kgroberts

Do not use this company. I recently returned from nine days in Europe with my daughter and grandson, booked through European Destinations. Because of my age and health and the fact that we were to be traveling in August, I made the specific request that we stay in air conditioned hotels. The hotel they booked us in for our stay in Prague was of particular concern, as its website said it was partially air conditioned. Again, I was given assurances that an agent from European Destinations had inquired and made sure our rooms would be air conditioned. When we arrived at our hotel on a 95 degree afternoon, there was no air conditioning. European Destinations, during nine phone conversations over four hours, failed to find a solution and finally told me to find another hotel. I did. European Destinations refuses to cover the cost. When we checked into another hotel and explained what had taken place, the front desk clerk said "Always use bookings.com. If something is wrong, they make it right." That's what I'm going to do from now on.

tower

Sorry for your A/C dilemma...BUT was there anything GOOD about your visit to Europe? Anytime I see a first-time poster with nothing but a complaint, I begin to ponder. Why not follow through with what impressed you about Prague and other stops along the way. Fun stuff, historic stuff, unforgettable stuff, etc.

travelhorizons

Why use an OTA (online travel agency) at all, whether it European Destinations, booking.com, etc.

If you're going to use a TA, find someone you can sit down with or talk to on the phone, who has expertise in the destination, and whom you're convinced fully understand your needs and desires. If the TA you consult doesn't wow you, call someone else. An OTA is not equipped to do this.

(How to find someone with expertise? Check Travel and Leisure, Conde Nast. Do google searches, looking for TA's who have blogged knowledgeably about your destination.)

Alternatively, if you're going to do this yourself, email or (better) phone the hotel. International calling is cheap, especially using Google Voice, Skype, and the like. Talk to a person at the hotel, get the assurances you want, make the booking - and then make sure it's all documented in your Confirmation.

Christina

I always book myself to avoid those problems.

I have used booking.com but haven't had a problem so don't know if they would solve it or not. Would be nice if they did, jsut don't know. I think the difference is booking.com is just a hotel booking site so it's your problem as to picking a hotel that suits you. If they promised AC on their website and there wasn't any, then I oculd see it would be their problem to solve (booking).

By contrast, European Destinations is an entire vacation package company, so a little different if you aren't picking your own hotels. But from what you said, I agree they should pay you the difference, but probably nothing you could do legally to get it and you've spent enough time on this issue.

kgroberts

There was much that was wonderful and enjoyable. But my point in posting was to to warn others not to make the mistake I did in using European Destinations. It was a learning experience for me.....next time I'll decide what part of a city I want to be in, find hotels in that area and book something appropriate.

bvlenci

I almost always use booking.com. They have reviews written by actual guests, and if I want air conditioning, I look at the reviews from the previous summer. Sometimes a hotel has air conditioning that's not very efficient, and a reviewer is very likely to mention that fact.

TripAdvisor has more reviews, but they're not guaranteed to be written by actual guests of the hotel. Some are written by friends of the hotel owner, or by enemies of the hotel owner. I've also seen reviews on Tripadvisor, for places I know, where it's obvious that the reviewer was reviewing the wrong hotel (or restaurant).

nytraveler

I would never book a hotel with only some rooms with AC - since there is never any guarantee when you get there which room you will get (unless you book a bridal suite or something).

Did the confirmation you received guarantee AC? If not, you could have contacted the hotel directly to be sure of what room you got.