Pirate Voyages

Complaint: [redacted] I am rejecting this response because: I am appalled at the response from this company My son didn't even step foot near the back of the boat, leading me to believe they are referring to a different family My son was at the front of the boat, and attempted to get a water cannon the entire time until I had to ask a child to let him touch one as well My daughter had ALL of her 'treasure' taken from her, not some My son did not The only thing my son refused the entire trip was the grape juice at the end of the trip, and afterwards he came to the rear of the boat as it arrived at the dock Yes, my daughter was moved near the front of the line because she was at the front of the boat when the treasure chest came out, my son was near the middle/end of a second line, but this was never an issue I asked for a partial refund as we did partake in the services but were not given the experience promised There were more than children on the boat, and the number of adults made this a terrible ratio I hoped the business would redeem our displeasure somewhat, but I will just let my voice be heard on the same comment sites I visited when planning this trip What a terrible company to lie about what my children did or did not do Regards, [redacted]

Our company does take occasional school groups, scout troops, day camps, summer camps, and sometimes large family reunions during the summer.  We make every effort on board to show all our guests a good time.  A random question about which trips are slower would be a hard question to...

answer as every day is different.  We definitely can say our 2 morning trips are most popular which may be why this reservation booked an afternoon trip.  As a courtesy to our guests we do let them know when booking that they are going on a trip that has a large group. I would assume that this would be the case with this reservation as well however with our new online booking system it is impossible to control it as well.  As with any boating activity with paying passengers we do our best to depart on time but as a courtesy to our guests stuck in traffic and circumstances beyond their control we have held our boat allowing them an extra 5-10 minutes to join the activity they have booked.  We allow enough time between trips so that when this occurs the trip is not shortened and parts are not omitted due to the tardy departure.  The entire show is performed.  It is not uncommon to have 25-30 kids on any given public trip as a matter of fact that is a pretty accurate ratio.  The customer did not make it known to the mateys that they were dissatisfied during the trip.  The customer only voiced their dissatisfaction via phone after they had left the property. I returned a phone call after talking to our crew that worked that trip.  My mateys specifically remembered this guest and her children as they went out of their way to include these 2 children in all of the activities.  Our matey [redacted] was by the 3 year old's side for most of the trip.  Our mateys put both of her children at the front of the treasure line so they could be first to get their loot.  The boy sat in the back of the boat (where the parents sat the entire time) and when the mateys went to ask the boy to join in on the activities he refused.  Due to the nature of the ongoing skit it's hard to spend more than a few moments to get shy or apprehensive children to join in.  We do our best but everyone has different personalities and comfort zones.  The boy was asked to join in on the water cannon battle but he again refused and sat in the back so she is correct that he did not use the cannons.  My crew on the boat was extremely surprised at the complaint when informed as they went out of their way to include these children.  I have no knowledge of the kids getting their treasure taken but when she told me on the phone that they lost "some" of their treasure I offered her to return to the dock and we would be happy to give them more.  I also at that time offered to give them passes to come back and experience the trip again but she refused.  The customer was only looking to be refunded and given the specific information I had from my crew I did not feel a refund was warranted.  We obviously value any feedback from our guests and we try our best to give the best performance and include everyone on board.  We extend our offer for free passes again but I stand by my decision to refuse a refund given the circumstances.  We are truly sad they did not enjoy their trip as it is and has always been our goal to create fun family memories on our ship.

Complaint: [redacted]
I am rejecting this response because: I am appalled at the response from this company.  My son didn't even step foot near the back of the boat, leading me to believe they are referring to a different family.  My son was at the front of the boat, and attempted to get a water cannon the entire time until I had to ask a child to let him touch one as well.  My daughter had ALL of her 'treasure' taken from her, not some.  My son did not.  The only thing my son refused the entire trip was the grape juice at the end of the trip, and afterwards he came to the rear of the boat as it arrived at the dock.  Yes, my daughter was moved near the front of the line because she was at the front of the boat when the treasure chest came out, my son was near the middle/end of a second line, but this was never an issue.  I asked for a partial refund as we did partake in the services but were not given the experience promised.  There were more than 25 children on the boat, and the number of adults made this a terrible ratio.  I hoped the business would redeem our displeasure somewhat, but I will just let my voice be heard on the same comment sites I visited when planning this trip.  What a terrible company to lie about what my children did or did not do.
Regards,
[redacted]

Review: Today we visited Pirate Voyages. I had read good reviews regarding their pirate ship voyage for children. I called the weekend before to reserve spots, asking if there was a time/day that was less crowded, and was told they were all the same. We opted for the 12:30 departure time, and were told to arrive 25 minutes early for face painting. We arrived much earlier, and waited until the scheduled time, which came and went due to waiting for a summer camp group who was late. They even let them get their faces painted, causing more of a delay. Where the issue came in was that the group - 26-30 kids - was only led by 2 camp counselors who obviously could care less about their group's behavior. I see where the 'crew' of the ship was going with this trip, it could have been great...with 10-20 kids total. Of the 49 allowed to be on the boat, 48 patrons came, only about 6 to 8 of which were adults. My children - 3 and 5 years old - were amongst the smallest in the group, much smaller than the summer camp children. They did not get any of the opportunities advertised - shooting water cannons, for example, and could not see through the crowd to any of the maps or treasures being shown, nor to the circling 'bad pirate'. The overwhelming number of children, none of which were under my control or that of their 2 leaders, practically trampled my kids and ended up taking all of my 3 year old's 'treasures' that were handed out. I contacted the owner and was told my kids had opportunities and that I could come back for a treasure or ride again the following day. Being our last day of vacation, this was not an option. I know most of the fault is with the camp group who was on the ship, but who in the world books SO MANY children on a boat, fully knowing the horrible child to adult ratio that would be present? This event ruined the remainder of our vacation, I cannot believe I spent nearly $80 to get my children trampled and stuck behind a crowd to miss most of the show.Desired Settlement: I feel that we should be at least partially compensated for this horrific experience, limits need to be set to how many kids - this was too many to begin with - as well as the adult to child ratio. (Which would have solved the children abundance if more adults took up children's 'places' in the allowed 49 slots.)

Business

Response:

Our company does take occasional school groups, scout troops, day camps, summer camps, and sometimes large family reunions during the summer. We make every effort on board to show all our guests a good time. A random question about which trips are slower would be a hard question to answer as every day is different. We definitely can say our 2 morning trips are most popular which may be why this reservation booked an afternoon trip. As a courtesy to our guests we do let them know when booking that they are going on a trip that has a large group. I would assume that this would be the case with this reservation as well however with our new online booking system it is impossible to control it as well. As with any boating activity with paying passengers we do our best to depart on time but as a courtesy to our guests stuck in traffic and circumstances beyond their control we have held our boat allowing them an extra 5-10 minutes to join the activity they have booked. We allow enough time between trips so that when this occurs the trip is not shortened and parts are not omitted due to the tardy departure. The entire show is performed. It is not uncommon to have 25-30 kids on any given public trip as a matter of fact that is a pretty accurate ratio. The customer did not make it known to the mateys that they were dissatisfied during the trip. The customer only voiced their dissatisfaction via phone after they had left the property. I returned a phone call after talking to our crew that worked that trip. My mateys specifically remembered this guest and her children as they went out of their way to include these 2 children in all of the activities. Our matey [redacted] was by the 3 year old's side for most of the trip. Our mateys put both of her children at the front of the treasure line so they could be first to get their loot. The boy sat in the back of the boat (where the parents sat the entire time) and when the mateys went to ask the boy to join in on the activities he refused. Due to the nature of the ongoing skit it's hard to spend more than a few moments to get shy or apprehensive children to join in. We do our best but everyone has different personalities and comfort zones. The boy was asked to join in on the water cannon battle but he again refused and sat in the back so she is correct that he did not use the cannons. My crew on the boat was extremely surprised at the complaint when informed as they went out of their way to include these children. I have no knowledge of the kids getting their treasure taken but when she told me on the phone that they lost "some" of their treasure I offered her to return to the dock and we would be happy to give them more. I also at that time offered to give them passes to come back and experience the trip again but she refused. The customer was only looking to be refunded and given the specific information I had from my crew I did not feel a refund was warranted. We obviously value any feedback from our guests and we try our best to give the best performance and include everyone on board. We extend our offer for free passes again but I stand by my decision to refuse a refund given the circumstances. We are truly sad they did not enjoy their trip as it is and has always been our goal to create fun family memories on our ship.

Consumer

Response:

Review: [redacted]

I am rejecting this response because:

I am appalled at the response from this company. My son didn't even step foot near the back of the boat, leading me to believe they are referring to a different family. My son was at the front of the boat, and attempted to get a water cannon the entire time until I had to ask a child to let him touch one as well. My daughter had ALL of her 'treasure' taken from her, not some. My son did not. The only thing my son refused the entire trip was the grape juice at the end of the trip, and afterwards he came to the rear of the boat as it arrived at the dock. Yes, my daughter was moved near the front of the line because she was at the front of the boat when the treasure chest came out, my son was near the middle/end of a second line, but this was never an issue. I asked for a partial refund as we did partake in the services but were not given the experience promised. There were more than 25 children on the boat, and the number of adults made this a terrible ratio. I hoped the business would redeem our displeasure somewhat, but I will just let my voice be heard on the same comment sites I visited when planning this trip. What a terrible company to lie about what my children did or did not do.

Regards,