Just been completely screwed by booking.com

[BookingDotComAreTwats]

I am furious. I used the booking.com website months ago to book 2 twin rooms for 4 adults. £600 for 2 nights (it's in the centre of major European city). Got the confirmation. Just phoned the hotel to double check that the rooms are twin beds as the people concerned can't/won't share beds, but I've been told that the reservation had come through as 2 queens. Hotel won't change the rooms and will only provide put up beds for another 240 euros or I can pay 200 more to upgrade to room types with twin beds.

Booking.com have told me that a twin bed room is just a 'special' request and it's tough shit.
I have been through the booking process again on their website and next to the room type if gives you the option to choose twin beds. Nowhere does it say "ha - this is a joke - you only get twin rooms if you pay to upgrade - 200 more smackers please!"
I will never book with them again.

I would be very careful with b.com. I booked two rooms in May. The day before we were flying, an email came from the hotel via b.com to say that as my card had declined the rooms were cancelled. I panicked a bit and booked and paid for another two rooms using a debit card to ensure we got our rooms. Lovely holiday. On checking my statement I saw that the hotel had taken the payment so the booking wasn't cancelled at all! What a palaver getting the money back. I won't bore you with the details but it took about 20 phone calls, numerous emails, screen shots of both statements. I did eventually get the money back - 3 months later. No compensation, no transaction fee, interest on my credit card - just the amount for the rooms.

I hope you have a lovely holiday op. I will never use them again though

Don't talk to me about that s""t website. 'No prepayment required - you will pay the hotel on arrival. Free cancellation etc etc'.

Within seconds, I received notification that my credit card has charged Euro 217 for a weekend away even though supposed to pay on the day.

Will never use again.

I saw the Guardian article, too.

We have used them without difficulty, but I think what has happened to the OP is disgraceful.

If you put twin beds in the BOOKING form, that is what you should get. And if they can't provide that, they should re-fund.

Peatit - presumably it's optional to use the site, so if it's so bad then don't use it ? Or is it the case that the volume of bookings it generates outweighs the drawbacks?
Genuine question as I don't know.
We had a bad experience where I paid over the odds for one night at quite a well known family hotel. I didn't feel I got value for money and when I pointed this out on trip advisor the hotelier said I should have booked directly - fine but the one night option was not available on their website and if they don't like the third party website then why choose to sell rooms that way.

Def won't use them now Peatot

They are weaselly- if I book through them and have a special requirement I'll ring ahead and confirm with the hotel. You shouldn't have to 'know' this though, and they shouldn't be able to play the 'we're just s booking agent' card.

I also apologise to independent b&bs - I often have to book a large amount of one night only accommodation on various locations. Not enough for a corporate account but more than someone might usually use. It's much easier for me to have all the bookings in one place, timewise and admin wise. So often I use an agent rather than direct. I am now a 'gold' member with hotels.com who I have to say have been brilliant when I've needed to alter a booking.

Rookiemere , when we first started the business approx. 15 years ago, most people booked over the phone, some via email (and the occasional letter!). Now everyone wants to book online. We have online booking on our own website, but the majority seem to use the big OTA's. We started listing with them approx. 4 years ago but started getting increasingly fed up with the huge commissions, the last minute cnx (we only have 3 rooms, so even one room cnx at the last minute really impacts us) so we cut back last year. We have noticed a marked reduction in bookings, so I guess you could say it's worth the hassle to use the OTA's, but good grief it's soul destroying. We don't mind paying 'fair' commssions, but 35%? That is extortionate. The other point I would make is that if guests book directly with us, we pay our taxes and spend money locally - the money is not going to some huge overseas conglomerate who minimise their tax and make a very few people very wealthy indeed. Apols for lack of paragraphs.......

"It looks like you'll have to go via a formal complaint to a regulatory body."

I don't think there is a regulatory body for hotel booking websites.

Trading standards is the place to go.

Halsall - thanks for the tip. I have emailed the Guardian but looking at articles on their website I can see that they do not refund even when a national paper gets involved.

Thanks for tip.
I only used them once and when I got to my Devon B&B the lady explained how little she hit and how she wished people would book direct.
Won't use them again unless I absolutely have to.

I think the whole of the travel industry and booking generally is unreliable. You really need to have your wits about you!!

I booked a 2 week holiday recently, through a, what I now know is unreliable 'agent'. In my ignorance, I didn't even realise they were an agent. I stupidly thought it was a company like Thomas cook. Got there. 40 degrees. No air con. even their website says air con.

Is it nooka
My friends DD had a larger than normal single and I'm sure she called it a queen!

I've never used Booking.com before but it sounds like it sucks, OP.
I recommend using Expedia. It allows up to prior day cancellation. I've used them 5 or 6 times without problems (including a refund once, simply because I found a better deal on another website). I also try not to pay in advance if the difference is less than 20 quid.

I generally book direct with hotels unless it's a last minute thing, and then it's difficult to book direct as you sometimes have to ring so many to find one that has availability. I'd never use it for a Premier Inn though. They've got their own online booking and you know availability immediately.

A lot of the complaints about them seem to hinge around the fact they say something is fully cancellable and you pay on the day at the hotel, but then they take the money immediately and refuse to refund.

I do my searching and price comparisons on sites like booking.com/trivago/Expedia and book directly with the hotel.

They've just offered me 25 euros compensation.
Do I take it?

I used booking.com to search for a B@B for two adults and a two year old in june. We found one we liked and booked it using the age of the child. When we arrived the B@B told us they don't take under 5's . They let us stay and we're very welcoming to our dd but I was annoyed that booking.com had let me book this and have still not updated the site.

I use them as a last resort if I can't book a Premier Inn, which I prefer as you know exactly what you're getting and can get the best price through their site anyway. (No, I don't work for them [). But I'm now thinking I will use the site to look for locations (the map of where all the possible hotels are is helpful) then try to book direct with a hotel.

I use them for last minute hard to shift weeks in the holiday let - the 18% commission they charge me is annoying but I use them to my advantage. They don't get to sell the summer and popular dates.

As said before use booking dot com (not going to give them a google mention), tripadvisor, Sykes, etc etc to find a place you like and then go looking to book direct. Most professional accommodation owners have their own sites.

Nit booking.com but have had similar with last minute.

on one pccassion booked twon room with dd to turn up and sicover we had been allocated a queen. Hotel were very good though and gave us breakfast which wasnt included .. watching then 5 year old dd stiffing herself silly on brealfast buffet made up for having to share huge bed with her... shes 11 now and still says breakfast was most exciting part of trip!!

We also booked theatre tockets with them. There was a choice to pay less for restricted view but I paid the extra to ensure we didnt get it... was not happy to turn up and discover we had been allocated it anyway!

YANBU OP its misrepresentation pure and simple

sorry awful typing

Oh bollocks Ive used them for the first time this morning for a night away.
Ive had email confirmation from the hotel, so that's good right?

Anybody got a view on whether I should take the 25 euros?

25 is nowhere near 200.

I used to work in a job that meant I had a very close relationship with hotels and with Booking.com and this happens all the time, unfortunately.

Basically the hotel sends their availability and room configurations and Booking.com advertise and send back reservations but the way Booking.com works is that when the reservation is received by the hotel it's not made clear on the hotel's system what your references may be.

The hotel's system and Booking.com's systems don't always talk to each other properly and I've had many a nightmare trying to frantically call a hotel and tell them about this situation when I've seen a reservation such as yours.

Go directly to the hotel, Booking.com will always try to fob you off and say it's not their fault, mostly because the hotel have set up their availability and room descriptions themselves so feel it's only their responsibility to sell the rooms.

I hope what I've written is mildly coherent, I know it doesn't help but I found that if a hotel sold the same room as a double OR a twin rather than asking you to specify it would potentially lead to overbookings as Booking.com see the either/or as multiple availability, and that's an even bigger pain in the arse for everyone!

I haven't even worked in this job for 2 years and can feel a headache coming on