Cabela's

Full review
We are a Cabela's family! One of my brother-in-laws started a tradition of ordering from Cabela's for all of his birthday and Christmas shopping. It seems like every member of our family gets something from Cabela's. It has caught on like wild fire! Last week my husband received a late birthday present from his sister, she sent him an email with a Cabela's gift certificate enclosed.

My husband hates to shop, so he asked me to peruse the Cabela's website for him and tell him what looked good. I love to shop, especially when I have a gift certificate!

The email said he'd received a gift from the World's Foremost Outfitter. Indeed, they are a huge supplier for all things outdoors. The main page of their online store has a menu listing the different categories:

* Hunting
* Optics
* Archery
* Electronics
* Clothing
* Footwear
* Fishing
* Boating
* Golf
* Camping
* Snowmobile Accessories
* Auto & RV Accessories
* Food
* Home & Pet
* Gifts * Hobbies
* DVD's & Books

Navigating The Website

The top of each page has an easy to use search engine, which I found quite reliable. You can search by either item number or keyword. When I did a search on "golf", it brought up three pages of anything golf related. From clubs to golf cart tires, to a Coleman golf cart heater, it was all there!

How fast you can navigate the website depends on your internet connection. We have a cable modem, and the pages load extremely quickly (much faster than some other online stores).

The camping section is huge! Of course they carry all the standard camping items like sleeping bags and tents, but they also sell GPS units, cooking gear, air beds, lanterns, fire starters, water purification, compasses, bug dope, chairs, showers & toilets, 2-way radios, first aid supplies, knives & tools, and a ton of misc. items.

I live in Alaska, and I was very surprised to see an entire section dedicated to Iditarod Race & Alaska Gear. Cabela's has been a proud sponsor of the Iditarod Sled Dog Race for years. (My husband is a race volunteer and has some Cabela's head warmers that were donated by the company).

I found their Buyer's Guide to be very helpful. My husband has always wanted a hand held GPS, and the buying guide was very informative. The buying guides consist of narratives written by authors who are experts in their field.

The Outdoor Info section contains not only field guides, but product videos, talk forums, and a great section on camping recipes. I got lost reading the different recipes on Dutch Oven Cooking that I forgot I was shopping for my husband!!

The Bargain Cave is a deep discounted section, with savings of up to 70% off retail. Last week they were closing out summer items, like sandals.

Every page allows you to view the search results as either links or images, which are in full color. When viewing the sweatshirt my husband liked, there were color choices below it. Clicking on each color changed the view of the sweatshirt to that color. I found this extremely helpful! The zoom feature allows you to zoom in as close as you'd like on any part of the item.

Pricing

I find some items a little over priced, and others very good bargains. Of course, price is relative. WalMart and other discount stores would be cheaper, but the quality won't be as good. In comparison to other similar stores like REI and Eddie Bauer, I find Cabela's prices to be cheaper, without sacrificing quality.

Shipping

I always appreciate it when online stores list their shipping rates upfront, and Cabela's has an entire page devoted to shipping and handling information. There are three methods for delivery: Standard Express (3-6 business days), Guaranteed Express (2-3 business day guaranteed), or Overnight Air Express (next business day delivery). Alaska, Hawaii and other US Territories will pay an additional fee of $6 and $10 for the express service.

My husband had a $50 gift certificate, and he payed an additional $7.95 for shipping. As you purchase more, the shipping gets cheaper. Spend $50.01-$75.00 and the shipping only increases one more dollar, to $8.95.

Cabela's Club Visa Program

Rewards Programs are becoming more and more popular, and Cabela's has their own Visa Credit Card that will earn you points with purchase. You get $10 in free points upon approval, 2% cash back when you use their Visa card at Cabela's, 1% back on all other purchases.

If you don't want to own their Visa card, you can also earn points by joining their free Cabela's Rewards Program (for customers who are not Club members). You will earn 2% back for every purchase no matter how you pay.

Customer Service

I had a question about something at the Cabela's website, so I called the toll free number listed on top of their site. The customer service rep was extremely nice and very helpful. He patiently answered all of my questions.

If you don't want to personally talk to someone on the phone, Cabela's also offers a live chat via your computer, from 7 am - 11 pm Central Time.

Cabela's has a 100% satisfaction guarantee. Their site states: The way we look at it, we've got no business asking for your next order until you're 100% satisfied with your last order. To make sure you get everything you expect from Cabela's, we back your purchase with our famous 100% Satisfaction Guarantee.

Buying and Checking Out

My husband decided he wanted two items of clothing. When I clicked on an item I was interested in, the next screen shows a nice large picture of the item. To the right is the price, and a box to enter quantity, size and color. Simply click "add to cart". (If you want to continue shopping you can add it to your wish list and come back to it later).

You can check out at any time, with or without creating an account. Once you fill out your billing information and email address, you choose your shipping options.

After you've entered either your payment information or gift certificate number, you are done and a confirmation email is immediately sent. The email contains a link that allows you to track our order. We were told it would take 5-6 days to reach us in Alaska, and the delivery was right on schedule.

To Summarize

We have found Cabela's to have good quality items, great customer service, and an easy to navigate website. If you prefer shopping by catalog, there is a link to request one free of charge.

A year ago we were given a wind up radio as a gift, and it didn't work properly. I called customer service and they immediately mailed me a postage paid return shipping label. As soon as they received the radio, they replaced it with another one. I've found their service to be extremely helpful and feel like they value my business as an individual. I highly recommend Cabela's Online Store.