hi laura and welcome to HT. Were you told by the TA/TO that it was a quiet hotel or is just the case of not enough research beforehand? Are you planning to take action?

We have reviews of this accommodation which are mixed but a brothel is mentioned and also road noise http://www.holidaytruths.co.uk/reviews/spain/canary-islands/tenerife/playa-de-las-americas/las-floritas-apartments/

Don't take a travel agents word for it - always do your homework on here and other review sites. Too late now I know, but you will be better prepared next time.

I have not been to Tenerife but if I was planning to go and wanted a quiet holiday I certainly don't think I would choose Playa De Las Americas. There are other areas of Tenerife that I think may have suited you better.

The reviews certainly are mixed but mention is made several times that it is not really suited to those that want a quiet holiday - even the fact that the hospital is nearby with sirens sounding 24 hours a day is enough to suggest that this is not a peaceful place!!

Pippa

Hey Pippa

I would agree that playa las americas is not the place to go for a peaceful holiday but the travel agents told us different. The girl i booked the holiday with told me if i wanted a relaxing holiday this was the place to go. I can definetly say that i will not be booking a holiday with them again. If i had wanted a club 18-30 i would of went back to ibiza for a holiday. We have made a formal and written complaint and we received £40 of vouchers off our next holiday with seguro which i sent back to them. I am still waiting to hear word back from seguro.

Hi Laura
I'm sorry to hear you had a disappointing holiday.

This is the 2nd thread in as many days about Travel Agents selling holidays to people that did not meet the criteria they set.
Although it's too late for you, it just goes to prove that there's a whole load of info out there on the web, so don't assume that someone working in a Travel Agent will be better informed than you.
They may well do, but it's not a given just because of the job they do.

I do think that at least you should go back to your TA and explain just how wrong she was and that you just did not enjoy your holiday as a result of this. Better still, speak with a supervisor- hopefully at least the same mistake wont be made with some other poor soul.
Don't be put off using a TA- just do your research first and know what you want when you go in. Price the holiday up as DIY and see if the TA can at least price match. If they can do that then it means less work organising for you
I hope you stick with HT and for your next holiday- ask us first. The combined help of everyone here means far better info than you'll get from any TA

Playa de las americas is a club 18 - 30 resort during the summer and those apartments are
one of their main hubs due to the close location. As for brothels and prostitutes well thats PDLA's speciality along with 'charlie'. I know this due to researching resorts and reading reviews on this site. I don't think
there is much anyone can do other than suggest you research your holiday location better in the future and don't just
rely on the travel agent.

Don't get me wrong, there are some nice hotels in PDLA like the la siesta, a nice 4 star hotel situated a 20
minute walk from the action. Perhaps upping your standard of accomodation in PDLA would avoid this problem as
club 18-30 use all the 2 star hotels.

PLDA is an all year around resort, family place and club 18-30 place, there is sumthing for every one there with clubbing and smaller places to eat and drink more family like. I think you just had the wrong hotel as in the area or bit away is nicer 3+4 start hotels to stay.

if you go back again , do sum research and your stay will be more pleasant. hope you enjoy next time.

Easy for me to say now but ALWAYS do you homework BEFORE ever booking a holiday anywhere. I made the mistake of believing a TO's blurb and will NEVER make that mistake again. Sorry to hear you had such a difficult time though. If you need advice on making a sensible and reasonable complaint, you are certainly on the best site for advice.

(If we join and use Holiday Truths BEFORE we book, we may never need to complain again... )

Fiona HT Mod wrote:

The combined help of everyone here means far better info than you'll get from any TA :)

Hi,

Im sorry, but i feel that this is a rather poor comment. God knows what agents you guys have used previously, but i know that none of the staff in our branch, nor any local branches that i have been in would EVER give false information like that.

Thanks

Whilst I understand that not all TA's are the same, they can vary to extremes. Whilst many are very, very Knowledgable there are also many who are not. And in this case it was the latter.

The point made was the travel experience of TENS OF THOUSANDS of people is always going to better than that of one travel agent.

The members here offer opinions based on their experiences and only to help, surely a TA will always have the underlying motive of wanting to sell.

To be honest, I don't think I've EVER used a Travel Agent for advice on where to go.

Pre-internet, I used to check out travel books in the library,then browse through brochures to find new places to go, either new Greek islands or Turkish resorts and that's how we came to go to Sri Lanka, Goa, Cuba and Mexico the first year they appeared in the non-specialist brochures.

I only now use travel agents to price match deals I've found on the internet.
To be honest, it always used to drive me mad when you went in to collect your tickets and they went through EVERYTHING line by line, as though you were incapable of reading type or understanding flight tickets.
I know that some people are going abroad for the first time and appreciate and possibly need this, but for us it was always a case of 'hurry up and give us the tickets'.

Tip:

If you are using a travel agent to make your holiday booking. Before you confirm your booking, go to one of their travel agent shops and ask to see the Gazeteer so you can read about your choice of hotel.

Most travel agents keep their copy of the Gazeteer either under the counter or at the back of the office out of sight. It's the travel agents "bible" on hotel accommodation and they all have one

Don't leave the office without reading it...

CwB

gr123
Sat Aug 23, 2008 11:56 pm
Offline
New Member - Joined: Sat Aug 23, 2008 11:50 pm
Posts: 1

Fiona HT Mod wrote:
The combined help of everyone here means far better info than you'll get from any TA :)

Hi,
Im sorry, but i feel that this is a rather poor comment. God knows what agents you guys have used previously, but i know that none of the staff in our branch, nor any local branches that i have been in would EVER give false information like that.

Thanks

You only have to read the complaints on this forum to realise it's a very appropriate comment. There is on these pages alone a lot of evidence that many travel agents will lie or withhold information to get sales.

On the Bulgaria forum we have within the past week the story of a travel agent telling someone that Bulgaria will be in the Euro in 2009, when anyone who reckons to be a professional should know that it's unlikely to be before 2012 at the earliest.

Why this disinformation? - to sell Euros I have no doubt. It's in keeping with other ploys to get the unwary to buy travellers' cheques, or Bulgarian currency (leva) at the travel agent, because "The Mafia will rip you off if you change in Bulgaria", and "It's not safe to use ATMs". These are deliberate lies to induce clients to buy leva at the relatively poor exchange rate that prevails in the UK. Sorry if this is

So what is your vested interested gr123? It's always suspicious when someone's first post on the day they joined is in support of the dubious and dishonest practices of some in the travel industry.

Peter

Nice post, Peter.

so 789 alias gr123 if you dont like it, dont come on here, especially not resurrecting 3 week old threads. What Peter said is right.....end of.

Mods any chance of a lock if this clown comes back...ta

The post from 789 is removed
From my observations posting from two different ips

gr123 wrote:

Fiona HT Mod wrote:

The combined help of everyone here means far better info than you'll get from any TA :)

Hi,

Im sorry, but i feel that this is a rather poor comment. God knows what agents you guys have used previously, but i know that none of the staff in our branch, nor any local branches that i have been in would EVER give false information like that.

Thanks

Where in the above quote did I mention dishonesty?? I stand by what I said. I do think that sites such as these give info from many members who have actually holidayed there. I would and have used a TA- but I do my research first.
From the same post as the quote

Don't be put off using a TA-