Liveaboard pre-trip communications - Aggressor?

[Joe Burns]

Thanks for the input all. And Wolfmft2 - see you onboard!

Baha Agressor finally posted their Know Before You Go, and my questions have mostly been answered/satisfied. I'm chalking up my initial concerns to "this itinerary is new to Agressor, and they don't have complete info yet"

Looking forward to BIG pelagics and releif from this oppressive Chicago Winter!

 

[Shasta_man]

Let us know how the trip goes!

 

[Joe Burns]

OK - a little delinquent on posting this update.

The trip was... interesting. There was a "problem" with the Aggressor's permits to go to Socorro. We sat in the harbor for two days, and ultimately ended up diving in the Sea of Cortez near La Paz. This was VERY frustrating for everyone involved. Ultimately, we determined that the permit problem was mainly due to another local operator pulling some $trings with the local officials to obstruct the Aggressor's permits. I won't dwell on the permit problems beyond that, except to say "shame on you" to the party that wants to play sabotage games.

As for the issues that started this thread (Aggressor Customer Service), I had mixed feelings. First off, given the problems we encountered on this trip, Aggressor did the right thing by us. They arranged a week of alternate dive locations, and are comping our return trip. The crew worked hard to make the best of a bad situation. I give them a lot of credit for their efforts. And the huge shadow cast over the week by the permit problems I'm sure put a big damper on their ability to provide high level of service.

That said, I chalk the rest of the experience up to the old saying, that you never go to a new restaraunt on opening night. There were several things that showed us that Aggressor just wasn't ready for this itinerary when we went. I'm going to give them the benefit of the doubt that they will get things up to an appropriate level of service so that guests aren't left waiting at the airport for 4 hours with no idea who or where their pick up is; The features promised for the boat like the hot tub and the compressed air for the photo table actually work; the chef is told of food allergies and diet requirements ahead of time; special events like on-board birthdays are actually observed as promised.

There were enough repeat Aggressor customers on this trip that assured me our experience wasn't a "normal" Aggressor experience. I'll be returning next March. Evidently the permit issue is sorted. But my expectations will be set high, and I expect the customer service to be much better.

 

[Wookie]

I have heard that story (about the other operator messing with permits) too many times. Seems that it happened years ago to the Nautilus Explorer, and it's also happened to Rocio del Mar.

 

[TheUWPhotographer.com]

If a dive operator does not have the proper permits in place to dive in any particular area, then they need to obtain those permits and operate in compliance with the laws set forth in that country. If they choose to go there without the proper permits, the authorities will crack down on them. I just hope that these illegal operators don't ruin it for all of us and close the area to diving entirely.

 

[merxlin]

If a dive operator does not have the proper permits in place to dive in any particular area, then they need to obtain those permits and operate in compliance with the laws set forth in that country. If they choose to go there without the proper permits, the authorities will crack down on them. I just hope that these illegal operators don't ruin it for all of us and close the area to diving entirely.

As far as I know, there were no charges about the Aggressor being "illegal", only that they had scheduled trips in anticipation of receiving their permits (which they have now), which were delayed. I see you do trips and seminars on the Solomar V. Might you have a bias in this discussion?

 

[TheUWPhotographer.com]

As far as I know, there were no charges about the Aggressor being "illegal", only that they had scheduled trips in anticipation of receiving their permits (which they have now), which were delayed. I see you do trips and seminars on the Solomar V. Might you have a bias in this discussion?

If they had their permits in place, then they would have been allowed to leave the port. If it was a due to a "delay" in getting the permits, as you say, and they didn't have their permits in order when it was time to make that trip, they should have informed the passengers before they got on the boat.

Yes, I have chartered the Solmar V many times (and have three more trips coming up in the future) and they are one of the most ethical companies I've had the opportunity to work with. I find it quite ludicrous to see Joe pointing the finger at them, instead of the ones who were really responsible for his not going to Socorro in the first place.

 

[Wookie]

Wow. I didn't see Joe point his finger at anyone, and I would never have guessed that the Solmar V would be behind anything that nefarious. They have a fantastic reputation in the industry with both passengers as well as tour leaders. Some of my crew were on the Solmar recently and had nothing but good things to say about them.

I think Aggressor did a good job making the best of a bad situation. Doing business in Mexico is not always easy, things often don't go as planned, and just because someone promised the permit by a certain date doesn't mean it will really materialize. The OP got to dive, even if it wasn't where he planned on going, he will have an opportunity to go where he wanted to go originally on Aggressor's nickel, and sometimes that's the best we (those of us in the industry) can do. Yes, people get disappointed when their expectations are raised to the point where they almost think they will have a certain big animal encounter, or seas will be flat calm, or the itinerary states that they will go a certain location, and it isn't possible due to constraints beyond the control of the operator. I feel badly for Joe that he wasn't able to go to Socorro this trip, but he does have next winters voyage planned for him now. There is usually a bright side.

 

[TheUWPhotographer.com]

Wow. I didn't see Joe point his finger at anyone, and I would never have guessed that the Solmar V would be behind anything that nefarious.

Sorry Wookie, that was the next post down: http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/5786532-post49.html

 

[Wookie]

Sorry Wookie, that was the next post down: http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/5786532-post49.html

I missed that completely, Bonnie. Thanks for the heads up.