Originally Posted by
jiejie
Again, just be clear on how things are being quoted and get the bottom line. If their price including hotels is very similar to the total you'd pay for tour + hotels on your own, just let them do it but be firm if you have specific hotel requirements. 2 extra nights in Yogya you can do through tour company if competitive with a discounted retail price....or do yourself
This is what the tour owner says about paying for hotels:
[Will double check and will enclose the quotation, I will give you money back guarantee if my prices higher than you find, please just let me know and I am happy with this. For hotels, if on line reservation is CHEAPER, please do it. I am also very happy for this. Because, sometimes, hotels gave cheaper promotion on line and sometimes, they forgot to update]
This is what he says about the drivers:
[Others, you travel with driver. He speaks English. If you need tour guide all of your trip, this cost USD 36 per day. I will drive and be your guide in area Borobudur and Yogyakarta. For Dieng and Solo, you will go with my driver. But I am easy to reach anytime. ]
This is how he wants to be paid:
(You pay me when you meet me here 50% and 50% when finish the tour, prefer in USD.)
I prefer to pay for as much as I can with a credit card to get more FF points to take more vacations!
I have plenty of time, 7 months to change the itinerary, change the hotels. My tour owner is very flexible and amenable to making changes so we have a wonderful time in Yogya. I signed up for the Accor Hotels guest program so if they have a sale I'll get an email and be able to book online and get a discount at the Phoenix Hotel in Yogyakarta. I could also use Starwood points to stay for free at Sheraton Mustika, although it gets mixed reviews. I usually prefer to stay in the center of cities so as to be able to walk around at night on the way to and from dinner.
Once I determine how many days we will be on Bali it will determine how many days we are on Java. This itinerary has 10 nights/9 days for Bali and 6 nights/5 1/2 days Java. One day is allocated for travel from DPS to JOG. My tour guy has even offered to buy the plane tickets for us if I have trouble using my credit card online with Garuda website to buy them myself.
I'll start another thread about the Bali part of the trip.