tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3182703408922632531.post5680896125105914294..comments2023-04-20T04:34:11.624+10:00Comments on CAIRNS HILLBILLY WATCH - DAILY LIFE IN CAIRNS, QLD EXPLAINED BY RATIONAL, THINKING PEOPLE: NO TOURISM AWARDS THIS TIME - WE'VE MET THE ENEMY, AND HE IS USUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger17125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3182703408922632531.post-61857735038096745122012-03-08T20:54:44.255+10:002012-03-08T20:54:44.255+10:00Needing a new pair of shoes I decided to go shoppi...Needing a new pair of shoes I decided to go shopping, first to Cairns Central, but no luck, then decided to visit a shop in Edge Hill. Wrong, talk about service??? None!!! The woman, I assume the owner, was on the phone when I walked into the store, never acknowledged me at all, spoke very loudly to her friend on the phone. I saw two pairs of shoes I would have liked to rty but after 10 inutes of not being looked at or spoken to I left, where she came to the window and mouthed "Was there something I could Help you with?"!!!! Service???? NO NONE AT ALL. and they wonder why business is slow!!!!! Jennifer ecklesAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3182703408922632531.post-53683297570817010412012-03-07T08:26:10.301+10:002012-03-07T08:26:10.301+10:00athena is correct. The Americans are "go get...athena is correct. The Americans are "go getters", they go out and get their custom. They don't sit around whinging and whining and demanding the Government BRING their customers to them. So, what if the Cairns Inlet was dredged, and for a few years, until the cruise liners got too big, and some ships were able to pull up close to the CBD. Are the local tourist and business operators going to be just sitting on their arses waiting, waiting and waiting for the cruise passengers to just walk around and FIND their business by themselves??Bus. Op.noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3182703408922632531.post-74946555775427980892012-03-06T23:06:37.530+10:002012-03-06T23:06:37.530+10:00It is just unbelievable that hundreds of cruise pa...It is just unbelievable that hundreds of cruise passengers are left stranded at Yorkeys Knob. Are the tourist operators waiting for the Government to transport them right to their doorstop? As athena noted above, in the USA the tourist operators are pro-active and go get their clients meeting the buses as they arrive in a city.<br />We have tourist bodies in this city. Surely they can get their heads together, liase with the ships before they come into Yorkeys Knob, organise some tours etc. and then have buses out there to pick the cruise passengers up and take them on a tour?Curly Joenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3182703408922632531.post-80005695995239584632012-03-06T21:22:30.259+10:002012-03-06T21:22:30.259+10:00I haven't travelled all that much in the state...I haven't travelled all that much in the states recently, but my wife and I have a pretty good handle on what asia has to offer and i can say that cairns is light years behind the game. hotel rooms are tatty, service is backpacker dreadful, facilities and add-ons are laughable, room service and food and restaurants are dreary, dull and boring and grossly overpriced. Deadheads and rip-off kerchants like pepe iovanella, fred ariel and charles woodward, who are leading lights in the tourism disaster Cairns is confronted with, would be well advised to spend more time fixing their dirty smelly<br /> operations and less time playing LNP politics for Gobshite.Anon No 4noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3182703408922632531.post-69303748151909302472012-03-06T20:29:24.939+10:002012-03-06T20:29:24.939+10:00I've recently travelled in NZ and Tassie for h...I've recently travelled in NZ and Tassie for holidays. Both destinations were great, businesses strike up conversation and are genuine, friendly and helpful and the government and regions promote tourism exceptionally well. <br /><br />In regional Tassie I filled up with petrol on Good Friday and asked where I could go for lunch as many establishments were closed. The proprietor spent 10 mins on the phone and booked me in at a fantastic restaurant a few towns away - I arrived there a bit after the 2pm limit on lunch orders but the staff were waiting for us and made it a great experience. Imagine a petrol station offering that service here!<br /><br />In Cairns it's not just the tourists that get a raw deal but also the locals - who gets good service at our local shopping centres, especially on a weekend? Some even close shop to head for the beach if the weather is good.<br /><br />Cairns needs a big wake-up call. We can no longer see tourists as "come in spinner" We need realistic pricing that are not set by a "Yield Manager" and the city needs to be educated to welcome business whether it is local or tourists.<br /><br />We seem to have lost the essence of what living in the Far North is all about - and in the process of following the mighty $$$ we have sold our soul.<br /><br />I know we still have some good individuals out there in customer service - but we need the message to become corporate practice.Second Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3182703408922632531.post-10284079945524402902012-03-06T20:09:51.895+10:002012-03-06T20:09:51.895+10:00When I go out with my man everyone makes us feel w...When I go out with my man everyone makes us feel welcome and the food is always amazing.<br />The service is exceptional.<br /> All of our friends rave about how inexpensive the food and drinks are and the quality of the entertainment is second to none.<br /> <br />Can you guess where we go?<br /><br />Townsville.CBD Tarzanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10939543939246034601noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3182703408922632531.post-32683010626647936012012-03-06T10:47:34.733+10:002012-03-06T10:47:34.733+10:00Twice in a month hundreds of cashed up cruise pass...Twice in a month hundreds of cashed up cruise passengers have been left to fend for themselves in Yorkey's Knob, with no one to welcome them or organise something for them.<br /><br />You'd think that after the first fiasco some sort of action would have been taken. Is it really so hard for someone on the Council or one our tourism bodies to coordinate with the cruise companies to have something in place ? I don't think money is the issue here (at least not for the visitors).Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3182703408922632531.post-9332728889628301332012-03-06T10:14:19.341+10:002012-03-06T10:14:19.341+10:00It would be interesting to recieve comment here fr...It would be interesting to recieve comment here from one or more of the 900 or so folks who were stranded at Yorkeys Knob yesterday, sans welcoming party, bus transfers et al and et-frigging-cetra.<br /><br />Perhaps Anon #1 (the<br />bellicose,language challenged chap} should remove his head from the deep, nasty recesses of his own backside and see the light!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3182703408922632531.post-22916898661304841272012-03-06T09:05:49.638+10:002012-03-06T09:05:49.638+10:00I agree with Anonymous who quoted their experience...I agree with Anonymous who quoted their experiences of travelling through the USA. I too travelled through the USA a couple of years ago, and everywhere the service rendered by tourist employees was just first class. I travelled with a group of women, and small business proprietors when they learned we were in town, phoned our tour guide and said they were prepared to open their shops up for us whenever we wanted! We did some wonderful shopping therefore, having the shop all to ourselves. Tour guides would meet us as we arrived at a major destination and hand out leaflets advertising their tours as we alighted from the bus. Many of the women took advantage of these small, single person operated tours. Basically, the Americans were pro-active in seeking clientele, well organised, very helpful and respectful. Such a huge difference to Cairns where the tourist bodies sit back and demand the Governments find their customers.athenanoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3182703408922632531.post-76925107089170145492012-03-06T00:42:12.122+10:002012-03-06T00:42:12.122+10:00even as a local i am appalled by the hospitality s...even as a local i am appalled by the hospitality service in cairns compared to most other tourist destinations in australia. glad you brought it up hillbillyAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3182703408922632531.post-63514660826969529702012-03-05T21:32:57.955+10:002012-03-05T21:32:57.955+10:00Stats Man is right, but completely off-base.
80% ...Stats Man is right, but completely off-base.<br /><br />80% positive ratings is PITIFUL. Can any business survive with 20% of their customers going around, bad-mouthing them? Can Cairns as a destination survive such an ingrained culture of bad service, bad value, and bad treatment? <br /><br />Actually, no. The LNP and ALP have both proposed dumping millions into trying to get airlines to come here. It would be better used if it were dumped into massive, compulsory tourist and restaurant service training. Compulsory star ratings on hotels, not the bullshit "rate yourself" system we have now. Grading of restaurants by frequent health department visits with compulsory posting of the grading on the front window. A tourist ombudsman with 24/7 availability with compulsory posting of this ombudsman's contact details on every piece of tourist advertising, billboards at the airport, in taxis, and everywhere around town.<br /><br />That's a start. Not some bullshit support of an "80% rating", Stats Man.JOHN MACKENZIE'S HILLBILLY WATCHhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17706009936388621005noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3182703408922632531.post-73964780383744959632012-03-05T20:31:28.436+10:002012-03-05T20:31:28.436+10:00I agree wholy and soley as my mother and sister we...I agree wholy and soley as my mother and sister were booked into a lovely unit, all done via the internet, but when they arrived up here they found their unit was not the one they had booked, they complained and were told that they could have the one given to them or go elsewhere!!!!! I was horrified as They had paid in advance and were treated like dirt!!! As for service, go over to the USA for their service is fantastic and they treat ALL people with a warm and welcoming manner. In 6000klms we did not come across any rude or ignorant people who were born and bred in the USA, the only person who was rude was a white Russian and her diner was substandard. The only overpriced place that we encountered was run by a Mexican/American who wanted to get rich quick. ALL other dealings were with people who ended every conversation with You're Welcome!!!! Boss HogAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3182703408922632531.post-84072741447491501222012-03-05T20:31:26.915+10:002012-03-05T20:31:26.915+10:00I agree wholy and soley as my mother and sister we...I agree wholy and soley as my mother and sister were booked into a lovely unit, all done via the internet, but when they arrived up here they found their unit was not the one they had booked, they complained and were told that they could have the one given to them or go elsewhere!!!!! I was horrified as They had paid in advance and were treated like dirt!!! As for service, go over to the USA for their service is fantastic and they treat ALL people with a warm and welcoming manner. In 6000klms we did not come across any rude or ignorant people who were born and bred in the USA, the only person who was rude was a white Russian and her diner was substandard. The only overpriced place that we encountered was run by a Mexican/American who wanted to get rich quick. ALL other dealings were with people who ended every conversation with You're Welcome!!!! Boss HogAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3182703408922632531.post-67137985168022268982012-03-05T17:27:56.100+10:002012-03-05T17:27:56.100+10:00What passes for the tourist business in this town ...What passes for the tourist business in this town is pitiful. If I offered a service as poor and expensive as the rubbish servcded up by local hotels, resorts, restaurants, dive businesses, reef tours, etc etc, I'd be out of business in no time flat. The blame can be laid at the feet of the brain-dead bogans who run these rip-offs - like the the one whose initials are AJ and who arrived drunk as a skunk and twice as obnoxious at a wine-tasting at a local italian restaurant last week.Anon No 4noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3182703408922632531.post-21056617111593562842012-03-05T17:26:48.492+10:002012-03-05T17:26:48.492+10:00I personally saw 7 Chinese, in early Feb,(a doctor...I personally saw 7 Chinese, in early Feb,(a doctor from Beijing and 6 members of his extended family) who won't be back. They found out that they had been moved from the nice unit at Yorkeys they booked on the internet. They were told on their arrival that they had been moved without explanation or apology to something else hundreds of meters down the road. Their arrival was a disorganized embarrassment to watch. The visitors where polite and uncomplaining but I bet they will be telling their family and friends to give Cairns a big miss in the future. I have been told this is done all the time... Advertise the best looking unit on-line then move them to something else when they arrive. Our magnificent area has so much to offer and I have experienced some wonderful tours, restaurants and store owners who go that extra mile (with a smile) but unfortunately a single bad experience while here can sour the whole holiday. We learned through the pilot strike what it is like without any tourists in town and I don't want to go there again ......Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3182703408922632531.post-31973045610315689712012-03-05T15:29:28.598+10:002012-03-05T15:29:28.598+10:00The first anonymous is right.
Click on each line a...The first anonymous is right.<br />Click on each line and you will find most have a better than 80% recommend. There are always people who will complain. No tourist or restaurant business gets 100%.<br />This is blatant manipulation of Trip Advisor.<br />Hillbilly, on this one your pants are well and truely down. You've obviously got a big axe to grind against the Tourist Industry.<br />I reckon you went broke also.Stats Mannoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3182703408922632531.post-65749359796783540242012-03-05T10:08:29.900+10:002012-03-05T10:08:29.900+10:00More from travel advice world. -
Cairns is touri...More from travel advice world. - <br /><br />Cairns is tourist town so I recommend going to Port Douglas (Port is actually 98% tourists all avoiding Cairns to avoid tourists lol), <br /><br />Cairns is for poor bogans and Port Douglas is for cashed up bogans. Neither place are memorable destinations.<br /><br />The region is amazing but as long as we hold them captive in our bogan holding stations, tourism will falter.<br /><br />Even bogans figure ehen they have been ripped off.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com