We booked the 4 Day Turkey Tour: Cappadocia, Pamukkale, Emphesus in December after reading all the positive reviews on Tripadvisor. Many reviews said the local operator did not connect with them or provide itinerary until a few days before, so we waited patiently.
When we did not hear from Viator's local operator, Travel Store Turkey +90 532 708 7596, less than 72 hours prior to the trip, we started to contact him through WhatsApp, Viator app, texting and phone. We received no reply. When we finally got him on the phone, he informed us that the dates we had booked would not work and inquired if we could do the trip 3 days later. When we said we cannot do the trip 3 days later, he said he was driving and will call us back later. We did not hear from him that afternoon, that evening or the next morning. With less than 48 hours to the trip, we contacted Viator to inform the company that we were told our travel dates are not possible, and want to confirm we will receive a refund. We were at first told since the Viator representative also could not get a hold of the local operator, a refund request has been submitted on our behalf - "Operator are unreachable at of this moment. However, I can send an email refund request to the operator since you can't reschedule the tour."
Soon after we asked about the refund. Travel Store Turkey contacted us via WhatsApp and said trip is now booked, plus much gaslighting. They told Viator that they had sent us the itinerary a week ago -- A COMPLETE LIE. As two women traveling alone in Turkey, the dishonesty made it clear the local tour operator cannot be trusted.
Viator at this point started to tell us since the trip is "booked", refund is not possible. After hours of conversation with Viator representatives via WhatsApp and phone (2 hours), they finally acknowledge that Travel Store Turkey admitted he told us our confirmed travel dates would not work (66 hours before trip). They also admitted Travel Store Turkey sent an email confirming everything is booked only that evening around 8pm - after we asked for refund that morning at 10:41am.
Viator does not care Travel Store Turkey LIED. Viator does not care about CUSTOMERS' SAFETY - they want two women traveling alone in turkey to go with this dishonest guide. Viator does not care about any potential scams - are the hotels, flights, trips actually booked? Why book anything after we ask for refund? Why no mention of any partial refund if the trip isn't taking place at all?
We are now still about 20 hours from the original trip departure. After hours to texting, 1.5 hours on the phone with representative, we asked to speak to a supervisor last night. Waited 30 minutes and still no supervisor is available. Supposedly a supervisor will call us this morning, but we have already been told the supervisor won't be able to help us with refund either.
I have lived in CT, IL, MA, MD, NC, WA. I have travelled extensively in US, Asia, Australia, and Europe. I used Viator in 2014 for a day trip in Taiwan and had a positive experience. This is the first time we booked an extended trip with Viator. Needless to say, Viator lacks basic care and decency for its customers. I will no longer use Viator for any of my future travels and I share this honest experience hoping to spare any frustration and heartache of those reading. read more