Travel Republic

wkt54

I am a UK citizen living in an apartment in Sharm el Sheikh for the past few years.

In the past 2 years I have booked into a 5 star hotel for 5 or 6 days in Sharm 10 times, for a change.

I booked with Travel Republic.

Last Saturday I booked 5 days in the hotel for next week, and 5 days in October.

I received an email to say some guy called Nicolas has cancelled the booking in October because I booked from Egypt.

I am waiting to hear next week's is also cancelled.

I replied why was I able to stay 10 times in the past 2 years with no questions asked.

I said I have been using TR for over 30 years and was always pleased with them. 

I am going to have to find someone else to book with.

eskbanker

There doesn't seem to be a question in there, so perhaps this might be better posted at https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/categories/praise-vent-warnings

wkt54

Eskbanker my question is does anyone on here know why I was able to book 10 times in the past 2 years, and suddenly now they are cancelling my booking because this guy Nicolas said I am not a UK resident now,  Thanks

eskbanker

wkt54 said:

Eskbanker my question is does anyone on here know why I was able to book 10 times in the past 2 years, and suddenly now they are cancelling my booking because this guy Nicolas said I am not a UK resident now,  Thanks

Sorry, no idea - what did they say when you put that question to them?  Unless it's some sort of misunderstanding, it could be a new policy - UK consumer protection is fairly good, i.e. expensive for companies based here, so they might be making a decision not to sell travel services to non-residents.  If you live in Egypt and want to book a stay in an Egyptian hotel, you presumably have other local booking options rather than doing so via a UK agent?

Westin

Some hotels will make offers specific to non-nationals or targeted to certain overseas markets. I have seen this before in Turkey, some Caribbean and Latin America countries and also in Egypt.

This is in TR terms and conditions -
“Please note that our prices are based on bookings made by UK residents. If you are not a UK resident or UK passport holder, you may be liable upon check-in/check-out for additional charges imposed by the supplier directly. We will not be liable for such additional charges.”

I suspect in the past your location was not picked up.  Did you do anything differently this time like pay with a non-U.K. payment card?

As for your bookings, I don’t think there is much you can do.

wkt54

Westin I did not do anything different from the previous 10 bookings I made at this hotel in the past 2 years.

Actually it is the opposite.

At first I used my Egyptian bank card, then I changed to my Nationwide account.

All my messages have been coming from a guy called Nicolas.

eDicky

Have you ever asked at the hotel where you always stay, what they will charge you directly as a regular guest, to compare with the price through a third party agent..?

wkt54

Yes eDicky I did ask at the hotel.

It is double the price what I paid with TR.

Westin

wkt54 said:

Westin

Do other companies like Booking dot com have the same T&Cs?

I think I will try other companies and hope like the 10 times I booked with TR. they will accept my booking.

Well it is certainly important for you to check terms and conditions when you try to book with a 3rd party seller.  You may have better luck with booking.com so long as you set your location up correctly as Egypt. 

eskbanker

It seems unlikely that there's any value in obsessing about the fact that you're no longer able to do something you did before - things change, either in the external regulatory environment (e.g. Brexit, not that this would be directly relevant here) or simply companies choosing to tighten policies, perhaps in response to increasing claims since Covid, for example....

If a company is effectively telling you they don't want your business then voting with your feet does seem the obvious response, who is it who've been more amenable to what you're planning?