ExoticcaReviews 259

Avoid, Avoid, Avoid! 'Exoticca is not proper travel agent'. ALL external Flights were changed, multiple times and with huge delays, waiting in between, and cancellations. Exoticca were of no assistance, they just refer you to talk to the airline personally. I do not need a travel agent for this I could have just booked better flights myself. Changes made less than 12 hrs before departure from the UK.
The flights advertised on their site do not represent the reality. 16 hrs to get from Bristol to Cairo (normally a four-hr flight) with two stops (one advertised), Cairo to Bristol 20hrs (two stops) and lost luggage as a result. I would not recommend as you are stressed when you arrive and stressed when you get home. Combined with very early starts from 3am to 5am every day.
The three days onboard 'cruise' is one day cruising, two days accommodation on the boat which is docked and joined to two to four other boats, which you walk through to get on land! Food onboard is positively average. Only one of the advertised hotels were superior, the others were remote (taxi to any shops or restaurants) and distinctly average.
Too much talking and restrictions from the guide, who was extremely knowledgeable, but did not take into consideration the guests need. No attempt to get to know our names, even though we were with him for 7 days. We were treated like high school students.
Very slow and longwinded allocating rooms at destinations too.
Meet and greet and collection from Cairo airport was exceptional from Planet tours.

I gave Exoticca a trip deposit over $1500, and after supposedly confirming my reservation, and after clearing my work for my vacation, about two weeks before the departure date, Exoticca canceled everything for me without my approval and kept my entire deposit. No vacation, no refund, no service.

There's no way to contact Exoticca while traveling. There's no help. I have been trying to get some real agent to talk to and there's none. I have paid for superior hotels and they put me in the hotel which doesn't qualify for 2 stars
Please see the pictures

Impossible to contact customer service with any question. Strongly recommend NOT using this company, you will be very disappointed, unless less you like drama in your life.

Do not use Exoticca for any travel plans. My recent experience in Jan. 2024 has been miserable. They answer the phones quickly to book your travel and take your deposit but after that don't expect any customer service. I called 53 times and NO ONE ANSWERS THE PHONE! As a result, I placed my account in dispute with my credit card company. Exoticca disputed the charge and went back to their " terms and conditions" section. What a bunch of mumbo jumbo. Stay clear of this very shady operation. You will be better off with another travel company..

I was provided misinformation regarding payment and response rates. They do not have the staff to respond in a timely manner and when they do respond the question is not answered. Do NOT book with this company.

Unethical thieves! DO NOT BUY FROM THEM! My wife and I purchased a trip to Egypt 6 months before the travel date. When the war broke out in neighboring Israel, we did not feel comfortable for several reasons traveling to Egypt. The US State Department has it listed as a Level 3: Reconsider Travel warning. We gave them 4 months notice. We didn't even ask for our money back; instead, we simply asked to get a credit or transfer our deposit to a different trip. Not only did they refuse, they told us they were keeping 60% of our $3600 deposit! We canceled the trip and have been waiting over two weeks to receive our 40% refund. Now they are sending emails stating they aren't going to refund us at all! Good luck calling customer service. I waited for 51 minutes on hold when an automated message came on and said, "All representatives are busy, call back at another time" and hung up on me. I kept calling and eventually spoke with a representative who recommended I pay the additional 40%! Are you kidding me? I asked to speak to a supervisor and they refused stating, "We don't have supervisors. You have to submit a complaint through the website." I have submitted numerous complaints and they keep sending an AI-generated message that says we aren't getting our refund. Extremely unethical, crooked company! SPRINT, don't just walk away from this company!

1. The group size ranged between 30 and 50 people, which can be quite overwhelming for some travelers and limit the personalized experience.

2. Arriving at the hotel at 7:30 pm and having to wake up at 5:15 am every day for a 6:45 am pick-up left little time to relax or enjoy the trip. Hotels are not superior class. All about 4 stars far from city center on average 45 mins.

3. Excessive Bus Travel: Spending more time on the bus than actually sightseeing can be frustrating and disappointing. A 10-hour bus ride from one city to another is excessive and should be better managed.

4. Unprofessional Tour Guide: The tour guide's unprofessional behavior, including yelling at several people, is unacceptable and negatively impacts the overall tour experience. Additionally, dishonesty regarding excursion availability is a serious issue.

5. Travelers should be advised that this trip may not be suitable for everyone. Only if you are planning to live out of your suitcase for 10-12 days.

In summary, the trip to Turkey with Exoticca appears to have several significant issues, including scheduling problems, unprofessional conduct by the tour guide, and excessive bus travel. Travelers should consider these factors before booking.

At the end of Sept. I booked a trip to South America.
At the end of Sept. 2023 after checking Exoticca's website, I chose a certain one in a lower price. I called, got an agent. He started with sweet talks, deceiving me and offering a much higher price, for same date.
He also said, he can not show me the itinerary, untill I paid 50% up front, which stupidly I did.
Next day I checked the lower price still showed. I called to complain about the price and also not given itinerary first.
For next 2 weeks I called a few times and exchanged a dozen emails. Every time I got another agent, who said: Prices change all the time. Never touched upon not giving itinerary. I also emailed a higher department, where they repeated same crap. Every time I explained that I picked a price from their site, only to get: Prices change and nothing about the itinerary. Also saying that there is single supplement, which of course I knew. My estimate is that they cheated me by $500.
Than I was offered to cancel my booking and rebook again for any dates or price, but they'll keep my $1900 deposit as a penalty. This is the most outrageous thing to say. This compay borders in fraud. Stay away.

Date of experience: September 28,2023

DO NOT BOOK! You loose 75% of total trip cost. Exoticca doesn't care about customers, doesn't know a thing about customer service. Not flexible or helpful when unforeseen circumstances arrive and you need to make modifications/accommodations. Worst customer experience ever, blamed me for putting myself in this situation.

I have been on many small group tours including India. Traveled to Africa, Peru, and many cruises and I have to say that Exoticca was hands down the worst! The guides were not well versed in English. We were rushed. Up at 2 am to go on long bus rides. Very little explanation of our site visits, which was a huge disappointment. Very unorganized. Never knew what was happening. Itinerary changed often. We had only one daylight day on the Nile (we sat at port for two full days before setting sale in the evening). Food was lacking. I had two friends who used two different travel companies and they thankfully had an experience of a life time. Ours was far from good and I've been to many places and never experienced such a poor performance from a travel company. I DO NOT RECOMMEND Exoticca!

We canceled our trip due to war/hostilities in the region, including tourists killed in the country we were traveling to. Exoticca was the only company that refused to adjust their refund policy, even refusing to offer a credit for a future tour. Our airline, hotels and other tour companies all offered either full refunds or charged a small processing fee. Their lack of compassion was disturbing.

Stay away! They their accommodations superior and luxury. Paying luxury premium but got superior. When asked why this happened as both the exclusively listed hotel and boat were available, their excuse was that these hotel are considered to be both superior and luxury. I'm now fighting with them to get the additional $700/pp upgrade charges reversed. I contacted my credit card company who is investigating this fraud. Don't trust EXOCTICAA!

Horrible company. Terrible customer service. I only gave one star because to rate them on here, that is the lowest you can give. Please READ all the small print! They are not responsible for much of anything, offer dangerous and inadequate hotels to stay in, and will not return any of your money if there are any issues. The chances are very high that this will be a VERY expensive trip with NO enjoyment.

On November 11,2022 we booked a trip to Peru and Galapagos with them and gave a $5686.32 deposit. On November 18th 2022 our daughter passed unexpectedly with three young children at home. We could no longer go on the trip as we have to be here to take care of the children. I called Exoticca and told them what happened and they said I could cancel no problem but never said they we not going to give me my deposit. To this day I have never received a penny back and they won't even respond anymore The are DISPICABLE! STAY AWAY!

Our Iceland Tour in March 2023 went real smooth from flights, guides and sightseeing. Will book again for the Price.