Five Star Tours & Charter Bus Company - San Diego, California

Pateel Margossian

I wish I had read previous reviews prior to going through this company. Now, I cannot understand why anyone would use this fraudulent company.

Like most of the customers writing their reviews, my family and I were misled (essentially scammed) by Five Star Tours.

My family suffered greatly by the trauma incurred from this trip. We had arranged for a 49-passenger bus from Five Star Tours to pick us up in San Diego by the border line, spend a day in Tijuana, and then to drop us off back in San Diego at the end of day. The bus arrived with wet seats. We had to lay trash bags on the seats so that we could sit comfortably. There was no electrical power or toilet paper in the bathroom. How can customers be expected to use the restroom under these conditions? The typical seat overhead lights were nothing but hollow, exposed panels. Mind you, this is supposedly marketed as a “VIP” experience? The bus that arrived did not match those that were listed on the website whatsoever.

Like many others have mentioned, the bus driver did not in fact cross the border from Mexico to the United States. Nor did he tell us that we would have to cross by foot. Instead, he dropped us off a few blocks from the border patrol pedestrian line, NOT in San Diego as was promised on the itinerary. The driver informed us that we would have to get into line because we did not have the correct I-94 forms. (If you’re not familiar, this form is for international travelers visiting the United States). My family and I are U.S. citizens and were not required to complete such forms. He lied and left my family stranded with no instructions on what to do or where to go next. He did not consider that we had two very elderly women with us who were not prepared to stand in line for three hours (one of which was treated by a medical professional for heart failure exacerbation which he attributes to standing in the border line).

When one of our group members contacted Alfonso, the owner or manager, he told us that driver stated that “we asked him to drop us off” which is grossly false. We never once asked the driver to drop us off. As history has proven, this company is incredibly unprofessional and cares less about the safety and satisfaction of their customers and more about how they can make as much money as possible.

I would like to share that I have already reached out to Alfonso and informed him of our situation. He admitted fault to each of the points that I made and therefore, cannot state that my statements are false, like he has done with other customers who about their negative experiences. They have no interest in rectifying the situation. They are comprised of liars and thieves.

Will definitely be submitting a complaint to DOT and recommend others that have had similar situations do the same (Can find information on the federal motor carrier safety administration website).

B B

Beware of 5 Star Tours. Horrifying experience. Would give zero stars if I could.

The drive INTO Mexico was easy and comfortable. We got to the destination with no problems. Easy stress-free safe entry.

The return was a disaster!

I assumed the return trip would be like the arrival, but, boy was I wrong.

1 block from the San Ysidro boarder crossing the driver wakes our party of 30 up to inform us we have to unload everything and wait in line to cross. This is in the middle of busy traffic and the chaos of one of the busiest border crossings in the world.

This was unexpected, unprofessional, inconsiderate and frankly dangerous. We were left unguided, unprepared and exposed in our group that included infants, elderly and disabled with dozen of bags, strollers, car seats, etc. we had to abandon several items simply because we couldn’t manage everything to get across. We queued for 4 hours in the sun, no water, no bathroom in a dirty, foul and well-documented crime zone (Google the Tiajuana Monsters border murders).

With a little forethought and preparation the tour company could have advised us of this potential situation so we could have researched alternate crossing methods to ensure safe and comfortable crossing for our party.

Their poor decisions caused significant and unnecessary distress both physical and psychological, to our party, including one who was hospitalized the following day.

The company took no ownership of their failure to serve us, no apologies, no remedies and frankly I’m still considering legal action considering their breech of contract and callous response.

Jacqueline Bonilla

I recently use Five Star Tours & Charter Bus Company for a private group tour to Valle de Guadalupe and I couldn’t be more satisfied. Our tour guide was very knowledgeable and accommodating. I highly recommend using them for your future tours!

S Mor

Five Star Tours and Charter Company provided an amazing experience for me and my friends. We were new to Baja, so it was nice knowing a trusted source, new places to go and see, and the experience was one of a kind. Alfonso was great with communication from the beginning. Gave us options and told us what he recommended. they picked us up at the hotel in Baja and dropped us off back at the hotel after the tour was done. Excellent way to explore and drink up without driving. Being able to explore the wineries and drink, and not have to worry about driving, Gives the security that you are cared of, cared for, and Safe, which is a big deal for those who don’t know anything in Baja. Definitely recommend, worth every penny . Thank you for Giving my friends and I an amazing tour.

Aiden Mcguire

EDIT: Yes this is the right company and yes this review is true to the experience we had despite what the owner may claim.

Absolutely horrible, unsafe service. We booked these guys for a wedding to Ensenada there and back. On the way back we were dropped off at the TJ border to cross on foot, with the driver telling us we could not cross by charter despite seeing multiple charters full of people crossing the border with ease! Once we contacted the company (and the driver already having left) we were informed the drivers shift was over so he did not want to drive us over. We were left as a group of 20 including 10 kids at the TJ border on foot and had to wait 4 hours to cross before having another driver get us on the other side. No money was refunded, the service was incredibly dishonest as we had paid for a safe crossing for our family over the border. Do not use this service unless you don’t value the safety of your family!

Justine Katherine

We had a wonderful time for our very first wine tour in Baja. Alfonso was an excellent tour guide and driver, he was able to pick us up from our hotel and took us to three amazing wineries in Valle de Guadalupe. My mom, brother and I had a spectacular trip and a very delicious lunch at Esperanza. Well worth the money, looking forward to doing it again in the future. Thank you so much Alfonso and Five Star Tours 🙂

Mary Ann Priore

We had a great time with Alfonso doing a private wine tasting tour in Temecula. He arrived on time and provided water and snacks for the drive, then took us to several wineries and let us set the pace. He was very personable and choose places we had not been to before, as well as very knowledgeable about the area and wine. He set up two private tours for us, which were really cool, and we had a great lunch that was included in the cost. I would highly recommend using Five Star Tours.

Monica Banta

I was part of a group of over 20 guests who originally booked a 49-passenger bus, paying extra for the luxury, safety, and convenience that your company promised. Unfortunately, our experience, especially on the return trip, was far from what we expected.

Our trip started with a pickup at one of San Diego's airport parking lots, accommodating 26 guests. The driver communicated clearly about everything we needed to know when crossing from San Diego into Mexico. He was excellent—unfortunately, I didn't catch his name.

However, the return journey from Mexico was a completely different story. We were dropped off a full city block away from the border, and the driver informed us that we had to take all our belongings with us. Keep in mind, this included 10-15 adults, 10 children, car seats, bundles of water, snacks, luggage, and everything else needed for an entire family vacation. We paid for safety and convenience, but that was not what we received.

The driver’s shift had ended, so he dropped us off and left. If the company knew this in advance, you should have had a backup bus ready at the drop-off point, arranged for a driver switch, or provided a driver with a full shift to complete the job. We had to abandon our paid-for water and somehow managed to haul the kids and luggage to the border, where we waited 3.5 hours in line to get through customs. On the bus, we had access to snacks and a restroom, but waiting in line with little to no food, hungry and tired children, and the need to pay for restrooms was an unacceptable situation, especially given the premium we paid for your service.

After finally getting through customs, we had to walk another 2.5 city blocks to reach the waiting bus. Our final stop was only 20-30 minutes away, but the inconvenience and lack of communication from Five Star Tours made the entire experience incredibly frustrating.

I cannot recommend your company for any tours or travel, and based on what I've seen on Google reviews, many other customers feel the same way.

To Five Star Tours: You need to do better. Instead of ignoring customer feedback, start reading, listening, and learning from these mistakes. Show future customers that you’ve improved and are committed to delivering the service you promise.