Gate 1 Travel

Re: Gate 1 Reservation [redacted]/[redacted] A senior sales representative has called and spoken with **. [redacted] in regard to her account.  **. [redacted] has advised us that she will speak with her husband and advise us by Friday their decision.   Please note that [redacted] protection differs from the Cancel For Any Reason supplement, which is the policy **. [redacted] has disputed.  The [redacted] policy covers what is construed by the insurance company as emergency causes for cancellation, and providing the reason is approved by [redacted], the passenger would receive monetary refunds.  The Cancel For Any Reason supplement covers causes not covered by the [redacted] policy, again within the guidelines previously provided and in the form of travel credits.    We look forward to hearing from **. [redacted] and helping her utilize her travel credits.   Sincerely, Ilene P[redacted]

The
airline will not entertain any further credit or
refund.
Deducting
our real costs on this reservation, we can furnish a maximum of
$1018.00.
Please
advise if the Venturas are willing to accept this amount as full
settlement.
Thank
you & best regards,Ilene P[redacted]

Thank you so much for taking that time to resolve this with me. [A default letter is provided here which indicates your acceptance of the business's response.  If you wish, you may update it before sending it.]
Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me. 
Regards,
[redacted]

Re:  Gate 1 Reservation [redacted]   Thank you for your request for information regarding the above referenced claim.   The Gate 1 policy, which reflects airline and supplier terms, allows for a full refund of the airfare should a schedule change result in a misconnect. ...

This was relayed to Ms. [redacted].  She was provided with options.   We listened to the phone history recordings between Ms. [redacted] and our staff and found no reference to any statements that all of her money would be refunded.  It is our policy, as mentioned above, to refund the airfare, however land services are not refundable.   This was clearly stated to her.   We will be happy to continue to work with Ms. [redacted] to find a reasonable solution.  Kindly advise how she wishes to proceed.  Should she decide not to travel on her planned holiday, as noted, she will be refunded for the airfare, but not for her pre-paid land services or insurance premium.   Sincerely,   Ilene P[redacted] Senior Vice President

Re:  Gate 1 Reservation #[redacted]
 
Thank you for your request for information in regard to the
above-referenced reservation.
 
Please be advised that Gate 1 Travel and Travel
Ex are two separate companies.  Gate 1 has no interest in [redacted] other than
as a...

vendor who supplies travel protection policies to our clients who so choose
to purchase the option. 
 
We have reviewed the insurance claim with Travel
Ex and find no discrepancies.  However if **. [redacted] believes that she has been
denied the correct coverage, she should initiate a claim directly with [redacted]
and/or with the Pennsylvania Insurance Commission, [redacted]
 
Please feel free to contact us if you need any
further clarification.
 
Respectfully,
 
Ilene P[redacted]
Senior Vice President
Gate 1

Re:  Gate 1 Reservation [redacted]
Thank you for your request for information in regard to the above-referenced claim.Typically when a client makes and pays for a reservation, and subsequently a promotion is released for the same product, we do not refund the difference.  But we...

do offer the client the amount of the difference in a future travel credit.  This was apparently not done in this case.We have remedied the issue and applied the $470 to [redacted] account for a future travel program.  I apologize for the  service lapse and trust we will soon see [redacted] on another Gate 1 escorted tour or cruise program.Respectfully,Ilene P[redacted]Senior Vice President

Re: Gate 1 Reservation [redacted]
Thank you for your request for information in regard to the above
referenced claim.
 
We are sympathetic to **. [redacted]’ opinion and understand his concerns. 
However it must be understood...

that Gate 1 is only a ‘middle-man’, in that we
accept payment for services on behalf of various suppliers, including airlines,
hotels, car rental companies, etc.  Our agreements with those suppliers are the
basis for our Terms & Conditions, and it is that policy which dictates our
cancelation terms.
 
In the case of **. [redacted], with travel plans to Italy in January, for
the sake of argument, if he had purchased a travel insurance policy, that
insurance policy would only have covered the immediate 30 days following a
terrorist attack, and that attack must have been in one of the cities on the
passenger’s itinerary.  Even insurance will not cover the possibility of an
incident.
 
That said, we never-the-less did approach the suppliers on **. [redacted]’
itinerary.  The airline is standing firm and will not provide any refund
what-so-ever.  (We are finding this standard in the industry.) 
 
We were successful in obtaining refunds for hotels and car rental, a total
of $460.00.
 
Upon **. [redacted]’ agreement, we will process the $460.00 refund
directly.
 
Respectfully,
 
Ilene P[redacted]
Senior Vice President

I did talk to Gate1 however it resolved nothing. All Brian did was read to me the invoice that I was looking at. We did discuss the conversation I had with Lekesha and it is possible I misunderstood that the amount was the total amount due for each passenger and not the "check amount" that I understood it to be. I don't believe they ever did listen to the tape of the discussion I had with Tasha about this where she verified the "check amount" was the amount I was to send. The travel agency upped the amount of the trip in my opinion after [redacted] cancelled her trip and I'll never think they didn't. That's why I thought $2924.75 was the amount due. This is a lesson for me. I've paid the amount they think we owe and will go on the trip and hopefully have a great time, but will never use Gate1 again. I guess you can close the file. Thank you for your assistance. At least they called me back.

Thank
you for your request for information in regard to the above-referenced claims. 
As the claimants are all of the...

same Gate 1 reservation and traveled together, I
will reply as a unit.
The relative Gate 1 reservation number and passenger names are 
[redacted]/[redacted]/[redacted]/[redacted].
Below please find our full November 21 response to the claimants, answering
each of their issues.  We have offered compensation where we believe it was
warranted and explanations where required.  I believe that our response has been
full and accurate, however if any of these clients wish fuller explanation on
any particular topic it would be our pleasure to research where needed and
revert with our answer.
Respectfully,
Ilene P[redacted]
Senior Vice President
Gate 1 Travel
21 Nov 201411:22:58
From:
"Christine S[redacted]" [redacted]@gate1travel.comTo: "[redacted]" [redacted]@[redacted]Subject: Reservation Numbers
[redacted]/[redacted]/[redacted]/[redacted]/[redacted]/[redacted]/[redacted]
Friday, November 21, 2014 11:20 AMDear [redacted] and all Group
Members,First of all thank you very much for your patience while we
reviewed your concerns about your recent [redacted] tour to Zimbabwe, Botswana
and South Africa.We regret if any portion of your time traveling with us
did not fully meet your expectations. This is certainly never our intention. We
do appreciate that you have taken the time share your comments with us and given
us an opportunity to research these issues for you. This particular
[redacted] program does not include a tour manager. We do try to give as much
detail as possible in the tour package highlights. This package included the
services of various English-speaking hosts and guides throughout, but no tour
manager. I regret any misunderstanding. After my contact with some of the group
members while you were traveling, we decided to add a manager and made
arrangements for [redacted] to join the group as soon as feasible. Once [redacted] joined
the group I believe the overall experienced improved.With regard to
whale watching, I am advised that it is not required to pre book this excursion.
There are apparently many options available and at different times throughout
the day. When asked, [redacted] advised that due to the limited amount of time and
because October is the end of whale watching season, and the tours are weather
and ocean condition dependent, not to book the excursion. Additionally Hermanus
is approximately a two hour drive from Cape Town, and therefore an entire day
would have been required. Flight itineraries only include whether or not
a stop is included, not where that stop might be. I can understand your
apprehensions at learning that the stop was in West Africa, however not all
countries in West Africa have been affected by Ebola. Senegal is not within the
affected region (Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone). [redacted] Airways takes
guidance from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) as well as the World Health
Organization (WHO), and have advised that they will continue to stop in Dakar
until or unless they are advised that it is unsafe. With regard to your
unanswered questions prior to departure, if you will please advise the dates of
those issues, I will review our telephone records. The reservation process is
several months long with numerous phone calls, and therefore those details would
be necessary in order to research these concerns. Regarding your delay
at the Victoria Falls Airport, I am advised that the cause was the arrival of
two flights at the same time. The [redacted] Airline flight that usually
arrives before the [redacted] flight, was delayed thereby causing both
flights to arrive simultaneously, and causing delay for all of the passengers.
Although you arrived later than expected to the lodge, we are pleased to know
that the David Livingston lecture was able to be rescheduled and all of the
included services were provided. I’ve itemized below each of your
concerns regarding the [redacted] Lodge, and the hotel’s management’s
responses.1) In regard to the claim that [redacted] did not have good
customer service skills, they are confused as they have no staff member with
that name. Never-the-less, they will review their greeting and customer
services.2) Regarding inaccuracies given by the front desk personnel,
including the availability of blankets on safari, they have addressed the issues
with their guest relations staff, who acknowledged that blankets were not
provided as the weather conditions did not require them.3) Regarding the
[redacted] and [redacted] party having booked a triple room, but given two rooms far
from one another, apparently the guests after raising the issue with the hotel
staff, were accommodated with a cot in one of the rooms. The lodge sincerely
believed that providing two rooms was an offer of superior service, however they
were pleased to provide the triple room as requested. 4) With regard to
the inoperable ladies room lock, as all rooms, locks and services are checked
prior to guests arrival, it is concluded that this must have occurred during the
stay.5) As for meals, the executive chef has taken note of your
comments, and believes that there are sufficient variations on the buffets and
its presentation. I understand that the lines to the breakfast fryer and dinner
roastary were occasionally long, due to only one attendant chef at each.
6) As for the forgotten wake up service, upon further investigation
it appears the phone volume control had been silenced, perhaps by previous
guests. The hotel management apologizes for this.For the above
inconveniences, the hotel wishes to provide a refund equivalent to one nights
stay, $204.00 per room, for each of the group reservations, plus $35 per person
for reservation [redacted] as compensation for their undercooked
meal.As for the lack of triple accommodations (reservation
[redacted]) in Capetown, the hotel claims they had no knowledge of this request. Had
they known, they would have surely and immediately made the necessary changes.
We regret your disappointment with the Namibian Village
excursion, and wish to offer a full refund for each reservation in the amount of
$75.00 per person. We are very pleased to read that overall the
group enjoyed their stay at the [redacted] Lodge, and that you received exemplary
service. The management kindly shared with with us the evaluations received from
the group members, and we are pleased to relate that their facility received
very high ratings. As a few issues were mentioned we have contacted the hotels
management for their review.The suggestion of fans is now being
investigated further for implementation for the new season. The scorpion and
mouse in the guide’s room has been personally looked into by the lodge manager.
No previous groups had reported any similar issues. However as this is an
authentic lodge in the bush, mice are certainly in the surroundings. Taking the
feedback of the guests very seriously, they have flown rodent specialist to the
lodge to ensure the avoidance of a bigger problem and also to inspect any
possible way to avoid any mice making it into the
camp/lodge.With regards to the drinks not being cool enough, it
seems that the bar/fridge was broken. The lodge manager made an alternative plan
to use a gas freezer. No feedback was given to the guide on the drinks not being
cool enough. Following our feedback he made the assumption that the gas freezer
was not cooling fast enough.Again, the lodge owner and team are
grateful for the feedback, mostly positive. In conclusion, we
believe that some issues do warrant compensation as noted above. We think that
providing [redacted] to act as your tour manager and adding some enhancements such as
a private boat safari and enhanced wine tasting, helped to make your tour more
pleasurable. I was personally in contact with several tour members via e-mail.
It seemed to be the most efficient method of communication, in consideration of
the time differences. I assure you that [redacted] alerted us immediately
regarding your concerns, and we responded in kind.As we wish
that no client is disappointed in any of our services, and look forward to
another opportunity to have you travel with us again, we ask all the group
members to kindly accept our additional goodwill gesture of $100.00 per person
future travel credit, valid for any guided tour, escorted tour or river cruise
until December 31, 2016.
Upon receipt of each passengers written
agreement, our accounting department will immediately refund $204 for each room
at that [redacted] Lodge, $75.00 per person for the Namibia Village excursion
and have the $100.00 per person travel credit added to each applicable
reservation.Should you have any remaining questions please do
not hesitate to contact me.Kind regards,Christine
S[redacted] Vice President, Customer service
Ilene
P[redacted]Senior Vice President[redacted]@gate1travel.comph: ###-###-####,
Ext [redacted]fx: ###-###-####GATE 1More of The World For Less!Become a fan:
www.[redacted]com/gate1travelFollow
us: www.[redacted].com/gate1travel

Re: Gate 1 Reservation [redacted]Thank you for your request for information in regard to the above referenced claim.The claimant apparently misunderstood the reservation accounting, however after discussing the details with a Reservations Supervisor, she now understands the details and is...

satisfied.Please advise if you or the claimant have any further concerns or questions.Sincerely,Ilene P[redacted]Senior Vice President

[To assist us in bringing this matter to a close, you must give...

us a reason why you are rejecting the response. If no reason is received your complaint will be closed Administratively Resolved]
 Complaint: [redacted]
I am rejecting this response because: I have already spoken with two representatives from Gate1 and they are both trying to re-instate my boarding pass. However, given the circumstances, they want to charge me extra for this on top of $800 loss. In my opinion, this business is in the wrong for having untrained employees and misdirecting customers. An $800 loss for this business would not be material, nor would it affect their books. A $800 loss for me would greatly affect my finances and I do not think I should be punished for being misinformed and misdirected, and practically taken advantage off just to make the sale. I don't want my ticket reinstated, I want my full refund and I will not stop fighting this until I receive it. 
Regards,
[redacted]

Thank
you for your request for information in regard to the above-referenced
reservation.
Upon review, we found that the clients originally made their...

own
reservation online on February 25, 2015.  Their reservation included hotels and
published airfare.  Not all of the hotels were available at the time of
booking.  (This frequently happens when the allotment of one or more of the
hotels requested is depleted.)   When that happens, the passengers are advised
by our system with the following message:
“One or more of the Products and/or services you have selected are On
Request. Gate 1 Travel will request the Vendor to confirm the service(s) on your
behalf. If, for any reason, the service is not able to be confirmed, Gate 1 will
offer the best available alternative, which may involve a change in price.  You
will have the option to accept the alternative or to receive a refund for the
product or service which cannot be confirmed.  In the instance that your
reservation includes an Instant Purchase airfare for which tickets are normally
issued immediately, those tickets may not be issued if there are land services
which are not yet confirmed.  Whenever tickets are not issued, once services are
all confirmed, the airfare will need to be rebooked and may be subject to change
of itinerary and/or price.”
This is exactly what occurred.  We reached out to the clients on March 3,
left a voice message and asked them to contact us to discuss alternative hotels
so that airfare could be rebooked.  The following day, March 4 we reviewed
multiple flight options with the client and after checking availability, which
was very limited at that point, the client chose to book flights independently. 
We changed their reservation to land only basis and removed the airfare
portion.
It was clear that the client appeared very happy with our services, however
confused with the hotel booking system, as noted above.
I trust this serves to explain the situation.  Please contact us should you
have any further questions or concerns.
Respectfully,
Ilene P[redacted]
Senior Vice President
Gate 1

Re:  Gate 1 Reservation [redacted]
 
Thank you for your request for information in regard to the
above-referenced claim.
 
The [redacted]’s cancelation was processed in accordance with our Terms &
Conditions and cancelation...

policy, with respect for the date of travel (May
2016).  The $200 per person deposit is non-refundable, as noted in our Terms and
as advised at the time the reservation was made.
 
No suppliers are waiving fees for travel in May, 2016. 
 
However Gate 1 will make an exception in this case in respect for our
valued customer relationship and offer half of the fees back to the
[redacted]s, $200.00.
 
Once we receive their agreement to our offer of  compensation, we will
process the refund directly.
 
Respectfully,
 
Ilene P[redacted]
Senior Vice President

Thank
you for your request for information in regard to the above-referenced...

claims. 
As the claimants are all of the same Gate 1 reservation and traveled together, I
will reply as a unit.
The relative Gate 1 reservation number and passenger names are 
[redacted].
Below please find our full November 21 response to the claimants, answering
each of their issues.  We have offered compensation where we believe it was
warranted and explanations where required.  I believe that our response has been
full and accurate, however if any of these clients wish fuller explanation on
any particular topic it would be our pleasure to research where needed and
revert with our answer.
Respectfully,
Ilene P[redacted]
Senior Vice President
Gate 1 Travel
21 Nov 201411:22:58
From:
"Christine S[redacted]@gate1travel.comTo: "[redacted]"
[redacted]Subject: Reservation Numbers
[redacted]
Friday, November 21, 2014 11:20 AMDear [redacted] and all Group
Members,First of all thank you very much for your patience while we
reviewed your concerns about your recent [redacted] tour to Zimbabwe, Botswana
and South Africa.We regret if any portion of your time traveling with us
did not fully meet your expectations. This is certainly never our intention. We
do appreciate that you have taken the time share your comments with us and given
us an opportunity to research these issues for you. This particular
[redacted] program does not include a tour manager. We do try to give as much
detail as possible in the tour package highlights. This package included the
services of various English-speaking hosts and guides throughout, but no tour
manager. I regret any misunderstanding. After my contact with some of the group
members while you were traveling, we decided to add a manager and made
arrangements for [redacted] to join the group as soon as feasible. Once [redacted] joined
the group I believe the overall experienced improved.With regard to
whale watching, I am advised that it is not required to pre book this excursion.
There are apparently many options available and at different times throughout
the day. When asked, [redacted] advised that due to the limited amount of time and
because October is the end of whale watching season, and the tours are weather
and ocean condition dependent, not to book the excursion. Additionally Hermanus
is approximately a two hour drive from Cape Town, and therefore an entire day
would have been required. Flight itineraries only include whether or not
a stop is included, not where that stop might be. I can understand your
apprehensions at learning that the stop was in West Africa, however not all
countries in West Africa have been affected by Ebola. Senegal is not within the
affected region (Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone). [redacted] Airways takes
guidance from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) as well as the World Health
Organization (WHO), and have advised that they will continue to stop in Dakar
until or unless they are advised that it is unsafe. With regard to your
unanswered questions prior to departure, if you will please advise the dates of
those issues, I will review our telephone records. The reservation process is
several months long with numerous phone calls, and therefore those details would
be necessary in order to research these concerns. Regarding your delay
at the [redacted] Airport, I am advised that the cause was the arrival of
two flights at the same time. The [redacted] Airline flight that usually
arrives before the [redacted] Airways flight, was delayed thereby causing both
flights to arrive simultaneously, and causing delay for all of the passengers.
Although you arrived later than expected to the lodge, we are pleased to know
that the [redacted] lecture was able to be rescheduled and all of the
included services were provided. I’ve itemized below each of your
concerns regarding the [redacted] Lodge, and the hotel’s management’s
responses.1) In regard to the claim that [redacted] did not have good
customer service skills, they are confused as they have no staff member with
that name. Never-the-less, they will review their greeting and customer
services.2) Regarding inaccuracies given by the front desk personnel,
including the availability of blankets on safari, they have addressed the issues
with their guest relations staff, who acknowledged that blankets were not
provided as the weather conditions did not require them.3) Regarding the
[redacted] and [redacted] party having booked a triple room, but given two rooms far
from one another, apparently the guests after raising the issue with the hotel
staff, were accommodated with a cot in one of the rooms. The lodge sincerely
believed that providing two rooms was an offer of superior service, however they
were pleased to provide the triple room as requested. 4) With regard to
the inoperable ladies room lock, as all rooms, locks and services are checked
prior to guests arrival, it is concluded that this must have occurred during the
stay.5) As for meals, the executive chef has taken note of your
comments, and believes that there are sufficient variations on the buffets and
its presentation. I understand that the lines to the breakfast fryer and dinner
roastary were occasionally long, due to only one attendant chef at each.
6) As for the forgotten wake up service, upon further investigation
it appears the phone volume control had been silenced, perhaps by previous
guests. The hotel management apologizes for this.For the above
inconveniences, the hotel wishes to provide a refund equivalent to one nights
stay, $204.00 per room, for each of the group reservations, plus $35 per person
for reservation [redacted] as compensation for their undercooked
meal.As for the lack of triple accommodations (reservation
[redacted]) in Capetown, the hotel claims they had no knowledge of this request. Had
they known, they would have surely and immediately made the necessary changes.
We regret your disappointment with the Namibian Village
excursion, and wish to offer a full refund for each reservation in the amount of
$75.00 per person. We are very pleased to read that overall the
group enjoyed their stay at the [redacted] Lodge, and that you received exemplary
service. The management kindly shared with with us the evaluations received from
the group members, and we are pleased to relate that their facility received
very high ratings. As a few issues were mentioned we have contacted the hotels
management for their review.The suggestion of fans is now being
investigated further for implementation for the new season. The scorpion and
mouse in the guide’s room has been personally looked into by the lodge manager.
No previous groups had reported any similar issues. However as this is an
authentic lodge in the bush, mice are certainly in the surroundings. Taking the
feedback of the guests very seriously, they have flown rodent specialist to the
lodge to ensure the avoidance of a bigger problem and also to inspect any
possible way to avoid any mice making it into the
camp/lodge.With regards to the drinks not being cool enough, it
seems that the bar/fridge was broken. The lodge manager made an alternative plan
to use a gas freezer. No feedback was given to the guide on the drinks not being
cool enough. Following our feedback he made the assumption that the gas freezer
was not cooling fast enough.Again, the lodge owner and team are
grateful for the feedback, mostly positive. In conclusion, we
believe that some issues do warrant compensation as noted above. We think that
providing [redacted] to act as your tour manager and adding some enhancements such as
a private boat safari and enhanced wine tasting, helped to make your tour more
pleasurable. I was personally in contact with several tour members via e-mail.
It seemed to be the most efficient method of communication, in consideration of
the time differences. I assure you that [redacted] alerted us immediately
regarding your concerns, and we responded in kind.As we wish
that no client is disappointed in any of our services, and look forward to
another opportunity to have you travel with us again, we ask all the group
members to kindly accept our additional goodwill gesture of $100.00 per person
future travel credit, valid for any guided tour, escorted tour or river cruise
until December 31, 2016.Upon receipt of each passengers written
agreement, our accounting department will immediately refund $204 for each room
at that [redacted] Lodge, $75.00 per person for the Namibia Village excursion
and have the $100.00 per person travel credit added to each applicable
reservation.Should you have any remaining questions please do
not hesitate to contact me.Kind regards,Christine
S[redacted] Vice President, Customer service
Ilene
P[redacted]Senior Vice President[redacted]@gate1travel.comph: ###-###-####,
Ext [redacted]fx: ###-###-####GATE 1More of The World For Less!Become a fan:
www.[redacted].com/gate1travelFollow
us: www.[redacted].com/gate1travel

Gate 1 Travel is a scam. I attempted to book several Italy tours with this company and was pushed around for 3 months because they were unable to confirm hotels. I cancelled my trip the first time because the supervisor and the customer service representatives were absolutely horrible. I attempted to rebook again because I was so close to my leaving date because they were unable to accommodate my reservation, and the same problem happened again. There only response was that there company was not "good" at doing last minute trips, even though they were the cause of it being a last minute trip, and that I was better off booking through hotel.com. This is a sad excuse for a company and I would never recommend them to anyone. I booked my airline/hotels/transfers online for 600 cheaper in one day without a 3 month headache.

Gate 1 Reservation 979460/[redacted]
 
Thank you for your request for information in regard to the above
referenced claim.
 
This reservation was made on **. [redacted]’s behalf by her travel agent,
who agreed to Gate 1’s Terms &...

Conditions, including cancelation
policies.
 
We are sympathetic to **. [redacted]’s concern for travel following the
Paris attacks last week, however are subject to supplier agreements, which are
the basis for our Terms and and policies.  This was explained to **. [redacted] and her travel agent on numerous occasions and by various Gate 1 agents and supervisors. 
 
Please note that all clients are offered travel protection at the time of
booking.  **. [redacted] denied insurance coverage, which would likely have
covered her cancelation fees under the circumstances noted.
 
I regret that we cannot provide **. [redacted] her requested compensation. 
A refund in accordance with our Terms will be processed as agreed upon.
 
Respectfully,
 
Ilene P[redacted]
Senior Vice President

Re: Gate 1 Reservation [redacted]
We stand by our previous responses.  Should **. [redacted] take issue with
any of the tangible facts as presented, we will be pleased to review those.  
Sincerely,
Ilene P[redacted]
Senior Vice President

Thank
you for your request for information in regard to the above-referenced claims. 
As the claimants...

are all of the same Gate 1 reservation and traveled together, I
will reply as a unit.
The relative Gate 1 reservation number and passenger names are 
[redacted].
Below please find our full November 21 response to the claimants, answering
each of their issues.  We have offered compensation where we believe it was
warranted and explanations where required.  I believe that our response has been
full and accurate, however if any of these clients wish fuller explanation on
any particular topic it would be our pleasure to research where needed and
revert with our answer.
Respectfully,
Ilene P[redacted]
Senior Vice President
Gate 1 Travel
21 Nov 201411:22:58
From:
"Christine S[redacted]" [redacted]@gate1travel.comTo: "[redacted]"
[redacted]Subject: Reservation Numbers
[redacted]
Friday, November 21, 2014 11:20 AMDear [redacted] and all Group
Members,First of all thank you very much for your patience while we
reviewed your concerns about your recent Discovery tour to Zimbabwe, Botswana
and South Africa.We regret if any portion of your time traveling with us
did not fully meet your expectations. This is certainly never our intention. We
do appreciate that you have taken the time share your comments with us and given
us an opportunity to research these issues for you. This particular
Discovery program does not include a tour manager. We do try to give as much
detail as possible in the tour package highlights. This package included the
services of various English-speaking hosts and guides throughout, but no tour
manager. I regret any misunderstanding. After my contact with some of the group
members while you were traveling, we decided to add a manager and made
arrangements for Tessa to join the group as soon as feasible. Once Tessa joined
the group I believe the overall experienced improved.With regard to
whale watching, I am advised that it is not required to pre book this excursion.
There are apparently many options available and at different times throughout
the day. When asked, Tessa advised that due to the limited amount of time and
because October is the end of whale watching season, and the tours are weather
and ocean condition dependent, not to book the excursion. Additionally Hermanus
is approximately a two hour drive from Cape Town, and therefore an entire day
would have been required. Flight itineraries only include whether or not
a stop is included, not where that stop might be. I can understand your
apprehensions at learning that the stop was in West Africa, however not all
countries in West Africa have been affected by Ebola. Senegal is not within the
affected region (Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone). [redacted] takes
guidance from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) as well as the World Health
Organization (WHO), and have advised that they will continue to stop in Dakar
until or unless they are advised that it is unsafe. With regard to your
unanswered questions prior to departure, if you will please advise the dates of
those issues, I will review our telephone records. The reservation process is
several months long with numerous phone calls, and therefore those details would
be necessary in order to research these concerns. Regarding your delay
at the Victoria Falls Airport, I am advised that the cause was the arrival of
two flights at the same time. The South African Airline flight that usually
arrives before the British Airways flight, was delayed thereby causing both
flights to arrive simultaneously, and causing delay for all of the passengers.
Although you arrived later than expected to the lodge, we are pleased to know
that the David Livingston lecture was able to be rescheduled and all of the
included services were provided. I’ve itemized below each of your
concerns regarding the [redacted] Lodge, and the hotel’s management’s
responses.1) In regard to the claim that T.G. Mumba did not have good
customer service skills, they are confused as they have no staff member with
that name. Never-the-less, they will review their greeting and customer
services.2) Regarding inaccuracies given by the front desk personnel,
including the availability of blankets on safari, they have addressed the issues
with their guest relations staff, who acknowledged that blankets were not
provided as the weather conditions did not require them.3) Regarding the
[redacted] and [redacted] party having booked a triple room, but given two rooms far
from one another, apparently the guests after raising the issue with the hotel
staff, were accommodated with a cot in one of the rooms. The lodge sincerely
believed that providing two rooms was an offer of superior service, however they
were pleased to provide the triple room as requested. 4) With regard to
the inoperable ladies room lock, as all rooms, locks and services are checked
prior to guests arrival, it is concluded that this must have occurred during the
stay.5) As for meals, the executive chef has taken note of your
comments, and believes that there are sufficient variations on the buffets and
its presentation. I understand that the lines to the breakfast fryer and dinner
roastary were occasionally long, due to only one attendant chef at each.
6) As for the forgotten wake up service, upon further investigation
it appears the phone volume control had been silenced, perhaps by previous
guests. The hotel management apologizes for this.For the above
inconveniences, the hotel wishes to provide a refund equivalent to one nights
stay, $204.00 per room, for each of the group reservations, plus $35 per person
for reservation [redacted] as compensation for their undercooked
meal.As for the lack of triple accommodations (reservation
[redacted]) in Capetown, the hotel claims they had no knowledge of this request. Had
they known, they would have surely and immediately made the necessary changes.
We regret your disappointment with the Namibian Village
excursion, and wish to offer a full refund for each reservation in the amount of
$75.00 per person. We are very pleased to read that overall the
group enjoyed their stay at the [redacted], and that you received exemplary
service. The management kindly shared with with us the evaluations received from
the group members, and we are pleased to relate that their facility received
very high ratings. As a few issues were mentioned we have contacted the hotels
management for their review.The suggestion of fans is now being
investigated further for implementation for the new season. The scorpion and
mouse in the guide’s room has been personally looked into by the lodge manager.
No previous groups had reported any similar issues. However as this is an
authentic lodge in the bush, mice are certainly in the surroundings. Taking the
feedback of the guests very seriously, they have flown rodent specialist to the
lodge to ensure the avoidance of a bigger problem and also to inspect any
possible way to avoid any mice making it into the
camp/lodge.With regards to the drinks not being cool enough, it
seems that the bar/fridge was broken. The lodge manager made an alternative plan
to use a gas freezer. No feedback was given to the guide on the drinks not being
cool enough. Following our feedback he made the assumption that the gas freezer
was not cooling fast enough.Again, the lodge owner and team are
grateful for the feedback, mostly positive. In conclusion, we
believe that some issues do warrant compensation as noted above. We think that
providing Tessa to act as your tour manager and adding some enhancements such as
a private boat safari and enhanced wine tasting, helped to make your tour more
pleasurable. I was personally in contact with several tour members via e-mail.
It seemed to be the most efficient method of communication, in consideration of
the time differences. I assure you that Mr. D[redacted] alerted us immediately
regarding your concerns, and we responded in kind.As we wish
that no client is disappointed in any of our services, and look forward to
another opportunity to have you travel with us again, we ask all the group
members to kindly accept our additional goodwill gesture of $100.00 per person
future travel credit, valid for any guided tour, escorted tour or river cruise
until December 31, 2016.Upon receipt of each passengers written
agreement, our accounting department will immediately refund $204 for each room
at that [redacted] Lodge, $75.00 per person for the Namibia Village excursion
and have the $100.00 per person travel credit added to each applicable
reservation.Should you have any remaining questions please do
not hesitate to contact me.Kind regards,Christine
S[redacted] Vice President, Customer service
Ilene
P[redacted]Senior Vice Presidentip[redacted]@gate1travel.comph: ###-###-####,
Ext [redacted]fx: ###-###-####GATE 1More of The World For Less!Become a fan:
www.[redacted].com/gate1travelFollow
us: www.[redacted].com/gate1travel

Thank you for [redacted]'s comments.
We believe they do bear merit as there was little understanding of our procedure.
We will therefore credit the amount requested, representing the difference in the airfare.
I trust this will fully satisfy all parties.
Should you...

have any additional questions or concerns, please advise.Respectfully,
Ilene P[redacted]

[To assist us in bringing this matter to a close, you must give us a reason why you are rejecting the response. If no reason is received your complaint will be closed Administratively Resolved]
 Complaint: [redacted]
I am rejecting this response because:
this is not nor has been a case of “lost” luggage. Lost is defined as: unable to be found. Delayed is defined as be late or slow; loiter. The bags were
delivered to the Malewa Wildlife lodge on Monday 10/6; this has been confirmed by the [redacted] lodge who called on our behalf to Malewa. According to Gate 1
representative-Yussef and Jasepth, our bags had not arrived and the next day the story changed to Malewa would not release our bags to anyone but us. We
were told by Yussef, on Tuesday 10/7, we would have to go to [redacted] (Malewa) to claim our bags. At this time, I spoke with Gate 1 supervisor-Elizabeth who reiterated
over and over that they are not responsible for “lost” luggage and I would have to go to [redacted] to claim. This all stems from Gate 1 not acting as our Agent,
which they were paid to do so on our behalf. Yes, the airlines delayed our luggage and delivered to a place we were at the prior night. That is not in
dispute. What is in dispute, according to Gate 1, is that they could not pick up our luggage-even though jasepth indicated he would and had a signed release
from us allowing him to do so. To have my travel agent claim, as Ms. P[redacted] does, that because I was on tour, which made getting our luggage to us
difficult, is ridiculous. How can our travel agent claim this in good faith? They knew where we are located; after all they booked the lodges for us. How can Ms.
P[redacted] claim this made it difficult? How can Gate 1 claim that the [redacted] would not release the luggage to anyone but us, yet our luggage arrived to our hotel,
on our last day in Kenya,2 hours after checking out? This delayed luggage is a direct result of Gate 1 incompetence, lack of customer service and not acting as a proper agent for
their client’s. Gate 1 is using the delayed luggage, renaming it lost, as an excuse to shirk their responsibilities. Furthermore, to claim one has been compensated by our travel insurance for our loss doesn’t begin to
address the issues laid out in this complaint. We were reimbursed for the t-shirts and toiletries, certainly not compensated, but this does not begin to address
their failure to act in good faith as our agent. It is clear they did not do this.
Regards,
[redacted]