Super Duck Tours - Boston is a scam!
 

For all those who are heading to Boston, The Duck Tours are an established business that has worked hard to bring a new tour and market it in the best possible way.

Beware the "Super Duck Tour" This company has jumped on the bandwagon of an established company to pick up the crumbs of soldout vessells and has been accussed of misleading its patrons. DO NOT GIVE THEM YOUR MONEY!!!

Thankfully, the courts have told them to stand down, change names and the same cartoon ad of a duck. This company shows a complete lack of integrity and will hopefully crash and burn, as it so deserves.

Just my humble opinion LOL~~~~~~~

Interesting. We did a regular Duck Tour last fall & really enjoyed it. I guess when you have a good thing going someone is bound to try and copy you, but they could at least come up with a more original name!!

i really enjoyed my duck tour of boston...great way to get an overview of the city.

There was a court decision last week forcing Super Duck Tours to change their name and logo - I believe they are called something like Super Duck Excursions now. According to news stories, the "Excursions" use a different type of less authentic amphibious vehicle.

Yes Itt, the Duck Tour is a fabulous tour that gives a great and fun overview about Boston and parts of Cambridge. "The Super Duck Tour" is cashing in on their success. So my thread is to warn others about the "Duck Decoy"

Glad you enjoyed your ducktour!

Gail, the case is beyond reason to me. How easy to come up with some fun names.

Black Swan Harbour Tours for one. Not willing to post the dozen other great names they could have called their company.

They show a complete disregard for the company who's marketing success they are ripping off as well as the courts. It's disgraceful.

As I reported today in my Weekend in Boston trip report, we took this tour when the regular Duck tour was sold out. We figured it would be about the same, but I was wrong. Maybe it was start-up jitters, but it seemed disorganized and the people "on board" certainly didn't seem to be having as much fun as the people on the original Duck tour busses. Their route was severely abbreviated as well. It seemed like we were going in circles. Kind of boring, actually and I don't I came away knowing that much more about Boston than I did before.

Maggi, it must have been you that inspired me to start this thread. Thanks for your report!

The false company has also been accused of giving false information regarding the original company being sold out when it was not. Of course, I'm sure during your time period, they were in fact sold out.

The company certainly lacks professional and general integrity. Sorry you had a less than Duck tour, but appreciate your sharing.

Kealalani, it was a weird experience. The website sells tickets online, but once there you have to truck over to their office, which is hard to find, in order to trade the online voucher for tickets. The ticket agent told me how to find the line for the tour bus, down this street, turn right and look for the yellow stairs, which turned out to be a yellow ladder they use to get on the bus. They had oversold and didn't have room for everyone so they offered a "bump" to four people. There was a lot of talking amongst the owners/operators and once underway the tension was still noticeable. Not a fun way to start a tour. The woman tourguide seemed knowledgeable, but got wrapped up in telling stories, while I was waiting for her to point out what we were driving by. Her jokes were predictable ("Why are there only 239 beans in the can? Cause one more would be two-farty".)

Funny, judging from your screen name, I would guess you lived in Hawaii, not Boston.

Again thanks for sharing your experience. I'm one that always roots for the underdog, and this company is just not right!

as far as living in hawaii - all in due time maggi!!!! we make the trek more frequently - twice last year!

Boston Magazine has an article featuring the fued, in case any others are interested. It is in the Best of Boston issue.

kealalani, you've made some extremely libelous statements about Super Duck Tours, and I don't see ay valid support for your position.

First off, just one quick quote from the Boston Magazine article you referenced in your last post: "Back on the Super Duck boat, First Mate Joe, despite the bad jokes, is treating us to a pretty enjoyable ride along a stretch of city never trolled by Boston Duck Tours. As we float past the USS Constitution, and rumble through the Financial District, I find the trip a worthy counterpoint to its predecessor, like a new chapter from a great book. Brown’s tour, I realize, had felt all-inclusive because it was the only one I’d taken—and I bet if visitors take only Kraez’s, they’ll feel the same way. Tourists won’t judge these trips by what they lack, but rather by what they show. It’s a testament to Boston that both can show so much."

It seems to me, kealalani, that you have no personal experience whatsoever with the Super Duck Tours, other than perhaps the heavily biased news articles reporting the details of the recent court case.

I would like to point out that the judge dismissed all parts of the lawsuit accusing Super Duck Tours employees of misleading potential Boston Duck Tours customers. It seems that there were some 3rd-party ticket agents that had used some questionable business practices, but these were not employees of Super Duck Tours, which was why the judge dimissed the charges.

As for name confusion, it seems funny to me that no one seems to know the proper name for the Boston Duck Tours. It seems that you don't either: not once have you correctly stated the company name that you so proudly support. It seems to me that any confusion between these companies is more a result of BDT's monopoly of the Boston market since 1994, and people's conviction that there must be only one amphibious tour company here. How can you be confused by the name if you don't even know the name of Boston Duck Tours?

I don't want to take anything away from the Boston Duck Tours. They provide an excellent service, and have done so for many years. Their conDUCKtors deliver an extremely polished and popular performance.

I find it extremely alarming, though, that so many people seem to have no qualms about spreading mis-information about Super Duck Excursions (previously Super Duck Tours). You say that you always root for the underdog; how on earth could you possibly consider Boston Duck Tours to be an underdog in this case? BDT has dozens of Boston tour vehicle licenses (an extremely rare commodity), while Super Duck has two, and little chance of getting many more anytime soon. BDT seems to have the unquestioned support of just about every media outlet, while Super Ducks has the likes of you bashing it repeatedly, over and over (you've made six extremely negative posts in just this one thread).

I'd like to also point out that Super Duck Excursions has gone to great lengths to distinguish themselves from Boston Duck Tours. For starters, from the day they started operations in May, the home page of their website had the highlighted text "Not to be confused with Boston Duck Tours". It now is on every single page of their website.

I should also point out that Super Duck Excursion has many attractive selling points:
- splashes into Boston Harbor (not the Charles River)
- different tour route (not better or worse, but different)
- uses more modern, safer vehicles, with more comfortable seating
- driver is not the tour guide, and can concentrate on just driving
- large groups (like school buses) can fit on one tour

I would like to 2nd your recommendation of the Boston Magazine article on this issue. It seems to me that it was the first news article to fairly present both sides of this issue (with the exception of failing to point out the 3rd-party ticket agent bit).

Other options,
There are gondola rides on the Charles River.
There are three wheeled buggies(bike operated) that hold three.

Smelling something fishy (either from Boston Harbor or Charles River) I checked on one of the responders to this post, jephillips34, who gives as glowing an account of Super Duck Tours as OP gives a negative one. I think there is a real possibility that the 2 principals are engaging in a fight using Fodors as their forum.

First, jephillips - this is your first post. And upon "googling" your name, I found you have been posting similar endorsements on any message board that you can. Additionally, much is paraphrased from a boston.com (Boston Globe) website.

I believe John is entitled to his opinion, but wish all posters here would reveal any special arrangements they may have with the subject of their posts.

On the other hand, kealalani has posted on a number of subjects here before. I still wonder, though, if s/he also has some agenda.

gail, kealalani has been a Fodorite for years, under other names.

Wow! What a treat to return home from a long day at work to this wonderful post by the newest member of fodors forums - jephillips34


Welcome to Fodors je, and what a fantastic first post, accusing a member of being libelous!?! Well done! Editors, please take note, as me thinks thiis new member may have ulterior motives regarding their company.

Call me names, call me out, knock your socks off. And yes je, I have actually spoken with your salespeople on the street. Trust me that it's in your, or their best interest that I don't comment further on those experiences.

How dare you address me in this nature! A person that shares and participates in travel talk, as if you were my personal agenda.

You chose your quotes well, just a hint of propaganda in your message. So may I too quote the one source I chose as completely open to both sides, and yet you call me out on that too???

other posters, please forgive any typos as I am copying this freehand. It is really a very poignant last paragraph to a wonderful article by Jason Feifer



"Amd that's what makes Kreaz's decisions all the more confusing. or lazy, really: He demonstrated he has the wherewithal to build a decent tour --the route is solid, the Hydra-Terres are exciting, the views from the harbor beat those from the Charles --but chooses instead to squabble over naming rights, practically insistent on not building an identity of his own........
......But for now, the new "excurssion" has taken the posture of the cheap knockoff, something designed to feed from the bottom. And so long as his big new boats ard ducks, Kraez will have a hard time proving otherwise."

So my new bottom feeder fodorite friend, welcome and good bye. So many fantastic names to call that company rather than ride on the coat tails of others. I have a dozen great ideas. Alas you have been too rude to share them with.

Malama Pono
'lani

Gail, I have no personal agenda whatsoever.

When I see something that stinks, I speak up. For quite a few years, I have recommended the original company and take offense to any company that tries to ride the marketing wave of another, in such a blatent way.

So many wonderful names and marketing approaches. Why pretend to be something your not. Why change your name to Kennedy to run for office in MA? It's just wrong.

kealalani:
i think the main purpose of fodor's site is to hear from other traveler's and find out about their personal travel experiences such as the one your brought up.


fodorites' responses provide the balance of pros & cons and others can make up their minds based on true experiences and information like you & others have provided.

it seems anything other than a perfect experience is often seen as suspect and I don't understand why.

gail: I am an independant computer consultant. I

Sorry, accidental mouse click on the reply button....

I'm a independant computer consultant, and I worked on a part of the ticketing system for Super Duck. This is relevant only in that I know the owners of Super Duck Tours, and have some knowledge of the process they went through starting up their operation in Boston. I am not an employee, and I have no ongoing financial interest in the company.

These are good local honest people for me, not just some name on news story. Reading incendiary comments about this company, like those posted here, makes me feel compelled to respond. And, yes, I have responded in multiple forums, probably with much the same language. It didn't really seem necessary for a complete biography just to reply to a post, but apparently it is.

Well then, why won't your people just take the duck out of the name, end the drama and get on with making a great business for themselves? They have proven they have a corner on the market. So why use another companies marketing and name rather than come up with something more original and honest?

kaelalani:

My apologies if you thought I was calling you names. Actually, I'm pretty sure I didn't. May I point out for you, though, some of the remarks you've made here:
- Super Duck Tours - Boston is a scam! (thread subject)
- This company shows a complete lack of integrity...
- ...and will hopefully crash and burn, as it so deserves.
- The false company has also been accused of giving false information...
- ...this company is just not right!

As I stated before, the judge dismissed the charges of Super Duck employees giving false information. These were not Super Duck employees, but some other company altogether, a 3rd party ticket agent.

Now, I assume that your strong and vocal outrage against Super Duck must be that they would have the audacity to use the term 'Duck Tours' in their name. Sorry, gail, if you've seen me post this before in other forums, but it seems to me that 'duck tours' is a generic term that identifies the service that is being offered, an amphibious siteseeing tour.

If you were to google the term 'duck tours' you would find dozens of amphibious tour operators around the country and the world using that term. And not just tour operators using the World War II DUKWs, but operators using more modern aphibious vehicles, including Hydra Terras, like those used by Super Duck Excursions. In countless forums, blogs, reviews, postings, etc, people have been using the term 'duck tour' to refer to this type of tour, even when the tour operator isn't using that term in their name. It seems clear to me that the term 'duck tour' has entered the vernacular of the english language, based on the way the term is commonly used and understood by people around the world.

And so it seems perfectly reasonable to me that a company would use the name of the service that it offers in it's name. Perhaps you don't agree with me, but it does seem to me quite reasonable for someone to hold this point of view.

To automatically jump on the name 'Super Duck Tours' as 'jumping on the bandwagon of an established company to pick up the crumbs of soldout vessells...' does not seem reasonable to me. And I certainly don't feel that it would justify wishing that a company would 'crash and burn, as it so deserves'.

Certainly they have entered the market, hoping to compete with Boston Duck Tours. Certainly it will take some period of time for the market to realize that there is now more than one amphibious tour operator. Why it should generate such vitriol, though, is beyond me.

So long as your company rides on the coat tails of others that have established a business, you will always be a company of questionalbe ethics.

Shall I type slower????

Come up with an original name and you will have remarkable success. Continue to be a bottom feeder, and people like me will continue to call you out.

How simpler can I put it?

Damn yes I take it personal. I call this city home for 42 years. Get your head out of my gdamned face and read what has been written.

Give the company an original name and logo and market it on its own merritts.

SIMPLE!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Ok as a Bostonian. I suggest you remove the word DUCK, call yourselves the Amphibian crew (sp?) no way use duck if you really want to be fair.

Although its been many years since we have done tours of Boston, we really liked the trolley tour both for convenience & information. The DUCK tour (from the orginal company)was fun & unique but much more difficult to get onto to. Try the trolley, instead of either DUCK,
Betsy

Reminds me of the double-decker buses in NYC or the trolley tours in Savannah and other cities. Even the ghost tours and the walking tours in Savannah. Very rarely can one tour operator keep a monopoly in a market. Sooner or later, competition moves in and the original company adds "original" to their name.

BTW, I happened to be on a trolley in Boston when the owner of Old Town Trolley Tours was taking a QC ride. We chatted and after he identified himself I shared a negative experience in Key West.

I just don't see what the problem is. I googled and read a bit and it seems like the owner of the original Boston Duck Tour hasn't earned many fans by trying to strong-arm potential competition in the NE. The courts will rule, of course. I checked out the Super website and it does clearly state "Not to be confused with Boston Duck Tours".

Oh, thought of a couple more. The architectural river cruises in Chicago and the whale-watching tours out of Provincetown. There's an original and there are copy-cats - and their brochures and marketing attempt to tell why "they" are best.

Another example - in Provincetown you can see the off-Broadway show that's been running for years "Naked Boys Singing" and down the street you can see "Barenaked Lads". An original and (what I assume is a) "copycat" co-existing and competing for the entertainment dollar.

I don't see anything horrid about this either. It's part of competitive business. There are lots of "Duck Tours" all over - is Boston Duck Tours suing any of them for copycatting their name?

And, yes, when an existing company gets so popular that they can't keep up with the clientele, other companies will start up to "pick up the crumbs". Why is that wrong? If the original company can't compete against the newcomer, then they aren't that great of a company.

It's not like Boston Duck Tours is a small mom & pop business and Super Duck Tours is a large corporation that has swooped in and is undercutting their prices.

<Sooner or later, competition moves in and the original company adds "original" to their name. >

Funny you should mention that. I think Wisconsin Dells is kind of where duck tours originated, and the first company calls themselves the Original Wisconsin Ducks while the second company is called Dells Army Ducks. Much ado about nothing, I think.

Interesting. Based on your post I googled and found that even the Boston Duck Tour's website acknowledges that -

>>Company History
Contrary to local belief, the unique idea of a Duck Tour did not originate in Boston. Duck operations have been in existence in the Midwest for decades, and in fact, continue to thrive. <<

The company started in 1994 and the founder left in 2000.

http://www.bostonducktours.com/compa...ory_frame.html

On our recent Boston trip we had a front row seat to the original Duck tour which passed by the window of our hotel frequently. Without fail we heard uproarious laughter and everyone looked like they were having such a good time. Observing them made us want to do the tour, but it was sold out, so we opted for the Super Duck Excursion. It seemed evident that they were not yet very organized, in fact bumped three people from our bus due to overbooking. Although she tried, the guide was not very entertaining and her jokes fell flat. It seemed as if we were going in circles and we stayed in one little section of town. All in all, I thought it was a waste of our time and money.

No matter what the name, those tours are an eyesore and obnoxious, with all the quacking and carrying-on. I wish they whole shebang would go out of business, or at least have them get out of those damn boats.

By definition, these super duck vehicles are not Duck vehicles. They are a hybrid - re designed, not the original.....

quack

kealalani, good point duck = DUKW; this was also presented by BDT in their lawsuit.

However, if you were to do a quick web search for 'duck tours', you would find that many of those tour operators using the term 'duck' are in fact NOT using DUKWs. All of the following duck tours use Hydra Terras, like those used by Super Ducks:
- DownEast Duck Tours (Portland, ME)
- Albany Aqua Ducks (Albany, NY)
- Diva Duck Amphibious Tours (West Palm Beach, FL)
- Portland Ducks (Portland, OR)
- Miami Duck Tours (Miami, FL)
- Captain Duck Tours (Puerto Rico)
- Caribbean Duck Tours (St. Maarten)

Also, there are other amphibious vehicles that are also commonly referred to as Ducks:
- LARC (a vietnam era military vehicle), used by Cape Cod Duckmobiles (Hyannis, MA)
- Stalwart (another military vehicle), used by Austin Duck Adventures (Austin, TX)

And, yes, gail, I've posted this same list elsewhere.

Mr. Phillips (John): Do you have any financial interest in Super Duck Tours?

gail, I'm pretty sure that I've already answered that, but I don't mind repeating myself on request. No, I do not have a financial interest in Super Duck Excursions.

You know, it is possible to have a positive thoughts about this company without having a financial interest. I was trying to make that point by quoting one of the more positive quotes from the Boston Magazine article. Believe it or not, there have actually been some positive reviews posted online by people other than me.

I recognize that there have also been some negative reviews. Some of them, I think, reflect some regret that they were missing the 'famous' Boston Duck Tours, but others probably reflect the inevitable problems faced by any new startup: inability to attract highly-talented 'cast', dealing with unexpected changes from the city officials, glitches in computer systems, etc.

On the whole, I've tried to stay extremely positive, as a necessary counter-balance to the extremely negative comments I'm responding to.

jephillips, you have stayed positive and shared good information.

In Toronto, they have the Hippo Tours... same vehicles different name...so there!!!

And even with the 'Hippo' name, people still use the term 'Duck' to clarify the type of service they offer:

http://melrosemirror.media.mit.edu/s...30303436333339
(7th paragraph)
"Some of us took the Hippo tour (another name for Duck tour) while others visited the Hockey Hall of Fame, taking pictures with the Stanley Cup."

http://www.busride.com/Page.cfm/PageID/2199
(4th paragraph)
"Parent says that the Toronto Hippo Tours exists because tour and travel operator, Geoffrey Lind, brought the Duck concept to Canada"

MikeT has it right. If you live in Boston, you hate the duck tours, passionately or mildly.

People write on here about white shoes in Europe; believe me, nothing brands you as the idiotic brand of tourist more rapidly than riding through the streets of a city quacking.