Adventure Tours Waiting Game

Not long ago Dana and I (and Dana's relos) took a bus trip from Adelaide to Melbourne along the Great Ocean Road. The tour guide and scenery were fantastic, but we had some legitimate complaints about the lodging. Last week I sent an email to their customer service:

This past weekend I took the 3 day Great Ocean Road trip from Adelaide to Melbourne. The scenery was beautiful and the guide, Jen, could not have been better. Unfortunately, the trip was seriously marred by the accommodation and, apparently, how the accommodation details had been communicated to us.

About six months ago my parents were visiting from the US. I planned their Australian trip and sent them on this same tour as part of it. They are active adults, but since they are not used to hostels I booked them the accommodation upgrade. They loved the trip, especially the guide, (Jen was their guide too), and said the accommodation was nice. Knowing this trip is a backpacker trip, no one expected the hotel/motel upgrade to be anything luxurious, but they were certainly satisfied with what they got.

A couple of months ago my partner was planning a trip for her father and three others travelling with him. Remembering what a great time my folks had, she booked the trip for them, and for us to accompany them. All six of us opted for the upgrade.

The first night we stayed in the Happy Wanderer in the Grampians. My partner and I stayed in a freezing campervan. There was a\ private bathroom, but it was not connected to the campervan. We had to walk outside and around the back: it was essentially a ni e outhouse. While we were not thrilled we accepted the accommodation and laughed it off. I seemed awfully cheap considering the two of us together had paid $150 for the upgrade, but we were certain the hotel or motel the next night would be an improvement. What's more important is that my partner's visiting relatives had nicer rooms.

During the early afternoon on the second day, our guide called my partner aside to make sure she knew we would all be
staying in the hostel that night. This was a surprise and, concerned for the comfort of her relatives, she was very upset. Our guide called the office to confirm what our booking should be. The employee at the office said this had been clearly communicated to my partner. Obviously it had not. For the next few hours we tried to sort things out. It was very distressing and neither one of us were able to enjoy the afternoon - the Twelve Apostles, London Arch, etc. Jen put herself out, giving her private bathroom to our older traveling companions. She would not let us refuse the offer. Still, they stayed in the hostel but in a private room. We stayed in a private room and used the shared facilities. While the hostel was a nice one, we would not have paid $150 extra for this.

We booked our trip through this site:
http://www.adventuretours.com.au/index.php/travel/vic/03_day_grampians_great_ocean_roadIf you click on the "hotel" link on the right side of the page, thedescription is "Hotel/Lodge Accommodation - Generally 2-3 star standard withprivate facilities." This is not what we had. I did some research on these places. Here is a breakdown of accommodation costs for this trip:

Hostel
-
Night 1 - Asses Ears: $22/Person
Upgrade - Night 1 - Happy Wanderer:
$48 for Two in a Campervan ($24/Person)
Hostel - Night 2 - 13th Apostle:$25/Person
Upgrade -Night 2 - 13th Apostle: $30/Person for a Private Room

I believe all six of us deserve a refund for the upgrade of this trip:
The upgrade accommodation is valued at $7/person more than standard accommodation. Adventure Tours charged us $75/person for the upgrade. Nowhere on the booking form does it say that the upgrade may include shared facilities.

The fact that we would be staying in a hostel and have shared facilities was not effectively communicated to my partner when she was booking the trip. Dealing with the issue during the trip was stressful and resulting in a major lack of enjoyment with a significant portion of the trip.

I look forward to your response.

Regards,
Denis Hurley

No reply yet - a week later. Photos of the trip itself will be posted soon, once we agree on which 75 of the 7500 we took.