UPDATED: OCTOBER 21, 2018

PRIVATE TOUR / GROUND TOUR PACKAGE

We are ready to prepare together with you your private tour / ground tour package as part of your stay with us. Based on your wishes we will prepare together with you your tailor made detailed itinerary based on a realistic time schedule and arrange for your transportation. For nights not staying with us we prefer that you make your own arrangements, but on special request we can also book accommodations for you.

Our position regarding transportation and preparing detailed itineraries is as follows:

If you stay with us we are ready to arrange for your transportation under our Credo ‘Exclusive and Excellent’.
If you stay with us you are also most welcome to arrange for your own transportation.
If you don’t stay with us we will not arrange for your transportation.

It means that at a certain moment we will require a down payment on the cost of your stay with us before finalizing your itinerary and giving you our quotation for transportation as our transportation quotation will be based on your final itinerary. If you stay with us we will not require down payment for transportation, etc.

We take the above position as preparing individual private tour / ground package takes quite a bit of time and as such we like to see our efforts resulting in happy guests also staying with us.

Sometimes it does not work as we hope or expect and I give you two recent examples of this.

Example Nr 1: Chew

First e-mail

Quote

Hi, I’m going to lake toba on 8/11, back on 13/11, 2 adults 3 child (12, 9, 5 years old). Looking for private tour/ ground tour package.

Pls reply with price n itinerary. Thx
*im not going to Medan ya, both from silangit Airport.
I hope can cover Berastagi, samosir n parapat. Tq

Unquote

After having already reached agreement on the overall itinerary, which included one night stay in Berastagi and sunrise climbing Mt Sibayak with our guide we requested a down payment for the cost of one night of the four nights Chew intended to stay with us.

Chew responded that the stay with us was confirmed and asked if we did not trust Chew. If we trusted Chew we should finalize the itinerary and provide cost quotation. We accepted.

After another three days we together agreed on the final, very detailed, itinerary and we informed about the cost for transportation.

Chew who had always been very responsive during the itinerary preparation process, not to speak of numerous related questions became now a bit quiet.

After another three days we asked Chew to confirm correct receipt of final itinerary and cost quotation.

The response of Chew was as follows:

Quote

Dear Berend & Mian,

Thanks for your mail. Btw I had found the accommodation & transport.

Thanks.

Regards,

Chew

Unquote

Example Nr 2: Ester

The story about Ester is almost exactly the same as Chew, but it did not stop there.

In finalizing the itinerary and trip Ester used our itinerary and recommendations for making her own arrangements with only one change. Not staying two nights with us but staying two nights in another accommodation in Tuk Tuk. Needless to say that we were not involved in any aspect of Ester’s trip.

Two weeks after Ester completed the trip she asked us for help to recover her money. It seems that Ester made her own arrangements with an individual who goes by the name of Juker.

E-mail Ester

Quote

I HAVE BEEN CONNED

My total tour costs was IDR 9 million.
I paid SGD 365 via PayPal and the rest of the balance IDR 5,368,000 which I paid cash upon arrival.
The itinerary was.. picking my two sons & I at Kualanamu Airport and drive straight to Bukit Lawang. Check in into (----) Inn accommodation and the next day we will go jungle trekking/camp a night. The following day we will raft on the Bohorok river to (----) Inn accommodation where we will be staying a night.

On the next day we were supposed to be picked up by a driver and continue our journey to Lake Toba via Berastagi, Si PisoPiso etc and stay two nights in (-----) Cottages, tour around Lake Toba and the last leg will be dropping us off in Aryaduta Hotel, Medan.
Well, all these did not happen.
The driver never came.
Juker was uncontactable.
Several calls made by the (----) Inn staff to Juker were not answered.
My sons and I were stuck in (----) Inn.

At this point in time; we had to leave Bukit Lawang to Medan (heading to the Embassy & Police Station.. And several calls were made from there to Juker and not answered) immediately; so the following day we took a taxi costs IDR 500,000 and emergency check in into Aryaduta Hotel which costs IDR 1,200,000. All these unexpected costs have caused us so much stress. We have trusted him, he has asked for 30%-40% payment in advance because he needed to put deposit on all the accommodation.., well he is a liar, (----) Inn’s breakfast was not booked and the accommodation has not been paid yet (Juker did not book the accommodation himself personally but has asked someone to book) and there was no deposit lodged at the (-----) Cottages accommodation in Tuk Tuk. He is a big time liar!

Juker has spoiled our trip which we planned beginning of this year. This is unfinished tour! He has robbed us in broad daylight. I am truly upset and angry with this person.

I would appreciate your opinion and your help. What should I do now? My tour was unfinished and I should get my money back.

Kind regards
Ester

Unquote

HORAS !!! HORAS !!! HORAS !!!