by In Lviv Tours

It's no secret that modern travellers rely on reviews before booking a tour, ticket or hotel. Indeed, we all make purchases online, and product / delivery reviews matter to all of us. The tours and activities sector online is a rather unique space in the sense that reviews can make or break the reputation of any tour operator, new or established. It is accepted that one negative review is enough to negate dozens of positive reviews in the mind of a booker.

Travellers who review tours are a very special group. A few spill reputation-destroying vitriol if they miss their train, cannot find the meeting point, or fail to follow instructions set out in their booking confirmation e-mail. Yes, such evil does exist. Some of them clearly enjoy writing online and publish long-winded reviews that praise the tour operator or tour guide with whom they booked. The stupid ones review the OTAs, usually GetYourGuide or Viator, believing they provided the activity, when in fact it was the local tour operator from whom the OTAs take 30% commission.

On one occasion some time summertime 2023, we were sent a selfie on WhatsApp of clients sat on a bench, some 10 metres away from the meeting point for their tour that was scheduled to depart in about 10 minutes. The destination was Pompeii, Italy, and they'd booked a tour on our Rome site, In Rome Tours. They refused point blank to move themselves and check in, stating that the guide "must come to them", the weather was "too hot", and that we hadn't provided them with enough water.

Several weeks later, In Rome Tours was awarded a libellous one star review on Tripadvisor, who refused to remove it. A few months later, we closed our Tripadvisor account for Rome. This was the point at which In Lviv Tours decided to screw Tripadvisor.

To be blunt, people who churn out tour reviews have nothing better to do. Perhaps it's a way for them to store memories of their travel experiences in places they log in to often, such as Google. On the other hand, they could be independent and write an article, just like this one.

It's plain to see that the business of tour reviews online is a very mixed bag and should be taken with a generous pinch of salt. Our advice is never judge a tour or tour operator on the back of reviews as most of them are penned by unhinged randoms or fake review writers. And then there'll be the genuine review writers, but by that point does it really matter?

Fake reviews are everywhere, all it takes is one Indian or some shipwrecked soul in The Philippines with a VPN to confuse everyone. With all of this confusion, it's natural that we don't have a presence on Tripadvisor, Google, or anywhere else where fake reviews can be published. While many travellers rely on reviews, we rely on reality. Be like us.

You will only find Lviv tour reviews about In Lviv Tours here on our website, and that's if we decide to publish them. Reviews anywhere else are likely to be fake or a mistake, i.e. penned by a lonesome intent on reviewing another tour operator in Lviv, believing them to be us. Thanks, but no thanks. Lviv tour reviews should not dictate who you book tours with. Always visit local tour operator websites first to gauge what they offer.

If you have any questions, reach out on WhatsApp or some other messenger service before passing judgement.

Tourism influencers such as Arival keep telling us that we work in a reviews-based industry. We disagree. The value of a tour review is diminishing by the day.

✍ October 21st, 2025.