SegwayChat
Home . Old Gallery

Go Back   SegwayChat > Segway Forums > Tours and Rentals

Notices

Tours and Rentals Issues, experiences & opinions relating to Segway rentals and tours.

Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
Old 05-14-2009, 07:46 PM   #1
SF Segway Tours
Junior Member
SF Segway Tours is an unknown quantity at this point
 
SF Segway Tours's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2004
Location: San Francisco, CA, USA.
Posts: 87
5 yr Member
Default SegwaySightseeing.com is launched with 31 cities worldwide

SegwaySightseeing.com has been launched featuring Segway Guided Tours in 31 cities worldwide.

http://www.segwaysightseeing.com

The site is a one stop source for tour information and reservations for fun Segway tour companies from Paris to Berlin, Boston to San Francisco.

New cities are being added in the next few weeks. The site provides star ratings and reviews by guests for each tour. Reservations are easily made with each tour provider and charged in the local market currency.

For more information about listing a Segway tour please contact Ashleigh Bunn. Email; ash@segwaysightseeing.com
__________________
San Francisco Electric Tour Company
Guided Segway Tours - Since 2004
New: Golden Gate Park Segway Tours

To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 5 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.



Segway Tours Worldwide - Directory of Segway Tours

To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 5 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.



Follow Us on Facebook

To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 5 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.
SF Segway Tours is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-16-2009, 05:40 PM   #2
hibmep
Junior Member
hibmep is on a distinguished road
 
Join Date: May 2008
Location: Yuma, Arizona
Posts: 32
5 yr Member
Default Segway Site Question

How is this new site, or is this site any better than Segwayguidedtours.com with over 300 segway tours listed all over the world. Steve
hibmep is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-16-2009, 08:57 PM   #3
Bob.Kerns
Advanced Member
Bob.Kerns is a glorious beacon of lightBob.Kerns is a glorious beacon of lightBob.Kerns is a glorious beacon of lightBob.Kerns is a glorious beacon of lightBob.Kerns is a glorious beacon of lightBob.Kerns is a glorious beacon of light
 
Join Date: Aug 2008
Location: Marin County, CA
Posts: 3,783
5 yr Member HT/PT Owner
Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by hibmep View Post
How is this new site, or is this site any better than Segwayguidedtours.com with over 300 segway tours listed all over the world. Steve
SegwaySightseeing.com is *much* more attractive and visually interesting.

I'm not sure it's more usable. And I don't know if that translates into more traffic generated, or tours booked.

But visual appeal definitely has its place, and SegwayguidedTours.com is surprisingly drab and uninteresting. It might be superior, if you already have decided to book a Segway tour, and just want the fastest and and most convenient way to find your tour operator, get to their site, and book your tour.

But if you're sitting around, thinking, "what shall we do on our summer vacation?", I don't think it'll be nearly as effective at getting people engaged to the point of booking a tour they hadn't yet decided on.
__________________
Bob Kerns:
To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 5 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.
,
To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 5 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.

Obviously, we can't have infinite voltage, or the universe would tear itself to shreds, and we wouldn't be discussing Segways.
Bob.Kerns is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-16-2009, 10:13 PM   #4
wwhopper
Advanced Member
wwhopper is a splendid one to beholdwwhopper is a splendid one to beholdwwhopper is a splendid one to beholdwwhopper is a splendid one to beholdwwhopper is a splendid one to beholdwwhopper is a splendid one to beholdwwhopper is a splendid one to behold
 
wwhopper's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2003
Location: Washington, DC, USA.
Posts: 4,894
5 yr Member HT/PT Owner
Exclamation Must be by tour company subscription to this service

Any website that promotes our Segway industry is a good one, this one in my oppinion needs some work. Though the other one does need updating as well.

As I am looking at it, this website is missing a majority of the tours in my area, and the areas that I tend to spend time in. Though the other website has not been updated to list who is currently offering Segway Tours.

And in reality only ONE tour company is included on this website in is in my area and though it does have tours in a variety of areas through out the region, it is not a Segway Authorized Tour.

Here are my comments:

There are three tour companies in my home town of Washington DC.
Capital Segway - not included - it is the only Segway Authorized Tour in DC www.capitalsegway.com

City Segway Tours - not included www.citysegwaytours.com a company that has been established since the beginning of the Segway Tour industry and is all over the world.

Segs-In-The-City - though their name may have changed by now - it is the only one included - as per the address though not the name.

Gettysburg Pennsylvania.
SegTours - which is the only tour that has real Gettysburg Guides who lead the tour and have the knod of the local tourist industry. www.segtours.com

Gettysburg Segway Tours - not sure who they are, though I think they are the Segs-In-The-City Tours are listed on the site.

Annapolis Maryland
Annapolis Segway Tours - the only Segway Authorized Tour in Annapolis - not included www.annapolissegwaytours.com

Another Segway Tour Company - probably Segs-In-The City is again included on the site - this is only because of their location.

Oxon Hill Maryland / National Harbor Maryland
HarborSegs - not included www.harborsegs.com

Crozet Virginia
Seg-Ville Tours - not included. www.seg-ville.com

Philadelphia PA
I-Glide Tour - not included (not sure their website)

Hampton Roads/Virginia Beach
The Segway Authorized Dealer there has a tour operation, again not included.

Indianapolis Indiana,
The Segway Authorized Dealer has a tour there that is top notch, again not included.

Next I looked at prices, I see the prices they are quoting on the website are a tad higher than others that I know that operate in the area. I can understand that they are no doubt including the commission for the advertising on this website in the cost, so that the tour operator does not have to cover the cost. Hey as a businessperson, I surely understand that.

It may indeed be a pretty website, but the other website though not so pretty is not as up to date - nor does it take reservations.

So I would say, like anything else, check the local Convention and Visitor Bureau for Segway Tour listings, as well as the local Better Business Bureau for the validity of the Segway Tours in the area that you are interested in!
__________________
Will W Hopper
DCSEG
Washington, DC, U.S.A.
wwhopper is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-17-2009, 12:35 PM   #5
otis
Junior Member
otis is an unknown quantity at this point
 
Join Date: May 2005
Location: , , .
Posts: 26
5 yr Member
Default Incorrect information

To put some facts straight - Segs in the City has not changed its name. It was the first operator in all its locations - DC, Annpolis, Baltimore and Gettysburg. And yes we do have REAL guides in Gettysburg - if you mean Licensed Battlefield Guides and if you also mean having people that actual talk to you and not a recorded system!

The listings on this new site are due to current customers of tourcorp that is the originator of the site. And we all know that the only difference between a regular segway tour operator and an "authorized tour operator" is that an authorized tour operator is a dealer and Segway pushed them into being "tour operators" so they could actually make some money.
otis is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-17-2009, 02:51 PM   #6
Halffro777
Junior Member
Halffro777 is on a distinguished road
 
Join Date: Aug 2008
Location: Florida
Posts: 39
5 yr Member
Default Question, then:

If the tours on this site are incompletely listed and the ones that are listed have raised their price to compensate for the website's commission, then who does this website benefit?
Halffro777 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-17-2009, 04:16 PM   #7
CovRob
Member
CovRob will become famous soon enoughCovRob will become famous soon enough
 
CovRob's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2007
Location: Lake District, England
Posts: 549
5 yr Member HT/PT Owner
Default

This newly promoted site charges a commission to operators who use the site - it is probably incomplete as some operators either don't know about it or choose not to pay the commission. It potentially offers more information to the prospective customer of business subscribing though.

Segwayguidedtours.com costs the featured operators nothing, hence the increased volume of listings but it does rely on businesses approaching the site to appear / update / delete entries as appropriate - a Segway domain name in the UK recently changed hands and the new owner wasn't actually operating any kind of Segway tour or business (although it is stated to be a future desire). Nevertheless the link from both INC's guided tours page and Segwayguidedtours.com went to this new website until other UK Segway operators highlighted the anomaly to both websites whereupon they deleted the offending link.

I venture to suggest that no service of this kind can ever provide 100% coverage or be totally accurate. I would also highlight the OP's opening title - the website is "launched", which I interprete, for this sort of service, to be something that still needs to evolve & grow.
__________________
Rob

Last edited by CovRob; 05-17-2009 at 04:21 PM.. Reason: Include reference to original title
CovRob is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-17-2009, 06:37 PM   #8
SF Segway Tours
Junior Member
SF Segway Tours is an unknown quantity at this point
 
SF Segway Tours's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2004
Location: San Francisco, CA, USA.
Posts: 87
5 yr Member
Default Ongoing additions and improvements to segwaysightseeing.com

Thanks for the feedback on the new site. The site is targeted to consumers and built to directly accept reservations. Our goal is to present accurate info, quick confirmations and pricing that is exactly the same as going direct to the tour company.

We are not aware that any tour price listed is higher than the retail price charged in market. We will review and fix that issue if it exists.

In the next few months there will be ongoing additions and improvements to segwaysightseeing.com.

We started with non US tour operators as it takes longer to get accurate tour content translations and sales agreements in place.

The US listings will feature one operator per market. Larger US markets are targeted to be built 1st. We have quite a few International and US cities in production.

The site is not designed to be a directory of every company in the world. We feel that Segwayguidedtours.com is a great resource and generates lots of business for the tour community. As with many free listing directory sites some of the listings on that site are not updated. The site owner is very responsive if you send him an update.

We will have fewer listings and plan to keep them up to date.

Please keep the comments and suggestions coming.

Regards from San Francisco
__________________
San Francisco Electric Tour Company
Guided Segway Tours - Since 2004
New: Golden Gate Park Segway Tours

To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 5 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.



Segway Tours Worldwide - Directory of Segway Tours

To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 5 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.



Follow Us on Facebook

To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 5 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.
SF Segway Tours is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-17-2009, 11:34 PM   #9
bvelke
Member
bvelke will become famous soon enough
 
bvelke's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2007
Location: Columbia, MD
Posts: 200
5 yr Member HT/PT Owner
Default

Quote:
The US listings will feature one operator per market.
...and yet it describes its content as "World's Best Five Star Segway Tours" and it claims to house "The largest collection of Five Star Fun Segway Tours in the World."

It seems to me that both claims are as vacuous and deliberately misleading as INC's claim that its "authorized" tours "are recognized as providing the highest quality tour in their area" when it means nothing of the kind.

Both sites conceal from the visitor that their content is actually driven by something completely unrelated to tour quality. In the case of INC's, the overriding criteria is that the "authorized tour" is also a dealer. In the case of segwaysightseeing.com, it is apparently that the tour company is willing to pay for referrals. If either site weren't ashamed of their real criteria for inclusion, they'd admit it to the public -- but they put up this smokescreen of purporting to measure tour quality instead.

I think that the last thing we need is another site with a hidden agenda which passes itself off as providing objective evaluations of Segway tour companies.

Bob Velke
SegTours, LLC
bvelke is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-18-2009, 12:03 AM   #10
SF Segway Tours
Junior Member
SF Segway Tours is an unknown quantity at this point
 
SF Segway Tours's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2004
Location: San Francisco, CA, USA.
Posts: 87
5 yr Member
Default No hidden agendas - give us a minute to open!

"I think that the last thing we need is another site with a hidden agenda which passes itself off as providing objective evaluations of Segway tour companies"

Bob Velke
SegTours, LLC

Dear Bob -
Sorry you think we are trying to deceive the public or have a hidden agenda. Our site has been up and running for less than 2 weeks - And it's designed to promote and make it easy to book a Segway Tour.

I too dislike the "Authorized Tour" label used by Segway Inc as our tour operations are not tied to a dealership.

On our other 25 US market travel sites we clearly feature guest reviews and rank products by sales popularity and guest ratings. Both these customer based review / feedback tools are part of Segwaysightseeing.com and will be more apparent as sales are booked. We have to start with some companies in the mix or we would never generate sales or reviews.

Commissions for sales are pretty standard in the travel business and shouldn't be a big surprise to the traveling buying public. This is a business venture and not a hobby! To be clear - No tour operator paid to be included in the site. We selected some companies that I have personally met through running our San Francisco operation since 2004. Other international operations were highly recommend by mutual business acquaintances. In the end the customers will have there say.

I hear you run an excellent operation and wish you the best for this upcoming summer season.
__________________
San Francisco Electric Tour Company
Guided Segway Tours - Since 2004
New: Golden Gate Park Segway Tours

To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 5 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.



Segway Tours Worldwide - Directory of Segway Tours

To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 5 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.



Follow Us on Facebook

To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 5 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.
SF Segway Tours is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Tags
sightseeing, tour company, tours


Currently Active Users Viewing This Thread: 1 (0 members and 1 guests)
 
Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off

Forum Jump


All times are GMT -4. The time now is 03:34 PM.
Copyright © 2002-2023 SegwayChat.org.
All rights reserved. Not affiliated with Segway Inc.

FreshBlue vBulletin skin by
VayaDesign
Powered by vBulletin
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
SegwayChat Archive