RSD Travel Reviews

Not much I can add to the other bad reviews. The entire holiday in North Cyprus was one big shopping excursion to hard-sell factory outlets, interspersed with a few visits to places of interest. Forget the dinner package, the food is mediocre at best, and your money would be better spent in a local restaurant. Tour guide Deniz was great though I shan’t be using RSD again P.s. if you do go, take euros. Despite Turkish lira being the official currency, everything seems to be priced in euros

Have booked a tour of South Africa with RSD in May. We have asked for a booking reference for our air flights so we can pre-book seats. ‘Unable to give them to us’. We have asked for the names of the hotels we will be staying at. Very worrying answer - ‘these will be allocated on arrival’!!! We have travelled extensively, and never had this problem before. It may all turn out well, but at the moment I feel very apprehensive. Has anyone else done the South Africa tour? If so, would appreciate some feedback and maybe pitfalls.

We have just returned from the Cultural tour of Isreal really enjoyed it although we had to fly to Istanbul then on to Tel Aviv the airline Turkish Airlines were great drinks and food.We did have early get ups but with all tours you have to set off early,I was amazed at what we saw and how much we paid,we did have a free day.We booked one optional tour to the Dead Sea which was great.This is our 3rd holiday with this company,our guide Youram was brilliant.

I have recently enquired with RSD Travel if I could get a partial refund for a tour booked to Morocco as my son is no longer able to travel with me. We were booked for 2 weeks, flights included in a double room sharing. They have just informed me that there will be ZERO refund and it will be an additional 200 pounds for me to travel single. They are not willing to refund any of the dinners that I have prebooked even though none of these have even been catered for yet as we are only due to travel on February 17th. I am outraged and in absolute shock and disbelief. This is beyond extortion. So what they are trying to say is that for me to travel to Morocco from the UK for 2 weeks incl flights will now cost me in excess of 1000 pounds. Would you book with them? I think not

I have now travelled with RSD to Israel and India in 2018. I loved Israel however India was even better! It was the most amazing holiday, some of the hotels were out of this world, the sights we saw were definitely out of this world! I had to pinch myself on more than occasion to actually believe what I was experiencing. Our Indian guide Jai Singh was first class he ensured we had the best time, he was knowledgeable and made the holiday even more memorable! Ok we did go to a few factories however that’s all part and parcel of travelling these days. RSD thank you so much, I’m would love to go to China in 2019 next and would have no hesitation in booking with RSD just waiting for the opportunity.

Went to N. Cyprus for 7 nights hotel + breakfast for £149 to see if an enjoyable break could be had for so little money . It can't . The journey out took 12hrs arriving at hotel at 12.15am , return took even longer . Hotel was ridiculously over the top and vulgar . Had to walk 1/2 mile for breakfast . Staff unhelpful and unfriendly . Excursions were really only from one cafe + market stalls to the next . Wholesale outlet tours ridiculous with very hard selling . Courier did not speak good English and was not in control . Overall , a waste of money . Was glad to get home .

My partner and I did RSD's "cultural tour of Crete" in December. The tour was okay, the guide extremely well-informed, but the hotels did not live up to their alleged 5-star rating. Giorgiopolis hotel had good food but the spa consisted of a sauna (good and hot), a hammam that was cold and a plunge pool that was on the chilly side. The Heraklion hotel (Santa Marina) was not as good with soulless rooms (no rugs, bare walls), no pool/sauna/hammam and food that was just about satisfactory. A big beef is with the jewellery/carpet/leather outlets that are an unavoidable feature of RSD tours. On a previous holiday in ANTALYA we bought diamond rings with a generous alleged price reduction. Back in Brighton these were valued at less than 75% of what we paid. In Crete an Asian gent on our tour with considerable haggling skills brought a £7,800 starting price in the carpet warehouse down to £1,000 - which shows just how overpriced these places are. RSD need to advise their clients to be aware of the hefty mark-ups in these warehouses; better yet, they could stop taking their clients to them. We thought this holiday was nowhere near as good in value and hotel quality as the Antalya tour. Not sure if we would use them again, though we are tempted by both the Israel and Morocco holidays in their catalogue.

We have recently returned from a cultural tour in China - our second experience of RSD Travel. We were not at all disappointed. The itinerary was excellent, giving us a varied experience of the many sights China has to offer. All the hotels we stayed in were of a very high standard. Our coach drivers were all excellent. Our guide was also excellent. He went to so much trouble to make our tour interesting and comfortable. Because we had been to Turkey with RSD, we knew we would have to go to places where we would have pressure to buy things, but this is the only disadvantage and we resisted the pressure. Actually if I had not been pressured, I would have bought something at the pearl warehouse!

Just returned from 8 days in Northern Cyprus and were pleasantly surprised by the hotels, food and trip. All for £300 off to S Africa with Rsd in January. A lot of new people who were also impressed. Went to India with Kuoni and they do the carpet and jewellery sales as well!

There are plenty of tour operators available without using this one which we found dreadful, unhelpful and rude, from the call handler to the Operations Director. . My 85 year old relative booked a trip with them recently and when we needed to ask for some reasonable adjustments for him, they were unhelpful, obstructive and couldnt care less to try to make his journey simpler and easier. Happy to take his money but failed to inform him he could have joined the trip at a more conventient airport, wouldnt give us the reference information we needed to change his arrangements with the airline and refused to contact them themselves. Maybe ok for those without special needs but a heartless and uncaring response for those who do!

Just back from North Cyprus and the worst holiday experience I have ever had. I was promised an historical and cultural tour staying in 4 and 5 star hotels and feel let down and conned. I did not expect to be forced into a carpet warehouse, jewellery warehouse and leather warehouse where nothing was produced and where everyone was subjected to 2 hours of hard sell on each occasion, which including travel time accounted for a full 8 hours! RSD are obviously able to provide cheap packages as they are clearly funded by the commissions received from these businesses. Certainly there is nothing about this in any way historical or cultural. Because of the time spent on this there was rarely time to actually appreciate the places we had expected to see. As to the hotels, the first, Artemis is impressive and the food excellent. The Altinkaya in Kyrenia however is a different matter being officially 3 star (2 star on some sites) and the food is disgusting, worse than school dinners used to be. After the first night there increasing numbers of our party went out to eat rather than face it despite having paid to upgrade to the "gourmet" package. I also objected to being constantly told by the tour guide how much I was expected to tip her and the driver at the end of the tour. Finally, because of the way the flights are arranged, even with only minor delays it still took 14 hours from leaving the hotel at 1.15 in the morning to arrival at Gatwick having had to get of the plane at both Antalya and Manchester. I will certainly never use RSD again and would advise everyone else to avoid them at all costs.

On RSD's cultural tour of Crete last week (4-11 November 2018) I had a great time, in contrast to the bad experience two weeks earlier described in another review on this site. Apart from the badly-handled chaos of our arrival from Glasgow at the Bali Paradise Hotel in the middle of the night, and the warehouse visits (which you get even on far more expensive holidays), everything was very much better, and I believe this was due to the company's local reps taking things in hand. In which case, all credit to them.Though there were eight busloads doing the same tour that week, the published itinerary was rearranged for each, so that no more than two arrived at the same place at the same time, and our departure on the first day was put back an hour because of our late arrival (still hard to get up for though!) Our tour guide, Ali, was lovely. He 'mothered' us nicely, and had to deal with one customer who was injured in a fall in the hotel on the first day. Our local guide for five days, Manos, had attended seminars about the archaeological sites, while Costas, his replacement for the day that included Malia, has a British degree in archaeology. I was delighted to learn from them about the ancient Minoan culture that had fascinated me since I was a teenager, and about the later history of Crete that's not so well known. The extras I paid for - the guided tour of Knossos and Heraklion Museum, and the Greek Night show - were maybe overpriced in themselves, but interesting and enjoyable additions to what was otherwise a bargain-price holiday. I think the Greek Night price would bear comparison with similar tourist shows (and their elevated drink prices) in my own country, Scotland. As a single traveller, I made quite a few new friends and the atmosphere was very relaxed. Like other reviewers on this site, we were asked at the end - very politely - to tip the driver and guides at a standard rate, but I didn't find it excessive (2.50 euros per day for the guides and 5 per day for the driver). George is an excellent driver, as other reviewers here have mentioned. He deserves a medal for taking us up dizzying ledges and round hairpin bends with confidence and ease. The food was not outstanding even at the 'gourmet package' dinners, but there was a wide choice. The Apollonia Resort hotel at Heraklion was better liked by most of our group than the Paradise Bali. The sales pressure at the warehouses (misrepresented as workshops or factories) was uncomfortable, but I would advise future customers who have to go through this to exit as soon as you decently can through the gift shop where there is one, and you will find there cheap Cretan products such as soap and olive oil. Also, while salesmen are pressuring you to buy gold, they don't tell you there is more affordable silver on the ground floor. Personally, I am glad I didn't read the reviews here before setting out, and I hope, if you are a customer reading this in advance of your tour, that you will have like me a very positive experience to report at the end of it.

Just back from Northern Cyprus trip, not much that I can add to previous negative comments, long complicated flights out and back, hotel - Gatwick return 16 hours, I could get to Japan in that time! Hard sell throughout, we weren't interested, but sad to have to console a weeping elderly lady who has just realised that the jewelry that she spent so much on is not what she paid for. First hotel was good, second less so with inedible food. But we didn't sign up for any extras, hired a car, £48 for 3 days, and rescued our holiday, to the dismay of the tour guide. We might use the company again for cheap flights and hotels, but if you aren't prepared to organise things yourself, don't bother.

Similarly to other reviews, this company is very clever at omitting the less pleasant aspects of their holidays. We booked up for the Tour of Northern Cyprus, and were prepared to pay for the 'extras' that RDS throw in, so no worry there. We paid up fully 3 months beforehand, then discovered on receiving our travel documents 2 weeks before departure, that the journey home from Ercan to Gatwick involved changes at Antalya and Manchester. So it went thus: 12.30am wake up call. 1.30am travel to Ercan Airport, through security etc. Arrive Antalya, Turkey, get off plane, go through security again, reboard, miss take-off slot so late set off for Manchester. At Manchester, get off plane, go through security, reboard, miss take-off slot, wait, arrive late at Gatwick. (Most people then have a further journey to get home) it all took at least 14 gruelling hours, overnight, very little sleep. Flybird Airlines have irritable, sullen airhostesses, sparse food has to be paid for, one free coffee/ cup of water, even though we had to dispose of our water bottles way back at security in Antalya. Had we known about the journey, we wouldn't have considered the holiday! My second grievance is the 'great tradition of craftsmanship' we are promised at the carpet/jewellery/leather factories. In fact they are simply warehouses on a trading estate miles from nowhere (so no escape!) You go into an elegant reception area, and the doors are firmly closed behind you - you are trapped!! Now for the HARD SELL. The sales people are very aggressive and persistent, sometimes downright rude or offensive. One attractive lady was told by a salesman who was intimately zipping up a leather jacket that he liked her melons, and another young girl told that she was not a virgin. Some people are happy to purchase a new £500 rug, some tanzanite jewellery for £1000, or a £500 leather jacket they didn't know they needed. The rest of us, who are normally quite happy to purchase local crafts from markets, have to run the extremely uncomfortable gauntlet of trying to find the exit with a pestering salesman hot on your heels. Not a happy experience, which took in total 1 1/2 days of our holiday. I have no fault with the two hotels we stayed at, with the small exception that, as summer vacation places, they weren't quite prepared for the colder weather (October) - some of the rooms were cold, and we had to ask for extra duvets. The food was very good - Turkish style, and our guide and driver also very good. The Tour was interesting, and we met some great people, but do be prepared for the downside as well! I personally wouldn't choose RSD again.

I have tried to think of one good thing to say about this company but can't. They are cheap con merchants. For all the superlatives they use in their promotions they are at best poor. Beware of cheap flight arrangements, eg Gatwick to Crete via Manchester, and being allocated a hotel on arrival at the destination. The example hotels given are NOT the ones used. Tours of your destination will include visits to carpet warehouses, with the merchandise made in other countries, on industrial estates and the like being classed as cultural tours. An expensive mistake.

This is the 3rd time we have travelled with RSD - our previous experiences being 2 Turkey tours with usual half days/pressure selling in carpet/jewellery/leather factories, threatening tour guide on one trip & tour starting at 7am on the first day when we didn't arrive at the hotel until 5am after a night flight. This made us slightly apprehensive about the SA trip, but on the whole it was pretty good. Two night flights with Turkish Airlines which were on time and had good food. Check-in at Gatwick was chaotic as it appears RSD had made a block booking for the whole group and no couples had been allocated seats together and, we were told as the flight was full, we could not change. Same thing happened in Johannesburg for the return flight but we were finally able to change. Turkish airport staff and flight attendants always come across as being rather surly. Cape Town Tour guide was very nice but rather disorganised, and more interested in gluing back on her false nails on the bus than giving us vital information. Johannesburg tour guide was excellent. Neither were pushy over additional tours. We paid extra for cultural and dinner package before we left. Food on the whole was pretty good. The tours included in this package were a bit of a rip-off. Tour to Waterfront in Cape Town consisted of taking us there in the bus to a restaurant for supper, then picking us up afterwards and taking us back to the hotel, so got to see nothing else of the area (plus it was dark). Trip to ostrich farm consisted of 20 minute stop at place that had 3 ostriches in one field and a few in another that you couldn't get near, plus cafe and gift shop (you could do this at animal sanctuary at home). Both trip to ostrich farm and Cape of Good Hope bus went to anyway, so presumably if you hadn't paid for the package, you would have just had to sit on the bus or stay behind at the hotel. Boat trip in Knysna was welcome as it was an extremely hot day, but not too much to see. We also paid in advance for the folklore show (£45). This was very over-priced and disappointing. Meal advertised as 14 different dishes but basically only got a taster of each so total quantity of food probably less than you would have eaten at normal meal anyway. Meal was in a regular restaurant and entertainment consisted of dancers and drummers coming to the end of each dining area in turn so, depending on where you were sitting, you couldn't see anything. Those who didn't book in advance had to pay £60 for the evening. We were also offered further optional excursions when we arrived - £65 for trip to Addo Elephant sanctuary, which we were told included at 3-hour jeep game drive, but when we got there it was only 2 hours; £40 for 1 1/2-hour trip to Township in Knysna (which we didn't do); £? for Whale watching trip which we didn't do and just spent time on the beach; £85 for jeep game drive in Kruger (definitely better seeing game from jeep rather than bus but not sure whether worth paying an additional £85 - most of jeep ride was on tarmac road where bus could go anyway). Tour very busy and hectic with an early start every day and not arriving at the hotel in the evening until around 6pm at the earliest, so just time to get in room, have supper and then get to bed ready for early start next day. However, this is the price you pay for packing so much in to a short trip. Hotels were pretty good throughout the tour and 'glamping' tents at Kruger were fantastic with wonderful views across bush landscape. Overall, good value tour compared to what you pay for an equivalent trip with other tour operators. Mediterranean scenery in Cape Town area and nice beaches along East Coast, but highlight for us was definitely wildlife in Kruger which made the trip worthwhile.

I have just returned from a 2 week trip to India with RSD travel. I had the most amazing time. The Hotels were very good and as promised. The tour coach was air conditioned and very well sprung! The guide was Indian and very well informed about his country's politics, history and heritage. The tour was a good mix of visiting historic sites, travel through the countryside and experiencing the hustle and bustle of markets, rickshaw rides and much more. The highlight was, of course, the Taj Mahal which was unforgettable!! I would definitely recommend this company and travel with them again with no reservations

We have just returned from an 8 day, 7 night Cultural break in Crete run by RSD Travel Ltd - What a disappointment. The idea of a culture based guided type break in Crete is a good concept as Crete and its people have a long and interesting history and a deep cultural tradition. I believe that this holiday should have been a tour operator’s dream to deliver, but instead it appeared that RSD were more interested in profit than in service. We have been regular visitors to the Island of Crete for the past 20 years having visited at least 12 times and this was the first time we have been disappointed. The organisation appeared to be beyond the capabilities of RSD. The holiday was twin centred staying in two 4 - 5 star hotels on a bed and breakfast basis. It included a 6-day programme of cultural visits together with 1 day of free time. The holiday information described 2 special optional offers. (1) a Gourmet Buffet evening meal package costing 139 euros per person and (2) a special optional 3 additional visit offer of 99 Euros. The holiday got off to a bad start when our flight with Aegean Airways was delayed by 2 hours and consequently we arrived at our first hotel, the Rethymnon Mare sometime after 9.30pm. Whilst en-route from the airport we were informed by the RSD representative that the Hotel was on the outskirts of Rethymnon, and that the hotel had been notified of the delay and had agreed to provide an evening meal on arrival. We were also told that due to it being near to the end of the tourist season the vast majority of local tavernas were closed or were closing, but for those guests who had not signed up to the ‘Gourmet’ Evening Buffet they could sign up to the Gourmet Buffet package that night. Based on the information we were given we, together with other guests, felt we had no option but to sign up for the meal package which cost an extra 139 euros each. We found out later that we had been misinformed as there were local tavernas which provided local Cretan cuisine within about 5 minutes walk from the hotel, although they were not visible from the hotel itself. On arrival at the second hotel we realised that there were numerous tavernas close by all providing a good menu of Cretan dishes at almost half the cost of the so called ‘Gourmet Buffet’ meal package. To describe the meal package provided as ‘Gourmet’ would I believe fall into the category of the Trade Descriptions Act. The food was at best average and unimaginative and any resemblance to Cretan cuisine was purely incidental. It was of note, that bearing in mind this package cost almost 20 Euros per person per night, it failed to supply a beverage of any type whatsoever, be it water or wine etc. without there being an additional charge incurred. The Itinerary We were proudly informed by the RSD representative that there were 12 coach loads of guests on the Crete Cultural Break who would be following a similar programme as ourselves. This proved to be a recipe for absolute chaos. As an example, our coach arrived at a monastery only to be joined by at least 8 other coach loads of guests within a short space of time. Although our local guide, Stella was extremely well informed, this influx of people rendered her delivery of information virtually impossible. Her attempt to pass on information was swamped by the other guests who had arrived along with their own guides who were also delivering information about the same location in the language of their party be it French, Danish, German etc. It was chaos. On one occasion we arrived at the Monastery of Arkadi to find that a service was taking place attended by the local populace, but it appeared not to matter to the RSD representatives,.that upwards of 250 people were descending on the Monastery whilst the service was still ongoing. (Not in the least respectful ) At another of the sites visited, in this case the museum of Elefthema, there were 4 viewing halls. The influx of visitors was such that we had to start at hall 3 then move to 1 then 4 etc. (anywhere there was a gap in which we could slot in). It spoiled the visit and rendered it almost pointless as the explanations became disjointed and disrupted by other parties. After such experiences numerous complaints were made to the RSD representative and the only solution that RSD could find was that on two of the days for guests to have an early morning call at 5.30am, to have a cold buffet type breakfast at 6am in order to be on the road by 7am. Although this did ease the congestion situation it was not what one would expect to be necessary on a cultural break holiday. RSD appeared to have no appreciation of the logistics involved with a break of this kind and organisationally, appeared to be out of their depth. Another of the ‘Cultural’ visits was to a carpet factory where we were immediately told on arrival that carpets were no longer made in Crete. It would seem this visit, as was a visit to a jewellery atelier, was in fact sale orientated, albeit with high class, show rooms. It was really annoying that a visit to Knossos (which was part of the optional extra package or could be purchased on an individual basis at 45 euros per head), was rescheduled into the middle of a planned daily schedule. This resulted in guests who had not subscribed to the additional optional extra attraction being told that there would be nothing close by and they would need to spend the next 1 ½ to 2 hours in a café or somewhere similar. It is also of note that our journey home resumed yet again an early start as it began at 3 am for a flight which was in two stages i.e. to Gatwick then onwards to Manchester. It was so disappointing as it could have been such a rewarding experience. The local guides were excellent as was our driver George. Our hotel accommodation was adequate but all in all, in our opinion the cost of the break is misleading due to all of the extras. I could go on and on about the failings of this, so called, cultural break but all I can say is that I would not recommend this holiday to anyone, and I will not be attending any other similar Cultural Break holidays run by RSD travel. This review and more has been communicated both verbally and in writing to RS

We went on our first trip with RSD Travel to the United Arab Emirates in mid June '18. Our travel documents arrived when the helpline said they would. Travelling with Turkish Airlines via Istanbul - that has many shops to suit all and gave us the opportunity to do some window shopping; to pick up on our return journey. We arrived in Abu Dhabi early evening and met by our tour rep and an air conditioned coach. We were taken to the 5 star Luxury Millennium Hotel in town (had a shopping Mall connected to the hotel.) The staff were very hospitable and courteous. After a buffet breakfast; we had a meeting with our bubbly rep Elif; who looked like Ruby Wax so we called her "Ruby". We signed up to do all the additional trips that were on offer. I have to say that two days were taken up with travelling, but the six days on tour were amazing! Ruby gave us lots of advise and tips of what to look out for on the days out. I would recommend taking some socks to put on in The Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi because the beautiful marble tiles are hot. It is an exceptionally beautiful place to visit. After, we went to the Yaz Marina where the Formula One Grand Prix is held every year, so my husband was very happy to visit and we enjoyed the boat tour. The coach tour of Abu Dhabi was great. Ruby pointed out all the places of interest and talked to us about the Muslim culture. We had another boat trip with a buffet dinner - that was very relaxing. The next day we travelled to Dubai and had an amazing time! The hotel was just as luxurious as the first. I can not list everything we did, but trust me it was fun! The highlights for us were watching the dancing fountain while eating dinner in a Turkish Restaurant next to them. The food was delicious and the waiters were very entertaining! After we went into the Berg Khalifa - up two lifts; to the 148th floor. The night views were amazing. Then we were taken to the Berg Arab for cocktails and Canapes on the 24th Floor. The building has solid gold everywhere and a beautiful aquarium. Ruby organised everything for us. Other highlights for us were - seeing the famous Palm and visiting the Palm Hotel where we took a helicopter ride to see the city of Dubai. And sand Safari in the Sahara Desert then on to a Mirage Fort for a buffet dinner and entertainment. We formed friends with other people on the tour. The third hotel was in another Emirate; Ajman. The luxurious hotel was by the sea - that was like a bath to swim in; at 38 degrees! We did the day tour to Aman that included boat ride to Musandam. It was a very relaxing day - just what we needed! Went swimming - but the sea was very salty - so we were careful to not dive in and protected our eyes. We enjoyed a delicious buffet on board with the staff; who were very friendly. The next day we travelled home. I had a new leather jacket and some jewellery from local companies that Ruby recommended. So thanks for that Ruby! We visited a rug/carpet factory but did not need a new rug and there was no pressure to buy. Picked up some Turkish delight and other goods in Istanbul on the way home. We highly recommend this amazing trip.

my trips with RSD : 3 times in Turkey , 2 times in Dubaï, 1 Cyprus (the North, turkish), 1 Morocco where I took the offered second week, lovely place, I had books and found friends ; now going to the Baltic cruise ending in St Petersburg. Going to China in March..... Very well organised, sometimes speedy on the first days but always very interesting. of course the guide is the key but they mostly are very good! some are out of the ordinary, and only once we had a poor guide bored by his job. In Turkey we had S.A. an outstanding and cultivated guide!!!! wonderful. So I can recommend these not really expensive trips! and even the second week....but bring your computer, books and knitting !!!! or organise expeditions at you own expenses of course.....