Olympic Rep 2016

[JeanW]

Has anyone heard who will be the Olympic Rep for the forhcoming season. I uunderstand Katja is not doing another year.

[Andy W]

The job has been advertised, and interviews are pending. However the job was advertised at below the legal minimum wage for Greece, on the basis that salary would be paid into a UK bank account. Thing is,the salary is also below the UK minimum wage. It will be interesting to see which government takes enforcement action, and expensive for Olympic either way, I'd have thought.
At the moment, Olympic's first customers have no rep to greet them when they arrive on the island this morning.

[Gemma1]

Not sure if it was accurate but the salary I saw worked out about £2 an hour I know reps aren't well paid but that seemed ridiculously low to me.

Presumably Olympic have made some arrangements about transfers to and from the port. As a returning visitor I don't really need a rep (though always attended the welcome meetings for a catch up) but it's nice to know there is one around in case of any problems. If you're a first time visitor staying at either Irini or Anastasia you wouldn't be able to find the accommodation on your own.

[Colette]

I was also astonished that Olympic are offering such a pitiable salary. It's no wonder they cannot get a rep and also no wonder that Katya and Justine left. I tried to find out if British companies can legally pay their staff less than the minimum wage whilst working in Europe but the ACAS phone line's recorded advice doesn't cover it and I kept getting cut off when I waited to speak to someone. Their website was no help either. Anyone know an employment lawyer?

[Olga]

Although we have been on Symi many times, this was our first time in the Anastasia, and we were dropped by the minibus driver on the bank between the supermarket, and the steps to the Secret Garden. It took us quite a while to find the right house.
We had been picked up from Panomites Port, as we had come over on the Symi, complete with return tickets for the same day, and I don't think the master of the Symi wanted to be seen disembarking people with luggage in Yialos.
A word about ferry tickets, we were handed our tickets by the mini bus driver who picked us up for our return journey on Wednesday. On boarding the Blue Star, we (about eight Olympic clients) discovered we had only been issued with half of the ferry ticket. After a bit of discussion, and much arm waving in the direction of the bookin kiosk, a senior officer waved us through. So until they get a rep, check everything When I rang the Rhodes office on Tuesday to enquire about ferry tickets pick up etc, I had to explain to the girl there that "the end of the street", is almost meaningless in Horio, and she would have to be a bit more specific, she told me that she had never been over to Symi, even though Symi is classed in their brochure as a Rhodes resort.I would have expected that the reps would have had some sort of familiarisation before the season started, as you can hardly give advice if you don't know the area.
However we still had a wonderful holiday as usual.

[Andy W]

We had been picked up from Panomites Port, as we had come over on the Symi, complete with return tickets for the same day, and I don't think the master of the Symi wanted to be seen disembarking people with luggage in Yialos.

This would certainly have been the reason in previous years, but this year the "Symi" has a full ferry licence so there's no problem with carrying baggage. While I was on Symi earlier in the month exactly the same manoeuvre happened for Olympic travellers arriving from Rhodes on the Panagia Skiadeni, which has never been anything other than a full-service ferry. It seems to be more a way of getting people to their apartments faster - you'd almost certainly save an hour at least.
As regards the tickets, at this time of year a deeply discounted day return may well be the same price as a single.

[Gemma1]

I think that's terrible service from Olympic Olga. Anastasia is not easy to find, I remember trying to find it when I was staying in Yialos and I didn't succeed. The first time I stayed there I got lost when I went to find my luggage and I'd already been shown the way once! Luckily Kev from the Sunrise pointed me in the right direction and once you've stayed there it's easy enough to find. However I wouldn't fancy carrying my luggage up the steps from the Secret Garden, they are better dropping you off at the Village Hotel. I think it's appalling that you had to ring Rhodes to find out about your transfers back! What would have happened if you'd not rung them? Olympic really need to get their act together. They don't have a rep on Halki but everything went smoothly when I stayed there as they had a local agent that sorted out ferry tickets and showed you to your accommodation. Of course everything is so much closer together on Halki so it's easier. I'm hoping to be able to travel back on the afternoon ferry from Symi in September as my flight back isn't until after midnight but not sure if that will be possible under the current set up!

Glad you still had a great holiday

[mr wotsin]

Have Olympic got a rep on Symi yet?

[D and E]

We have just got back from two weeks with Olympic - currently in Gatwick - and had a "rep-free" holiday.

Except for a rep in Rhodes putting us on a bus - they did not accompany the bus - and one who gave us tickets for the outgoing ferry - she did not travel over to Symi - we did not see a rep either on Symi or indeed at all on the return journey !

Symi Tours picked us up when we arrived on Symi and took us and the luggage to drop off points but then leaving us to find the accommodation - perhaps there is a belief with Olympic that there are so many return visitors that they know how to get to their accommodation and / or will help others.

The Board still showed Kaja as the rep but that was removed during the second week and mention that Symi Tours would contact you 24 hours before departure. We didn't test that as we called in past their office on the Monday before the Wednesday departure. They were clued up with who was staying where and when they were going home and it appears the expectation is now that you have to go to their office the day before departure to pick up your ferry tickets - which we did and were told we would be picked up where we were dropped off at 7am. It does seem that Symi Tours are taking on an agents role and as long as Olympic explain this in travellers itinerary it could work.

On the Wednesday of departure we and 9 others at various properties were picked up promptly and delivered to the Clock Tower where we went with the flow onto the Blue Star Paros. Waiting for us in Akantia was a minibus with an Olympic Board and driver but no rep. We were taken to the International - only a couple of the 9 of us knew where to go from where the bus drops you off opposite the cemetery so we led the way. There was a list of pick up times on the desk of the hotel but no rep. So at the appointed time we returned to opposite the cemetery and a different minibus with case carrying trailer appeared but still no rep. We were taken to the airport, checked the departures board, checked in and then waited for the flight - all without seeing a rep.

There turned out to be only 17 of us on the 16:30 Enterair flight to Gatwick which got away 30 minutes early and had us on the ground in Gatwick, after being held in a holding pattern over Gatwick for some 20 minutes, at 18:15.

So there we are - perhaps the start of rep-free holidays and good practice for anyone who wants to travel independently in future

[Deborah]

Hello, I think it only works if you are a regular visitor to Symi and I would want people to feel comfortable without a rep and would offer advice to anyone. I was on the same transfer as you, (im Deborah, the fitbit obsessed one) and got talking to the couple we picked up at the iapetos, they told me that they had been only told that they had to be at the International hotel for 11am. That is shocking to tell new visitors without anymore information about how they should get there etc and has certainly put them off visiting again. Mind you, when we got to check in the visitors from Symi and Halki were not on the Small planet check in list so further confusion and tension was had.

[Olga]

Not having a rep on Symi, is not a great problem if you know the drill for pick ups etc., but for first time visitors to be left to their own devices when they get to Rhodes, is not acceptable, at least 4 of the group that returned the same day as us did not know where the International was, and decided to just stay in the vicinity of the drop off point. I personally objected to being treated like an elderly idiot by the courier on the bus which picked us up, and felt vindicated when he assumed that we were all on the same flight and directed us to the wrong check in. (Just as well I very rarely believe anything I am told) If Olympic is not able to get a rep for Symi, the very least they can do is to provide an efficient service on Rhodes.

[Gemma1]

There is no rep on Halki and everything there seems to work very well using a local agent. However I don't think Olympic can assume that first time visitors can find places like the Anastasia or the Irini on Symi without assistance as neither are easy to find.

A couple of times when I've been dropped off at the International on the way back there hasn't been a rep present (last year I travelled on the afternoon ferry and Katja was on the morning one and there wasn't a rep on my first visit either) but luckily there has always been somebody who knows the way - if everybody was a first timer they would struggle to find it as it's not obvious from the drop off point. Olympic do need to get their act together if they are offering 'rep-free' holidays.

[D and E]

Just in case anyone was thinking D's flippancy was condoning Olympic's shoddy treatment of its customers - we are not and D is going to write to them over the weekend as he feels strongly about Olypmic's survival and the impact a failure of that company would have, especially on Symi.
If Olympic are at a point (must try and find their trading results - AndyW ) where they cannot afford to pay a decent living wage to attract Reps then that is worrying.
They have to realise that shoddy customer treatment might lead to a decline in repeat visitors as suggested by Debhora and that is the last thing they will want.
Without the excellent prices that Olympic offer many Symi Visitors might not be able to afford to visit and our own two visits per year, the second being undertaken independently (so we know the cost of that), could be called into question.
Having just looked at Trip Advisor and Bookings.com the "accommodation economy" on Symi does not seem to react to the normal supply & demand model. We were told by several locals that bookings are down so far this year but there is little evidence of discounting that might address that.
On the flip side we would not wish to see Symi get to a point where it is cheapend to the point of the mass market approach.
A difficult balance to get just right.
Hope others will let Olympic know how they feel.

[Gemma1]

Glad you're going to feedback to Olympic. I think with a bit of effort from the reps on Rhodes and help from local agents on Symi Olympic could operate without a rep but they certainly aren't doing enough to be rep-free at the moment. For a solo traveller Olympic offers excellent value for holidays to Symi as by the time I book flights, accommodation, transfers and a taxi it would be out of my price range without them so I really hope they continue operating holidays to Symi.

[mr wotsin]

Has anyone asked Olympic for a rebate for non provision of a rep?

[Andy W]

Has anyone who has booked with Olympic got anything in writing to say that a rep will be provided actually based on Symi, as opposed to an agent there and a rep on Rhodes?
Without that, any claim is going nowhere, and I'd be very surprised if they've made any such statement, since there are other destinations where they don't have resident reps, so the standard wording in brochures and booking confirmations would need to allow for that already.

[mr wotsin]

Now for a quick scrut.

[Janeybabes]

I'm gathering from some of the above that Olympic still drop Wednesday flight customers off at the International for the wait overnight. We haven't been for a few years and were gutted to be left on the frontage of the hotel all night!! will book a couple of rooms this September if still the case. I'm glad we've been a few times if we have to fend for ourselves on the transfer without a rep !! Can't wait for our visit.

[Oor Willie]

Word on the rock is that there will be an Olympic rep in place next week

[MrsMcS]

Does anyone know which lovely accommodation Olympic are using for the overnighters whose flights don't arrive until after the last ferry? Hope it is better than the one we were put up in two years ago!! It was shocking.

Sounds as though it has been a nightmare regarding transfers, etc. Hope they get it sorted out before September, but if they don't Olympic will be hearing from Findlay and I. They really need to get their act together. However, hopefully if there is a new rep starting it will be less chaotic I won't hold my breath, though. The carry on we had for months when they changed our accommodation last year on Alonissos was a disgrace and they obviously haven't improved.