Turkey

krissie

New Member
Hi ppl,

Im intending to visit Turkey during my honeymoon in May 2006. Any recommendations on hotel or a good travel agent?
 


krissie

New Member
Hi pierced,

Yeah...guess no one is interested in going to an exotic country...
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Anywayz, I already booked a tour package from CTC...but unfortunately there are no guaranteed departures in May..thus have to cross our figures and hope that my group will meet the minimum numbers...
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You going there for your honeymoon too?
 

pierced22

New Member
Hi krissie,

yup, was trying to find out more info for turkey.
sort of a delayed HM but planning to go there F&E.
mind disclosing how much are u paying for the package?
coz i checked the tics priced to turkey and itz not very cheap.
 

pierced22

New Member
Hi krissie,

yup, was trying to find out more info for turkey.
sort of a delayed HM but planning to go there F&E.
mind disclosing how much are u paying for the package?
coz i checked the tics priced to turkey and itz not very cheap.
 

krissie

New Member
Hi pierced,

I paid about $2047 (inclusive of taxes) for 10 days in Turkey and its full board (7 breakfast, 7 lunch and 7 dinners)...the rest of the meals are provided on board...
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They did mentioned that the hotels provided were all 4 stars and 5 stars.(2 days)

My current tour group has 6 ppl so have to wait for 4 more before the tour is confirmed...if you want, you can consider CTC and departure on 13th May 2006...then we will have a higher chance of travelling to Turkey
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I surveyed all the big travel agents, SATours, Chan Bros and Dynasty...here is the breakdown:

1) SATours - Price resonable, about the same as CTC. But they need a minimum of 15 to depart thus I was worried that they had a slimmer chance of departuring.

2) Dynasty - Service very good, price wise, they are about $20 more ex than CTC. Minimum departure also requires 10 ppl

3) Chan Bros - Service sucked, they are not keen to serve, so we walked out...

4) CTC - Service was good, the agent knew all the places of interest well..price is very good..and has the date we want and the most number of ppl in a group for departure
happy.gif


Hope this information helps!
 

jazzyuppie

New Member
Hi Krissie & Pierced

I am going turkey in May too. but i join ananda. haven't checked with them how is the response of my selected departure date yet...

My package is $1788 (exclude taxes... can't remember how much liao). it include 1 (or 2... oops i forgot again) domestic flight. others are similar with Krissie one.
 

krissie

New Member
Hi BK,

I heard ananda is specialised in Turkey tours...What is the minium ppl required before your group is confirmed?

You will be going on which dates? and which airlines?
 

krissie

New Member
Hi BK,

I heard ananda is specialised in Turkey tours...What is the minium ppl required before your group is confirmed?

You will be going on which dates? and which airlines?
 

pierced22

New Member
Hi krissie, thanks for the info. will be looking ard to see if gg on tour is much better. too bad i cant go in May otherwise i might consider the same tour too.

Hi BK, heard fr other brides that they have difficulty gg on certain tours they bk coz of the lack of ppl gg. if there's not enuf ppl, do u need to change the date of ur tour?

ohya, what airlines u get to travel by?
 

krissie

New Member
Hi pierced,

Thats the concern of joining a tour packaged when it not a guaranteed departure...but CTC did mentioned that because NATAS fair is in 2 weeks time, they will definitely try to push for the dates for the group with the most number of ppl..and if they cant match the minimum then we will have to either get a full refund or join an alternative tour from them...
 

jazzyuppie

New Member
Hi krissie & pierced

the minimum of ananda is also 10 pax. i just called them up. they have 6 confirm also. hopefully they can meet the minimum by then. my departure date is 10 may by turkish air. the package name of the one that i join is called Turkey (or Turkish) Delight. i find this one quite worth it cos include domestic flight. can go take a look at their itinery if u haven't bk yet.

i was told that if by then not enuf ppl, we can either change a date or destination or full refund.
 

pierced22

New Member
Hi krissie,Bk,

will check out the upcoming Natas fair too and work out if going on the tour is worth it rather than on our own.
both tours sounds quite value for $.
 

krissie

New Member
Hi BK,

I told my FH that if the CTC Turkey tour is cancelled, I will jump ship and join Ananda Turkey tour...and will most likely choose the 10th May 2006, same as you...coz i want to go as early as possible before the weather starts becoming warmer..
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Hi pierced,
Actually you can start looking ard now, coz all the big agencies I've gone to all ensure me that the prices booked now will not be more expensive than that of the NATAS fair coz they want ppl to book with them before the fair. Moreover before I booked anything with them, i ensured that they have the guaranteed price policy. So in case if really NATAS fair, the prices drop, they will honour the cheaper fare and refund me the balance..
happy.gif
 

jazzyuppie

New Member
Hi Krissie

Got ur pm... I haven't checked with ananda if my group has enuf ppl. i was thinking still quite some time from the departure date... u checked with them and not enuf ppl still? wats ur backup plan? wanna hop over to mine? =)
 

krissie

New Member
Hi BK,

I called Ananda yesterday, they mentioned that there is only 4 ppl on departuring on the 10th May now. Guess yours is the same case as mine, short of 6 ppl...I called up Chan Bros and SA Tours and they both have confirmed departures...Chan Bros on the 10th May and SA Tours on the 6th May...I am seriously contemplating paying my penalty of $500 to hop over to Chan Bros..but my FH says he will make a hell of a fuss at CTC on saturday first...we are truly disappointed with their service...they over promise and undeliver...sigh...I feel that if they are not able to meet the numbers during the NATAS fair, chances of departuring are pretty slim...and I do not want my honeymoon to be ruin by their inability to sell...super stress and sad!
 

jazzyuppie

New Member
Hi Krissie

Eh... that time call ananda they said got 6 confirmed?! now left 4?? maybe someone jump boat... i agree... if they can't meet the minimum during natas most likely they won't be able to form a group for departure liao... if that happens, i may postpone my HM till end of the year liao. stress! i have seen in other forums that it may be difficult to get refund back from ananda if they cancel the group... =(
 

marilyn_chh

New Member
hi everyone,
i went turkey with ananda abt 3-4 years back.. basically, the food sucks.. every day each chicken/lamb "satay" and all tasted blend! we hardly eat any fish and butter rice all the time..some of the accomodation is good, some not..

the place i like most is kudasasi.. the resort ananda arrange for us is beautiful! too bad we only stay 2 nights i think but hardly have time to use the facility.. the mediteranean sea is so romantic. so, if you're going turkey F & E, do stay longer there...

another interesting place is capadocia where you see con-shape sand houses.. very cute..

krissie,
i agree with your FH.. dun pay the $500 first..go down to the office and make noise and try to demand a refund... did they use the trick "we have 10 person on the list" to lure you all to sign up? i just kena this trick when we signed up a 12D italy and switzerland tour with Tradewinds..very disappointed now.. might go down this saturday to demand a refund..
 

krissie

New Member
Hi BK,

Thats my worry...esp if you pay thru credit card...its a longer process to refund...why dun u join Chan Bros as well? the departure date is the same as Ananda...and its confirmed..they currently have 19 pax departuring on the 10th May...I think most likely I will go over there...When is ur AD actually? I called Ananda yesterday and she mentioned that there is a confirmed tour on the 29th April i think...
 

krissie

New Member
Hi mrc,

CTC told us that they had 6 ppl on the tour 3 weeks back...then when i called them a week back..they told me they only have 4 confirmed and 2 KIV...i wouldnt have signed up with them if i knew there were only 4 confirmed and 2 KIV!!...they lied to us!! so indespicable! and they had to cheek to tell us..."honestly, our turkey tours are very slow at the moment, because of the bird flu"...I mean then why tell us you are very sure that the tour will pull thru...I feel like reporting to CASE...
 

marilyn_chh

New Member
krissie,
well, mine worst! they told us we're the 5th couple!!! i signed up on sunday NATAS fair and i called the next to check on the status (cos i told my colleague abt my trip and she told me her friend once were told the samething too and in the end the trip got cancelled). And you know what i found out, we're infact the ONLY couple! Hubby very mad, talked very long with the CSO and finally the guy who attended to us in NATAS called him and asked for 3 days. Tomorrow is the 3rd day. If we're still the only couple or less than 10, we will go down and demand a refund. We also threatened them we will report to CASE and to the press! How can they mislead people like that right?

We also use credit card, some more paid 50% down payment liao leh..Hopefully can void the transaction before OCBC send us the bill..
 

krissie

New Member
mrc,

Your case is worse than mine!....how can they lie to you that there are already 10 ppl! these companies will do anything to get $$ from us...

Sorry, your travel agent is also CTC?
 

marilyn_chh

New Member
no..tradewinds.. i think nowadays travel agency use this kind of tactic to get business..so disappointing right?

we never guess that tradewinds will use such tactic..they're under SIA group which we thought is reliable isn't it? well, that guy told hubby that he said that cos he based on "block book" and not confirm booking. Well still he has to informed us it's "block book" right? And, if we still choose to sign up, then even if's the trip cancel, we got nothing to say mah.. but it's not the case now..

Haiz, it's suppose to be a happy , hassle free trip, now give me this headache... so fustrating and disappointing..
 

krissie

New Member
I totally agree with you...holidays are suppose to be an enjoyable thing...but it turned out to be disastrous for us...What's worse is mine is my honeymoon...and i dun have the time to look for another trip 2 weeks before the scheduled date for departure...

If worse comes to worse, i may send write to the newspapers...its $500 penalty i have to pay...i can use that money to go for another short trip already!...obviously these ppl already know the trip will be cancelled but they go ahead and sell, hoping ppl will cancel and they earn on these penalties...taking ppl's hard money is very unscrupulous!
 

marilyn_chh

New Member
oh dear, 2 weeks from now you're suppose to go and till now still not confirm? my male collegue once signed sign up with CTC to go NZ but they called them 1 month + before departure and the trip was cancelled. heng, they managed to join chan brothers. they got their refund back within a month..

did CTC cancel the trip?
 

krissie

New Member
My departure date is on the 13th May 2006, but they told us they can only confirmed by the end of April...and my AD is on the 5th may...which leaves us 1 week before my AD to find another destination...

i am all ready to jump over to Chan Bros coz i know they already have 1 tour which is confirmed on the 10th may 2006...im amazed by them coz before the NATAS fair, they didnt have any sign ups for turkey...and suddenly they have 19 ppl on the tour...and CTC bullshit us that they will push for our date...and after natas fair, instead of increasing the number of pax, they have reduced...im so pissed off with them...sorry, didnt mean to complain so much..hehe
 

marilyn_chh

New Member
oh, i think you should reason with them to give you 1 mth notice. told them all your reasons and fustration?

haha, noproblem... i'm also here to complain a bit..hehe
 

krissie

New Member
My departure date is on the 13th May 2006, but they told us they can only confirmed by the end of April...and my AD is on the 5th may...which leaves us 1 week before my AD to find another destination...

i am all ready to jump over to Chan Bros coz i know they already have 1 tour which is confirmed on the 10th may 2006...im amazed by them coz before the NATAS fair, they didnt have any sign ups for turkey...and suddenly they have 19 ppl on the tour...and CTC bullshit us that they will push for our date...and after natas fair, instead of increasing the number of pax, they have reduced...im so pissed off with them...sorry, didnt mean to complain so much..hehe
 

krissie

New Member
Thanks mrc...i lost hope with CTC...they have betrayed my trust and I will try to get a refund now...I rather go to another travel agent than to go back to them...

My FH is going down on saturday to scold their socks off...good luck to them coz my FH can be very fierce when he is pissed...hehe
 

jazzyuppie

New Member
Hi Krissie

My AD is on 7 May. so not possible for me to go on 29 April.

Just called ananda and was told they have 6 confirm pax. Like urs, she also said they will try to push for it.

They were honest to me when i book... they mentioned that they just launch this package and no confirm booking yet then. so i can't blame them if they are to cancel it cos i took the risk then... now just hope that if it is really to be cancelled, won't have to wait for too long to get back our refund.

We have not plan for alternative place for HM yet... may go for short trip instead.
 

krissie

New Member
Hi BK,

Your AD just 2 days after mine...That Ananda probably made a mistake when i called them to enquire coz they told me its even for 3 dates in May...all 4 ppl each...and i even asked her, about the 10th may coz i remember you did mention that there were 6 ppl...and she replied that there are only 4 listed...
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Hi mrc,
My FH is super pissed with CTC for cheating us, he demanded to call them immediately and scold them upside down...and if we dun not get our refund back, he will march down to their main office tomorrow to create havoc...scary hor...hehe...Wish me all the luck for tomorrow...
happy.gif
 

marilyn_chh

New Member
hi krissie,
Yeah, my hubby too say the same thing.. and i told him can i stay outside??i'm such a chicken! hehe...

You know what, tradewinds called me yesterday and they agree for full refund! Today, hubby called and asked for arrangement to void the transaction and to settle the 100 Robinson voucher that we got thru signing up with HSBC. The lady say tomorrow, the account dept will call us back. As long as I have no black and white that they agree to this, i'm still worry sick. Tomorrow, we also going down to SA to book with SA! We have to pay $100 more than the NATAS package!

Wish me luck too..
 

krissie

New Member
Hi mrc,

Im happy that you gotten back ur full refund...its is wrong for Tradewinds to deceive you of the total passengers...you wre right abt having black and white as evidence, as I use to work in a institute which have tons of refunds request and i sort of know how these refunds are handled...
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As for me, i have signed up with Chan Bros yesterday...They somemore having some promo now, and they giving away free BKK air tix and a MP3 player...shiok hor! and they have 3 confirmed Turkey tours in May alone, and CTC have none...this shows alot about CTC...so today we going down and make a ruckus...and if nothing is done, we going down to CASE and ST Forum...
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marilyn_chh

New Member
krissie,
wah..so good.. got free BKK air-ticket and MP3 player
happy.gif
I've signed up with SA last saturday too. Luckily we're still within the 1st 15 person, so we get the NATAS fair deal.

Did you really go down on saturday?
 

krissie

New Member
hi mrc,

Yes we marched down to the people's park branch to find the branch supervisor which sold us the package...but he was not around...so another very rude china gal served us...which was of no use...so we just told her straight in the face that we will go down directly to the headquarters to settle and if not, we will go straight to the Straits Times...

When we were just outside their HQ, the china gal called and say can refund 100%...so the matter solved...YEAH! and chan bros is positively sure that my tour is confirmed coz at the moment already have 22 ppl...
happy.gif


Im glad everything is settled now...
happy.gif
 

marilyn_chh

New Member
that's great. oh yeah, though we still get the NATAS fair price but we lose out on the insurance now. if we were to bought there, we get 35% discount! We din buy that time cos tradewinds include travel insurance..
sad.gif


Did you get any travle insurance?
 

kopi_c

New Member
Hi...bomohpang....i booked with SA tour, dep on 27 dec, one day earlier than you. Haha. Mine is 10d7n tour. May i know how much u booked for ur package tour?
 

maoushroom

New Member
Hey bomophang> It depends which month you going. Are you going this Dec? Most likely no snow.

I was at Turkey last Dec. Istanbul weather was manageable but the further you travel, the colder it became. Some hotels, the swimming pool water froze lohz. So must bring thick clothing okie. Don't just look at the travel itinery (sometimes, they put on average temperature, about 10-12 degress). Can be colder lohz.
 

bomohpang

Member
hi Maoushroom >
No snow har? like that not fun ..
i've prepared a jacket for minus deg'c..don worry..hehe..vv thick jacket..v kiasu!
 

bomohpang

Member
Back frm turkey and i would say turkey is a very beautiful country!! nice weather ! good for sightseeing but definately not suitable for honeymoon.

the journey frm one city to another city is very long..cane be 3 hours , 5 hours or the whole day long.

the ancient city/ hotair balloon/ snow / brospherus cruise/ undergroundcity/ turkey belly dance/ turkey bath//etc....all are memorable!
 

icebaby0

Member
Those who went with Chan Brothers, can you tell me on Day 10 in Istanbul, what is the hotel you stayed in?

Also the brospherus cruise where was the pick up and drop off station/ferry terminal you were at?
 


kazataza

New Member
hi ...anyone signing up 10D turkey tour i just signed up turkey tour with ASA on SQ in Aug....they say will help to push the date...duno can guarantee departure not...

any reviews on ASA Turkey tour?
For those who had taken Turkish air, is it good?

thanks
 

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