Hellenic Voyages(Sunescapes)

keeley123_2

I recently booked a holiday with Hellenic Voyages, also trading as Sunescapes, to go to Crete on the 21st of AUG leaving for 2 weeks. We received our invoice that stated that we where travelling at 9.45am. When we received our tickets I noticed that our tickets stated a completely different time, 8.10pm. I contacted the reservations number as we had not been told about this and was told to email the director who would deal with it. I emailed the ‘director’ who offered me a full refund but I was given only a few hours to make this decision. Many people will know, we look forward to our holidays most of the year and don’t just want to cancel so I refused. A week or so later I decided I was not happy with this and rang for some advice and to enquire wether if we paid extra could we change our flights. The man on the phone told me he was the director, although a week before I was told the director was somewhere completely different and not sat in the offices in Wakefield. He was abusive on the phone and said it was tuff luck and that i had booked the holiday and could not alter, change or argue with anything them had done. I put the phone down as i was very upset and decided to write as i couldnt speak to someone like that. This is the reply i recieved. He typed half in capital like he was shouting and obviously has some sort of anger issue. I’ve enclosed my email as well as the one that he replied with so you can see why I was so shocked.

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Original Message

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From: keeley johnson
To: info@hellenicholidays.co.uk
Sent: Thursday, August 16, 2007 5:41 PM

I have just contacted one on your sale advisors and i have never been talked to like that in my life. I explained what had happened and asked for advice in what i should do and i was shouted at by the disgusting man on the phone. I rang at 17.25pm (GMT). Your sales team are a disgrace and it seem to be happening across the board if you have read some of the lovely reviews on the internet. It seems that your company is only bother about the cash it receives and has no regard to customer service.
If you have substantially changed the holiday terms before the date of travel we have a right to a full refund which i would like. We have lost a day of our holiday, we paid for 14 full days which we will not receive and am asking you for a full refund. I am willing to take this matter further if i do not receive a reply.
Thank you

The reply that I received:

When someone does not agree with what you say, that does not automatically imply that you are right
and he is wrong. If you honestly say that anyone is shouting at you ,then you need some real help.
As I said to you , I sympathise with your problem, and on a number of occasions I have offered to you
a full refund. You , the client that is, has taken 5 days to decide, after checking numerous other options
and then you come back and said , NO I want to go on holiday and I accept your offer.
Why then now , when we have bought and reserve these seats , are you trying to put on us all your
problems and demand that we sort them out for you?
Sorry , we have done nothing wrong, we have informed you, gave you every opportunity to cANCEL,
WE OFFERed YOU EXTRA
HOTEL STAY , THAT IS ANOTHER'S DAYS CHARGE TO US, AND YOU HAVE ACCEPTED IN WRITING.

AS TO THE IRONY OF YOUR REPLY AND THE GENERAL SARCASTIC VOCABULARY USED
THINK ABOUT IT, ALL YOUR PROBLEMS MIGHT actually JUST COME BECAUSE OF THAT.

THREATS, AND INTIMIDATION FROM ANY CUSTOMMER WILL DEFINATELY WOULD NOT
HELP ITS case
AND AS I HAVE MENTIONED, YOU HAVE BEEN GIVEN NUMEROUS OPPORTUNITIES
TO CANCEL , YOU HAVE DECIDED IN WRITING TO ACCEPT THE OFFER
AND SO WE PROCEED.

i WISH THAT THINGS WORK OUT BETTER IN THE FUTURE FOR YOU

DR E C MERTZANIS


I advice anyone thinking of travelling with these to stay very clear. Apparently the company is based in New York, with a director in Wakefield, England who cannot spell, type in anyway a pleasant manner and has zero customer service skills. He seems to have been talking about another email as can anyone explained when I threatened or intimidated him?

shammyjack

I went to Crete 5 years ago with this terrible firm .

Refused the crap hotel we were put in and they refused to give us another one .

Got our own accomodation in Crete and paid for it . Hit them with county court on return after they refused a refund . Got full cost of holiday back , costs of hotel we paid for in Crete plus £500 costs and compensation .

AVOID THEM LIKE THE PLAGUE !

shammy

keeley123_2

Ive wrote to the ABTA but had no reply. Ive cancelled now because we need to start pushing the insurance to get the money back but in a way i wish i had gone on the dam holiday to prove to the silly man on the phone it isnt me being funny, there infact, pardon my french, c**p!:mad:

Alan_Bowen

Firstly, I am not sure ABTA is going to be able to do anything as they do not appear to be a member.

Secondly a change in flight time is not going to be covered by your insurance policy, this is called 'disinclination to travel' and not an insurable risk. The only possible claim you have is against the agent who booked you the holiday, they hold their own ATOL so they are legally the operator. Have you looked at their own booking conditions, most give them the right to change flight times by up to 12 hours without giving you the right to cancel at all, and your change is less than that.

I am very worried you actually have no legal right to your money back at all, check if you can with the airline you were supposed to be flying with, it is rare for a regular charter flight to change times in August, changes happen in off peak periods but in August they usually stick to one 'slot time' If you can show the flight was never going to be in the morning, you can claim misrepresentation which could possibly lead to a claim but if the airline did change the times, I wish you the best of luck as I do not see any legal right to a refund. Sorry

paroshep

This company went belly up on 9 May. Contact CAA or ATOL about your recourse.

justice09

New trading name is Christopher Hellenic Holidays Ltd, same owner, same address plus an additional address google or Yahoo or hotfrog for more Info, they must think we are complete fools!!