Lara

Nov 27, 2024

After-Sales Support and Expectation Management

We joined the Armenia & Georgia tour, and while the trip was enjoyable, primarily because of the people in our group and the other group in the tour, there are areas where the organization could improve. (1) Accommodation Concerns While we understood the arrangement involved shared accommodations, the agency may look into the facilities (rooms, kitchen, toilets, etc.) before partnering with them. For instance, regarding the number of guests per room, how about giving a heads-up that we will be sharing with other 13 people? Fortunately, the staff on-site accommodated our concerns and made adjustments, but this could have been avoided with better planning and communication. We stayed in the Classy and Cozy Hostel but sadly there was nothing classy nor cozy in the place. (2) Visa and Documentation Guidance Although the tour brochure provided details on luggage allowances and vaccination requirements, there was a lack of clarity regarding visa requirements. We initially assumed that the EID would suffice until friends pointed out the need for additional visas. Moreover, during our stay, hostel personnel informed us that we required another visa to re-enter Armenia after our trip to Georgia, which was logical due to the exit. However, this critical detail should have been communicated by our agent to set proper expectations. We applied for an EVisa but ended up getting Visa on arrival because of the delay in issuing of EVisa, this was very frustrating but our agent didn't even give us any comforting advise or help about it. Luckily we were able to talk to the consulate and got things sorted out. We were expecting that the agent, Ms. Grace, or her team leader would do the talking with the consulate but nope. (3) After-Sales Support While it is understandable that staff may occasionally be unavailable due to sickness or leave, there appeared to be no contingency plan in place for such instances. When Ms. Grace was on leave, we repeatedly reached out for assistance but were left without support. Despite assurances that her team leader would follow up, no calls were received, leaving us uninformed and uncertain about the accommodation and tour arrangements. The after-sales support was significantly lacking, highlighting a need for better processes to ensure client needs are addressed promptly, even in the absence of specific team members.