The trip was organised well in advance, with specific instructions ensuring the comfort level of travellers (all travellers were senior citizens). Given below are major observations for further improvement:
1. 06/09/26: Arrival in Bali: There was an arrival time difference between the two groups. I
t could have been better if separate pickup was arranged so that excessive waiting time could have been avoided by the first group members. The reason was the distance between the airport and the place of stay. The travel advisor could have arranged the itinerary in such a way that the first day was spent at a nearby place. Anyway, not a major issue.
2. Stay at Ubud: The property was good; the only issue was that it was not properly maintained. In two villas, the room fridge was not working. The next day, a mechanic was called, and he suggested replacement. Toiletries were not filled in before arrival; even the tea pouches were made available on request. Warm water was not available in some villas. The major issue was property selection; all members were entitled to equal amenities, whereas in fact, the villa configuration was different for two facilities. The tour organiser was aware of the same, and we were kept in the dark.
3. 07/09: The day was spent well. The driver arrived on time. No major issues.
4. 08/09: The sightseeing itinerary planning was OK. But faced issues at the new property. The rooms allotted were not accessible by lift, whereas members were having knee issues and were not OK with stairs. After a lot of persuasion, the rooms were shifted. It was specifically mentioned that since the group comprises senior citizens, either book the rooms on the ground floor or the lift should be accessible on the upper floor. If, after arrival, we have to manage that, why at all are we engaging a travel organiser is a moot question.
5. 09/09: The itinerary planning was poor. Returned to the hotel by around 3.30 pm; had to miss one scheduled activity as there was a gap of 3 hrs in the next item on the schedule, whereas the plan mentioned that it was till 8 pm. The planning was at fault.
6. While finalising the itinerary, the organiser missed one major activity of bali swing. It is an iconic activity associated with Bali. Don't know why it was not included. Secondly, in the itinerary, there is a reference to a volcano visit which was not covered. Further, at Nusa Penida: In the itinerary, it was mentioned to keep IRD 25K per person for the broken bridge, but we were taken to two places where, at each place, the entry fee of 25K was demanded, and we were short of cash. The driver had no idea about the speedboat, dropped us at a location too far away, and we had to walk more than one kilometre, whereas the nearest parking was available within walking distance (say, 50-100 meters)
7. 11/09: Early morning (4 AM) departure to the airport was not well coordinated.
8. Last but not least: In a foreign country, the driver is the sole communicator between travellers and the local community. We were told the driver cum guide would be English-speaking. We can understand the limitation, but communication skills are a critical factor and needs serious improvement. Being professional is different, but travellers need a companion during the trip, which was a major miss.
Summary: We enjoyed the trip, but the experience could have been better. I would say that we deserve compensation for the deficiency of services we faced during the trip to restore our confidence in Travel Triangle to assign our future trips (this was 3rd trip we organised through Travel Triangle)