ABD just cancelled my Portugal trip that's been sold out practically since opening day

[CaliKris]

Well, I'm definitely not rebooking the Portugal trip for next year. In fact, I'm not re-booking with ABD at all for next year. 2024 is doubtful. We'll see what happens. It may be that stuff like this *does* happen for a reason, as I've decided to use the money I would have spent on the ABD to plus up a trip to Hawaii I have at a friend's timeshare. I'm hoping my TA can help me add a few days at Aulani to that trip. And I just found out the daughter of a dear friend of mine is having a Destination Wedding in Cancun in August, so I'll most likely use the credit (or at least a large chunk of it) on the airfare for that. Not what I had planned, but I still have plenty of travel to look forward to.

Sayhello

No ABD plans for 2023 or 2024? I started looking at these boards about 10 years ago in hopes of one day taking an ABD. Since that time, @sayhello, you have been a constant source of helpful information, trip reports, tech advice, travel information, etc. Not to mention one of ABD's biggest cheerleaders.

This makes me sad, but it is ABDs loss. Let's hope management makes some changes soon or that new management comes in and starts making smarter decisions. They are not loyal to their customers and so they are losing their loyal customers.

 

[sayhello]

No ABD plans for 2023 or 2024? I started looking at these boards about 10 years ago in hopes of one day taking an ABD. Since that time, @sayhello, you have been a constant source of helpful information, trip reports, tech advice, travel information, etc. Not to mention one of ABD's biggest cheerleaders.

This makes me sad, but it is ABDs loss. Let's hope management makes some changes soon or that new management comes in and starts making smarter decisions. They are not loyal to their customers and so they are losing their loyal customers.

Definitely not for 2023. 2024, we shall see, but I'm thinking I may try someone else like Tauck or Overseas Adventure Travel (who my neighbor travels with a lot and highly recommends). Then we'll see if things are any better with ABD or not after I have something to compare to. If they aren't... who knows. It really *is* sad, because I thought I'd keep traveling with ABD until I was too poor to do group travel anymore! But I'll still be here, trying to be as helpful as I can, even if I'm not traveling with them.

Sayhello

 

[aggiedog]

We have a cousin who frequently travels solo with Classic Journeys. She loves them. I will say our one Morocco trip with them was stellar.

 

[sayhello]

We have a cousin who frequently travels solo with Classic Journeys. She loves them. I will say our one Morocco trip with them was stellar.

Yes, they are an option, also. I traveled with them last year to the American Southwest, and while it was a really good itinerary, and a small group of fun people, there were a lot of logistic problems. It was a new version of an existing trip, and it seems like they offered activities without doing their due diligence on things like how far in advance they needed to actually book the things they offered in order to get them . A couple of things were not available by the time they got around to booking them, so we just didn't get those activities. And they informed us of that by sending out a new .pdf of the trip without calling out that there were changes or what those changes were. That doesn't give me the best confidence in them. They also gave me wrong answers multiple times when I called them (things like what time are we meeting the first day and what kind of footwear did I need for one of the activities) and they booked us in a hotel that was pretty bad (in an area where much better options were readily available). Their communication with the Guides was also apparently not the best, because one Guide thought he was in charge and the other Guide thought they were equals. It caused quite a bit of tension during the trip. Overall, I enjoyed the trip, but I'm still deciding if I want to give them another chance or not.

Sayhello

 

[laceltris3]

I'm confused by this. If you purchase your flights through ABD for an ABD trip, and later on ABD cancels the trip, ABD also refunds the flights, correct? I've asked this specifically to the ABD air department multiple times and they say my understanding is correct.

It was if *you* could choose to cancel your trip under the Covid policies. There were some people on this board whom ABD told that the airfare ABD had purchased was not refundable, nor would the person get a credit.

 

[sayhello]

It was if *you* could choose to cancel your trip under the Covid policies. There were some people on this board whom ABD told that the airfare ABD had purchased was not refundable, nor would the person get a credit.

They didn't even get a *CREDIT*??? That's horrific!

Sayhello

 

[Mathmagicland]

It was if *you* could choose to cancel your trip under the Covid policies. There were some people on this board whom ABD told that the airfare ABD had purchased was not refundable, nor would the person get a credit.

Wouldn’t it depend on individual airline policies? I’ve always thought of AbD as similar to a travel agency when it comes to airfare - they will book on your behalf if you choose to use them to do so, but the airline’s polices would still apply re credits, refunds, etc.

 

[sayhello]

Wouldn’t it depend on individual airline policies? I’ve always thought of AbD as similar to a travel agency when it comes to airfare - they will book on your behalf if you choose to use them to do so, but the airline’s polices would still apply re credits, refunds, etc.

A lot of Travel Agencies actually have their own policies that override the airline's policies. Like my ticket that I booked through Chase Ultimate Rewards, United considers them my Travel Agent, and everything has to go through them. And their system can't handle multiple transactions on a credit, so once you use any part of the credit, any unused portion is forfeit. United's policy is you can keep using it until it runs out. I'm learning stuff the hard way. I've also seen some TAs that make a part of the deposit non-refundable even if the provider says it's refundable. You definitely need to ask up front, and read the fine print!

Sayhello

 

[laceltris3]

A lot of Travel Agencies actually have their own policies that override the airline's policies. Like my ticket that I booked through Chase Ultimate Rewards, United considers them my Travel Agent, and everything has to go through them. And their system can't handle multiple transactions on a credit, so once you use any part of the credit, any unused portion is forfeit. United's policy is you can keep using it until it runs out. I'm learning stuff the hard way. I've also seen some TAs that make a part of the deposit non-refundable even if the provider says it's refundable. You definitely need to ask up front, and read the fine print!

Sayhello

Correct. Ultimately, I think at least one person was ultimately able to get a credit, but it was one of those things that I wouldn't want to risk and required a lot of effort and determination and that you just couldn't believe when you heard it. It was deep in the replies of one of the threads on this board during peak Covid. It was crazy from a customer service perspective.

 

[laceltris3]

Here's the post that talks about the airfare cancellation not being refundable, if anyone is interested
https://www.disboards.com/threads/fall-2021-abd-river-cruises.3845465/page-4#post-63244233

 

[CaliforniaGirl09]

@sayhello I'm so sorry to hear about your trip cancellation. How frustrating and disappointing, especially since you signed up for it day 1. Very weird about low numbers. Your experience only adds to my trepidation re ABD. If I ever travel with them again, it will be last minute. I suspect we are done with them though. Their policies are just too customer unfriendly. Hugs to you!

 

[sayhello]

@sayhello I'm so sorry to hear about your trip cancellation. How frustrating and disappointing, especially since you signed up for it day 1. Very weird about low numbers. Your experience only adds to my trepidation re ABD. If I ever travel with them again, it will be last minute. I suspect we are done with them though. Their policies are just too customer unfriendly. Hugs to you!

Thanks, @CaliforniaGirl09! Frustrating and disappointing is exactly it. I still don't believe low numbers is the reason. But whatever, it's cancelled. And I'm with you. You know how much I adore these trips, but I may have just hit my tipping point. I did not rebook anything for 2023, and I am seriously looking at booking 2024 with another company. After that, we'll see what we see. Hugs back!

Here's the post that talks about the airfare cancellation not being refundable, if anyone is interested
https://www.disboards.com/threads/fall-2021-abd-river-cruises.3845465/page-4#post-63244233

Thanks for finding that. Yep, that was a seriously stinky situation!!

Sayhello

 

[disneytwincesses]

I am sorry that happened to you. I saw you got a new ABD coming up and it worked out. I am happy for you. ABD did me dirty with the Italy trip last spring. I had everything booked since 2020, and constantly being rolled over and when they asked me to rebook after airfare booked and the price offered was MUCH higher then what I paid even with discount, we decided to take the refund. We took the ABD itinerary and booked our own private tours with Livtours. We get our own private cars and just my party with our tour guide for Rome, Florence, Venice and Pompeii. The only time we are on our own on a tour of a site is when we do a special St. Pete tomb we booked directly with the Vatican because they only do 150 tickets a day. 1/3 cost with Liv tours. I know I wont get the guides from ABD, meals, and white glove, but I couldn't trust them anymore. I did not like the customer service responses. Luckily Delta gave me a credit in full, thank you DELTA!, and I was able to rebook for this spring! We also used the money and booked some super nice hotels. I am hoping things get getting in the central office under Iger.

 

[sayhello]

I am sorry that happened to you. I saw you got a new ABD coming up and it worked out. I am happy for you. ABD did me dirty with the Italy trip last spring. I had everything booked since 2020, and constantly being rolled over and when they asked me to rebook after airfare booked and the price offered was MUCH higher then what I paid even with discount, we decided to take the refund. We took the ABD itinerary and booked our own private tours with Livtours. We get our own private cars and just my party with our tour guide for Rome, Florence, Venice and Pompeii. The only time we are on our own on a tour of a site is when we do a special St. Pete tomb we booked directly with the Vatican because they only do 150 tickets a day. 1/3 cost with Liv tours. I know I wont get the guides from ABD, meals, and white glove, but I couldn't trust them anymore. I did not like the customer service responses. Luckily Delta gave me a credit in full, thank you DELTA!, and I was able to rebook for this spring! We also used the money and booked some super nice hotels. I am hoping things get getting in the central office under Iger.

Thanks. It did work out in the end.

I'm glad you were able to set up a trip on your own that you are happy with. I'm sure you will enjoy yourselves!!

Sayhello

 

[sayhello]

OK, I just got the most amazing email from the Tivoli Carvoeiro Algarve Resort in Portugal (the hotel that ABD uses)! So I booked a post-day through them, and in the comments listed that I was booking it as a post-day to my ABD tour, and wanted to be able to stay in the same room if possible, and asking them to let me know if I needed to book a different class of room to be able to do that. And it seems I forgot all about it! When I cancelled everything after ABD cancelled the tour, I apparently missed this reservation. I got an email from them today saying they don't have an ABD tour scheduled for this month, and did I need to cancel the reservation? I mean, they could have SO EASILY just left it as is, and I'd've been tough out of luck for over 200 euro! I'm definitely going online and giving them a glowing review for this! That's service!

Sayhello

 

[Mathmagicland]

OK, I just got the most amazing email from the Tivoli Carvoeiro Algarve Resort in Portugal (the hotel that ABD uses)! So I booked a post-day through them, and in the comments listed that I was booking it as a post-day to my ABD tour, and wanted to be able to stay in the same room if possible, and asking them to let me know if I needed to book a different class of room to be able to do that. And it seems I forgot all about it! When I cancelled everything after ABD cancelled the tour, I apparently missed this reservation. I got an email from them today saying they don't have an ABD tour scheduled for this month, and did I need to cancel the reservation? I mean, they could have SO EASILY just left it as is, and I'd've been tough out of luck for over 200 euro! I'm definitely going online and giving them a glowing review for this! That's service!

Nice! They definitely have someone sharp in booking and room assignments!

 

[Amydisneyfan]

Sorry to hear about your trip was cancelled that sounds frustrating even though you booked it early on opening day. Hopefully you get it rebooked on other available dates.

 

[MouseOfCards]

OK, I just got the most amazing email from the Tivoli Carvoeiro Algarve Resort in Portugal (the hotel that ABD uses)! So I booked a post-day through them, and in the comments listed that I was booking it as a post-day to my ABD tour, and wanted to be able to stay in the same room if possible, and asking them to let me know if I needed to book a different class of room to be able to do that. And it seems I forgot all about it! When I cancelled everything after ABD cancelled the tour, I apparently missed this reservation. I got an email from them today saying they don't have an ABD tour scheduled for this month, and did I need to cancel the reservation? I mean, they could have SO EASILY just left it as is, and I'd've been tough out of luck for over 200 euro! I'm definitely going online and giving them a glowing review for this! That's service!

Sayhello

You're right. That's excellent customer service!

 

[sayhello]

Nice! They definitely have someone sharp in booking and room assignments!

They really do! I'm very appreciative of that!

Sorry to hear about your trip was cancelled that sounds frustrating even though you booked it early on opening day. Hopefully you get it rebooked on other available dates.

I went to New Zealand instead! Hopefully I will reschedule Portugal some day. We shall see!

You're right. That's excellent customer service!

It really is!

Sayhello