Bus tour 'The Emerald Isle of Thassos'

I would like to share a review about a trip to about. Thassos from 09.09 to 18.09.2017 with an escort named Ksenia.

The stay on the island was relatively good. The program is great, but not 100% executed. For example, such a visit to a jewelry factory resulted in a visit to a store at the factory. I even asked, and when we go to the factory, Xenia's answer is "we will not go to the factory." Almost everywhere it was all about shopping. Excursion to Theologos for 20 euros with a lamb resulted in gatherings in a tavern. They didn’t tell us anything about Theologos, they didn’t give us time to just walk around the village. Acquaintance with Limenas resulted in a trip to the Marble Beach, despite the fact that for 10 euros tourists are taken to the beach from 10:30 to 17:00, we had until 14:00, and then no information about the city, go shopping yourself or somewhere else. And everywhere - a visit "where you can shop" If this is a shopping tour, this had to be reported. I have a tour service under the Agreement.

But what preceded the island was, to put it mildly, shocking.

We drove to the city of Serres for a very long time, stopping for shopping for 1-2 hours. It became clear such a delay after we arrived at the hotel after 14 hours (by the time we checked into the hotel). This can be somehow justified, everything was done in order to save money.

But the "comfortable" bus did not justify itself. Ksenia announced in the morning that if anyone wants to go to the toilet, they must tell the driver “I want” so that he provides for the nearest bus stop for visiting. Like at school in a lesson - ask the teacher for time off.

The whole day there was silence on the bus, no one tells us anything, it became boring, and I decided to check what was happening with the toilet on the bus. And she went without informing the drivers. But the vigilant Xenia cut off my movement and reported to the drivers. I leave the toilet, and accusations like “how could I disobey” fell on my head. What's the matter? Tell the truth that it doesn't work for you." As a result, it was reported that it was not good to visit the toilet without warning, it was not turned on. "So turn it on." In response, silence. They didn’t say the word “does not work”, but everyone understood the essence.

In the evening we were finally given tea and coffee. Everyone rushed to the boiling water. I have the experience of traveling by regular bus Lviv-Krakow, where the attendant offers tea and coffee and even brings sweets to the passenger's seat. But that's not the point. BRINGS. But it turned out to be pandemonium, someone poured it on the seats, on people along the way. I understand the bus is not yours. But you had to find out everything about its performance. In addition, I called you and found out these points, and my tour operator Tanya from TUI also found out. They responded positively, assured that everything was working. Toilet on the bus is not just a convenience, it is a restriction in drinks. So I wanted to drink beer at bus stops, the water did not quench my thirst. But do not stop, the same bus in an hour.

Someone could not stand it and asked to turn on the TV, it was so boring and quiet on the bus. They turned it on after a rather long period of time, somewhere after 9 pm, when it seems that you can already sleep.

The return trip was also disappointing. For some reason, Kavala was given 4 hours of free time to explore this stone city. Everyone finished in 2 hours and then suffered until the departure of the bus. The result - arrived at the hotel after 22 hours after dinner. Again, savings, due to the convenience of tourists.

But in Melnik, when they arrived, they allocated only 1 hour of time, but everyone wanted more, there is something to see, buy, taste wine. Maybe this is due to the fact that everyone refused to taste for 3 leva, when they pour it in every house anyway. I had a lot of free time, I say this, because the stop at the supermarket (we were already there when we were driving from Odessa) lasted 2.5 hours, plus another hour in the smuggling office.

Time is not rationally allocated. Even when visiting the Alistrati cave, one could add at least an hour to the canyon. I understand, these are my preferences, but we had a tour not SHOPPING.

And another suggestion. The trip to Theologos was limited only to visiting a tavern, the time to explore the village was about 30-40 minutes, and there is a marked path in the gorge. Well, at least an hour or two was given.

The tour program is good, but it is advisable not to delay the transfer from Odessa to the island and not leave people without dinner. It is better to allocate one more day to the island. And the savings on dinners can be easily compensated - do not take on board people from whom you did not receive money for the ticket. They paid a business official who has influence over you. Get rid of such people who like to receive money (they were paid, but not the full cost) instead of paying you.

And there is an opportunity to reduce travel time. When we were going to Odessa, there was a problem with the bus. Sasha managed to repair everything, but it took four hours to repair. Despite this, we arrived in Odessa on time.

About Xenia. She told us where we were going and what time. When they stopped, she said where the toilet was and how much time was allotted. True, this never coincided, but increased by 2-3 times, except for the departure from Melnik, where it was interesting to Teologas, where they did not give time for a walk around the village. She does not have information about the places visited, so a couple of phrases and no more, what she managed to look at on her smartphone. Plus, he knows Greek. He does not answer uncomfortable questions, but in the future he pretends that everything is OK. A good girl, she has endurance, she is not burdened with information, but I was probably mistaken in thinking that she is our guide, and not just an escort.

We were not even told that a river flowed in the Alistrati cave in 2013. They said that it is at the bottom of a dried-up lake. And this river comes to the surface in the canyon, even rafting is optional. Yes, now there seems to be no river and we have not reached the wheel. Or maybe they just limited their stay in the cave. See http://turbina.ru/guide/Prosotsani-Gretsiya-135979/Zametki/Zdes-v-reke-otrazhayutsya-ne-oblaka-no-stalaktity-81283

And no one said that when you go to the canyon, a stone hut is a church with all the utensils. We didn’t even go there, we thought some kind of gatehouse near the railway tracks. And yes, time was running out. The choice was either a cave or a canyon. So they ran to have time to at least look at the canyon.

And in Limenas they didn't tell us how to get to the ancient amphitheater, they just toiled around the city for 1.5-2 hours, looking into the shops. You haven't positioned tour + shopping anywhere. And yet - the loss of time when leaving the hotel. Breakfast ended at 9:00 and left at 10:00.

And you have a strange item in the program - the cost of the ferry ticket is paid separately from the tour to the island? It is clear that everyone pays their own fare to the meeting point - Odessa, but in the middle of the route, an additional fare is something unique. Maybe all bus trips around the island to make paid. Think.

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