Contiki has boldly clapped back at an Australian lawyer who allegedly dumped on the youth tour operator this week during his address in the New South Wales Supreme Court.
Barrister Alister Abadee, who has been assigned to represent unhappy river cruisers in a class action against Scenic, compared the “inferior” treatment of his clients to “a backpackers’ Contiki tour”.
In case you’re out of the loop, some 1,265 passengers have taken class action against the river cruise line after 13 cruises were interrupted due to excessive river flooding back in May and June 2013.
The case opened in the Supreme Court on Tuesday, with Mr Abadee saying the group’s “once in a lifetime cruise” turned into a “massive disappointment” when they were moved off the rivers and onto buses, ABC News reported.
He said his clients experienced “inferior dining and sometimes [inferior] accommodation on shore”.
But he didn’t stop there. Mr Abadee then went on to say the entire experience was “a massive disappointment” before unexpectedly dragging Contiki’s name into court when he stated: “consumers did not pay for a backpackers’ Contiki tour”.
Needless to say Contiki’s Managing Director, Katrina Barry, didn’t take too kindly to Barrister Abadee’s comparison, saying it was clear he didn’t know the brand.
“Alister Abadee’s comments made it pretty clear that he just doesn’t know us.”
Katrina Barry, Contiki Managing Director
“For over 50 years we have been delivering quality holidays for young people.
“We take pride in the fact that we go over and above to take care of our guests – no matter what obstacles are thrown at us – after all we have been doing this since the 1960’s.
“We treat our guests to amazing experiences they’ll never forget; from chateaux in France to sailing the deep blue waters of the Mediterranean.”
If that’s not enough to convince Mr Abadee, Barry has extended an invitation for the lawyer to experience the operator’s product for free and “learn exactly what we are about”.
Of course, that’s assuming he’s under 35 years old…
