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Tucan Travel Reviews

4.0 Rating 257 Reviews
75 %
of reviewers recommend Tucan Travel
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Tucan Travel 4 star review on 11th January 2017
Dave Adams
Anonymous
Anonymous  // 01/01/2019
I tried Tucan do to the fact the tour company I was using was not delivering what they were claiming I booked 2 tours back to back with Tucan the first tour Burma which was great The second tour Borneo had a rough start on the booking side and then a last minute change to the tour that change did bring the level of the tour down a bit but this was still a good tour
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Posted 9 years ago
Hi Jurgen, Thank you for your review and I am so pleased you had a good time on both the Spiritual Burma and Borneo Adventure group tours. Due to scheduling issues with airlines, we did have to make a minor change to your Borneo Adventure tour which was outside of our control. We did everything we could to find the most suitable alternative but as with all public transport trips around the world, we are sometimes at the the mercy of transport companies. If you have any further feedback, do get in touch with feedback@tucantravel.com. Kind regards, Jess
Posted 9 years ago
The Central American tour was a Wow. So many different places. All with their own unique places and faces. The small group tour was very well run and the guide, Bec, was so well organized that at times we did not have to get out if the bus at some borders. Thouroighly enjoyed the trip.
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Posted 9 years ago
Tour leader ill prepared. Was late on number of occasions. She had little background knowledge of places visited. Lot if time wasted waiting for transport. For example, we left one place at 6pm and hung around approx 3 hours before we boarded next bus which we were on over night. One very very poor hotel. Thankfully only there one night.
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Posted 9 years ago
Hi Marion, Thank you for your feedback. The tour leader for your Tango & Samba group tour is incredibly experienced having done close to 10 of these group tours before taking your group in to Rio Carnival from Buenos Aires. The tours we offer are Adventure Tours which use public transport to get from A-B. We prefer to use this as it offers the same experience locals have of travelling through their countries and gives our travellers the opportunity to speak to them. Sometimes, this can result in delays and slightly longer travel times than when travelling by private transport but we believe that this is all part of the experience of genuine adventure travel. Kind regards, Jess @ Tucan Travel
Posted 9 years ago
I have just returned from a tour in Morocco and I had an absolutely fantastic time! The trip and the country by far exceeded by expectations and I could not fault a single thing. I would definitely recommend it anyone else seeking culture, friendly locals, stunning scenery, adrenaline and fantastic food! Thank you again for a great tour and for giving me some amazing memories! :-)
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Posted 9 years ago
Loved the tour - landscape and scenery was spectacular... but I was very disappointed with the lack of experience and knowledge of the tour leaders on the Moreno tour I took in Nov 2014. It was the tour leaders first time taking this tour in Patagonia and it showed. It was fairly frustrating when the tour leaders couldn't even recommend treks or optional activities as they had no or limited experience due to the fact they had not done it themselves persoanally. This is believe this falls back on Tucan Travel and internal staff training - not good enough, particularly when we have all paid good money to undertake this trip! It felt like they were still on training as they were scoping out hotels, restautants for their next trip. Some info was also out of date such as prices for activities (Eg.train ride at Ushuaia quoted at $290 pesos and if one way would be half of that but trip was $380 pesos regardless of one way or round trip!), terrain on treks, visa info etc. Additionally there was no itinerery or outline of the trip given to travellers by the leaders (one for all to view on the back wall of the bus). Communiction from the leaders was also limited and most days we didn't really know how long the day was so was hard to pack food etc. Spanish was also limted by the leaders so sometimes was difficult at restaurants etc. Catering at Torre Del Paine was not the best, very bland - too much bread, both for breakfast and lunch. Much better if breakfast was eggs, omletts and lunch rolls rather than rolls for both meals. Dinner was lovely though. Staff at the campsight were rude at times, turned lights off, locked us out the dining room and withheld food portions. Tents in Torres del Paine were new but inappropriate for the climate/conditions. Strong winds would blow up underneth the tent flaps so was very cold even with layers of thermals, socks, beanies and using the sleeping bag provided. Thankfully the leaders allowed us to us blankets they had persoanlly purchased on the last night. The local leader in Torres del Paine was irresponsible at times - didn't take responsibility for the group and at time would clash with the Tucan leaders. He would walk far up ahead then wait for us to catchup regardless of how the group were doing. The group was mainly made up of people aged between 62-72yo, only 4 of us were under 40yo so we helped the oldies as best as we could. Overall I felt like we were on a training trip for the leaders... yet paying full price. One disappointed traveller. Sorry Tucan - lots to improve on!
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Posted 9 years ago
Hi Melissa, Thank you for your feedback. I am very sorry that your tour did not match your expectations. Our tour leaders are trained to a very high quality however, sometimes it is impossible for tour leaders to have visited every destination we operate in and to have done every hike or optional excursion. Group tours in Patagonia operate only during peak season and due to this, we often find that prices for things change when the region opens up again for tourists in early November. On top of this, we also try to limit the amount of paper we use and so try not to print itineraries for each passenger where possible. Torres del Paine National Park is one of the highlights on this trip and I am sorry that the facilities were not of the standard you were expecting. The weather in Patagonia can get cold and we always try to prepare our passengers for this as much as possible in our pre-departure information. We do not offer the opportunity to upgrade to hotels and many clients opt to do so. Kind regards, Jess @ Tucan Travel
Posted 9 years ago
Hi there, I had a terrible experience with tucan and the booking service of this tour, i felt it was a total and complete waste of money. I booked the tour with misleading information of when I had to pay the deposit of which I did too soon and regret it. I was contacted two months before the tour to say I would be the only one on the tour and if this was ok, i would not be given a refund if not and i got given an alternative date with little information about what this change would entail. When my flights were canceled due to no fault of my own I tried to see if I could change the date or get a refund for the tour with absolutely no flexibility or understanding from Tucan. The tour itself was boring, the local payment combined with the fee I already paid was utter extortion. We even had to pay for transport to the attractions. The places we stayed were not adequate, in one week spend in the north Indian winter on the tour I was able to take only two hot showers. We had 3 nights in Agra in a horrible dirty and dangerous part of the city and there was absolutely nothing to do apart from see the Taj that only took an afternoon. This was a total waste of time and money when I paid the fees I at least assumed that I would be taken to places where I wouldn't be able to see and enjoy india and not just sit around doing nothing at freezing cold inadequate hotels. Also I would like to point out that its a 6 day/7 night tour as the first day is a travel day and as soon as we got back to Delhi on the 7th night the tour guide was happy to just leave us at the hotel and go home, we had to ask him to come back to help us organize activities for the 7th and 8th day, he had no intention of doing this in his mind the tour was over. Overall I am extremely disappointed with Tucan and I will be advising others to book with another company and I will not be using you again.
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Posted 9 years ago
Hi Aleksana As you were the only client booked on to your group tour 60 days before departure, you were given the opportunity to switch to another departure date, free of charge in order to get the full group experience we offer. Many people choose to do this when given the option as they would rather travel with other people than just the tour leader. Instead, it was decided that you would continue as planned and so you were asked to pay the full amount due, as per our booking conditions. Unfortunately, when your international flights were changed, we were unable to offer you a refund or change you on to a different tour as your hotels and transport had already been booked and paid for by us. The tour you had booked was one of our Budget Expeditions in India. These tours are designed for the price conscious traveller and we include no attractions or excursions in the cost. This allows you to pick and choose what you want to see and when. I am sorry that you feel this was not made clear to you during the booking process. All of our group tours start in the evening of day 1 and finish in the morning of the final day allowing travellers to arrive and leave at any point during the day. Your tour was eight days in duration and the first and last days were arrival and departure days as per the itinerary listed online. Your tour leader can organise excursions for you outside of this period however, it depends on whether they have the time to do so. I am very sorry that this tour did not meet your expectations and if you want to discuss this further please email feedback@tucantravel.com Kind regards, Jess @ Tucan Travel
Posted 9 years ago
Brilliant, my second adventure trip with Tucan. I had high expectations and they were more than met! Strongly recommended.
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Posted 9 years ago
Guide was excellent. Places visited great. Accommodations super. Thank you.
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Posted 9 years ago
Tucan seem to have a policy of always using central hotels which is great. The tour leader had a great combination of professionalism and being friendly, he got us out of one potentially tricky spot really well. The range of places, accommodation and travel that we were provided with were fantastic. The group meals gave us chance to share our stories and inspire others on what to do next, Thank you for a fabulous holiday, I'll be back.
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Posted 9 years ago
I had a nice trip to Columbia, great landscape, interesting atmophere and nice people. But I would expect more from an organized group trip. The guide had no real interest in the tour and didn't really know the places we were going to and wasn't even intereted in getting to know them.
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Posted 9 years ago
Hi Kathrin, Thank you for your feedback. It is very important that our tour leaders are of an excellent quality and we invest heavily in their training. We have taken on your feedback on this tour leader and will be investing in further training for them. For any further comments, get in touch with feedback@tucantravel.com Kind regards, Jess
Posted 9 years ago
I would have liked to have more young people in our group.
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Posted 9 years ago
Nice tours Wonderful guides
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Posted 9 years ago
Wonderful tour. Well organised with a variety of activities which as an independent traveller I may not have access to, in this country that is still developing the infrastructure for tourism.
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Posted 9 years ago
An inexpensive way to experience ancient Mayan sites in different countries as well as current Mayan culture and Spanish colonial cities.
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Posted 9 years ago
Sub-standard hotels spoiled this trip.
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Posted 9 years ago
Hi Helen, I am sorry that the standard of accommodation on your tour did not meet your expectations. We prefer to use 3* hotels and guesthouses owned by locals rather than western chains and the facilities and standards can vary depending on the region and even the time of year. We are keen to hear more about your accommodation however. Please email feedback@tucantravel.com with more information. Kind regards, Jess @ Tucan Travel
Posted 9 years ago
It got better and better in India, and when came to Nepal it was a haven!
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Posted 9 years ago
Excellent trip, it was so much worth, I'll definitely travel again with Tucan.
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Posted 9 years ago
San Ignacio was not worth staying at. Hotel was far from town and town was boring. All of our activities were cancelled due to weather.
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Posted 9 years ago
Tucan's adventure tours are brilliant and well-run. They combine well-researched and run activities that offer both some of the advantages of group travel (convenience, low cost and companions) with a good mix of independence. The tour leaders are quite good and helpful. Tucan's overland tours are also good, but in my opinion, they have way too many people on them. The disadvantages of these are many, the principal being that the trips become as much (if not more about) the travelers than the destination. This aspect takes away from the experience of getting to know places and its people.
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Posted 9 years ago
We were part of the La Paz- Quito trip in Oct 2014. It was a very busy and interesting trip but be prepared to be always going up more steps . Where ever we stopped the guides were very knowledgeable about the local attractions . There were so many historic attractions it is hard to pick our favorite . Our tour leader was fantastic and helped us through any difficulty that arose. We are a couple in our mid 70's and very much enjoyed this trip.
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Posted 9 years ago
Tucan Travel is rated 4.0 based on 257 reviews