05 Jan 2025
I will start by saying we caused a delay of starting the tour because some of our group had been taken to the wrong hotel by a taxi. The delay was 20 minutes. We thought the private tour for 9 people would be in the same vehicle. We were split up in two vehicles which was a disappointment as the trip was about getting together with friends to share an experience. One of the two drivers did not speak English beyond a few phrases and therefore did not speak a word from Amsterdam to Brussels. Even when we made our stops, we had no description of where we were and the significance of the stop. Such a beautiful drive through the city of Brussels, but the lack of commentary sucked the life out of that experience. The guide who could speak English was unable to answer even basic questions. When we asked for a lunch recommendation for our 2 hour 15 minute stop in central/old town Brussels, we were told there were restaurants “everywhere”. Our three-hour city stay was cut short which made up for the delay of starting, but the last two stops on the itinerary were eliminated without notice. Very disappointed. No way we could ask why because our driver didn’t speak English and the other guy was in another van. To the credit of both, they were nice. We tipped them both well in spite of our terrible experience. I know there will be some pushback on this review, but bad is bad. The worst they can stay about us is that we walk slow and we were 20 minutes late starting. Other reviews of this same tour had informative and friendly guides who made the experience memorable. We opted for the private tour because two of our travelers are over 80 and a few have mobility issues which we noted from the beginning. We know we are slower and don’t like holding others up. Overall, bummer day for all.