Thought I would post my most recent experience with Bateaux Parisiens, the operator of high end boat cruises in Paris. I am an experienced traveler to Paris, and thought that we would enjoy a romantic dinner cruise with friends this past April. This is the premiere (read most expensive) boat cruise available, and my past experience with them was positive. However, this trip was to be different. First, I noticed that the boat, upon departing port, headed away from Paris into the industrial suburbs. Hmm.. I thought. Maybe they are waiting for night to fall, as it was not yet quite dusk. As the trip progressed, with no sign of the boat changing direction, we became somewhat concerned. Our friends were still optimistic, with hopes of seeing the beauty of Paris at night. It was not to be. Instead, I became all too familiar with where all of Paris%26#39; heavy industry is located, as we passed mile upon mile of concrete factories and headed further away from Paris. When the boat finally turned around, long after our dinner was finished and it was getting quite late, we were told (surprise!) that due to the high water level on the Seine, the boat had no intention of going through Paris, as it did not have adequate bridge clearance due to the high water level.
%26quot;Mais monsieur, you were not told when you were boarding?%26quot;. %26quot;Absolutely not%26quot; I replied, %26quot;and I would never have paid for a cruise of the industrial underbelly of Paris at 125€ per person (total of 500€). The meal was ok, and the music pleasant enough, but we were there to see Notre Dame at night, the lights on the Musée D%26#39;Orsay, the pont Neuf, etc.
I was not the only passenger upset with the bait and switch tactics. After much wrangling, I was promised that the supervisor would call me to work out something. The French idea of customer service rose to it%26#39;s finest level that evening (the customer is always wrong). He did call the next day to offer 15€ rebate per person, and no apology.
My response was that not only did we not get what we paid for, but his solution was an insult.
Now, I was willing to pay for the dinner and music, even though the food was only a slight notch above a meal ordinaire at a modest restaurant. But I was not willing to pay for a boat ride to the suburbs.
Ultimately, another representative called and said they would credit 50€ per person on our credit card. This seemed like a somewhat reasonable compromise, but remember, it took 2 days to get to this point.
Today, 18 days later, the credit card remains charged for 500€ with no credit in sight, despite their promise.
Moral of the story: High water levels on the Seine (due to spring runoff) can affect your boat trip. Ask before you board exactly where the boat is going. If you aren%26#39;t happy with the answer, at least you will be all dressed up to go somewhere nice without being duped into paying for a boat ride to nowhere.
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I%26#39;ve been struggling over which dinner cruise to take, and now I%26#39;m rethinking the whole thing. I guess if the water level is high it doesn%26#39;t matter. Considering the state of the dollar they all seem so expensive, and if you say the food is mediocre maybe it%26#39;s not worth it. Since you%26#39;re familiar with Paris, any other suggestions for a nice dinner or a worthwhile activity? I%26#39;m looking for something less than 500 euros. Thanks!
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PS I forgot to say I was sorry to hear about your experience. How disapointing when you%26#39;re looking forward to a nice evening and turns out to be anything but.
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try Yachts de paris http://www.yachtsdeparis.fr
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See this thread:
tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic-g187147-i14-k18384…
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I can recommend Yachts de Paris..I suspect it is even more premiere than bateaux parisien...We had a wonderful and expensive dinner cruise on it a few years ago...on the Don Juan, an elegant old yacht...Also in the spring after floods had brought the level of the Seine up...We were not allowed to go up top as we barely cleared some of the bridges when we passed...But we had a table toward the stern and were able to pop out and take pictures off the stern and also enjoy the wonderful view from our table as well..We did do the route you wish you had done...So, I guess the way to prevent what happened to you is to somehow confirm that high water will not prevent you from taking the route by the Eiffel Tower ...And that
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If you just want a boat ride on the Seine, consider the Batobus. It%26#39;s a hop-on-hop-off boat that stops at many of the major attractions, even in the evening. It%26#39;s only about 13 euro for the day. Save your money for a great dinner somewhere else, and see the city of lights by Batobus!
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I will second previous poster. Take a boat ride and dine somewhere else. Go to Moulin Rouge/Lido/... and dine somewhere else too!
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Dispute the entire charge with your credit card company. Call them up right away and they will send the appropriate form(s) to complete and return. That 500Euro charge will be taken off until there is a resolution. Be very firm. We don%26#39;t tolerate that sort of thing and we don%26#39;t suffer fools as gladly as we once did. Must be creeping fogeyism.... :)
oprah44
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