Elaine

What is the name of the hotel

Biff

If its any comparison, we paid over £1400 for two weeks AI 3* at Lake Garda last Sept. that was for two people and without any excursions, we did the Dolomites and Venice and they came to about £200 for the both of us. We also spent a bit on ferry fares around the lake and on the cable car in Malcesine, it certainly wasn't a cheap holiday but the best we have ever had including the Caribbean.
Both Lake Garda and Italy in general are fabulous.

Elaine, we went with Italian Getaways in Oct 2006. They were absolutely superb & great value for money. We also had the trips to Venice & Verona and it's worth it just to get the guide telling you all about the history, points of interest etc. Only downside is the trips start very early in the morning. We stayed in Malcesine which is very pretty and the guide took us on a guided walk around the town telling us all about the locals,history etc. The only complaint about the whole trip is that we flew from Liverpool to Treviso (Venice) which is about 2.5 hours by coach. It was with Ryanair who where a complete joke. Coming home, our flight was cancelled due to fog & we were eventually(about 4 hours later) taken by coach to Bergamo (Milan) to fly home. The lack of information from Ryanair was a disgrace. However this was nothing to do with Italian Getaways & I would have no hesitation using them again.

Phew - my mind is put at rest! Having never booked a package holiday before I was a bit concerned that this seemed "too good to be true"!

The hotel is Lago Di Garda in Torbole.

The only slightly weird thing is that on their confirmation/invoice it states in smaller writing that when paying the balance they charge £40 for accepting credit cards/debit cards as they would prefer cheques. I don't really mind but I know you get extra cover if you pay by credit card - is this normal?

Many thanks for any advice.

Elaine

Elaine

I have requested that this hotel is added to our database, in the hope that one of our members can post a review

Biff

I'm not sure about the c/c charge it does seem a little odd. As we booked last minute, we most definately paid by c/c & I'm sure my husband would have complained (loudly) had we been charged an extra £40 for doing so. You said you had booked half board, if the food is'nt that great (which I'm sure it will be), it is still very cheap to eat out & I'd recommend that you try a couple of the local restaurants as you have still got a very good deal. We paid about £249 last year for b&b and that was last minute. Have a lovely trip and don't forget your camera, the views are breathtaking.
ps. We had absolutely gorgeous weather at the end of October last year.

Many thanks for your advice Judith - isn't this site great?!

I'll let you know when I get back in October! Wish it was tomorrow...
Elaine

Surely the credit card fee was £4 not £40? The latter would be extortionate.
My grouse about this company is the less than satisfactory response to telephone queries, the premiun charge telephone number for Bookings and enquiries and the £7 per person booking fee, if not booking in person. OK for those who live on the Isle of Wight and can pop into Island Getaways Ltd. Champion Farm, Highwood Lane, Rookley,Ventnor, Isle of Wight. Post Code po38 3nn If you live on the mainland better to ring the registered business telephone number 01983 721111. In all other respects they provide an excellent holiday experiences and good value for money.

The £40 fee is correct. I rang the company last week for details and was told that the final payment is either cheque or card but if paying by card, there is a £40 fee. When I asked how they could justify that, they didn't, just said that is the fee but you can avoid it by paying for the holiday all at once when you make the booking They didnt readily volunteer the information either, I had to press them for the information after reading it in here. I suppose that if it is a late booking, then all the costs would have to be paid at the time the holiday was booked so the stiff penalty wouldn't apply.I wonder how many people do query any surchages or penalty imposed if paying by card. Must admit, i would have just presumed there would just be a nominal fee similar to fees normally charged. Just shows that it is necessary to get all the facts up front.

The holidays do look good though

The holidays may look good and my contact, who complained about poor customer service during the booking procedure; telephone booking fees and Premium Charge telephone line contacts with the Company, said once they arrived at Lake Garda they had a good holiday in a comfortable hotel with good service and food and an excellent local guide. She was however shocked by the high cost of charges on the Telephone Bill she subsequently received for her enquiry/booking calls to Italian Getaways and will not use this company again.
Nor would I even consider booking a holiday with a company which does not offer postal or online booking, only publicises a Premium Rate Telephone Number for telephone bookings and enquiries, and apparently imposes an iniquitious fee for Credit/Debit Card Payments.

Are you absolutely sure about this?
The company has been in business for over 20 years and I would have thought such policies would have put them out of favour with the public many years ago.
I think such a policy could be in breach of something governed by the Travel Trade or Financial Services Authority or other official organisation. On the basis of the information to hand there does seem to be a whiff of opportunistic rackerteering, if not financial irregularity in the operational practices of this company. It would be good to hear from someone able to clarify the situation.

Thanks again for the responses to the queries.

I must admit I was stunned at the £40 charge - it was not mentioned at the initial booking stage; in fact I was only asked for a £100 deposit per person and a £7 booking fee per person - the rest is due on 11th August - I will obviously be sending a cheque!

The customer service on my first call when I booked was very abrupt - no selling skills involved - wham bam ...... but when I phoned to make an amendment to a name spelling the person answering was quite pleasant and answered my queries.

This is the first time I've booked a holiday this way - funny but I saw their advert in the paper today and to be honest I wouldn't have given it a second glance normally but as it was a full glossy ad in the M&S magazine I thought it was a good deal...

I can't wait to go on the holiday now - my only concern is Ryan Air - their lack of customer care is legendary!

Thanks again
Elaine

Elaine - I must have dismissed I.G's ads. in the Guardian many times. They do have a distinctly downmarket look. Do hope you will come back to the Forum after your holiday with a full report of a wonderful time, in spite all the concerns that have been voiced here.

Best wishes for a good holiday.

I booked with IG earlier this year, I dont fly till next week and Im already furious.
All of the brochure and promo DVD I was sent set great store on the "exclusive" european aviation jets they use and how much better it is than "the bargain basement low frills airlines " (thier description not mine).
The DVD ecen shows thier rep flying from Bristol to Verona on these Jets.

Imagine my delight to find that Im actually flying RyanAir, and NOT to Verona but Milan (airport transfer of 5 times the distance).
The brochure doesnt cover flights from Bristol, the DVD is, of course, not inclusive of any true detail. Ive written and complained. thier response is highly offensive. Apparently I shouold have asked if I was flying with a cheapo airpline, and I shouldnt complain cos my holdiay cost is such a bargain.
I picked this holiday partly because of the special flight arrangements, I was prepared to pay more for them, now I find Im not to get them = Rip Off.

I personally think that its down to them to tell me what details have been varied from the brochure implications (as there was no detail either any provided upfront) Im sure its all covered in thier small print (which of course you dont get till youve paid) but Im off to trading standards BEFORE I fly to see what thier interpretation is.

I Advise anyone considering booking with them to get FULL confirmation of EVERY detail of your flight/transfer/and accomodation before paying any money.

They do give good detail on the hotels so I dont think they will be fiddling that (especially not based on reviews of the hotels) but the "special" flights they imply your booking arent available for everyone !! so beware.

Bristolboy08 - you must be feeling very apprehensive now about dealing with this company . What has happened to you confirms all the bad vibes I have had about them. Just hope it all works out for you in the end.
It would be very interesting to hear about the experience when you get back.

Hi - can't believe I left this reponse so late - where has the last year gone!!

Just a very belated, brief, review of the Holiday Getaway break I took last year in Garda.

I am pleased to report that despite the niggles over the "mis-information" prior to my holiday everything else went well.

My friend and I stayed in Torbole which was lovely - the deal included 1/2 board in their 4* flagship hotel (not sure about the star rating - by British standards more of a 2/3 star). The hotel was clean and the staff polite (not many staff on duty but this didn't affect service).

Breakfast was fine - continental and limited hot breakfast - ample. Dinner was a restricted menu that could I think become boring if you stayed for more than 7 days. As a vegetarian I had a choice of omelette or pizza (pizza fantastic). No vegetables at beginning of holiday but due to number of requests veggies began to appear by end of week!

Excursions fine - 1/2 day in Verona and full day in Venice included in the price. Wouldn't recommend the organised lunch in Venice- takes up too much time and there is too much to see to waste time having a sit down meal.

I would recommend this as a basic package tour - lots of those in the hotel had returned for a second time and had received good deals. When I phoned back to book for 2008 very unmoveable on rates - the prices had risen considerably especially in the Hotel di Lago (Torbole) and single supplements now applied.

Because of the steep increase I've booked with Page and Moy for Amalfi!

Sorry it's so late but hope above is helpful.

Elaine

Have just returned from holiday to Riva, Lake Garda with Italian Getaways. Garda superb as ever despite dodgy weather. Hotel OK but was very unhappy with the treatment received from Italian Getaways before departing. Yes, they do have a premium rate line, charge £40 to pay by credit card, use bargain airlines without making it obvious. Also, we booked late and then they charged us another £90 surcharge after we had paid our holiday balance and were extremely rude when we had the temerity to complain. I have never had such a rude and unhelpful letter from any customer service department and would never use this company again. By the way it took us 3hours + to get from Bergamo Airport to Riva. No problem with the Ryanair flight though, best flight I've ever had with them on the return journey.

Liz - So sorry to hear of this experience - more confirmation of the initial bad vibes I had about Italian Getaways when I thought of making a booking.
You have to wonder how they stay in business - they can't get many repeat bookings or word of mouth recommendations.
They spend a fair bit on advertising - we see their grotty-looking ad. in the Guardian Travel section most weeks.
Yesterday we noticed that they now impose a £10 Booking Fee per person - on top of all they rake in via an exorbitant Credit Card charge, an 0871 line and - it seems any other other short cut or sharp practice that they choose to employ.

Just got back from a wonderful week-long family holiday in Malcesine (Hotel Gardesana). We booked and paid in full last March. The only drawbacks have been ones which I suspect are not uncommon. Our airports of departure and arrival, and departure times were changed twice after we booked, and we ended up having to check in at Stanstead (RyanAir) at 4.40 a.m. and the return pick-up left the hotel at 5.30 a.m. Soon after arrival we had to attend a meeting with the one of the reps, but instead of giving useful impartial information (the need to get to the cable car early to avoid very long queues, the extent to which one has to cover up to visit churches in Venice, the times and prices of the lake steamers, for example) she was under orders to do a hard-sell for the excursions, which we'd already been told about on the coach from the airport. My main complaint though was of a £40 per person surcharge which Italian Getaways demanded from us because of the strong Euro. They could have guarded against that by buying Euros when we paid in March. The small print allowing them to do this was on a document which was only sent to us after we had booked and paid. I wonder if this is legal? Apart from that it was a great family holiday

Hi and welcome to HT!

I would think if the surcharge wasn't mentioned in the T&C's of the contract when you made the booking then they shouldn't have been able to add it retrospectively.

If you haven't done so already we would appreciate if you could post a review of the hotel in the reviews section of the site. If it's not listed you can ask for it to be added here or in the Hotel Reviews topic at the top of the Help and Assistance forum.

luci