Complaint against Activities Abroad

Dear Consumer Complaints,

I need your help to know how to address a complaint I have against a

company called Activities Abroad run by a Mr Alistair McLean. I have

asked for compensation for the inferior accommodation they put us in plus

the fact they did not deliver on the activities they promised us and for

which we paid.

Here are the details

We had a holiday with Activities Abroad from 15th July to 22nd July in

Corsica - Zippedy Doo Dah was the name of the holiday.

1. I booked the holiday in April and was told and confirmed in writing by

Barry Nolan that we had been booked into the Dominique Colonna Hotel in

Corte, Corsica. Based on this written confirmation I went ahead and

booked my flights and an additional week in Corsica at a different hotel.

One day later I was told that the Dominique Colonna Hotel was fully booked

and could not accommodate us. We were offered an alternative hotel - the

Hotel Arena which I was assured was more expensive despite not having a

swimming pool. I was clearly very disappointed but having been assured

that we could use the swimming pool from the Dominique Colonna, that the

Hotel Arena was excellent with one of the best restaurants (this point was

specifically mentioned) and that I would be given a small discount

representing the difference in cost between the hotels, I decided to let

the booking rest and agreed to go to the alternative hotel.

2. When we arrived at the Hotel Arena we were told the restaurant was

closed for the season. The hotel is fairly isolated and after a day of

activities with a young child the prospect of going in search of a

restaurant was not practical. In addition the "short walk" to the

Dominique Colonna turned out to be nearly a kilometer on a dark, narrow

and winding road with busy traffic - it was not ideal. Additional issues

developed during the week - the airconditioning ceased to function - they

ran out of breakfast cereal - the river was anything but peaceful and

private but noisy and unpleasant with non hotel residents who stopped to

use the advertised bar. Had I been told there was no restaurant I would

have cancelled the booking with Activities Abroad - Barry Nolan knew that

a restaurant was important which is why he specifically mentioned it in

his e mail - which I have kept.

3. When I met the representative on the first evening I told her how

disappointed I was with the hotel and that the discount was inadequate to

compensate for the difference in standard. I had the opportunity to see

the Dominique Colonna which was significantly superior to the Hotel Arena.

It has two swimming pools and an excellent restaurant. I do not believe

that it is cheaper than the Hotel Arena. The representative said she

would try to arrange a discount. She did not come back to me.

4. Some key activities promised to us - for example the Sea Yachting were

not delivered. Sea Yachting was an activity we were looking forward to

and cannot be compensated by a half day trek in the hills near Corte. No

explanation was given for this and no compensation was given.

5. The Budget car hire organized by Activities Abroad, gave us a car

without a full tank of petrol When we returned the car we filled it at

the airport - completely full. Budget charged us for petrol direct from

our credit card. We believe there is a racket going on with Budget. We

have written to Budget and Activities Abroad and have received no response

and no explanation.

6. Finally, I have written to Activities Abroad and received a rude,

impersonal, legalistic and defensive response from a Mr Alistair McLean

who I assume runs the company. I 'm happy to send you this correspondence

if you need it.

I would like to know what rights I have, if any, to get some compensation

from Mr McLean. In the absence of compensation, I would very much like to

ensure that others avoid this company in the future.

Many thanks for your help,

Kind regards,

Jane Reay Jones