Marsha

We are thinking of taking an independent/private tour with SITA. Would like to know if anyone has had an experience with this agency. Any opinions and tips would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

Cathy Routhier

I started working with SITA to arrange a package and found them not too interested in going even slightly out of their way. They said they could not get certain hotels or room types we requested when I new they were available by checking their availability online or with other agents. They said they could not book one hotel because it had a bad reputation, when in reality everyone I've talked to who has stayed there loved it, but unfortunately, it doesn't give large commissions to travel agents. Once arranged, their tours may be good, but I got much better service on the planning end at Compass Travel and Tours and they come highly recommended by numerous people. You can see my other response to "Travel Agents in India," or contact them to get more information. Their email is [email protected] and the owner is Durjay Sen Gupta. Their website is compasstoursandtravels.com I have just been very happy with his service and hope that sharing that info helps other travelers.

Eric

We have booked a tour with SITA in Rajasthan for next November. Nothing but problems to date - hotels not available etc etc. The latest story is that the Lake Palace is refurbishing part of the hotel (in high-season ??) and because of that we are told one month later that there is no availability in the Deogarh Mahal. These guys are not serious. Unfortunately we have already paid a deposit. Otherwise I would have sent them packing long before now. When I get to Delhi I am going to give them a piece of my mind.

john g

If you are having trouble with SITA, try my friends at Creative Travel in Delhi. You can visit their website at www.travel2india.com. They are excellent and flexible. Extremely flexible.

Dani

When I was in India I saw a lot of SITA Busses, but I can't tell you that it looked like an independent tour. They came out of the bus, took some photos, jumped in the bus again und rushed away, I never saw a group for more than 10 minutes. I took myself a driver in Delhi and I could determine myself how long I want to stay at each place. My advice: Book a flight yourself and contact one of these small travel agencies in Delhi. If you are interested in my guide and driver, here is his e-mail-adress: [email protected] <BR>Whatever you decide, I wish you a nice trip.

maryjane

If you are travelling in Rajastan I strongly suggest you keep an open mind, check in to a family hotel in Jaipur and let them organise a tour for you. <BR>There are no commissions involved as you directly pay all the hotels, and you can choose your own route. <BR> <BR>There are two ways of travelling around Rajasthan; clockwise from Jaipur (Pushkar Deogarh etc.) and anti clockwise (Shekhawati, Bikaner etc.) from Jaipur. Most likely you will get your bookings if you choose the alternate route! <BR> <BR>Good luck

Sue

We did a tour of Rajasthan with Sita tours in Feb. 2000. This was not a group tour through Sita. We basically organized the whole tour ourselves and only used SITA to book the hotels and to get us a driver. We had quite a few organizational problems with them before the trip, but we made sure that everything was in writing and that we had all details before we started and before we paid. That is the key to travel in India. Overall, the trip was great. The hotels were good, the driver excellent. When doing a tour in India the driver can make or break the trip.

LATraveler

I have had nothing but problems, problems, problems with SITA.<BR><BR>I was forced to pay for EVERYTHING in advance when I went to India in June 2001, from airline tickets to all my destinations throughout the country to all the hotel reservations I made. This came out to well over $2000. I also had to pay a non-refundable "service fee" of $300 on top of all that!<BR><BR>When I arrived in India, I found that I wanted to rearrange my itinerary, cancel some destinations, stay longer in others, etc. As you can imagine, I was quite concerned about getting a refund for my cancellations.<BR><BR>I was in constant contact with SITA throughout my vacation, & the agent was very reassuring that I would have no problems getting a refund after a certain % was subtracted for "various fees".<BR><BR>It's been over 7 months now, & I am still waiting to see that $1000+ refund. All my letters and emails have gone unanswered. My credit card company is saying that SITA needs to send them a "credit slip" before they get reverse the charges, but SITA has failed to return their calls as well.<BR><BR>If anyone has had a similar problem with SITA or has any suggestions as to how I can reclaim my $$, please email me.