Hi there, hopefully this has been posted in the correct place. In Jan 2012, I booked a hotel and flight with On The Beach for Hotel Espana in Barcelona leaving June this year for ten days. The hotel was advertised as four stars and we paid extra for full board option. We paid the hotel/flights there and then. However this afternoon I received an email from On the beach that said:
I am today contacting you with regards to an issue we have with all bookings booked for the*Espana. I am afraid that it has been brought to our attention that due to a system error, all bookings made to this hotel have been confirmed Espanya in Callela.
Having checked with all our suppliers, we can not get availability through any of them for the*Espana in Barcelona*and are therefore unable to book the correct hotel.
*
Please accept our apologies for this error and any inconvenience this may cause you however please see below the options available in order to resolve the situation:
*
- Change your hotel to a suitable alternative in Barcelona (should you want to do this, we would ask that you have a look on our site for any hotels you would like to change us and let us know the details of maybe a few, we can then see if this can be changed for you).
*
- A refund on the hotel element of the booking as you may be able to book the Espana through another agent.
*
- To keep the hotel booked which is the Espanya in Calella.
*
We of course appreciate the hotel you wanted was the one booked, the Espana and we do sincerely apologise that we are not able to offer this to you.
Can we look at other four star hotels with full board and ask them to change to this without any additional cost? Having looked on their terms and conditions they state they are not a PTR.
Thank you so much in advance
Hi alanuk - althugh I've never booked wth onthebeach, if you look in the holiday complaints section, there are many customers who are unsatisfied, with the service they provide. Others may be able to help with your query!
alanuk wrote:Change your hotel to a suitable alternative in Barcelona (should you want to do this, we would ask that you have a look on our site for any hotels you would like to change us and let us know the details of maybe a few, we can then see if this can be changed for you).
Hi Alanuk sorry to hear of your problem. Have you tried to call OTB re the above option to see what they have available and also what the situation will be regarding any change in price?
Didn't we have a Staff member of On the Beach that posted on here and gave assistance?
Here is a link with from another thread and the e-mail address from onthebeach it may help
http://www.holidaytruths.co.uk/viewtopic.php?f=49&t=146277
http://www.holidaytruths.co.uk/viewtopic.php?f=49&t=146277
Miss Pink -you're link just leads to a thread whose first post is " do not book with this company" 
Thank you all for your responses. It's handy to have the email address and hopefully the reprresentive may contact me. I haven't had a chance to contact OTB. I just want to be prepared as I wouldn't be willing to accept lower rated hotel or lose full board or have to pay more which is likely with prices on their website now with other hotels.
I'd give them a ring and see how they intend to deal with any price increase. I'd also mention that not only have they changed your hotel but your resort also. Ideally they will change your hotel to one of your chosing without any further cost to yourselves
They have agreed to refund the accommodation part of your booking, so you could book your accommodation with another agent if you are not happy with their response.
Let us know how you get on Alanuk.
They have agreed to refund the accommodation part of your booking, so you could book your accommodation with another agent if you are not happy with their response.
Let us know how you get on Alanuk.
Helen T wrote:Miss Pink -you're link just leads to a thread whose first post is " do not book with this company" :que
Yes Helen - and if you go down the bottom of the thread there is a post from an offthebeachholiodays member with an e-mail address, the original poster has found it from there
I think this is now getting stupid and it's about time that a law was made so that these companies book your hotel accomodation on the VERY SAME DAY that you make the booking!
There are so many stories of people being left with flights because the company they've booked with didn't book the hotel and then when they come to do it it is either fully booked or a lot more money so they offer you someting else!
What needs to happen is when you book you get confirmation that your hotel booking has gone through. I bet most of these companies know as soon as you book that they won't be able to get your hotel for you BUT they wait until the last possible minute to tell you that it isn't available.
They should be made to book flights AND accomodation straight away and give you confirmation of this. If they can't do this then they should inform you within 2 or 3 days at the most of the time you booked and NOT 5 months down the line!
It is about time someone stepped in and stopped this! It would actually probably make more people book independently if they knew they were definetely getting what they book. I've certainly been put off booking with companies like this!
There are so many stories of people being left with flights because the company they've booked with didn't book the hotel and then when they come to do it it is either fully booked or a lot more money so they offer you someting else!
What needs to happen is when you book you get confirmation that your hotel booking has gone through. I bet most of these companies know as soon as you book that they won't be able to get your hotel for you BUT they wait until the last possible minute to tell you that it isn't available.
They should be made to book flights AND accomodation straight away and give you confirmation of this. If they can't do this then they should inform you within 2 or 3 days at the most of the time you booked and NOT 5 months down the line!
It is about time someone stepped in and stopped this! It would actually probably make more people book independently if they knew they were definetely getting what they book. I've certainly been put off booking with companies like this!
Just posting to say I know the above was due to a similar hotel name but I can't help but think it was deliberate and could have been dealt with back in January! Seems they waited and waited and then the original hotel wasn't available!
I dont really think there will be legislation to regulate something like this. It really isn't the type of things govenrnments pass laws on, and unfortuntely is a risk you take to save money rather than booking a package.
Alan in your position, I would research as many hotels that I could that fitted my criteria and then ring OTB, if you have a shortlist of 5 or 6 then hopefully they should be able to book one of them for you. I wouldn't pick one only incase they cant book it for anyreason and then you will have to hang up and start again, or possibly feel pressurised onto taking what they suggest.
The other thing you could do is ask if you can just take the flight & book your own hotel through someone like
http://www.booking.com/searchresults.html?src=index&error_url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.booking.com%2Findex.en-gb.html%3Faid%3D331424%3Bsid%3De0b32b981f781f469f3f288fae318baa%3Bdcid%3D1%3B&aid=331424&dcid=1&sid=e0b32b981f781f469f3f288fae318baa&si=ai%2Cco%2Cci%2Cre%2Cdi&ss=Barcelona%2C+Spain&checkin_monthday=11&checkin_year_month=2012-5&checkout_monthday=17&checkout_year_month=2012-5&group_adults=2&group_children=0&dest_type=city&dest_id=-372490
I put in a ramdom date and it brough up over 850 hotels. Often you dont pay until check-out.
Alan in your position, I would research as many hotels that I could that fitted my criteria and then ring OTB, if you have a shortlist of 5 or 6 then hopefully they should be able to book one of them for you. I wouldn't pick one only incase they cant book it for anyreason and then you will have to hang up and start again, or possibly feel pressurised onto taking what they suggest.
The other thing you could do is ask if you can just take the flight & book your own hotel through someone like
http://www.booking.com/searchresults.html?src=index&error_url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.booking.com%2Findex.en-gb.html%3Faid%3D331424%3Bsid%3De0b32b981f781f469f3f288fae318baa%3Bdcid%3D1%3B&aid=331424&dcid=1&sid=e0b32b981f781f469f3f288fae318baa&si=ai%2Cco%2Cci%2Cre%2Cdi&ss=Barcelona%2C+Spain&checkin_monthday=11&checkin_year_month=2012-5&checkout_monthday=17&checkout_year_month=2012-5&group_adults=2&group_children=0&dest_type=city&dest_id=-372490
I put in a ramdom date and it brough up over 850 hotels. Often you dont pay until check-out.
Hi all, thank you for your comments and advice.
OTB have only two hotels that offer what we had originally thought and they are over £1000 now. OtB advised we are not covered by any law and that we need to probably downgrade as they won't cover any extra. As such we have decided to take a refund on the hotel (they won't refund flights) and we are free to look at other hotel websites and looking at cruises as well now from Barcelona.
Oh well lesson learned to google before booking and a warning sign that customer services is a 0905 number at 50p a min!
Oh for anyone ever in same situation, 08714729099 was the number at 10p a minute that got me through much quicker and to someone who was able to help!
OTB have only two hotels that offer what we had originally thought and they are over £1000 now. OtB advised we are not covered by any law and that we need to probably downgrade as they won't cover any extra. As such we have decided to take a refund on the hotel (they won't refund flights) and we are free to look at other hotel websites and looking at cruises as well now from Barcelona.
Oh well lesson learned to google before booking and a warning sign that customer services is a 0905 number at 50p a min!
Oh for anyone ever in same situation, 08714729099 was the number at 10p a minute that got me through much quicker and to someone who was able to help!
I think you have done the sensible thing Alan. Good luck with getting another hotel sorted, you should have for more choice now.
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