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Booking travel online - be careful
Posted by Vanessa45
Booking travel online - be careful March 11, 2019 06:40AM |
Registered: 7 years ago Posts: 804 |
I booked my wedding night at the Cordis (Langham - AK) a few weeks back and arrived with my husband in our wedding gear only to be told that the booking had been cancelled!!!!!
Hmmmm we werent impressed at all.
To cut a long story short, I booked online, got confirmation and then months later got an email cancelling the booking despite my credit card being charged.
I didnt check this email as I though it must have been advertising have already received this email...
"You’re all set for your stay at Cordis Auckland (formerly The Langham)! Your booking ID# is 2490025 and you can find your full booking details below.
Payment for this booking has already been sent to the hotel. You only need to show your ID and this confirmation in order to check in. Please remember to bring some cash or your credit card with you, as many hotels require a security deposit."
So it turns out the company I booked with didnt pay the Auckland agent, who didnt pay the hotel and cancelled the booking. The company I booked with had gone BUST! We got off lightly as we only booked one night and could still get a night. After a bit of investigation others were really stung over the Xmas period with nowhere to stay and many nights booked.
Fingers crossed my bank will sort this out with for me as its also in radar of the Consumer NZ website - check this out [www.consumer.org.nz]
Hotel Quickly was the company I booked with however I didnt know this is what they were called, I just booked via an online platform wanting to get the cheapest price. $409 was the price for one night in to be honest, an average hotel! Dated and tired.
The moral is be careful!
I dont think there was much I could have done as my money was taken and they company bust!
We are currently awaiting response from the bank.
Vanessa
Hmmmm we werent impressed at all.
To cut a long story short, I booked online, got confirmation and then months later got an email cancelling the booking despite my credit card being charged.
I didnt check this email as I though it must have been advertising have already received this email...
"You’re all set for your stay at Cordis Auckland (formerly The Langham)! Your booking ID# is 2490025 and you can find your full booking details below.
Payment for this booking has already been sent to the hotel. You only need to show your ID and this confirmation in order to check in. Please remember to bring some cash or your credit card with you, as many hotels require a security deposit."
So it turns out the company I booked with didnt pay the Auckland agent, who didnt pay the hotel and cancelled the booking. The company I booked with had gone BUST! We got off lightly as we only booked one night and could still get a night. After a bit of investigation others were really stung over the Xmas period with nowhere to stay and many nights booked.
Fingers crossed my bank will sort this out with for me as its also in radar of the Consumer NZ website - check this out [www.consumer.org.nz]
Hotel Quickly was the company I booked with however I didnt know this is what they were called, I just booked via an online platform wanting to get the cheapest price. $409 was the price for one night in to be honest, an average hotel! Dated and tired.
The moral is be careful!
I dont think there was much I could have done as my money was taken and they company bust!
We are currently awaiting response from the bank.
Vanessa
Re: Booking travel online - be careful March 11, 2019 09:51AM |
Registered: 18 years ago Posts: 5,388 |
Just a bit of self promotion here... use a Travel Agent? We only use accredited suppliers
Vanessa, I presume you wouldn't have had Travel Insurance for this domestic booking, but it is available as well even for domestic you can purchase cancellation cover
Had an example recently - on a different tangent - of a customer who booked air travel with me, and I gave her the website to apply for a Canadian Visa and assured her it was approx. $CAD7 per person to apply online. She decided to google instead and paid $CAD150 per person, and then wondered if she could cancel and use the correct website I originally advised her of
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/11/2019 09:53AM by Irene Field.
Vanessa, I presume you wouldn't have had Travel Insurance for this domestic booking, but it is available as well even for domestic you can purchase cancellation cover
Had an example recently - on a different tangent - of a customer who booked air travel with me, and I gave her the website to apply for a Canadian Visa and assured her it was approx. $CAD7 per person to apply online. She decided to google instead and paid $CAD150 per person, and then wondered if she could cancel and use the correct website I originally advised her of
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/11/2019 09:53AM by Irene Field.
Re: Booking travel online - be careful March 11, 2019 11:28AM |
Registered: 7 years ago Posts: 804 |
It was just one night in a hotel in Auckland - where I live. I do so much online and this is the only negative experience Ive had.
Usually the prices - for many many things are cheaper online for obvious reasons however I did get burnt this time... fingers crossed we get it sorted.
Now experiencing this I would contact a travel agent and see what deal they have - lol maybe you!
Vanessa
Usually the prices - for many many things are cheaper online for obvious reasons however I did get burnt this time... fingers crossed we get it sorted.
Now experiencing this I would contact a travel agent and see what deal they have - lol maybe you!
Vanessa
Re: Booking travel online - be careful March 11, 2019 03:08PM |
Registered: 15 years ago Posts: 653 |
Irene, I was just reading the "fine print" travel insurance documents from two insurers and discovered that neither covered you in the event of someone going bust. So I don't think insurance would have helped in any case. Those documents make depressing reading as many of the likely things you might want they don't cover. I get insurance for the medical aspect and don't expect much success with any other claim.
I think with third party bookings you always run a risk - if you look for consumer reviews of even the major ones like Expedia you can find plenty of scare stories of bookings going wrong. I always price a booking directly on the hotel website as well and have found if you contact the hotel directly and ask them to match the price you found from a third party booker they will often do so.
I think with third party bookings you always run a risk - if you look for consumer reviews of even the major ones like Expedia you can find plenty of scare stories of bookings going wrong. I always price a booking directly on the hotel website as well and have found if you contact the hotel directly and ask them to match the price you found from a third party booker they will often do so.
Re: Booking travel online - be careful March 11, 2019 08:09PM |
Registered: 16 years ago Posts: 1,979 |
On the rare occasion I travel, I do the sane as Carolyn and ask for price matching directly t through the hotel. Even if they don't fully match the price, I'm ok with paying a little extra for the peace of mind. My mother, in the past, has had problems cancelling and getting a refund through 3rd party sites, so personally I won't use them for anything. Just not worth the potential hassle!
I hope your bank is helpful on the refund, and so glad your special night wasn't completely derailed.
I hope your bank is helpful on the refund, and so glad your special night wasn't completely derailed.
Re: Booking travel online - be careful March 11, 2019 10:21PM |
Registered: 18 years ago Posts: 5,388 |
Vanessa - firstly apologies for not congratulating you on your wedding! I was multi tasking when I posted this yesterday and overlooked saying the obvious - I hope this was the only blight on your day, but how disappointing. I often book land only arrangements for customers including one night's accommodation - as I have access to various wholesalers, and so compare all for the best price. But I can understand you booking your own for one night.
Carolyn, my go to for travel insurance is Kiwi Holiday Insurance, and whom I sell along with another company. With regards insolvency they do provide cover, and actually on their home page list the companies who they will not provide cover for. So as with all industries, you must compare the policy wording, and not just focus on the price. Read carefully what you actually are covered for
I apologise if I came across as self promoting, and I did not mean just booking through myself personally, but you will often find the same deals if not better via a Travel Agent, and have the assurance of back up.
Trivago was just recently fined in Australia for $AU10million! They were misleading by saying they were cheaper and doing cost comparisons with other online booking engines - but they were not comparing apples with apples, and were pitting a higher room category costing against their own lower room category costing.
Cheers
Carolyn, my go to for travel insurance is Kiwi Holiday Insurance, and whom I sell along with another company. With regards insolvency they do provide cover, and actually on their home page list the companies who they will not provide cover for. So as with all industries, you must compare the policy wording, and not just focus on the price. Read carefully what you actually are covered for
I apologise if I came across as self promoting, and I did not mean just booking through myself personally, but you will often find the same deals if not better via a Travel Agent, and have the assurance of back up.
Trivago was just recently fined in Australia for $AU10million! They were misleading by saying they were cheaper and doing cost comparisons with other online booking engines - but they were not comparing apples with apples, and were pitting a higher room category costing against their own lower room category costing.
Cheers
Re: Booking travel online - be careful June 22, 2019 05:41PM |
Registered: 6 years ago Posts: 21 |
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