Webjet Exclusives - Good or Bad? Take a Chance or Avoid?

[Renato1]

Last night I met an acquaintance who had done a two week Webjet Exclusives tour through three countries in Africa, and she had been delighted. I looked at pictures of accommodation on her phone, and it had started off basic and improved dramatically as the tour went on, till at one stage she had a room with three king sized double beds. She also said she had met a couple in China who had paid $2000 for their tour including flights, and that they couldn't have been happier.

So I checked out their tours at
Webjet Exclusives
and they looked pretty good, especially the China ones.

But then I thought about it, and checked the reviews at Product Review Australia, and the results were a very mixed bag.
Webjet Exclusives

There seemed to be universal acclaim for the Egypt tours, some problems with the USA, European and South American tours, and both acclaim and condemnation of the Japan tours and especially of the China tours. For the China tours, things seemed fairly positive in the 2017 reviews and far more negative in the 2018 reviews.

Most the tours are misleading, counting the day of return to Australia as one of the days in the 7, 8 or 13 day purchased tour for example.

In a couple of reviews of the China tours, people who had paid significantly extra for luxury accommodation found themselves in the same non-luxury hotels as people who had paid for the non-luxury option.

Makes it hard to decide whether to take a chance at a good bargain tour, or to avoid like the plague.

Has anybody had any experience of these tours?
Regards,
Renato

 

[RooFlyer]

No experience, but just to note that counting the day of flying in then group assembly at the hotel as the first day of the tour and counting the last day where pax are taken to the airport after breakfast as the last day of the tour, is almost universal.

Looking at the reviews, the best ones were gushing about the overseas experience, hotels and sometimes the guide. These have little to do with the 'Webjet' bit (guides would be a local stringer). The worst reviews were mostly about the WebJet part of it - T&Cs, back-office organisation.

I'd avoid 'em like the plague.

 

[Renato1]

No experience, but just to note that counting the day of flying in then group assembly at the hotel as the first day of the tour and counting the last day where pax are taken to the airport after breakfast as the last day of the tour, is almost universal.

Looking at the reviews, the best ones were gushing about the overseas experience, hotels and sometimes the guide. These have little to do with the 'Webjet' bit (guides would be a local stringer). The worst reviews were mostly about the WebJet part of it - T&Cs, back-office organisation.

I'd avoid 'em like the plague.

Thanks - that seems like wise advice.

Yes, counting the day where passengers go to the airport as the last day of the tour is typical and fine, as far as I am concerned. But typically, the Webjet Exclusives have the following,
"Day 6: Chongqing –

– Australia (B)
Today you will be transferred to the airport for your flight home.

Day 7: Australia
Arrive home today"

I can't see how "Australia" counts as part of the tour.

One of the reviews about the Yangtze river cruise struck me as peculiarly authoritarian - where at each stop on the river, unless passengers paid for the boat's organised excursion, they weren't allowed off the boat and were stuck there in boredom all day long.

I've been looking at other tour sites which advertise as "No Shopping Stops". Plainly they are dearer than the Exclusives, but one seems to save a day or two in avoiding the stupid captive sales pitches.
Cheers,
Renato