Which Towncar Service?

[gypsy]

thanks, crisi - you knew just which button to push! thanks for reminding me to check FL Tours... when i first started looking, i thought i wanted a company that took cr. cards, and FL does not. well, after reading threads about pre-paying and no pick-up, i think i'll go cash after all -
d

 

[DisFam95]

i find it interesting that not 1 response to this thread has used FL Tours!!!

 

[Madi100]

i find it interesting that not 1 response to this thread has used FL Tours!!!

I've never read anything about FL Tours. I think that it is also interesting. I've also never read anything on this board about Ibex. That is who we have used for our last two trips. They are a sponsor on another board, and they get rave reviews over there. I've never once heard them mentioned here.

 

[inkkognito]

Also, if price is a concern, it never hurts to ask if the company you prefer will match a competitors rate.
I learned about cheap towncar companies the hard way here in Chicago. After three bad experiences, including one that almost cost a missed flight, I gave up and just drive to the airport now. Thankfully in Orlando we know we can count on Happy to be reliable.
Barb
Visit the Platinum Castaway Club at: www.castawayclub.com

 

[NoodlesTheRabbit]

It's FL Tours for us!

 

[marcyinPA]

Another vote for Tiffany. We used them 2 years ago, and we'll use them again in May. Our driver was prompt, courteous, and friendly. He pointed out the landmarks on the way to FW.

As for the grocery stop, he stopped at a Publix for us and told us to take our time. We were probably in there for 25-30 minutes. He didn't say a word about it. He loaded our groceries into the van and we were off.

Oh, and when I booked, I was planning on a towncar but since there were 3 adults, and 2 kids (one in a booster seat), they offered us a van for the same price.

I thought their customer service was great!

 

[dznyntnh]

I did receive a refund from Cartier (after multiple e-mails over a 3 week period).

I will say the communication when I made the reservation in May was great, and the driver I had to the airport was very nice (Julio), but since I got left stranded and there was no one there to answer my calls and it took several days to get an e-mail response, I don't feel they can be trusted.

Everyone is going to have a different experience. I listened to the good reviews about Cartier when I made my rez and got burned.

Some people will say, ' they refunded your money, so that shows good customer service.' But, it took multiple e-mails (and threats) to get the refund, and they never offered a satisfactory answer as to why I was left in the first place.

 

[skiwee1]

Originally posted by Madi100
Can I ask why you are unhappy with Cartier? I think that is who we are leaving towards?

I too had a horrible experience with Cartier last month and will not use them again. They showed up an hour late one time and never showed at all another time! Sorry but I would stay away from Cartier. I don't care how wonderful they were for some people. In this case I would NOT take a chance with them. We used to use Tiffany all the time and had great service. I only decided to try Cartier because they were cheaper and had a deal on a limo. I should learn you get what you pay for! Now I will only use Tiffany.

 

[skiwee1]

Originally posted by gypsy
ok, you guys have me thoroughly confused... i am the world's worst at making up my mind, and all these posts do not help!
here's what i have to go on besides the good/bad posts for the towncar companies:

here's the scenario -
airport to Portofino Bay on 12/20/03, return to airport from POR on 12/25/03. evidently some companies consider this round trip, and some count a two one-ways. anyway, here's what we got -
Tiffany - $107
Cartier - $75
Your Ride - $80
Happy - $110 + 20% grat. = $132
also, Cartier, Happy and Your Ride were very prompt in returning e-m questions; Tiffany never returned anything until i filled out the reservation form.
ok, probably Cartier... right?

d

Cartier is the right choice if you are only taking the COST into consideration. Sure, why not. On the other hand, you may end up calling a taxi if Cartier doesn't show which seems to be common. Add another $55 for the cab you will need and you are now paying more for Cartier then you would for Tiffany.

 

[gypsy]

ok, so Cartier is out! i've requested info from Payless and FL Tours -
IMMEDIATE response from Payless, NO response from FL Tours, and it's been 2 days... maybe Monday will bring e-mail from FL

i'm still shopping -
thanks!
d

 

[PalVal]

I have used Tiffany for the past 3 years - 8 times. They have been excellent. Never a problem - always on time and always professional. We always stop at the grocery store for 30 minutes. They always say "Take your time". I would never use anyone else.

 

[gtrist4life]

We used FL Tours in June-July and they were great. Stopped at a Publix on the way. They were on time both arriving and departing. We are using them again in December - 3 vehicles! One 10 Passenger Van, and two limos on different arriving days. Hope they're as good this time as in June.

I too am surprised at the lack of FL customers responding to the board. Maybe being the weekend has something to do with it. Peace G4L

 

[JKLLady]

Another "thumbs-up" for FLTours; we've used them 3 times now & Andy's service has been great.
In August, our original plans changed due to my DF's surgery for stomach cancer; we cancelled initially, I notified Andy, and then because of Dr's advice & my DF's wishes I re-scheduled the day before we left. I was unable to get our original accommodations back; had to make some of them while at WDW (DVC wait list) & let Andy know as it happened. He made everything simple; even called our driver when we were on the way to MCO to ask how my DF was & offer his prayers! Renata was our driver both ways in August & on our trip last week. She even rembered my DF's situation & asked how he was doing.
I wouldn't use anyone else at this point.

 

[BostonTigger]

It looks like Tiffany is the one most people like. All I've ever heard, or read, about Tiffany is nothing but good. So I think the next time I head down I'll be using Tiffany.

 

[kmc33]

I think with all the towncar services, there are going to be instances where a driver is late or doesn't show. I guess the trick is to find the one that this hardly ever happens! Also, I think customer service and how they rectify errors is important.

I have to laugh reading all the different experiences because I must be the oddball -- mine are different from many. First off, everyone who uses Happy Limo seems to love them. Our first experience with an Orlando towncar service was with Happy Limo and it was a bad experience. They left us stranded at Port Canaveral to catch our return flight -- which we almost didn't make. We called for over an hour. At first no one answered the phone. Finally we reached someone who gave us some story. When the driver finally showed up we were told a different story of what went wrong. We JUST made our flight. So, no harm done in the end, but it was very stressful. Additionally, I emailed Happy Limo twice after we returned and never got a response. To me, the fact that their customer service was non-existent after we returned is the real reason why I won't use them again.

Tiffany is another reputable service that many seem to swear by. I may try them at some point, and in fact they had been my first choice when we used Happy Limo, but Tiffany never responded with a quote after contacting them by phone and by email.

The next time we needed an Orlando towncar service, I started looking for one that didn't automatically add the gratuity like Happy Limo does. While I am quick to give a good tip for good service, I wasn't thrilled that Happy Limo took a 20% tip up front and then the service was terrible. So, I started reading good reviews about your ride (this was the beginning of this year). I reserved with them, and then after emailing Rabbit two times to let him know that I would like to use a credit card (as was advertised as being accepted on his website) and that I wanted to see when to make the payment. His response to the email each time was "we prefer cash". I started to feel uneasy with this and in the meantime had been reading glowing reviews of Cartier. At this point, around Feb of this year, they seemed to be the one service that was receiving only positive remarks. I booked with them, received outstanding service for that trip and then again this past September. So, I booked them for our upcoming January trip. Not long after that I started to read negative experiences.

I didn't mean to write a book about this, but I just got to thinking that this is becoming the most dreaded part of the reservation planning for me -- and I LOVE vacation planning. What seemed like a service that I wanted to use to make the trip go smoothly is becoming a stress! I am afraid that I am due for a bad trip with Cartier, after reading about these other ones. And it figures that this upcoming trip is with my sister's family instead of just mine alone, so I have even more people depending on it. I will just keep my eyes open to see if there are more Cartier mishaps. On another note, I have read mostly positive things about FL Tours. I have considered trying them, but they do accept only cash. Our January trip is three legs total and I feel less secure about paying for the entire trip in cash up-front.

So that's my story of the towncars. For now I may stick with Cartier and hope that my good luck streak with them continues. Because, I am starting to think that luck is a big part of it with all of these towncar services.

 

[crisi]

kmc,

You are so right. Every towncar service is going to have the occational bad trip. I'm sure that the only service that has never stranded anyone or been late has not been in business very long. The trick is to find one with the lowest defect rate at the best price.

A whole bunch of people have had great experiences with Cartier. And I'm really hoping that they just had one or two bad drivers. Best of luck.

I am beginning to think that the best option may be to book two one way trips. Yes, its more expensive - but since most of the companies have you pay both directions when they pick you up, paying for two one ways gives you the flexibility to just hop in a waiting cab if your towncar is late. Thoughts?

 

[skiwee1]

Originally posted by crisi
kmc,

You are so right. Every towncar service is going to have the occational bad trip. I'm sure that the only service that has never stranded anyone or been late has not been in business very long. The trick is to find one with the lowest defect rate at the best price.

A whole bunch of people have had great experiences with Cartier. And I'm really hoping that they just had one or two bad drivers. Best of luck.

I am beginning to think that the best option may be to book two one way trips. Yes, its more expensive - but since most of the companies have you pay both directions when they pick you up, paying for two one ways gives you the flexibility to just hop in a waiting cab if your towncar is late. Thoughts?

I agree that it can happen to any towncar service. Everyone seems to have good and bad. Unfortunately the driver I had for Cartier is one mentioned here quite a few times in this thread as being wonderful! LOL! So even though some have good experiences with a driver doesn't mean squat. I know my driver was very flip, unapologetic, and rude, and that was when he even spoke to us! LOL!

 

[crazyforgoofy]

Andy and FL TOURS are great. Used twice, both times had car seats we requested, prefectly clean cars, on time, called resort with confirmation of return pickup, great help with grocery stop. We wouldn't use anyone else. In addition I know it must cost a pretty penny to provide this website and the boards so I feel by using FL TOURS and telling them I got their info from The DIS I'm helping keep this place online.

 

[bunnyfoo]

Originally posted by crisi
kmc,

You are so right. Every towncar service is going to have the occational bad trip. I'm sure that the only service that has never stranded anyone or been late has not been in business very long. The trick is to find one with the lowest defect rate at the best price.

A whole bunch of people have had great experiences with Cartier. And I'm really hoping that they just had one or two bad drivers. Best of luck.

I am beginning to think that the best option may be to book two one way trips. Yes, its more expensive - but since most of the companies have you pay both directions when they pick you up, paying for two one ways gives you the flexibility to just hop in a waiting cab if your towncar is late. Thoughts?

That's not a bad idea I wouldn't mind paying a little more if it would save me the stress of not being late for my flight! Would that require booking with two different companies though?

 

[wildabouttheworld]

Tiffany for us. We put the reservations in our daughters name so the drivers sign has her name on it when we get off the plane. She loves that. Drivers are always nice. Cars are always clean. We just booked for a 3 legged trip from MCO to HRH and then to Port Canaveral and back to MCO. It was 10.00 cheaper than FL Tours.