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Explorica Reviews (20)

• Aug 20, 2023

Horrible
What a horrible company. You charge thousands and actually spend very little on in hotels and airfare. Any school or teacher that sends their students on a trip with Explorica didn’t do their homework. Stay away from Explorica trips - educate your school about the many lawsuits filed by families that saved for months to afford the trip, only to have Explorica pocket the fees if the trip is cancelled - even during Covid. Why hasn’t this place been shut down!?

ABSOLUTE WORST COMPANY EVER - ILLEGALLY HOLDING MONEY !!!
(I'd give it a 0 if I could)

BEWARE !
Our HS group of 30 students booked a tour through Explorica in early 2020 before Covid hit. Our trip to Asia was supposed to take place in June 2021 but was postponed because of Covid. It was rescheduled for June 2022, but was finally cancelled in Feb 2022 because of ongoing quarantine issues with Vietnam.
We were told to write to request a cancellation and refund (stupid and unnecessary to get our money back). We all have, some of us have received partial payments, some of us have received NOTHING and ALL of us are infuriated with having to have called Explorica to be put on hold for hours only to either be hung up on, lied to that a "check is in the mail", or dealing with someone who doesn't speak English.
This company is still booking tours and collecting money and is illegally holding millions of dollars in reimbursement. They will inevitably fold and the CEO's will leave with millions in severance, and all of the parents who paid hard-earned money will be left to file for legal assistance.
Seriously, Google Explorica, Worldstrides or Lakeland Tours. ! https://www.petition11.com/cases/-new-chapter-11-filing-lakeland-tours-llc-d/b/a... />
Bob Gogel, President and Ceo of Worldstrides

This company is a SCAM ! Do not believe the ads or their webpage because behind the scenes, this company is struggling to survive post-covid and they are treating their 100% customers like dirt.

Dear Mr***,Thank you for taking the time to let us know about your disagreement with the cancellation policy applicable to your daughter's accountWe totally understand your concerns about traveling abroad In the past years we have experienced similar tragic events, as there has been at least World Wide Travel Alerts since A travel alert is not a stipulation for US citizens or residents to avoid travelingIt is simply an encouragement to be aware and cautious of the environmentFortunately, we have successfully operated for years and have an extensive insight on handling trips during unfortunate incidents like theseWe have never operated, nor will ever operate a trip should we find our travelers at riskNeedless to say, safety is our number one priorityWe will continue to monitor the situation and make changes to our programs if neededWe are hopeful tranquility will prevail soon to avoid any setbacksWe are also very confident that pertinent changes, if any, will result to an unforgettable Explorica experience.Currently the tour still planned to run and for any participant that would like to cancel the cancellation policy will be applicable and the fees will be as follow:$Non-refundable deposit$cancellation fee-------------------------------$total feesSince you only had paid so far $599, there is no refund applicableAt this point the account still active as we haven’t receive an official cancellation request from you in writingIf your final decision is to cancel please make sure to send your request to [email protected] otherwise the account will remain active.I have attached the copy of the Terms &Conditions as well in case you would like to review those.Best Regards, [redacted] explorica

• Aug 18, 2023

Wow! What an awful response to a customer! Really? “We understand your concerns about traveling abroad…a travel alert is not a stipulation to avoid traveling”….what are you talking about! We were in the middle of a global
Pandemic! Please refund the people their money. My daughter is not going on her school trip w Explorica, thanks to honest customers like candacejones. I would never ever book a trip w Explorica.

Hello ***,Thank you one more time on letting us know your discontent with the applicable policy and although I understand your perspective on the situation, I would like to take the opportunity to point out certain fact about the account.If you please review the document attached you will see the account was created online and that in order to submit any application you had to agreed to the Terms and Conditions providedOn these Terms and Conditions we clearly can find the information regarding cancellation and that even if the school or the group leader cancels, regular cancellation policy is applicable.Once again I would like to take the opportunity to remind you that it is important for you to contact Trip Mate at [redacted] with the plan number [redacted] in order to obtain the additional refundNow as a show of good will gesture we are able to provide an additional $refund.Hope you understand we have to adhere to the policy.Best Regards, [redacted]

Dear [redacted] , Thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts, and we are sorry that your son will not be able to join the tour We admire your decision to keep your son home, but unfortunately, as our Customer Care team has explained, the basic Travel Protection plan you purchased does not cover a voluntary withdrawal from tourSuch a cancellation is subject to our standard cancellation policy that you agreed to upon enrollment, which states that cancellations made between 105-days prior to departure entitle you to a refund of the total amount paid minus: 50% of all fees, the $non-refundable deposit, and the cost of insuranceIn your case, as of today (days prior to departure), if you cancel this week your refund will be $ In your conversations with our Customer Care team you also proposed the idea of transferring your son's reservations to another participant, but again, per the Terms and Conditions you agreed to upon enrollment, reservations are non-transferrableWe have already issued airline tickets in your son's name, which we cannot transfer To move forward with cancelling your son's reservation and claiming your refund, please email [email protected] as soon as possibleAnd as always, if you have questions, please feel free to give us a call at [redacted] Sincerely, Explorica

Revdex.com: I have reviewed the response submitted by the business and have accepted their grievance reimbursement in reference to complaint # [redacted] However, I will continue to pursue the referenced third party insurance company ( [redacted] ***) for my justified refundI understand that by choosing to accept the business response that my complaint will be closed as resolved Sincerely, [redacted] ***

Dear Ms***,Thank you for taking the time to notify us about your disagreement with the cancellation policy appliedUnfortunately based on the Terms and Conditions the cancellation fee applicable is $non refundable deposit, plus any insurance purchased,in your case this makes a total of $ in each account.The cancel for any reason is a benefit included on the insurance and is applicable to cover cancellation fee, and this will give you the benefit to receive the 75% of the cancellation fee covered, in your case there was no cancellation fee we only kept the non refundable deposit and the cost of the insurance so no cancellation fee was charged.I totally understand your perspective and I'm willing to help out with the situation and as a one time exception we will be able to waive part of the non refundable depositWe will honor the initial deposit paid of $and waive $of the $You can expect an additional refund of $total.thank you for your time.Best regards,explorica

***, Thank you for reaching outWe are sorry to hear that your child will not be traveling with us and that you were disappointed with your experienceAt Explorica, we pride ourselves on our customer service, so we take this seriously There was a tour fee increase added to the account because the anticipated number of travelers was not reachedHowever, there was a technical issue with your account which caused a higher amount to appearWe worked with your program leader to resolve this issue, and we are happy to honor your cancellation request in accordance with the cancellation policy We understand that our Customer Care team will be in touch to discuss the situationIf you have any further questions, our Customer Care team is always available at [redacted] Sincerely, Explorica

Revdex.com:I have reviewed the response submitted by the business and have determined that the response does not satisfy or resolve my issues and/or concerns in reference to complaint # [redacted] Please add your rejection comments belowThe details giving by the Business (Explorica) is unacceptable because I did not cancelled my son's trip, the Company has cancelled the trip after they have agreed to extended me days to pay the balance and on the same day after agreement of the extension they have cancelled the trip and informed us days later; therefore, it is the Company tactic to keep the Tax payer money without working for itBy no means it is not my last attempt to recover the money plus any costs associated for the processes and mental anguish.Simncerely,Ms [redacted] ? Regards, [redacted]

Revdex.com: I have reviewed the response submitted by the business and have determined that the response does not satisfy or resolve my issues and/or concerns in reference to complaint # [redacted] Please add your rejection comments below Regards, *** It's unfair and unethical business practice for you to charge me and my son $for an educational trip that was canceled or transferred without any fault of mine Exploica please be aware that this trip is for graders for 2016, by my son will not be age appropriate for the tripThis trip has not been planned or scheduled Please refund me my money and keep the $nonrefundable fees that is what you're entitled to, please stop using business policy to steal my hard earned money This trip is more than year and months away, what's your policy when a trip is in unforeseen future?

Revdex.com: I have reviewed the response submitted by the business and have determined that the response does not satisfy or resolve my issues and/or concerns in reference to complaint # [redacted] Please add your rejection comments below.This is an unacceptable response and no resolution is being offeredAn apology for a known problem is not a resolution and it is not going to erase the memories in my daughter’s head or in ours.It is not just our expectations that were not met on this tourOur school principal has interviewed numerous students and chaperones and the results, excluding Mr***, are very similarI am not going to speak for Mr [redacted] , the school’s principal, because he will be contacting Explorica.I do not know why you are mentioning Rome or Madrid because our school chose to tour Greece and we are unfamiliar with these locationsOne of the chaperones did compare the area around the Hotel [redacted] to the area surrounding the Las Vegas strip.You mentioned that similar complaints have been made about Explorica’s tours to “ [redacted] St area in Rome or around Sol in Madrid”Furthermore, you have stated that Explorica has been using the hotel [redacted] since If this is true, then why did not inform the school administration and parents that the students were going to be lodged in a “red light” district? If we were made aware of this lodging, then our daughter would not have been allowed to participate in this tour.We could have taken our daughter to New York City (miles away) to see a “red light” district and could have saved nearly $3,But this is not the type of tour we wanted or expected.Mr [redacted] abdicated his responsibilities as head chaperone, but two parents did contact Explorica to voice their concerns while the tour was active and they were ignored! Explorica was paid and the tour was almost over, so you did not care.We did not consent, or pay, for our daughter to being lodged in a “red light” districtWe did not pay for her to be lodged in a hotel with a broken dead bolt, which forced her to vacate the room and dorm with a chaperoneFurthermore, something is very wrong when a tour guide tells a group of young girls “this is an unsafe neighborhood”I am sorry that I allowed my daughter to participate in this tourIf my daughter would have conveyed these problems to me during the tour, then I would have contacted the US Embassy and demanded that she be put on the next plane and returned to United States Sincerely, [redacted] ***

First of all, I apologize for the inconvenience and distress caused due to miscommunicationWe take great care to ensure that important matters such as this are properly managedI consider this situation a result of miscommunication, and I believe we could have more clearly explained the different processes involved in tour planning and given more detailed information on what to expectAs we have previously explained, group travel might be handled differently than individual travelAt this moment, we are still reviewing your concerns and working on alternatives to offer to youThank you in advance for your patience and understanding

Dear Ms [redacted] , Based on our previous communications, I would like to reiterate that our records show your son’s account was cancelled due to an overdue balanceUnfortunately, there is no possibility to give you a refund, as from the very beginning of the planning process, spaces are reserved with our different suppliers and subject to penalties if cancelled.Based on the date you cancelled your account, your cancellation fee was for $2,but you only covered $The rest of the funds received cover the nonrefundable deposit ($99) and the cost of the insurance ($180)I have attached a copy of the terms and conditions that you agreed to upon the creation of the account on November 26, 2014, and by the provision of your payment account informationBy doing so, you agreed to the contract and all policies, including the cancellation policy.I do understand your perspective of the situation, but there is no way for us to accept your son on the tour roster without a payment, and you had to provide that informationRegarding the $check received from the Town of Andover, this was returned directly to Ms [redacted] in MarchI hope this answered all of your questionsThank you for your time

Revdex.com: I have reviewed the response submitted by the business and have determined that the response does not satisfy or resolve my issues and/or concerns in reference to complaint # [redacted] Please add your rejection comments belowno, you will not be serving me or my students in the future because we will not be using Explorer cut ever again Regards, [redacted]

Dear Mr***,Thank you for contacting us through Revdex.comFirst of all I would like to start by apologizing for any inconvenience causedAs I've reviewed the account under ***, I can see that the cancellation request was received on Sunday during our 'Out of Office hours'I do understand you were expecting to be canceled before that following Monday to avoid the automatic withdrawal from your checking account, unfortunately account was canceled until Monday, while payment was processed automatically very early in the morning of MondayI have contacted my Accounts department and they have confirmed me that we will be able to make an exception and refund you before the established time frame of 4-weeksI have sent the pertinent paper work to have a check issue under your name and send to the home address on file this same weekThe check will be for $1002.36.Because you purchased the Travel Protection Plan plus, it is really important for you to contact [redacted] at [redacted] with the plan number [redacted] in order to start the process for the additional refund of $based on the Cancel for Any Reason benefitPlease don't hesitate to contact us if you have any question.Best Regards, [redacted] explorica

Thank you so much for reaching out to us through Revdex.comWe are really sorry to hear that you have canceled Sophia's accountAlthough we totally understand your perspective of the current situation I would like to mention that this type of travel alert suggest "enhanced precautions" and doesn't necessarily dissuade people from traveling generallyUnfortunately we are not able to provide full refund as there has not been a travel warningThe tour is still running as planned and at this point any cancellation request is subject to penaltiesPlease find attached the copy of the Terms and Conditions agreed to when account was createdBest Regards, Explorica

I have reviewed the response submitted by the business and have determined that the response does satisfy my issues and/or concerns in reference to complaint # [redacted] I understand that by choosing to accept the business response that my complaint will be closed as resolved Regards, [redacted] ***

Revdex.com: I have reviewed the response submitted by the business and have determined that the response does not satisfy or resolve my issues and/or concerns in reference to complaint # [redacted] Please add your rejection comments below I have been told times by Explorica that the claim was resolved and a check would mailed out "this week" It is June and a check has NOT been mailed Explorica does not follow up on it's promise of a check Regards, [redacted]

Revdex.com: I have reviewed the response submitted by the business and have determined that the response does satisfy my issues and/or concerns in reference to complaint # [redacted] I understand that by choosing to accept the business response that my complaint will be closed as resolved Regards, [redacted]

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