We booked our holiday at Punta Cana Breezes, we had 1.5 amazing days! Then the hurricane hit.
Our holiday rep visited once and lied to us saying she would return and left a mobile number which was permanently turned off, and she never replied to our messages.
When a different holiday rep arrived he asked if we wanted to go home or go somewhere else on the island. We said we wanted to go home. Then later that day he said they were going to fly us to the North of the Island and we had no choice but he GUARANTEED us we'd get compensation for it.
The hotel they shipped us to was totally different to what we'd booked, we ended up in 2 single beds instead of two double beds. Our balcony looked into someone else's room instead of onto the beach. The air conditioning didn't work. We had no hot water. The beach was dirty and tiny and the sea was rough rather than the gentle pacific ocean which was a main attraction of the hotel we booked in Punta Cana. The food was more limited in choice and we were unable to get into the a-la-carte restaurants because they were all booked up for the whole week when we arrived.
All our clothes were mouldy as they had been lying soaking wet in a humid wet room due to the hurricane damage.
When we eventually got to go home they flew us to Manchester and put us on a coach for 5 hours to Gatwick despite our FLIGHTS being booked to Gatwick. I was quite ill from an infection by this stage so the last thing I wanted to do was sit on a coach for 5 hours! - We notified the staff of this, and they didn't care at all.
I have written them 3 letters of complaint. 1 of which they "never received" and they have refused to offer ANY compensation - even for the failure to provide a flight to Gatwick.
Please can you advise whether there is anything I can do?
Rachael
Thank you for your support, well unfortunately both of the hotels were meant to be 4* but there's no way they were of the same level at all. Our fridge was even covered in mould in the second hotel - not what anyone should accept from a "4* hotel".
I hope you have a lovely time, if you're going to Punta Cana Breezes then I don't doubt that you'll have an amazing time, it was truly beautiful. (The hotel rooms are not spectacular - but certainly nothing too bad and the beach, pool and facilities make up for any discrepancies in the rooms!)
Thanks for your comments. We are off to Punta Cana, but looking at the Thomson brochure, the customer survey shows better for Breezes in Puerto plata. I've been to POP before, so am really looking forward to Punta Cana and we got it for a good price, 2k for 2 weeks for 4 of us. I would recommend giving Ros a call though, I called her over a cancelled holiday in March and her assistant gave me some sound and useful advice! Good luck. It seems criminal that the Tour Ops always seem to have you over a barrell!!!
Force Majeure...
Surely that doens't apply to the coach ride home as well!?
Force Majeure...
With regards to the hurricane - yes. However, the rest of it wasn't. The failure of the tour operator to provide a competent rep service was a breach of contract. The failure of the tour operator to cough up the compensation you were promised to induce you to take alternative accommodation rather than fly home was another; as was their failure to provide you with an acceptable standard of accomodation, and fly you back to the right airport. I could go on, but I suggest that the best thing to do at this stage would be to speak to Ros and ask for her advice.
It seems criminal that the Tour Ops always seem to have you over a barrell!!!
They only have you over a barrel if you let them. Once you show them you mean business and start proceedings in the courts, IME they very quickly start to change their tune.
I know exactly what you have been through ! We had problems with our twin centre holiday last year.
We travelled through Virgin Holidays, 1 week in Florida and 1 week in Grand Bahama. The first week was brilliant. The secong week, well, what a week.
We paid for All Inclusive, and when we got there, the hotel had changed it's eating plans.
Virgin failed to tell us that the hotel wouldn't be available after 2004 as it was being sold for time share ! So with all the staff knowing they weren't going to have a job, you can imagine the services we received !! It was absolutely appauling !
We met up with the rep nearly every morning because we were told we couldn't have drinks, that my 16 brother couldn't eat from adult menu he had to eat from the childrens menu's which consisted of pizza & chips, burger and chips, chicken and chips and oh, more chips !!!!
The complex and hotel grounds were completely over run with drug dealers and prostitutes, we complained to the staff and the rep but they said there was nothing they could do.
We made sure we got a written report from the rep in resort to send to Virgin when we got back, we hoped that this would have been enough proof, but this proved otherwise, they couldn't care less !!!!
After contacting Virgin holidays, ABTA and our local solicitor, we eventually got back £750 in 'compensation', £250 of this went straight to the solicitor !
As a family we paid £9,800 (5 of us travelled) for this 2 week holiday, this was supposed to be a holiday of a lifetime for a special occasion, it turned out to be a nightmare. We got delayed by 2 days coming back because our connecting flight had a problem, we stayed in Miami over night, and ended flying to Texas !! Our bags went to Chicago and we ended up in Gatwick to days later instead of Manchester !! What a trip !
The only thing i can recommend is to keep on at them constantly, you may get somewhere, you may not.
These people don't care once they get the money from you which is wrong.
This whole mess has now put me off Grand Bahama for life !!
Donna.
I agree DEEDEE1, we still have an ongoing dispute with virgin. They cancelled our holiday and we are still trying to get the last of our money back 10 weeks later!
Where were you supposed to be going if you don't mind me asking ?
How come they cancelled it ?
Donna.
Rachael
Following your post's on this site, has been somewhat educational, may I ask though, does your chapter, verse and paragraph of the law, just relate to the travel industry.
Just curious
Driver02
Where package holidays are concerned there are also additional, specific laws such as the Package Travel Regulations which have been put in place to give holidaymakers some extra degree of protection, on top of the rights they enjoy under general contract law and the law relating to the supply of goods and services.
I hope this has answered your question, but feel free to send me a PM if it hasn't.
I really feel for you and anybody else that has gone through this and those people that it hasn't happened to yet ! I don't think these holidays companies realise how upsetting it is when they do things like this to people. Most people can only afford to go on holiday once a year and they really look forward to going away. Holiday firms don't care as long as they have their share of the money and their not out of pocket !
When I had problems with my holiday, they kept telling me they hadn't received any letters. I started faxing them from work and rang them as soon as it was sent, they soon started to receive them (Especially when I sent the same fax 10 times to make sure)!!!!
I would keep on at them until you get every penny back, I got the impression that they were hoping I would get tired and give up, but no way !!!
If you're going away this year, I hope you have a better experience.
I'm off to Zante in June for 2 weeks, just a cheap one this year, but it's a holiday hard earned, I'm grateful for any holiday !!
Good Luck and happy holidays for 2005 !
Donna.
A copy of the Package Travel regulations may be viewed/printed from here:-
Absolutely right - I don't plan to give up, I've replied to them including a copy to ABTA, if I don't get a satisfactory response I shall refer it to solicitors. And I know that several other members who were on the same holiday as me and were transfered to the same resort are taking the exact same action. I wonder if they'll give in.... and how long it will take!
I've been following this thread since the start with great interest, please will you let us know how it all pans out?
Good luck!!!!!
I'm not sure whether ABTA will be able to help me as apparently Direct Holidays (who we booked with) are not protected by ABTA, but My Travel (who we flew with etc) are..... bit confusing!
What hotel in the north of dom rep were you sent to?
Hi, we were sent to Breezes in Puerta Plato, - so it was the same chain that we booked, but it was totally different. It was like it was out of season - half the bars were shut. Our fridge was covered in mould, the room was a pit. The grounds were badly kept - no lighting outside (all the bulbs were dead and weren't replaced) and there was a burglary when we were there with loads of British passports stolen. It was was totally diff to the holiday we booked.
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