Arena Travel Reviews 45

We just finished a Stitchtopia/Arena travel tour to Uzbekistan. We are American, picked up the group in London at Heathrow.

The trip was very well organized, very nice hotels (much nicer than expected), the restaurants were generally extremely good. The textile focus was well accommodated with trips to silk and rug makers, embroiderers, weavers and more.

The hotel in Khiva was in a magnificent location, inside the city walls adjacent to the blue tower. The hotel in Bukhara was in a terrific location,and the desk managers were super helpful.

Our Uzbecki guide, Mashkhura, was an absolute joy. Very informative, and very enthusiastic to share her country and culture. The Stitchtopia liaison, Lin, was also excellent. The two of them kept everything rolling smoothly, and were accommodating when some of our party had to bow out of scheduled events due to tummy ailments. (Kudos to Lin and Mashkhura for literally forcing bottled water on us, and making sure bottles were on the table at every meal.)

The only suggestions I would have would be faster stops for lunch. Sorting out individual checks was a nightmare, and some of the restaurants weren’t prepared for a group of 14. And I would have dearly loved to have more time at the market in Urgent. We only had an hour and it was a fifteen minute fight through crowds in each direction to make it down to the area that sold suzanis and vintage needlework. I am gutted I only had thirty minutes there. The selection was overwhelming.

My only complaint is with the home office, rather than the folks on tour. Several times I emailed, and responses were slow. The first time took over ten days. After a few days I got nervous and started researching the company. Uh oh. Having discovered the prior bankruptcy, with the lack of response, I was very much on edge that we’d potentially lost a considerable amount of money. I was reassured when a response finally drifted in, but a bundle of nerves when it happened again.

Ultimately a once in a lifetime trip to a fabulous, fabulous place. The folks on the ground were A++++.

Almost everyone on our tour was a repeat, even a multi-repeat Stitchtopia guest.

The final compliment would be….I'm already researching my next Stitchtopia tour!

I have made number of trips with arena - on stitchtopia tours - to USA, India, France and Spain. They have all been managed exceptionally well, smoothly run by well informed experts and guides. I would recommend them and I am now planning to go to Uzbekistan.

We were on a recent short trip with Arena to visit Versaille and Monet’s Garden.
Much of the trip was very pleasant however there were some issues. I have now e-mailed Arena twice through their Contact page to give what I consider is polite constructive feedback. I am very disappointed that I have had neither a reply or even an acknowledgement. Poor customer service.

In August 2022 two friends and I booked a rail holiday to the Italian Lakes which we had seen in Country Living magazine. It was with the magazine's travel partners TS Tours and Arena Travel, with the booking made through travel TS Tours. As the lead traveller I paid the deposit of £1,050 with my NatWest credit card and we received confirmation of our booking.
We heard nothing else from TS Tours until an email arrived on 28 December 2022 when our passport details were requested, which was fine. However, on 11 January 2023, just 2.5 days before our balance of over £3K was due we received an email from TS Tours advising us that Arena had gone into Administration on 23 September 2022 and that a company called Leger had stepped in. We called TS Tours that day as we felt this was unacceptably late notice, Leger was not our chosen provider and we felt that this was a significant change in the terms and conditions. The person at TS Tours understood our feelings and said he would cancel the holiday and he assured us that our deposit would be refunded. He told us to contact EVO insurance, who were handling claims on behalf of Arena.
Since that day there has been a trail of 45 to 50 emails between myself and various parties. EVO has declined and referred us to NatWest Bank who declined Section 75 due to the involvement of a third party ie TS Tours isn’t the supplier; EVO then referred us back to NatWest who have declined a second time. EVO has now referred us to the Financial Ombudsman. This holiday did not include a flight so ATOL are unable to advise and added to this, Arena withdrew from ABTA several months before entering Administration. This has been a highly disappointing, costly and time-consuming exercise, not to mention the stress that we have experienced, and so far we have had no success. We are now considering taking legal action.

We recently returned from a rail trip to the French Alps. The travel went smoothly, the hotel was really comfortable, the scenery amazing and the food was good. The trips went well, although possibly the destinations could be swapped around to avoid some museum closing days. Darren, the guide, was really well organised, helpful and informative. Christian, the coach driver made the journeys entertaining. Altogether a really good holiday.

Recently returned from a rail break to the French Alps. Very impressed with the organisation for the trip, and our tour manager Darren, was just brilliant. The hotel Beauregard was a delight.
My only criticism of the trip involves food - although well prepared and imaginative, we were given no choice of main course (at first, we were told we would choose at breakfast, but this was changed before the first meal). To feed 33 people 4 days in this way without some disappointments was unlikely. A choice of two meals at breakfast would probably have overcome this.

Booked river cruise sept 2019, cancelled and then withdrawn. Foolishly stuck with Arena and booked another cruise for May 2023, ironically on day they went into administration. This recently withdrawn but unable to get refund as ATOL have not paid them yet. Have had £2000 of our money for 3 years and application to ATOL 5 months ago. Told could be months before we are refunded. Are we not a priority for settlement after all this time? Generally encouraged to choose a package holiday as the 'safe' option but is money any safer if you are dealing with companies like Leger/Arena who put customers interests last?

Copy and paste response after 10 days! Totally irrelevant.

Booking Ref : 39410
Firstly, I should like to say that the accommodation on the ship and the conduct of the crew were very good. All the problems were directly related to Arena.
We originally booked the holiday for September 2020 but, due to covid, it was postponed until Sept 2021 and again to Aug 2022. We had booked a Main Superior cabin but were told that, for the revised date, it would cost us an extra £532. Arriving at the ship, we discovered that everyone who had paid for a Main Standard cabin was being upgraded to a Main Superior. This meant that we had paid £532 for nothing.
The Vienna walking tour lasted exactly 60 mins, nowhere near enough time to see much of a beautiful city.
The visit to Kaloska, described as "one of the oldest towns in Hungary and known for its paprika production and handcrafted embroidery" did not happen. Instead we were moored 5 km away with no means of transport to get there and with just an old tin shack to walk round for 90 minutes.
The walking tour of Belgrade included a completely unnecessary 20 minute stop at a Costa Coffee shop.
The short walking tour of Bratislava included another wasteful 20 minute stop at a cafe in which we were served a tasteless croissant-style item and a third of a cup of cold chocolate. The advertised tour of a chocolate factory didn't exist. The tour did not go anywhere near the iconic castle, bridge or blue church.
A promise of a £90 refund for another visit which didn't take place was never made.
The tour guide and cruise manager were neither use nor ornament. They refused to liaise between disgruntled passengers and the Arena office and were generally unhelpful and off-hand.
I have emailed and written to the CEO and the Customer Relations manager but, to date, have not received the courtesy of a reply from the former and an apology with a promise of further action from the latter (5 months ago!).
From my own experience, I have no hesitation in advising would-be clients to avoid Arena Travel at all costs.

In June 2020 we booked a river cruise on the Danube with Arena River Cruises. This included a transfer flight to pick up the ship. The flight was ATOL protected. However, due to Covid the trip was not taken and the £550 deposit we paid was held on account by Arena.

Eventually, unable to take the original trip, as it was discontinued, we re-booked a a different holiday, in this country, using the original £550 as deposit, rather than lose the money. This trip was due to take place this coming May.

However, Arena Travel went into administration in September 2022, and ceased trading. Since then we have been trying to recover our deposit. We initially claimed from Evolution Insurance, being one of two FFI companies we were referred to by Arena but they have refused the claim on the basis that the original holiday was booked in 2020 and they have been the Arena insurers since 17th March 2021. When we then tried to claim from Arena's other insurers but we were told we would have to claim on the ATOL certificate provided. So far we have been unable to do that because the information given on the certificate is not being recognised by ATOL (CAA). we have contacted the administrators for advice and they have cast doubt on the way the case is being handled by the insurance companies and have advised that we put our case to trading standards.

They have also stated the following:-
"As Administrators of the Company we are trying to assist clients of Arena make claims through the legal channels. Under the Package Travel and Linked Arrangements Regulations 2018, the Directors of the Company were legally obliged to provide financial protection in respect of all customer deposits and other monies paid in advance, failure to do so would be a criminal offence.
We have received unconfirmed reports are aware that, the parties who the Company used to provide such financial protection might be attempting to dispute their liability and/or “to pass the buck”. We are extremely disappointed to learn this but it is totally out of our control.
If you are unable to obtain a refund or you are dissatisfied with the refund process, please contact The Chartered Trading Standards Institute (known as Trading Standards). They should be able to assist and take action on your behalf, if there has been any breach of the Regulations."

So far we have had no success with any claim. But we have had another holiday brochure sent to us with Steve Goodenough on the inside cover stating that "your money is safe with us", What a joke!

I have sent the details to "Rip Off Britain", "Watchdog", "Trading Standards", Insurance Ombudsman". WATCH THIS SPACE.

6th February. Update on ATOL claim - Arena have now sent the CAA the information requested and we have submitted a claim. Fingers crossed!!

15th February - still nothing from Arena but our bank has refunded us through their "chargeback" system. Thankyou.

We booked a Rhine Christmas Markets Cruise but the company has now gone into administration. We did not want to travel with Leger, the new owners, due to a previous bad experience so decided to ask for a refund instead, as Arena confirmed we are entitled to do. I contacted their insurers 05 October to get a claim form but the Insurers told me by email that I should make a chargeback to my credit card. I have done this and now the credit card company have been told by Arena that they cannot charge back the money as I have to claim against the insurance. This is a ridiculous circle of misinformation and misdirection and appears to me to be a way of keeping hold of my money. It also furthers my resolve never to travel with Leger again.

Booking ref 41763 Arena river cruise
We booked our cruise in 2019 after 4 cancellations we paid the balance for one leaving in October 2022. This has now been cancelled and we cannot seem to get any information on where or who to claim from apparently it's Zurich but they have no contact details to date. We are concerned that we have a time limit on when to claim and the clock is ticking....

Update.
Have given our bank details as requested for the refund on our three cancelled trips. That was two weeks ago. Still nothing. Reading other reviews seems I'm in a long queue - totally unacceptable level of "service". Guess I'll have to resort to the courts.

We have just returned from a fabulous week to the Oberammergau Passion Play organised by Arena Travel which included three nights in Zell am See, Austria. We had booked this trip in 2019 for 2020 but then, due to Covid, the Passion Play was postponed until 2022. To Arena's credit they kept us informed at each stage during this difficult time. We chose to keep our booking and it all happened just now in 2022. Arena held the prices at the original level in spite of the economic situation. The trip was just fantastic, thanks to our wonderful tour guide Julie Gilmour who guided us through several train changes when we found that our ICE train from Brussels was cancelled due to heat. Not only that, but on the day we returned we were once more in a heatwave and Julie foresaw - correctly as it turned out - that our ICE train might be cancelled and so dug us out of our beds in Cologne super early that morning and guided us back along the route of several changes of train so that we got our Eurostar from Brussels back home. Her calmness in crises was amazing and her knowledge of the areas we visited were most informative. We certainly hope to travel with Arena again.

We travelled with a local agent on an Arena river cruise on 3rd.August. On the Thursday before our agent was informed that because the level of the Danube was low, they were having to change the ship from to MS Arena to the MS Bolero. No problem we thought we still had the same level of cabin we'd booked. When we arrived at Passau - it was organised chaos. Three coaches had arrived at the same time. We were told to get on the ship - our luggage would follow. However, walking up the steep gangplank was a kin to climbing Everest. I'd say that 60% of the passengers had walking difficulties. We felt for the poor crew who had of load on the region of a couple 100 cases plus assist getting people on board. All in all we enjoyed the places we stopped at despite the heat. Our first day in Melk was marred by the fact that I lost my credit card. However I feel I must detail the negative points:
1: Arena make no provision for disabled people. All stairs no lifts. This should be pointed out to people at time for booking.
2: No proper health and safety briefing was given. Only a brief instruction on how to put on a life jacket by the captain who spoke very poor English. It is imperative that people know what to do in case of emergency. The PA system could not be heard in the cabins.
3: The Arena Travel representative spoke to people as if the were 5 year olds. She was better suited at Pontins.
4: The quality of food was poor. Breakfast & Lunch was a buffet no problem but dinner was really poor. To be served melting ice cream is a No Go. Salmonella risks. Personally I suffered with an upset tummy most days.
5: Trips offered were fine - however again on the one we did in Budapest. The guide ignored the fact the people could not keep up. At one point she left a group in a cafe because they would not be able to cope with the steps.
6: Housekeeping - I repeatedly asked at reception for another pillow as the one left on the bed was more suited to a childs cot. I finally got one by asking our room cleaner.
7: Entertainment. Non exsistant. A key board player who couldn't play - he just used a play list from his computer.
Now for the PLUSES
All the waiters, bar staff and housekeeping were fantastic. They were clean, polite and efficient. Extremely helpful.

If you want to give a company an interest free loan then book with Arena Travel. Booked a trip to Northumberland, dutifully paid the deposit, trip was then cancelled. Transferred the deposit to a break in Norfolk, trip was then cancelled. Not to be faint hearted transferred the money to a trip in the Lake district. Balance for the Lake district paid on the 24th of July. Felt there might be a chance of getting away. No..... true to form trip was cancelled on the 2nd of August. Arena have now had various sums of our money for over 2 years and still no chance of getting away. Great way of improving company cashflow but bears little resemblance to a travel company. There are plenty of travel companies out there.....shop around!

Had a wonderful holiday in the Shetlands isles,special thanks to our tour rep Christine,nothing was too much trouble,would highly recommend Arena after our experience with them.Many thanks!

Booking reference 55430

SINCE WRITING THIS REVIEW I RECEIVED A FULL REFUND OF THE AMOUNT THAT I PAID FOR MY HOLIDAY, although I was too late to receive a refund for the insurance I had purchased independently. So my only complaint is over the long delay in receiving the refund
Yvonne Wooster

In spite of the reply I received from Arena Travel, they have again renamed on their promise to repay me, leaving me with no option than to take legal action.

I cannot afford to loose £2.5k on a cruise which was cancelled by them. I have also lost out on booking another holiday.

Let this be a warning to anyone who is considering booking with them.

We had a delightful weekend trip along the Rhine on MS Arena. The staff and crew couldn’t have been more helpful, attentive and fun. All the meals were very good and the atmosphere on board was relaxed and happy. Our bed was very comfortable and we had an excellent shower. The cabin was fairly compact with sliding and tilting full height window/doors looking out over the river and views beyond. Our cabin was exceptionally clean and kept that way by the very efficient housekeeping staff. The sun deck was a lovely area and must be wonderful in better times of the year weather-wise but we still enjoyed sitting there and it gave great views of the Dutch scenery. We are looking forward to booking with Arena Travel again for our next river trip.

I have just returned from a fabulous weekend on the MS Arena. A beautiful ship, fantastic crew, far too good food and wine!

The Dutch waterways are a delight as were the towns we visited and the Keukenhof gardens.

I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend this river cruise or Arena Travel.

I have to say our holiday was lovely, we went to Switzerland on a railway holiday and it was amazing. Hotel although 3 star was more like 4 star. Our guide was amazing, knowledgeable and an expert on train travel. I would certainly use them again.