Hello folks! This is our very first blog where we are trying to present a detailed and honest review of the tour package offered by Makemytrip.
Package details:
6D5N Andaman (premium package - the word premium should only be associated with the price of the package :))
Return airfare in economy class - GOAIR from Mumbai
Hotel stays offered:
Sea Shell (Port Blair) - 2N
Sea Shell (Havelock) - 2N
Sea Shell (Neil Island) - 1N (As per original itinerary. This was later modified and it was 3N in Port Blair, please read on for details)
Meal plan - MAP (Modified American Plan) i.e. Breakfast and Dinner
All transfers, excursions and sightseeing tours will be by Non Air-conditioned transportation on
sharing basis in Port Blair & Havelock.
Transportation to and fro Havelock - M V Makruzz
Snorkelling at Elephant beach once during the stay in Havelock
Price (2 pax): INR 80409.00
Dates: 23rd March - 28th March 2013
Group package - All tours are organized in groups
Pre-sales support:
The pre-sales support was quite good. I visited the website, used the online chat and spoke to travel agents. We did the booking on 12th Feb 2013 and the booking process went without any hassles whatsoever, We were provided a pro-forma invoice as an acknowledgement of payment.
Post-sales support:
Hmmm....This is where things started getting frustrating and agonizing. It was 10th March 2013 and we hadn't received any vouchers/e-tickets. I emailed and asked about it. Our agent said we will get that before 3 days from departure. So technically that should have been 20th or worst 21st March.
On 20th I followed up. I was just provided my GO AIR e-ticket but the hotel vouchers were not ready. That was my last working day in office before I went on vacation. I waited and waited for the vouchers.
On 21st I waited and waited .... I was trying the reach the guy on phone (making STD calls) chatted with atleast 2 to 3 different agents. Frustrating thing is to repeat the whole story to new agents again and again. It seems they don't keep a record of the current booking status even if we provide them with the booking ID!!!
Finally, on 21st evening, I got a call from Makemytrip. They informed us that there has been a 'slight' change in the itinerary. There was supposed to be some government conference in Neil Island and Sea Shell Resort is fully booked. I had booked the trip on 12th Feb and these people tell me 2 days before the trip that there are changes.
This is a ploy so that customers dont get enough time to react & their ploy worked! I didnt have any patience to fight for this one. I asked if I can still go ahead with Neil Island by downgrading my hotel. They mentioned, it could cause inconvenience as there were no other premium resorts.
In return, they promised to refund Rs 1000/- per person (this was supposed to be the ferry charge to the Island. I can confirm I have got back my refund :)). They promised a tour of North Bay Island + water scooter ride as a complimentory tour to 'compensate' for the inconvenience.
We confirmed, we are OK with the changes and we got the hotel vouchers on 21st evening. Makemytrip - You wasted a lot of my productive time at office doing followups. There was tension running high between me and my wife, thanks to you guys!
Tour begins....
Day 1 23rd March 2013-
We reached the airport at a pretty early time around 4:40 am in the morning. Our flight was at 5:50am.
There was a freaking crazy attendant at the check-in counter. He either takes a lot of dope, doesn't sleep enough or is a complete moron. We are a couple and I asked for window seat. That moron gave us 2 window seats, with at least a row in between and each on the either side!!!!
Cant believe, there can be such idiots in this world. I should have checked the seat numbers, then and there. I realized it only when, we had done our security check and were waiting near the boarding gates. In my umpteen number of air travel, I have never faced this situation, so I didnt check bother to check them at counter!
LESSON TO BE LEARNT - Be very specific and check your seat numbers!
This flight has a stopover at Chennai. The flight till Chennai was not full, so we got a few empty rows at the back side. So we thought it was all fine. At Chennai, we came the know the flight was full, so we had to sit separately. Many other couples had to face the same situation!
We landed before time, at around 10:30am. Makemytrip (MMT) 'Tour Managers' were present at the airport who got our luggage tagged and directed us to the bus.
There was a guide who briefed us. I am still unclear about the role of MMT tour managers. On every tour, there was always a guide, the MMT tour managers, were always available only at the hotels. These guys have got a nice job I must say. Given a chance I would like to become a MMT Tour Manager in Andaman (maybe for a month :))as there is little work and you get to enjoy the place and get paid for it too!
We were dropped at Sea Shell resort and were told that we would be leaving for Viper Island at around 2:15pm.
Sea Shell Resort Port Blair is located on Marine Hill. There is nothing around but some other resorts and some residential buildings. There was no view from our rooms. We later noticed that the rooms above the restaurant 'Salt and Pepper' have sea view. The rooms were pretty decent with LCD, central AC, mini-bar (pay for the items you use OF COURSE )), automatic electronic safe. The bathrooms were very small though. There is a small balcony where you can spread chairs and stretch yourselves(but no view and mosquitoes in the evening make it practically unusable).
There were 2 complimentary bottles of Aquafina. The room service MENU is the same one as the one in the restaurant. This is a very limited MENU and steeply priced. It is a 2 storied building and apparently there is an open air BAR on the top (as per the hotel brochure). The lobby is decent but is loaded with mosquitoes (even in the morning). The property as we discovered has only the building (there was a lawn like area on the other side of the restaurant, not sure if it belongs to the resort).
We were hungry and decided to go for an early lunch. The receptionist suggested some hotels and recommended 'Lighthouse' near the market area. We walked down the hill and got a rickshaw that dropped us to the 'Lighthouse'.
The lunch was pretty average with no 'local touch' to the food. Were a bit disappointed as we were expecting the fish items to be cheaper, which was not the case. We spent approx Rs 700 for the lunch.
Once back we got some rest and had the bus waiting at 2:15pm. It dropped us to the ANDAMAN WATER SPORTS COMPLEX.
We boarded the boat called 'Soniya' that took us to Viper Island. There is a very interesting person (guide) called Arumugam who works for this boat. He shared the history of the trial courts and the gallows where many of our freedom fighters got martyrdom. He did that very passionately as well. He is a funny man too and kept entertaining and guiding everyone on our way back to the Water Sports Complex. at around 4:30pm.
Our guide told us we would be going for the Sound and Light show at 7pm at the Cellular jail. There was nothing to do so we roamed out, clicked some good pictures and tried spending our time. We reached the cellular jail at approx 7pm. We noticed many people coming out of the earlier show and it seemed there was a show at 6pm as well!
So MMT guide wasted so much of our time (2.5 hours per person!!), which we could have used to take some rest at the hotel!!! Everyone was tired on the 1st day because of the flight trip and the 2 hour boat ride to and fro. A few hours of extra rest could have really helped!
The Sound and light show was approximately an hour long. Once out of the show, we were waiting for the buses back to the hotels. There was big quarrel between our tour members and the MMT tour managers. Many of our fellow tourists were promised MV Makruzz for the journey to Havelock. But it seems there was a change and they were to going in Govt jetties instead. For us, it was going to be Makruzz (maybe ours was a premium package that's why). But I hate to say, these guys are not TRANSPARENT about the tour details.
Dinner at Sea Shell was pretty OK. We were expecting at least 1 fish item along with another non-veg dishes. But everyday there was only 1 chicken dish & other veggie dishes. On the last day or so there was a fish item, wondered were we really near the sea???
Day 2 24th March 2013
The day began with the hot water shower not working, so we had to manage with cold water (too bad after a nights sleep in super cold AC :(). Breakfast on all days was pretty decent.
We were off to catch MV Makruzz for Havelock.We reached the jetty at approx 9 and there was another guide this time who had a list of all seat numbers. The list was so unclear and faint, we couldn't really figure out our seat numbers. In fact one of our fellow tourists read out the seat numbers with a lot of effort and sure discomfort to his eyes!
Once inside, we discovered that me and my wife were to sit non-adjacent seats. Her seat was 1 row ahead. We were so pissed off that we created a ruckus out there. We gave the poor guide (who was on board the cruise) a very strong dose of words which he would remember for a long time. We also called the MMT manager who shamefully couldn't defend himself. Later we discovered that the seat numbers given were not right. When we had our seat number sorted out, my wife was still on the other row with the gangway between us. One family was kind enough to adjust and offer to swap our seats so that we could sit together. Thank you! :)
Once seated, we were not in the mood really and felt cheated and were thinking about the fate of the rest of the tour. My wife was even thinking of going back to Mumbai. That was an obvious reaction because you spend money to be together and have a good time. But tour operators like MMT screw your time and mood!
We reached at around 11:00 am to the Sea Shell resort. We had to wait for 1 hour before we could get our cottage. We spent our time near the sea shore pretty close to the property. The place is beautiful with coconut trees all around and bang on the sea shore, though it is not a beach where you can enjoy and play in water.
The MMT tour manager was there to brief us about the next 2 days. That's when we took him left, right and center. We asked him to get us adjacent and better seats by any means on our return journey on Makruzz. What he said shamefully is that this thing always happens. When will you learn from mistakes my friend?
We were pissed off and very hungry too. We managed to find a little hotel at 2 mins walk from the resort. It has a fancy name called 'La Luna', The owner is a south Indian guy and he prepares some nice homely food.
We could enjoy quality and quantity at approx Rs 450/- for two. That was too good and we got to eat fish on both days of our stay in Havelock. If you happen to go there, don't forget to ask him for some mangoes off the tree which is near the hotel. He would be glad enough to give you those. Those mangoes were raw but when they were ripe, they were too good!
On that evening, we went to RadhaNagar beach which is supposed to be one of Asia's cleanest beach. It is indeed. We enjoyed a lot there and clicked some nice pics. MMT gave us complementary coconut water, hmm...something to cool us off???!!
The day ends pretty fast here, sun sets at around 5:30pm!
Day 3 25th March 2013
After breakfast we were off to catch a boat for Elephant beach. The boat was rickety and very slow. If you get a chance, try the speed boat which could take you faster. We reached there in about 45 mins.There were makeshift huts for changing clothes. Other wise there is nothing much on that Island. But it is beautiful nonetheless!
There was a option to go for snorkeling or glass boat ride. We opted for snorkeling The guide asked us to try breathing from the mouth piece just for practice. We couldn't do that and he was not helping either. He told us if we cant manage, its better not to do it and go for glass boat instead.
Frightened, we took the glass boat ride. It was quite a good experience to see corals and lots of sea life thru the magnifying glass that is fitted on the floor of the boat.
The place was quite good with clear water, blue skies but a lot of rocks! In fact the rocks can hamper you from having some serious fun. We took rented a floater which we could use to float around and have fun. We spent some time doing that when another mishap was about to happen. I was about to jump on a wave and that is then I got a cut on my toe. It was bleeding badly and we decided to come out of the water.
We asked the MMT guide, if he had any first aid/band aid etc. It didn't come as a surprise that he didn't have it. Shame!
Guys, please carry first-aid with you at all times, with MMT don't expect anything.
After changing, we waited to board the boat. The boat which was painfully slow, took us back. We tried to use the opportunity to look at the wonderful sea and the islands all around.
The dinner was quite OK on both days.
Day 4 26th March 2013
After breakfast, we reached the jetty for boarding Makruzz again. This time we were prepared for the worst, but, Voila!! We saw the seat numbers and we found our seats on a separate page.
Just me and my wife and the seats were 'Premium'.These seats were on the back side of the cruise which has only 2 rows on each side of the cruise. Each row as 4 seats only. We got 1 window seat and there was no one else on the other 2 seats!
We enjoyed the ride. You must see the fishes almost fly on the surface when the cruise comes towards them. Can be only enjoyed from a window seat.
So people, always stand up and speak and complain and rant if you feel you have been cheated!It pays off!!
We reached at around 1pm only to be told by MMT tour manager that we have to take a city tour today as the next day was a public holiday (Holi). Again, total lack of planning and transparency. This should have been told in advance.
We thought, we will just follow and do the city tour. They took us to the Anthropological museum, which were were not interested in. So we skipped it and had lunch in AFC (Andaman Fried Chicken, funny isn't it?) which is near to the museum. Food there was more of quantity than quality. Nothing worth mentioning.
After having lunch, we went back to the museum and checked with the guide who said they were going to have lunch now. So we asked for directions and went to the Cellular jail ourselves.
The cellular jail doesn't give you a nice feeling and is very low on energy. Why not, so many of our freedom fighters have lost their lives in there. Veer Savarkar's cell, museums etc, there is so much of history in that place. Visiting Veer Savarkar's cell gave us goosebumps, literally!
Since we went there by our own, we saved a lot of time and were back in the hotel by 4:30pm. We took rest and directly woke up for dinner.
Day 5 27th March 2013
Our complimentary tour included the trip to Jolly Bouy island for only 3 couples (remember they had cancelled Neil Island?). We had a vehicle which took us to the boat ML BEAL.
We had packed our lunch, as this is a plastic free island (cant carry plastic bags) and you don't get anything on the island. For plastic bottles you have to deposit Rs 100/- per bottle which is refunded back if you show the bottle when you return back. Good going, wondering if something like this can be done everything in India!
It was a warm experience, with the ML BEAL guys applying gulaal and offering toffees to celebrate Holi.
The package included a small 5 min glass boat ride which showed us the reefs, fishes etc. It also included a small 5 min snorkeling.By paying Rs 200/- extra per person we could take a 30 min glass boat ride covering 3 reefs. We saw some of the most spectacular marine life like sea cucumbers, lilies, fishes and golden coral.
Once back on the island, we changed OUR MIND and decided to face our fear once again. Snorkeling!
The guides were too good. They gave us a floater and the snorkeling mask. They just said, if you cant breathe just pop your head out of the water. Then my guide held my hand and off we were!I will tell you it was magical! I was very much at ease with the mask and never once did I pop my head up. The marine life is amazing and that too so near to the beach!
Once back , they said, they could take us to a bigger ride for Rs 500- per person where we can touch and feel the marine life. So we went for it. It was one of the best experiences of our lives!
Apart from seeing the marine life, we took a star fish, sea cucumber in our hands. Star fishes are not aggressive but they just turn like a stone if you touch them. Touched a water lily and I tried to touch many fishes (but in vain, they are so fast, why not?? :)).
This is the real Andaman guys! Jolly Bouy Island is a must see!
Once back, we didn't do much. Started packing, had dinner and went of to sleep.
Day 6 28th March 2013
Woke up pretty early and decided to go to the airport ourselves. Didn't trust in the MMT guys anymore.
We checked out and asked the reception for a rickshaw which took us to the airport. This time we got very good seats. We got to interact with some of our fellow tourists on the flight who were sharing their angst and agony about MMT.
Some of the other passengers, mentioned that they did all bookings on their own and had a fabulous trip. That was like chilly powder on our wounds. We trusted MMT to be a one stop shop for all our trip requirements. Proved to be a one stop shop for heart burns! :(
But never mind, we had our share of wonderful moments.
But we take an oath, never to book thru MMT. They SUCK in terms of SERVICE, TRANSPARENCY,
MANAGEMENT. I am not sure about the other tours they arrange. But Andaman thru MMT is a strict NO! This was our first and last experience thru MMT.
In fact, we are going to do all our trips on our own from now. We will keep sharing all our experiences which hopefully will help others.
World is beautiful, travel, eat well and enjoy!
DOs in Andaman
1. Carry snacks, nuts, fruits etc. You don't get enough things to munch in Andaman.
2. First aid, sun tan lotion is a must!
3. Carry some cash when you go on Islands like Jolly Bouy. You should not miss snorkeling.
4. You don't get hot water in Havelock (maybe Sea Shell). They give you hot water buckets. So be prepared :)
5. Be curious and look out for local food. You might find something very good.
6. Buy your own snorkeling kit in Havelock.
Regards,
- Amit and Jyotsna (I have written this blog with lot of inputs from my wife)
