This business is a "for profit" business. As such, I would think they would be required to post their prices, which to my knowledge they do not.
We were visiting relatives in Washington and this tour of, "the city of murals" which Toppenish, Wa. is known for looked like an interesting tour for the kids and adults alike. As such our relative made an appointment to meet the horse drawn wagon tour director the next day at a parking lot in Toppenish, so we could go on the horse drawn wagon tour. I was surprised when my relative asked the owner/operator how much it costs for the tour upon our arrival.. I was even more surprised when he stated it is, $15.00 per person. So, we paid $75.00 for 3 adults and two children. It was also a clue when we were the sole people meeting the operator for the tour.
The tour consists of the operator and another younger man controlling the movements of two horses that evidently have ancestors in Norway. We "toured" approximately 7 to 9 streets looking at murals on the sides of buildings within the city, while traffic buzzed around us. While the tour operator did have a microphone and used it to "explain" what we were looking at, it was difficult at best to take any pictures of quality as the wagon was constantly moving, stopping, taking off etc. What did we walk away with for $15.00 a head? Nothing worthy of note.
I would recommend walking to look at the, "city of murals." For $75.00 I clearly felt we had been taken advantage of as "tourists." As we left the town of Toppenish we saw the prettiest and most detailed mural the city likely has to offer. That was not on the tour and the pictures that had explanations or descriptions of the various murals cannot be read.
I was left wondering if the $15.00 per head charge was what this outfit usually charges or the mere question of, "how much" while we stood in an empty parking lot, caused the operator to capitalize on an opportunity that likely does not come his way often.
I would not recommend this tour to anybody. It is a 'tourist scam and rip off." We learned nothing that we could not have learned by merely strolling through the small town, field trip style. read more