11 Jul 2023
The driver, Jean-Pierre, was excellent. My entire party of 7, including 4 seniors, felt safe throughout the trip. However, the tour guide, Thomas, was a mystery to us. He took the group to fast-food places before reaching hotels because "there would be nowhere to eat." Why would Concord choose hotels so badly located? At one point, he took the entire tour group to a supermarket before going to the hotel. He was particularly critical of a restaurant called Pastali. However, my party and I ate at that hotel, and it was the best meal we had for the entire trip. And the service at the restaurant was excellent. To me, it's obvious that Thomas is a liar, or at the very least, he doesn't know anything about the places he is supposedly guiding people to.
One member of my party is 75 years old, and she walks with a cane. And yet, Thomas expressed surprise that we didn't not join him on a 2-hour trek on Bonaventure Island. What kind of tour guide is this? I rarely eat fast food but that pretty much most of what I had on this trip. The buffet lunch was 2 out 5 stars. We drove past so many nice restaurants and shops, but we were never given the chance to try anything local or special to Gaspe. This tour guide seemed to be operating on a completely different understanding of what a holiday is. The lesson that I've learned is "never again."