We use and recommend them

Travelwatchdog exists to help the traveller. Have you suffered at the hands of a tour operator, travel agent, holiday company, bucket shop, airline, hotel or any other organisation involved in the travel trade, or had an accident or illness abroad? Are you looking for interesting travel experiences? We report independently on trips for the traveller of which we have direct experience, some of which will not be found in the brochure. Do you have a particularly good travel experience about which you would like to tell others? We give equal space to both Saints and Sinners in the industry. You can contact our HELP DESK by clicking here Every year there are thousands of cases where individuals suffer at the hands of the powerful operators in the travel industry.  The unwaivering first response from these organisations is to deny any responsibility. If you follow up, they will usually point to some indistinct small print in their contract. In Britain, no other business activity enjoys such lack of regulation or contractual freedom and there is no Travel Ombudsman. For the most part, tour operators can change your arrangements without consultation or penalty. There are poorly drafted laws intended to safeguard the public, but they are largely ignored because the tour operators see the prospect of enforcement as very improbable. Many travel companies take the view that those who complain will soon become disillusioned if ignored or bombarded with legalese. Most people do roll over very quickly. Don't be one of those who drop a fair claim. When seeking redress, your most powerful weapon is publicity. We shall not publish details of complaints against any company, until they have had a reasonable opportunity fully to meet their obligations. In cases where companies have done so, we shall publish details where we consider there is a legitimate public interest.

---

Over several years we have received many horror stories about this company. This is one of the most recent. This warning comes from Mrs L H who writes (verbatim)
" I was on holiday in August 2006 and was stopped by a young lady and asked to visit their offices because I had won a top prize, but I would only get that prize after listening to a holiday promotion. On arrival I was given a drink of wine and sat and talked to a couple of very nice ladies who told me about a company called Club Class Corporate who if I bought into the club I would not only get good deals on any holidays/flights in 5* hotels anywhere in the world, I would not only get my £7000 back in total, a cash-back guarantee, but they would buy my Tenerife timeshare in Adeje for £2,000, in 52 months time.
In fact, I have just found out that they never passed those funds onto the the Reclaim company who invested the money in order for the cash back guarantee, which means I have lost £7000. I have since tried to contact them without success."
Establishment - Individual Concerned: Ros Davies, Terranova Holidays Promotions International SL, Locales 312/313, Playa de las Americas, Torviscas, Adeje,Tenerife.

DO NOT GIVE THESE PEOPLE MONEY - To read more click here     TERRA NOVA HOLIDAYS TENERIFE

We were recently contacted by a traveller who had started the process to book a hotel in France through Planigo.com. He completed his on-line details, and then got an e-mail from Planigo demanding that he send them copies of both sides of his credit card and a copy of the identity page of his passport. He refused, and was then charged a 15% cancellation fee for a booking he did not complete because of the dangers inherent in their demands. Avoid this type of demand, it can lead to identity theft. See also some of the many reports of the 'bait & switch' misrepresentation used by this company. follow this link

Make a Donation - Help us to keep helping the travelling public

Ian M of Glasgow reminds us of a recurring problem when flight only bookings are made with holiday companies (in this case ThomsonFly). Mr M booked early at a low price for flights from Glasgow to Malaga and paid in full. Later the company advised that the aircraft size had reduced and he would have to fly from Durham on another aircraft. Subsequently he was told that the flight had been overbooked and later that it had been cancelled. Were any of these statements true? UNLIKELY ! The probability is that the seats were required for passengers who had paid more or were booking package holidays with the company. BE WARNED

 

CRUISING

As a consequence of the growth in cruising during recent years, cruise lines have dramatically increased their capacity. Several new ships have been commissioned and capacity of others has been increased. What these companies did not foresee was the looming economic recession and its inevitable effect on the potential customer base. Eventually, capacity will disappear from the market place, but until that happens cruise lines will be fiercely competing for business by offering discounts and other incentives. If you can leave your booking until the last minute you will benefit. Follow this link to read about cruising and the serious problems with Spirit of Adventure and its Black Sea cruise.

DO READ our travel features and travelogues. We publish only genuine first-hand experiences. If you read travelogues in media travel sections, almost without exception they are based on trips PAID FOR BY THE TOUR OPERATOR. The writer is a guest of the company who roll out the red carpet and it is implicit in the arrangement "If you don't behave, this will be your last trip"! WE are never guests of the company and we write what we find. If we don't like it we say so.

The same criterion applies to everything we publish. There is no hidden agenda or undue influence from any company or their representatives. A few do try to threaten us and one even tried to buy the site! We still publisg the good, the bad and the ugly withiout fear or favour.

Travelling to the USA

International travellers who are seeking to travel to the United States under the Visa Waiver Program (VWP) are now subject to enhanced security requirements. In order to travel under the VWP you must obtain travel authorization under ESTA before boarding an air or sea carrier to the United States.Failure to do so may result in you being denied boarding. The Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) is now live. You can submit your application FREE at https://esta.cbp.dhs.gov.

The U.S. Government does NOT charge for ESTA registrations. Before attempting to register under the Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA), please first check your eligibility to travel under the Visa Waiver Program.

British citizens:   please note that from 12 January 2009 all nationals and citizens of Visa Waiver Program (VWP) countries - including the UK - will be required by law to obtain a travel authorization prior to traveling to the United States under the VWP. The US EmbassyVisa section has full details of this on their Visa Waiver Program & ESTA.

If your passport has ever been reported lost or stolen to the authorities and then recovered, please do not attempt to use it for travel to the United States. If you input the passport details into ESTA, your application will be denied. Make certain that when you leave the USA the I-94 slip is removed from your passport or you may face serious difficulties if you return to the USA. If you have a problem you can write to: ACS-USCBF, SBU, PO Box7125, London, KY40742-7125, USAYou can get further details from http://www.usembassy.org.uk by entering I-94 return, in the seach facility

Travel Regulation Care

Travellers must be aware that it is their personal responsibility to ensure that they meet all Visa and other travel requirements before commencing their journey. The consequence of not doing so can be profound.

Mr K's family recently travelled to Brazil without him, but when Mrs K and her children attempted to return to the UK, they were prevented from doing so by the Brazilian authorities who will not allow a lone parent to take children out of the country. In this case, not being aware of the regulations before travel has caused a great deal of distress and additional expense.

Expect travel agents and airlines to offer advise on such matters, but they do not have the final responsibility; YOU DO! Check with the visa section of the relevant embassy if you are not certain that you are absolutely aware of the requirements you must meet for youir journey.

---

Trans-Siberian Railway

A unique journey for travellers

To get links to a host of useful information on travel problems, interesting travelogues, tips and legal advice, go to the menus at the top of the page. If you have suggestions for site improvements, please contact us by using the form at this link.

OUR SINNERS PAGE

 

BEWARE EUROPCAR

Over the past couple of years we have had a number of e-mails about outrageous charges levied by Europcar for minor damage to hire cars. Nice seems to be the worst place to hire from this company. The credit card of one customer was debited over €919 for a small dent in a bumper caused when they left the vehicle in a car park. More recently, another Europcar Nice customer's card was debited more than €500 for a dent in the steel wheel of a Peugeot and another in Malaga, €800 for a broken clutch cable!Who would have thought this of a VW company? You can avoid such overcharging by using a credit card with a very low spend limit

---

 

HOUT BAY SETTLEMENT - CAPE TOWN

Have you ever wondered about the truth behind the well publicised townships of South Africa? Read  our article after our visit to the settlement at Hout Bay

---

THINK THE AMAZON IS TOO TOUGH FOR YOU? THINK AGAIN!

People think of a trip to the Amazon in terms of dug-out canoes and spear wielding natives. It's a cruise delight for all.

IDENTITY THEFT DANGER - PLANIGO.COM

We were recently contacted by a traveller who had started the process to book a hotel in France through Planigo.com. He completed his on-line details, and then got an e-mail from Planigo demanding that he send them copies of both sides of his credit card and a copy of the identity page of his passport. He refused, and was then charged a 15% cancellation fee for a booking he did not complete because of the dangers inherent in their demands. Avoid this type of demand, it can lead to identity theft. See also some of the many reports of the'bait & switch' misrepresentation used by this company. follow this link

 

---

Recent Problems - Havana Travel - London

Very Bad News - Europcar Malaga

Bad news - Southall Travel

Good News - Voyage to the Cape of Good Hope

VERY BAD NEWS - TERRA NOVA HOLIDAYS TENERIFE

Tour Operator & Company Addresses

Lots of commercial travel agencies and tour operators attempt to hide their postal addresses from their customers. You can always get the address of a registered company from Company's House. We publish some at this link

---

The Magic of Las Vegas

Never been to Las Vegas? Think its 'tacky'? The truth is that many visitors start out with the view that it's a little bit below them. Twenty years ago it used to be one of the tackiest places on the planet, but today it's a disneyland for adults where children are welcome. Inexpensive, with greeat hotels and weather, everyone should see it at least once.