Europamundo Avis 31

Do not book!! They changed our itinerary at the last minute. And left us with a “ free day” ( which we payed for ?) 30 minutes from anything to do! Had to pay to get into town…. Do not trust them!!! When I called to figure out our schedule change the “customer service rep” was of no help actually the opposite. she gave me false information and I had to ask Larana to double check?! They act like the want to help and say they’ll call you back but never do! Please do not book!!! Very sad because there guides have been great. I wish them the best!

I would strongly advise you not to use Europamundo under any circumstances. If you look carefully at prior reviews, there's a theme -- The tours seem to go fine, unless something goes wrong. If so, the company is difficult to impossible to work with. Our experience was a genuine nightmare.

We got to the airport and were turned away at the gate because of a passport problem that our travel agent never checked. This began an entire summer of stress and frustration. All we wanted was to rebook at the end of the summer after we got a new passport for my daughter. But, you're not allowed to deal directly with the company. We asked the travel agent every few days for updates, but literally WEEKS would go by without Europamundo response. First, Europamundo told us through their agent no problem, they'd just rebook us. Weeks later we were told they backtracked, there'd be a 25% rebooking fee. Unfortunate, but we agreed. Weeks later then they'd only rebook us for a specific date and if we didn't commit that day to it they'd refuse to refund any money. We felt strong-armed (we didn't have the new passport back for our daughter yet), but agreed. Then, they just said they were keeping all our money. When we complained and pointed out that we did EVERYTHING in the terms of service to notify them 24 hours before the tour started, they played games with the language and told us no refund whatsoever. It finally worked out that they kept (i.e., "stole") about half, around $4000.

Losing the money is bad. But worse, they destroyed our summer in unnecessary stress, anxiety, and anguish. After all this finally ended, I managed to get a Europamundo email address to complain directly. Unsurprisingly, that email was entirely ignored. It's only now -- after having a "do-over" Europe vacation this summer with another company that went smoothly and fantastically -- I realize how important it is to warn everyone to avoid this tour company. The downside is simply not worth the risk. Use ANY other company but Europamundo for your trip. They are truly awful.

It’s a company that you would regret paying whatever you did . If you expect someone is going to welcome you with open arms and smilingly tell you your schedules for the day then forget it . The communication is extremely poor . We did their swiss and Italy spotlight trip. From day 1 we were struggling . There was no one to tell us what to do on your first free day or to greet you . The hotel staff was clueless . Hotel selections were cheap hotels far away from centre where even to buy a meal you have to travel and spend a lot of money. Eating at hotel was expensive and you are expected to pay for water , tea bags etc . The guides at Europamundo are like military professionals. You will feel sometimes you are on an army training campus where they shout and scream at you for being even a minute late , expect you to be up really early and there is no respect for the elderly . If you request you need to stop somewhere for a toilet they will rudely turn you away at times . The vacation was so de densely packed that it did not feel like a holiday at all and we as a family feel we need another holiday to get over this one . Overall I would rate them 0/5 for bad hospitality, poor communication, zero compassion and indifferent attitude towards elderly . You are better off paying twice somewhere else and having a better holiday . This company is a nightmare To travel with

To Whom It May Concern of Europamundo Vacaciones and Petrabax,
Reference: Madrid and Andalusia Tour, April 20-25, 2024
This is to inform you, Europamundo Vacaciones and Petrabax, of major concerns and observed difficulties which plagued your tour company’s operations from 20 to 25 April, 2024. These concerns were observed and witnessed by several members of the tour group during this time period, and it appears that these concerns are habits ingrained in your mode of operations and staff.
The three major concerns are in the areas of;
1) Miscommunication
2) Lack of Management and No Accountability
3) Toxic and Caustic Employees in the Field
First, in regards to the miscommunication, the posted tour information sheets in hotel lobbies need to be in other languages, aside from only English and Spanish. I observed that our tour group consisted of diverse cultures and several languages, to include Pakistani, Arabic, Chinese, Brazilian and Indian members. There were only seven English speaking members (Americans) of this entire tour group, which had no difficulty in understanding the English tour information sheets and tour guide instructions. The other limited-English groups had extreme difficulty in understanding the basic instructions from the tour guides. This caused tour members to miss meeting points and times, which were crucial for the overall tour timeline. To remedy this miscommunication, I recommend the that guides verify that members of the tour group understand basic English or Spanish directions and all the explanations, if not, your corporate office needs to remind customers of this crucial need. In addition to this miscommunication, the tour guide, Alba, scolded the entire “English group” several times of our not being “punctual” for departure times and meeting. I observed and witnessed all the English speaking tour members being on time, and that the non-English or limited-English members were late or confused on directions constantly. The tour guides also assume that all English-speaking tour group members understand their directions, which was incorrect and only added to the confusion and chaos.Second, there is a lack of management and lack of accountability, in regards to how the tour group functions daily. For example, when the entire tour group was separated and directed to their hotels, some hotel room reservations did not exist or were not available. This caused more confusion and displeasure between the tour group and the tour guides. To remedy this mismanagement, Europamundo could email the tour group members of the hotel name and verification of hotel rooms, prior to the start of the entire tour. This task should not be placed on the tour guides, who were overwhelmed and unable to deal with tour group members who were displeased and angry that no hotel rooms were reserved. There were several times when the tour guide, Alba Romero Amores, was overwhelmed with angry tour group members for the lack of hotel bookings and unavailable tour site tickets to locations. Alba conducted herself in a professional and courteous manner during these difficult moments, but was still overwhelmed with circumstances beyond her control. There is no person or office to contact for accountability, in regards to tour group members expressing concerns during the tour.
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went on spanish ring tour in early april 2024. guides were excellent as was itinery and hotels stayed at fine. Coach was comfortable and drivers very competent . range of extra activities great too. the availability of free time most days was appreciated. it is a fast tour covering a vast distance and experiences but a fantastic introduction to spain . best suited to those who love to walk a lot ! I had the loveliest people as fellow travellers and had a fantastic time . sad when the tour was over . highly recommended .

ps the app is worth using with audio as well

I did a 15-day tour in Japan in June 2023 and it was a wonderful experience. Guides were helpful and knowledgeable: Pablo, David (2), Eduardo and Erika. I was explained all the tour details by my travel agent and Europamundo complied with the tour, timings, hotels, transfers... Great organization! Some of the passengers were a bit lost as they bought online and did not really read the tour info but the group did a great job and we supported each other by keeping a great and open attitude towards the trip. I will repeat again as soon as possible with some other European destination. THANK YOU Europamundo!

My family and i were amazed by the amount of care in every detail, we sure walked a lot but it was worth it, the guide was very humane and kindhearted, she let us take pictures, videos, even agree to take pictures with us, definitely an experience to repeat

Can you explain why your guides are scamming money out of customers? They give all the spill about the castles like anwick castle and Beatles exhibition say it’s £20.50 and get a certain amount and get a cheaper ticket a concession and they pocket the rest of the money which is totally wrong. The more they can get to go in the more they pocket and they always ask for cash .

It started with us not picking us up at the air port.
The tour was korea + japan for 15 days.
In korea they splitted us in 2 groups. The english group got put in a van/mini bus. The guide wasn't really speaking much english. Was a complete botched job. Alot of rushing, no explanations at all. The meals were hit and miss. sometimes good kbbq, the other time the worst pizza and pasta i ever had.

Then when we got in Japan, a really good guide was speaking spanish/english was much better.
I learned alot with this one.

Then we got another guide. First timer guide, group of 40. Was a complete s show. She made me pay a ticket that was included, she couldn't really speak english much. so I had to keep asking what she just said in spanish.
Anyways I cut my tour and didn't do the last day.

Just stay away from this company.

I booked the Turkish Tour. My guides were Leader and Erman. These guides are incredibly friendly and generous individuals. They really went above and beyond what I would consider necessary from a tour guide, to ensure we all had a great tour. Both guides were incredibly well researched in their country and were able to answer all questions anyone had about the history of this beautiful country.
The tour itself was great fun and covers a a lot of different parts of the country which really allowed us to gain the diverse range of experiences that Turkey can offer. The tour inspired me to return to the country again, and of course I would use this tour company again.

I booked a 15-day Korea/Japan tour with Europamundo through TourRadar. I have written a critical review on Europamundo about my experience on several platforms and will continue to do so in an effort to WARN future travelers NOT to book with EUROPAMUNDO. My posted review in TourRadar, has been met with a response that is accusatory and diminishing. And their response to my review at Google was more of a copy-pasted-answer asking me to detail my trip and take my concerns to their email. They assured me PUBLICLY that they will “take measures they deem appropriate,” I still have NOT heard from them weeks after I have written to them. This only further confirms that they DO NOT CARE ABOUT THEIR CLIENTS and will lie to you consistently. Your complaints will only fall on deaf ears. BEWARE AND STAY AWAY FROM EUROPAMUNDO!!

REVIEW FOR TRIP:
If you care about an immersive travel experience do NOT book your tour with Europamundo. Their itineraries consist of a long check off list to visit many points of interest. Groups are large, sometimes exceeding more than 40 clients/ 1 guide. The majority of the time will be spent commuting in a crowded bus. Upon arriving at a destination, a short guided tour took place, sometimes followed by 30 mins to 1 hour of free time before being constantly reminded to get back in time to the bus on the way to the next destination. The food included in the tour was run-of-the-mill, often having to make long queues before being able to eat.

Outside of the formal tours, there was not enough guidance as to where we can eat and what to order in our free time. Most of us do not speak Korean/Japanese and have no idea what food to order or how to order as most of the menus do not have an English translation. One of the tour guides even recommended Burger King, pizza, and pasta for a night's dinner in town! The guide did not even mention any places that would help us better immerse ourselves in the cultural cuisine. We did not pay thousands of dollars to go across the ocean to have another pizza or burger.

Before the trip, the initial Q&A with the representatives was also very poorly addressed. Entering Japan required filling out several digital forms. Some of the information requested in the form can only be answered by Europamundo. I have contacted them at least FIVE times for some guidance in filling out the form only to be DELIBERATELY ignored each time stating that filling out the forms is not their responsibility. During the trip, so many of our fellow travelers haven’t even completed the forms as they have the same issues and questions we had. This is NOT excusable behavior for a tour company!

If your idea of a tour is to check off as many places on a list and have subpar customer service, Europamundo may work fine for you. For the rest, I would recommend looking elsewhere.