.
That same evening, we got a text asking us to leave a review.
I hate sharing grievances publicly. So today, 8/7 I called again, hopeful that we could reach a compromise with some shared responsibility in the mix up. However, she was so argumentative I couldn't get a word in. When I tried to speak, she'd talk over me and just went into a rant. I was never able to deliver my suggestion. I concluded this was not productive and while she was still ranting, I disconnected the call to begin writing this review. Despite my reluctance for saying anything negative publicly.
Truth be told, I have no idea if it's a good tour or not. Perhaps the staff are wonderful - I can't really say. But Kelly is a bulldog and not suitable to interface with customers.
Perhaps this "heads up" on the rigidity of policy will spare another family the huge disappointment our 9-year-old faced. He is a rockhound and had been so excited about this tour. For the owners of this enterprise and other employees, I apologize for saying anything harmful about the Sienna Silver Mine Tours. This situation could have come to a far more favorable conclusion. In my opinion, Kelly should not be a decision maker nor a representative of this tourist-driven attraction. She is offensive.
I am regretfully giving this a score of "0" stars.
Susan and family, from the NW Washington area