Lucerna: tour in auto privata alle cascate del Reno, Titisee e Foresta Nera

This was to be a 10 hour tour for 4 adults. We expected a knowledgeable English speaking driver in a vehicle large enough to hold 4 passengers in relative comfort. We were greeted with a driver who did not speak English and had a sheet of paper for us to read as we went on the tour. The vehicle was a Toyota Prius with a jump seat in the back which was not suitable for for a 10 hour tour with 4 adults. We refused the tour and our Hotel was able to get the same tour with a different vendor for the same price with a Van large enough for a comfortable trip and a knowledgeable guide with excellent knowledge of the area. Stay away for Yo tours.

I was shocked to discover that Viator, a TripAdvisor Company, and one of its subcontractors Yo Tours were scheming opportunists. Shocked, because our travel group had successfully used the Viator Tour company for four of our other excursions during our August 2024 trip in Europe. We fully enjoyed one Viator day trip from Killarney, Ireland and two Viator day trips from Edinburgh and Inverness, Scotland, as well as just completing another Viator day trip to Mt Pilatus from Lucerne, Switzerland. So when our plans resulted in an additional full day in Lucern, we did not hesitate to consult the Viator online website to book a tour. Our schedule meant that we made our booking on the afternoon prior to our “Rhine Falls, Titisee & Black Forest Day”. This obviously left us vulnerable to the stipulation that a full refund will be given if cancellation is made more than 24 hours prior to the actual excursion. We had no such safety net, nor did we expect to need it. We were in the lobby of our hotel by 8am, ready and waiting to experience a 10-11 hour adventure for four adults with an English-speaking tour guide, at a cost of just over $1000. After waiting for almost an hour, a car pulled up and a man using very broken English got out and attempted to communicate to us that he was our agent. We asked if he would be our guide for the day and he showed us a printed page which described all our points of interest. He was dressed in a teeshirt, cargo shorts and sandals, proceeded to convey that he would drive us to the various locations and we would be able to read the paper as we went along. We were a group of four Americans and the vehicle we were expected to ride in was a Toyota Prius. When we questioned its size, the man opened the hatchback and indicated that we could also climb in the back “for more room”. We began to question the reality of spending 10 hours in a small hatchback vehicle, being driven by a non-English speaking person for a cost amounting to $250 per person. We asked to speak to his company’s agent and finally got a call from someone actually located in India. This person said we could not “back out” of our contract or receive any refund, because we hadn’t given more than 24 hours notice (which would have been impossible to do). He said we would be considered a “no show”, and the driver proceeded to leave. With the aid of our Renaissance Lucerne Hotel staff, we were immediately on the phone with Viator Tours, trying to plead our case, while also trying to salvage our day by requesting a larger vehicle and an English speaking guide (not just a driver with a printed handout). After waiting almost another hour, a lovely van and even more wonderful guide, came to our rescue. Py was dressed professionally and was fluent in several languages. Through the course of the day, we asked if he was aware of the experience of our first driver (he was not). He was amazing and accommodating. He helped us as we needed to interact while ordering in restaurants. He had all our necessary tickets. He always secured convenient drop off spots and tried in every way to make the day an enjoyable experience while adjusting for the two hour delay in start time. We had a peaceful drive back in the evening while listening to lovely music and returned to our hotel exhausted but happy. I’d gladly reach out to Py on any future European trips as he was a wonderful and knowledgeable guide. We believed we’d have the opportunity to dispute our original “offering”, and have worked with Yo, Viator, as well as our own credit card company over the last few weeks. None have been willing to take responsibility to “make right” the unacceptable experience. Essentially, our Lucerne: Private Car Tour to Rhine Falls, Titisee & Black Forest cost us $500 per person. We’d like to have our original $1000 refunded and be able to feel secure with using Viator, a TripAdvisor Company in the future. At this point, after respectfully trying to work for a justifiable refund, we felt our only recourse was to leave this review as a way to warn other travelers.