This must be insanity, right?!

[NotYourAlias]

I can’t believe anyone could hear this story and not find it complete madness, so I’d really appreciate your take and some help.

So, after years and years, my family managed to book a big holiday, spanning four generations (probably the one and only time this will be possible) in Turkey. We booked an incredible hotel as part of a package with TUI. It was going to be a holiday of a lifetime.

8 of us were going out for ten days, while my daughter and her boyfriend were going to fly out a few days later to join us (in the same hotel) and then we’d all get the same flight home. I booked them and paid for everyone.

All’s well and good until a few weeks before we go, when we get an email from Turkish Airline saying our flight out (for the 8 of us) has been cancelled. We phoned TUI (who hadn’t even bothered to email us anything) and asked for a new flight. They said they didn’t have one and would have to cancel the holiday. No other explanation.

We were heartbroken, as you can imagine. IT GETS WORSE. Because my daughter and her BF’s flight out HADN’T been cancelled, TUI refused to refund their part of the holiday. Even though the holiday was booked by me, paid by me, and I’d phoned and told TUI the holidays were linked (they claim they’ve lost the recording of this).

We can’t book a new holiday until we get the money back from this one, and TUI are flat out refusing. My daughter and her BF don’t want to go without us, as the whole point was a family holiday.

I just don’t see how TUI can claim the two holidays aren’t linked?! Does anyone know if there’s an authority or watchdog or anything I can contact?!

ANY HELP APPRECIATED!! Thank you.

Can't you book with a different airline round about the dates your daughter is flying out?

Unfortunately not, because the price of the hotel and flights have all gone up massively. It was already a stretch, so now we’re looking to rebook somewhere cheaper

Can you not go on the flight your dd was booked on?

This is why using a travel agent is always a false economy. Much better to book independently with a credit card (so you're protected)

That sounds so stressful OP, I hope it gets sorted out!
This might be a case that “consumer champion”-type newspaper columnists would be interested to pick up. That might put a bit more pressure on TUI.
The Guardian has one of those I believe, and I’m sure there are others - can anyone recommend who best to approach?

For example: www.theguardian.com/money/2022/oct/06/rsa-wont-repair-the-damage-storm-arwen-did-last-november

Actually this is a better link, including the email address to write to: www.theguardian.com/money/series/yourproblems

We're the 2 sets of flights booked at the same time?

Do you have to have a refund? Have you asked TUI if you can transfer your holiday and your daughters holiday to somewhere else, they might do that as a gesture of goodwill.

Did you book as two separate holidays as in you have two different reference numbers even though you are staying in the hotel together

If that’s what you did even though to you it seems obvious it’s one holiday
if you have 2 separate booking references then what they are telling you is correct
your flight is cancelled so they have cancelled your holiday
your daughters flight isn’t cancelled so her holiday is still available

I had a TUI holiday cancelled in May while I was at the airport - this was on a Saturday and I got the money back on the Tuesday so they were quick at refunding

If it was a package holiday you would all be in the same flight out / back
The eight of you have a package holiday
your daughter it seems has a separate package holiday as she is flying out on a different date

depending on when you are going
your daughter could probably change her holiday to where the other 8 are going

@LIZS We wanted to (we'd have taken anything!), but they said it was sold out.

@YukoandHiro We did book it on a credit card, but they won't refund until they've investigated, and that will be after the holiday was due.

@FinanceLPlates Thank you, so do I! And thanks for the links, I'll take a look.

They've already refunded the 8 of us (even though we didn't want them to) because they said they had no flights. It's all a bit weird, they seemed very eager to cancel it, which made us slightly suspicious.

@Yabado We did book them separately (my daughter's BF had to work out his holiday with work), but we phoned TUI and told them the holidays were linked (before they cancelled).

@NotYourAlias Yes I know, travel companies are awful like this. If you'd booked directly with the airline and hotel they'd have been way more flexible. I loathe travel companies, they seem to exist to shaft their customers

But in theory your daughter could still go on her holiday even though the rest of the family can't so I can see why tui won't refund.

@helpfulperson I see what you mean from a purely 'numbers on the page' basis, but if she goes on the TUI holiday then she can't come on the family holiday we're rebooking (because the money is in the TUI holiday + no more work leave). The only reason she was going on that holiday was to join all of us out there! There's absolutely no point going alone :(

@YukoandHiro I thought a package was safer! How wrong was I! What's sad is we've used TUI for years, but now I'll never use them again.

They are two separate bookings with two separate contracts. One Tui can’t deliver on so have refunded you in full. The other one can go ahead as planned.

Unless you have something in writing specifically saying that the two are connected then I’m afraid you have been treated correctly and fairly under the terms and conditions.

I know it goes against common sense and compassion but legally this is the way it would be interpreted. Does their travel insurance cover them against cancellation if they catch covid? Get them to start hanging out in big crowds……. (That’s meant as a joke)