Last September we decided that we needed two weeks in the sun and settled on Greece as our choice of destination. So off we went to the local travel agents to furnish ourselves with a good selection of brochures.
Whilst grabbing the usual Airtours, First Choice and JMC Brochures the assistant asked us where we were hoping to go, when we told her Greece she gave us the Kosmar brochure and said that the were highly recommended as Greece Tour Operators.
***Our Holiday Requirements***
We had already decided that we would probably like to visit one of the Greek Islands and that we wanted to go mid to end May, 2004 as we knew that the weather would not be unbearably hot as we were travelling with our 18 month old child.
We wanted somewhere that was not too long a distance from the airport and offered a quiet and relaxing holiday.
We also wanted our accommodation to have it’s own pool and we required a two bedroom apartment as we had decided to treat my mum to a holiday in lieu of all the free childminding she
provides.
We got the Kosmar brochure out and made a list of all the places that sounded suitable.
***The Brochure***
The brochure was very easy on the eye, maybe an inch thick and printed on glossy paper, with the company colours of Blue and Orange being the predominant colours throughout the brochure
At the beginning of the brochure was a table of contents listing each island/resort on offer and the page on which it can be found. At the beginning of each resort was a presentation showing picturesque views of the resort in question. Then a whole host of other useful information was given, such as typical temperatures, typical costs, transfer details and nightlife etc. There is a map of each resort
Following the resort description are the accommodation choices. Each accommodation on offer has a detailed description, including the board type, the room sizes on offer and whether there is a pool, bar, reception etc; there is also a map reference. This refers to the map as described above
For each accommodation, there is a photograph and a price box, which we found very user friendly.
At the back of the brochure is a section giving all the flight times and supplements from the various airports in the UK.
***The Website***
We decided that Dassia sounded like a nice place (See separate review) and from the brochure we selected two choices of accommodation, the Christina Apartments being the first choice, the Artemis being the second choice.
Now rather than going back to the travel agents to book or spend hours on the phone trying to book the holiday, we decided to give the website a go.
On visiting the website we were greeted by a very colourful homepage. I won’t drone on about exactly what the website looks like as you can easily visit it yourself at www.kosmar.co.uk. But basically the website reiterates all the information contained within the brochure with the added bonus of being able to book online.
***The Booking Process***
From the website you navigate to the resort you want to book, once you are at the resort home page the list of available accommodation is displayed on the right hand side of the page. On selecting the preferred accommodation you are taken to a photograph and description of the accommodation. At the end of the description there is a link inviting you to Book Online.
On pressing this link a new window opens where you first check the availability of the chosen accommodation.
You are required to make selections in relation to Board Basis, Party Size, no of nights you wish to stay, Preferred Departure Date and Departure Airport.
You will then be presented with a list of available holidays, on selecting your preference you are then asked to select the type and number of rooms required.
A flight itinery is then given and you are requested to input the details of your party and whether insurance is required. On inputting this information you are redirected to a secure page where you pay using your debit or credit card
You can choose to pay a deposit or the full amount due.
***What Then***
A few days after the holiday was booked online we received a receipted invoice, showing the holiday details, and the balance left to pay, and the latest payment date.
We paid the balance of the invoice by telephone nearer the time of our holiday. This can be done either by debit or credit care. Payment by cheque can be made though the mail.
***The Holiday***
I have reviewed the actual holiday separately, and will just provide a brief overview of Kosmar here.
We were met at the airport by a Kosmar Rep who directed us to the courtesy bus that was to take us to our accommodation. There was no unnecessary hanging around. As soon as everyone and their luggage was loaded on to the bus we were off.
The transfer from the airport took a little less time than was quoted in the brochure, which was a pleasant surprise as in the past I have felt rather misled by the transfer times given.
We were deposited at our accommodation and shown to our room by the Kosmar Representative. He then handed us a small map of Dassia and a card with our reps details on and an invitation to the usual meet and greet the next morning.
The accommodation was satisfactory and we were not disappointed. The rooms were clean and basic as described in the brochure and included a television in each room and a kettle, which we were not expecting.
We met our rep Fiona at the welcome meeting the next morning. Fiona was a lovely lady, but did seem to go on a little too long for my liking. She explained the various excursions on offer, when we advised her that having a small child, we weren’t really interested in the excursions, she accepted this without any pressure as experienced on previous holidays.
The holiday was very enjoyable and on the occasions that we did need to speak with Fiona we always found her or one of her colleagues available and ready to help.
Needless to say I would recommend using Kosmar and I would not hesitate to use them again when I next plan to holiday in Greece
How helpful would this review be to a person making a buying decision? Rating guidelines
I agree, Kosmar AREvery helpful, and accommodating. You make me wish I was going again right now!
gizmogizmo 23.08.2004 10:46
If you've seen my review you will see I love Kosmar - we've already booked with them for 2005!!!. This year we gave Olympic a try and they are proving to be on a par with Kosmar. Happy holidays!!!!
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very helpful by (100%):
