3/5 Ashley O. 4 years ago on Google • 7 reviews
We
were
traveling
as
a
group
of
4
for
the
first
time
in
Portugal.
We
did
the
village
tour
to
Piodao.
While
our
experience
that
day
was
beautiful
and
our
guide
was
so
friendly,
there
was
some
misinformation
about
what
we
had
booked.
When
I
booked
our
tickets,
the
experience
advertised
was
described
as
a
"visit
to
the
villages
of
Piodao
AND
Monsanto."
As
newcomers
to
Portugal,
we
had
no
idea
that
of
course
it
is
not
feasible
to
visit
both
of
these
iconic
villages
in
the
same
tour;
they
are
hours
apart
in
different
parts
of
the
country.
Our
guide,
who
made
it
sound
like
she
is
privately
contracted
by
Experitour,
had
NO
IDEA
that
we
had
been
told
we
were
getting
a
visit
to
both
villages.
She
gave
us
a
wonderful
experience
either
way,
but
it
was
disappointing
that
the
third
party
had
not
given
us
an
accurate
description
of
the
experience.
Add
to
that
the
fact
that
the
driving
distances
advertised
by
Experitour
are
TOTALLY
wrong!
It
does
not
take
2-3
hours
to
get
from
Lisbon
to
Piodao;
it
takes
every
bit
of
4
hours!
It
was
well
after
9:00pm
when
we
were
dropped
back
off
at
our
apartment.
When
you
have
international
travelers
who
are
not
familiar
with
driving
distances,
it
is
so
important
that
you
describe
things
accurately!
While
we
were
in
Piodao,
our
van
actually
broke
down
and
there
was
a
period
of
time
that
we
were
not
sure
how
we
were
going
to
make
it
home.
I
don't
think
this
was
anyone's
fault
and
have
not
let
it
weigh
too
heavily
in
my
review.
Our
guide
tried
to
keep
us
calm
and
make
sure
that
we
were
still
having
a
great
adventure.
However,
it
was
disconcerting
not
to
understand
the
processes
that
were
in
place
to
deal
with
a
situation
like
this
(thanks
to
the
language
barrier
and
her
rather
casual
attitude
about
the
incident).
Surely
Experitour
has
a
standard
procedure
if
a
car
breaks
down
and
strands
tourists
in
one
of
these
remote
locations.
We
realized
in
the
moment
that
having
this
kind
of
information
ahead
of
time
would
have
been
immensely
reassuring.
As
far
as
the
sightseeing
experience
offered,
we
feel
like
we
had
a
once-in-a-lifetime
kind
of
day.
However,
I
would
not
book
with
Experitour
again
because
I
was
ultimately
not
happy
with
the
accuracy
or
thoroughness
of
information
provided
to
us,
especially
given
that
we
did
encounter
an
obstacle
during
our
tour
that
profoundly
affected
our
experience.