Viator Travel Sold Tickets to Show That Didn't Exist. No Offer to Make Things Right. Internet

Just a quick update since several have inquired regarding the status: 

1. Still no offer from Viator to compensate us for the loss. 

2. Viator mentioned on this site they sent us a $50 gift card. That is false. To date, they have not sent anything at all. It's just as well because the amount is so low we could never buy show tickets for two with it anyway. But I wanted to highlight the fact that they have made false statements regarding the gift card. 

3. Preparing now to file with the Better Business Bureau, State Attorney General's office, Office of Consumer Affairs, and several travel blogs. Once all of that is done, the next and only remaining option is small claims court.

But in the end, we will get it resolved. If every consumer pursued matters like this until the end, companies would treat their customers so much better! Never give up. Never get tired. Press on all the way and you make life much easier for the next person.

So sad that a simple offer to do the right thing from the company could have averted this ongoing saga ended it early. I will update you as things progress. 

It's been nearly a month since this incident and Viator has still not offered to try to make the situation right. Our 21 year anniversary evening was a bust due to Viator's error - which they acknowledge was purely their own - but still no offer to make things right. 

Viator did offer us $50 to go see another Las Vegas show. That's $25 each. To put this into perspective, La Reve (a typical Cirque show) starts at $155 per ticket. So I'm not sure what kind of show we can see on the Strip for $25, but Viator tells us that is "fair compensation" for our loss.

Another interesting note: I learned about Viator from a Las Vegas podcast. And on this podcast, Viator recently awarded a $200 gift card during a contest to see who could make the funniest 60 second song. $200. For a song. But a ruined anniversary evening, no show, and 50% of our two-night trip wasted? That's worth $50. 

Of course, it is purely within their discretion to try to put us in the position we would have been in but for the mistake. But they have decided not to do so. And it appears I've exhausted all chances of resolving this by dealing directly with Viator. 

I think I'm beginning to see (perhaps) the cause of the communication breakdown. You mentioned several times that the Box Office did not notify you that the show was scheduled to be dark that week. I'm not sure I would necessarily expect a Box Office to call Viator with their unchanged schedule. 

If Viator's practice is to wait for calls, I think you could have a long wait (as was evidenced in this case). I would suggest someone from Viator keep in regular contact with the ticket office to verify show dates. Even if you did this only once per month, you would have caught the error in this matter. 

And regarding the $50 gift card, whether that is fair compensation really depends upon which end you're on. If you're the one paying, it can probably be rationalized as fair. But if you're receiving, you know better. It just isn't right. And if you're completely honest with yourself and this had happened to you, I'm completely confident you'd have a different outlook.

In conclusion, I'm a little disappointed in the two different tones of responses I'm getting from Viator. Just two days ago, I received a deeply apologetic message from a Viator Quality Assurance Manager. It assumed full responsibility and offered no excuses. But the response on this site takes a very different, defensive tone. It says "we were not notified" and $50 is "fair compensation," etc. 

I can't see how you can even begin to defend what happened.

Hello,

Please know that Viator understands how frustrating this situation was for you. We do believe we offered fair compensation of a $50 Viator gift card, which can be used in any of our destinations.

We are still looking into the break in communication between ourselves and the Box Office. We are not implying that the show was cancelled on the day of your travel, however we were not notified of the show being dark by the Box Office, and we want to make sure that such lack of notification does not happen again, for the sake of future travelers.

All the Best,
Loryanna M.
Viator Customer Support

I confirmed with the ticket office that this show was always scheduled to be dark during the time we were there. It was not a change or last-minute cancellation. But Viator did not verify show dates when listing them on their site. And charging customers for tickets for dark show dates.

My wife and I were only in town for two nights. Therefore, this was half our trip's entertainment lost. While the $50 gift certificate is a gesture, I'm not sure two people can recreate the lost night on fifty bucks. But I guess Viator believes we can. 

Hello,

Thank you for bringing this matter to our attention. We're never happy to hear that our customers were unable to attend a tour or show that they were looking forward to seeing. We do apologize for any inconvenience with your having missed this show, on account of it being Dark on the date you traveled.

I do show that we have given you a full refund, as well as sending over a $50 Gift Card for you to use in any of the cities that we offer. And we do hope that you had an excellent rest of your trip to Las Vegas, in spite of this unfortunate circumstance.

We are following up with our Show Operator for this Show to find out where the disconnect in communication was, and to ensure that we have the rest of the show dates on our website up to date for future travelers.

Again we apologize for any inconvenience in your experience. Please let us know if you have any further questions or concerns.

All the Best,
Loryanna M.
Viator Customer Support