Exoticca UK Reviews

1.6 Rating 45 Reviews
13 %
of reviewers recommend Exoticca UK

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Exoticca UK 1 star review on 19th May 2023
Anonymous
Exoticca UK 1 star review on 19th May 2023
Anonymous
Exoticca UK 1 star review on 28th April 2023
A. Nikou
Exoticca UK 1 star review on 28th April 2023
A. Nikou
Exoticca UK 1 star review on 10th April 2023
A Nikou
Exoticca UK 1 star review on 10th April 2023
A Nikou
Exoticca UK 5 star review on 8th November 2022
Kendra
18
Anonymous
Anonymous  // 01/01/2019
I would have liked to have given no stars, without a doubt the worst company I have travelled with. After I had paid for the trip I struggled to make contact with the company and when things went wrong when travelling the “help desk” was as much use as a chocolate teapot!!!
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Posted 21 hours ago
First of all gave us wrong itinerary for trip in Jordan and Turkey and still haven't sent it. Also our trip includes flight from Jordan to Beirut then on to Turkey. We feel it is not safe to fly to Beirut. Gov say no Travel to Beirut but company brush aside our concerns. We feel unsafe going there. Does anyone know if it is allowed to have stop over in Beirut
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Posted 1 month ago
I would regard this company as scammers be very careful if you book with them. I booked thinking that I would be covered by the laws on change of mind if bought on line. I booked at 9pm and cancelled first thing the next morning. They took £1600 from me and gave me nothing back. It’s in their terms and conditions so no comeback. I was heartbroken that’s a lot of money for me!! They would easily be able to resell the flights. Totally unacceptable. I looked at trustpilot and reviews seemed ok . Don’t know how! Then I looked further and found all the really bad reviews. This company should be stopped!!
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Posted 2 months ago
My wife and I took a three week tour of Madagacar with Exoticca in December 2023 We were both angry and upset that what should have been an amazing trip was blighted by a number a significant issues which put our health and well-being at risk. Journey times We wereaware that the roads in Madagascar are in a very poor condition when we decided to take the trip. However, it would be reasonable for us to expect some degree of accuracy in the journey timings given in the itinerary. In fact, what we discovered was that these timings were systematic underestimates, such that all journeys were 25% longer in duration than indicated in the tour literature. This left our pleasant and helpful local guides, who must have been well aware of this, in the invidious position of having to lie to us from the start of the trip. As an example, the journey from Antsirabe to Morondava was listed in the itinerary as “between 8 and 10 hours”. In fact, the outward journey took 13 hours and the return journey 12! Had we been made aware of the actual trip durations we probably would not have booked the holiday in the first place – and I know that this is true of many other people on the trip. On returning I took a look at some similar trips offered by other companies who cover the same journey and all estimate that trip to take 12 hours. I bitterly regret not doing the same research before we booked with Exoticca, but I didn’t realise it would be necessary to check the accuracy of journey times from a reputable tour company. This is simple dishonesty. Meals Not only were the journey times listed in the itinerary wildly inaccurate, they also allowed no provision for us to buy adequate food during the trip. Once again, nowhere in the trip itinerary was it explained that there would be no meal stops but rather stops at service stations to make use of the limited toilet facilities with the opportunity to buy snacks and crisps only. Vehicle condition Whilst our driver was magnificent, the vehicle he was piloting certainly was not. The coach provided had no air conditioning – or if it did, it was not working. At one point the guides asked us to shut the windows to allow them to turn the air conditioning on which we duly did. We realised fairly quickly that the temperature inside the coach was rising to an unbearable level and then it was back to opening all the windows and letting in the hot air again. If you are going to transport people on a coach for 12 hours I think it would be reasonable to expect that air conditioning be provided. Journey health risks Collect together a group of holiday makers and put them in an inadequately ventilated coach for a ridiculous number of hours each day in a very hot country. Provide no opportunity to buy adequate nutrition and offer toilet facilities – whilst better than afforded to the vast majority of the population – which are frequently dirty and without handwashing opportunities. It is no wonder I think that 19 of the 20 people in our party experienced some form of gastro enteritis during the trip. No Relief Driver It is completely unacceptable that anyone should be in charge of a vehicle driving 20 people with no adequate break for up to 13 hours at a stretch. Our driver was superhuman – but he needed to be given the demands placed upon him and he should never have been put in that position. Nor should we as passengers have been put at risk in that way! Lack of contingency planning and risk assessment I was unfortunate enough to get the worst case of gastro-enteritis amongst our group. I became dehydrated and delirious and was unable to stand . As we were near a city our group were able to divert to allow me to see a doctor. What particularly concerned me was that the guides seemed to have no plan of action for this scenario. In fact they said to my wife “I don’t know what we would have done if we’d been out in the country somewhere”. This was less than reassuring! I considered myself fortunate that I was able to reach a doctor but have no faith that the outcome would have been as good had my illness occurred further away from a city. It also seemed that they had no plan for splitting the group in this situation, so the rest of the party were left kicking their heels in a hotel for two hours before some of them rightly rebelled and demanded that they continue on with their long and arduous journey. It was only because we were able to pay the doctor to drive us to the hotel in his own car that we were able to re-join the party. Excursion descriptions We visited Isalo National Park – a trip rated as “active” in the itinerary – which should have meant we would be required to “walk for a few hours on comfortable terrain”. In fact the ground conditions were quite difficult. The path certainly wasn’t level and definitely could not be described as comfortable. We were being asked to walk on a narrow slippery path up a rocky ravine. This wasn’t an issue for me – I was able to undertake the walk but my wife struggled and was very disappointed to have to stop halfway and wait for the rest of the party to return. She was not alone in having to do so. One lady was unfortunate enough to fall and fracture her ankle! We all understand accidents will happen. However, by failing to provide an accurate description of conditions Exoticca are preventing people from making appropriate decisions for their own protection. Given the isolated nature of this National Park I have to wonder whether any contingency plans are in place should someone injure themselves more seriously to the point where they are unable to walk or perhaps suffer a head injury. I worry that occurring out here so far from medical assistance any such accident might well prove life threatening. If you're considering travelling with Exoticca I would say think again - they are cheap - but this is at the expense of your health and safety. we have submitted a complaint to ABTA
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Posted 2 months ago
Sold booking for £3200. Errors in booking made by exoticca, informed by us same day but refuse to correct unless pay them more money. Will not cancel either. Now seen on other reviews that there is a law stating can cancel within 1rdays of booking. Exoticca deny this but I will be looking into the law & if correct start legal proceedings against this company. DO NOT TRUST them!! It's been most stressful experience since day booked so definitely not the relaxing organised trip we expected.
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Posted 2 months ago
Absolutely scammers! Took £3200 for paid trip all paid, now want extra £200 for change a name (that was their mistake). Exotica online email and phone service people are unwell, blame their customers but coincidentally can't provide any proof (I know why - because it doesn't exist). DO NOT TRUST them. First time trip with them as usually book and arrange everything tour/trip/travel/Hotel wise independently - will definitely be last. I really can't emphasise enough how bad they are. Please save yourself the money and avoid this scamming company. We are going through ABTA now but it's a lot of unnecessary stress that wouldn't be necessary if decent travel company
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Posted 3 months ago
Want to charge £202 for name change they caused in error. Will not offer refund as booked within 60days of trip. Avoid this company- scammers!
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Posted 3 months ago
We booked in October 2023 to go in the Egypt pyramid nile cruise in March 2024. Paid a first instalment of £1,800. However we have decided not to go. They tell us they keep the instalment we paid as a deposit and a penalty. Surely not the full amount? I ask them how much is the deposit? No answer. I ask can we use the instalment towards a different holiday? No answer. I've emailed again twice this request? No answer. In 3 weeks time if we don't pay the outstanding amount, they cancel the holiday and keep our instalment of £1,618. This is all one big joke!
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Posted 3 months ago
xoticca is basically a travel broker. Having just come back from Costa Rica we would never use them again. There is no one on the ground if things go wrong. When we complained about the safety of one of the hotels we were told that reviews on such platforms as booking.com had given good ratings. Is this how they chose their hotels? One of ours had an open building site with huge glass shards in the ground outside our room. We travelled with friends but they were put in different trips, hotels and transport. We would never use this company again. We are well travelled and have done independent trips, volunteering and used other travel companies. This was shocking!
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Posted 3 months ago
I travelled to Morocco this month with them - it was the best trip of my life! No negatives whatsoever. Just that a lot of time you is spent on this transferring between cities but then you cover so much ground in your trip…
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Posted 4 months ago
Due to unexpected circumstances I had to cancel the holiday a few days after booking. Exotica terms and conditions state that they retain 70% of the deposit for cancellations. (This in itself is remarkable). However under English law there is a 14 day cooling off period for online contracts etc. Every attempt to contact the firm met with no response. (Online form, phone, emails and Signed For letters). Eventually I contacted my credit card company for a refund and provided the evidence required. The credit card company gave me a balance adjustment for what Exoticca had received from me. Exoticca failed to honour their duty to provide a full refund as required by the law.
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Posted 4 months ago
This is a worse trip in my experience. I do not recommended. Worst organization of tours, no hotel pickups, every time it's up to half an hour walk each way for a 2 hour tour. Flight schedule is also terrible. "Short flight " from trip description became 12 hour disaster spent at airport. In short, DO NOT use them, EVER
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Posted 4 months ago
I am booked to go to Turkey with Exoticca this Saturday. My hotel in Istanbul has been changed at a few day’s notice. Terms and conditions state it must be of comparable standard. However the replacement hotel is on a motorway nowhere near the city centre. The traveling time to the old city has more than tripled to 1.5hrs. The recent reviews of the replacement hotel are really dire at 1star. Exoticca say there is nothing they can do. I shall post again following the holiday.
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Posted 4 months ago
Just finished 11 days in Turkey, the wonders of Anatolia. The long hours of travelling on the coach from one town to another is too much. The night mare started when the tour company told our tour guide that the tour will stop immediately because exoticca did not pay the tour company in Turkey. The tour campany said that we need to sort it out with exoticca to sort the problem. We called exoticca and money was sent to the tour company. We don't need this.
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Posted 5 months ago
DON'T BE FOOLEDDO NOT USE THIS COMPANY!!! - CLASSIC SWITCH AND BAIT. So I have not even left for my trip, yet, but already I am regretting choosing this company! They have a fantastic sales team, that were really informative and even took some money off due to incorrectly advertising the holiday, for longer than it actually was. With my 3 friends, present, we chose the luxury, level (5 star) and chose the hotel and boat (both with twin rooms) and direct flights. I had to chase the confirmation, which was sent around 3 weeks before the holiday. Only to find that a different hotel with the same star rating, but according to a hotel booking site, half the price and by a motorway, was given, and instead of a 5 star, we got a 4 star boat. When I questioned it, the only effort this company made was, allegedly, listening to my phone calls, where they have claimed, I did not discuss a hotel, or boat or star rating. I challenge anyone to book a holiday without discussing any of these!!! On top of that they have then refused to let me listen to these calls, until I complete an email requesting this, and then this will take at least a month to come back, by which time, I will have been on the holiday. They have suggested that if I want my money back I will only get 25% due to the time before leaving. They have also stated that in their terms and conditions they can change the accommodation for any reason. It is clear that we were enticed to purchase the holiday from them with the accommodation we wanted, There was no intention of giving us this, and instead, cheaper accommodation. On top of this, tonight, I have now been told that I booked double rooms, instead of twins, which were requested during our calls in April this year. The customer service agent , insinuating that this is my fault. Not the agent who we booked our holiday with, over the phone. What was supposed to be an exciting time for us, has turned into disappointment with the last week being really stressful.....and we have not even got there yet!?!. We are dreading what is in store in Egypt!!! I will of course update how this goes but in the meantime, if you were tempted to take the company up on its buy one get one free offer on their holidays, and you don't mind getting what you did not want, then go ahead. Otherwise, steer clear. DO NOT BOOK WITH THIS COMPANY!!! They are not interested in resolving our concerns, just absolving themselves!! Update 09/09/23 - so I had an email from Exoticca on the 2nd september, confirming that i do have a request for twin rooms but cant guarantee.....they have assured me that someone is looking into the 'category' issue, and will get back to me. No surprise, then, that there has been nothing since. The email was very polite but did not mention my concerns around the location and price online, of the hotel or going from a 5 star to 4 star boat. Oh well 5 days to go until the holiday. It read as follows: email from Exoticca Hi, I hope this email finds you well. We strive hard to deliver a smooth and satisfying experience for our customers and feel greatly disappointed when this isn’t the case. Regarding the call recordings, I can see that there is a process by our agents working on the case, from 50 minutes ago. Once we have the update, we will send you an email. Also, I can see that the agent informed our team at the destination that you are requesting a twin room, on 30/04/2023. Please keep in mind that this is a high season and that we can not guarantee that the hotel will have available twin beds, however, our team at the destination is doing their best to meet your needs. As it is mentioned in the trip summary, all the hotels that are listed in the Trip summary are in the same category (or better) and all the hotels can be booked until and unless they are in the agreement list. We sincerely apologize for the inconvenience caused and appreciate you reaching out to us regarding this issue. If you have any more questions please don't hesitate to contact us. We will be happy to help you. Once again, we apologize for any inconvenience caused, and we appreciate your understanding and cooperation. Kind regards, ********* (name of agent) Customer Service Agent Exoticca claim to answer questions, but they don'. Just terrible excuses 11/10/23 - Exoticca did not except any responsibility for fraudulent sales tactics and giving us a hotel next to the airport instead of in Cairo itself, and a boat that was 4 star instead of 5. We discovered other holiday makers on our boat they did the same thing to. One couple summed it up :BAIT and SWITCH. Exoticca have made no attempt to send me the recordings of my call before my holiday and no compensation for giving us cheaper accommodation and lying to us. I SAY AGAIN....DO NOT USE THIS COMPANY!!
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Posted 5 months ago
Good trip, negligent support when something goes wrong. Never refunded us for an excursion they agreed to cancel. Stranded us in a foreign country costing us around 1k in lodging and airfare and offered us a $50 voucher as compensation. We booked a trip to costa rica. Cant say enough good things about that part. The excersions were nice transportation was a breeze. The app and website was great. We loved our hotels. The only problem we had was when Aeromexico caused us to miss our flight in Mex City and tried to charge us full price to rebook the next flight. We reached out to exoticca emergency support and they promised solutions then ghosted us MULTIPLE times. We ended up having to figure it out ourselves in a foreign country where we dont speak the language. Exoticca promised they would rebook us on the next flight and all we would need to do is pay any price difference and any rebooking fee. The promised to call us and message back more the 4 times after i reached out and to this day I have never gotten the promised response from support. I reached out to exoticca to ask them to cover the price difference between the full priced flight we were forced to purchase and the lower price it would have cost them to rebook us through aeromexico as they promised they would do. Exoticca admitted that they saw the evidence that we had been abandoned by their staff and offered $50 CREDIT on their website for the "inconvenience" Additional issues: We cancelled an ATV tour and they agreed to refund 50% of the cost and we never got it. I would never book exoticca again since, despite the great trip, they abandoned us in a foreign country promising resolutions that never came then offered an insulting resolution. The only resolution i will accept is them to issue a check payable to me for the difference in our full priced flight and their rebooking cost, 2 nights lodgings plus meals (the amount of time we waited on their promised resolution). US-EX2023148839
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Posted 6 months ago
We have experiance and recomend not to travel with Exoticca. We lost our Money and Passport while ware with the Exoticca Tour. We were attacked at the low grade dangerous Hotel on the first night. We met couple's during our trip to Turkey and Greece, from England and other from Scotland whom were celebrating their anniversary. This poor people had arrived 2 am on sunday night and Exoticca put them in a hot no air-condition Bus for 14 hours the Next morning at 6 AM. They regretted their decision.
Exoticca UK 1 star review on 19th May 2023 Exoticca UK 1 star review on 19th May 2023
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Posted 10 months ago
Best Experience I also think whoever wrote a bad review is false. They are totally professional great people everything went without any glitch. Fantastic trip and service.
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Posted 10 months ago
I went to India with Exoticca before covid, best trip ever. Well organised with a great quide throughout. The comments below are definitely false. I am going to peru with them this Saturday and I cannot wait
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Posted 10 months ago
disgracefully cheaters, taking advantage of travelers everywhere, This is the best discription of Exptocca. Hopefully, They will shut down this website soon.Exottica travel is Under investigation. Please do not pay your money to Exoticca travel. Do not book with them. Base to our Personal experience, losing great amount of Money and going through emotional stress, cused by Exoticca travel during our trip to Turky/Greece. I don't want this happen to you. Please donot book with Exoticca
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Posted 10 months ago
Exoticca UK is rated 1.6 based on 45 reviews