Gate 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 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 Reservation [redacted] /*** Thank you for your request for information in regard to the above referenced claim ** [redacted] purchased a trip on April 4, for travel on August 10, At the time of purchase, the Gate reservations agent explained the necessity of obtaining the requisite passports and visas, after which the Gate Terms & Conditions were sent again to Ms [redacted] following her payment Those Terms include the necessity of obtaining proper government documentation for international travel ** [redacted] contacted Gate on August from the airport Her companion had been denied boarding for lack of correct documentation She asked what options were available and was advised that they could go to the respective Embassy in NYC to obtain the visa She was advised the airline fees, providing they could fly the following day, as well as cancelation fees should they decide not to continue with their travel plans ** [redacted] had apparently thought, and stated as much to the Gate reservations agent, that her companion’s green card would be sufficient She also considered traveling alone without her companion Finally she decided that they would try to obtain a visa and travel the following day Gate called ** [redacted] the following day and was informed that they chose not to travel at all and advised us to cancel all services Again the reservations agent advised cancelation terms and fees ** [redacted] was not advised that she would receive credit for any services Upon review, we do not find that Gate acted incorrectly nor did we provide “ambiguous information” The reservation and subsequent services provided were strictly in accordance with our Terms & Conditions, agreed to by ** [redacted] at the time of reservation As this situation constitutes a last minute cancelation, service providers in accordance with contract have charged full penalty As such, no refund is possible Please advise if you should need any additional information or clarification Respectfully, Ilene P***Senior Vice President
Thank you for your request for information regarding the above-referenced claim [redacted] and her companion had participated in a river cruise which was unable to sail for much of the itinerary due to high water on the river It does happen during the cruising season that high or low water can affect the ability to sail and/or navigate under bridges and through locks The condition affects all river vessels, not only those of Gate In those cases, and as noted in our Terms & Conditions, the itinerary may be operated by motor coach and when necessary, accommodations will be provided by hotels We understand [redacted] disappointment When the ship is stuck, either because of low water condition or high water, the only was to accomplish the tour is by bus As long as the main itinerary features and itinerary are provided, the tour is not canceled nor is there monetary compensation for any necessary changes Never-the-less, we did approach the cruise ship’s management for consideration And although as previously stated the conditions were beyond their control and unavoidable, they have offered a goodwill gesture of $ refund per person Gate additionally added a goodwill future travel credit of $per person [redacted] has been made aware of the above offer and we trust that she and her traveling companion will choose to accept the settlement Sincerely, Ilene P [redacted] Senior Vice President
Re: Gate Reservation [redacted] / [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 $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, However Gate 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, $ Once we receive their agreement to our offer of compensation, we will process the refund directly Respectfully, Ilene P [redacted] Senior Vice President
Re: Gate Reservation [redacted] / [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 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 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 $ Upon ** [redacted] ’ agreement, we will process the $refund directly Respectfully, Ilene P [redacted] Senior Vice President
Re: Gate Reservation [redacted] / [redacted] [redacted] 's full refund was processedGate made no errors on her reservation Per our printed Terms & Conditions, which she necessarily agreed to prior to reserving her trip, "PRICES: Prices are per person based upon shared twin room occupancy." This is industry-wide standardUpon review, we find no basis for ** [redacted] 's demands.Kindly advise if you should require any further information Respectfully,Ilene P***Senior Vice PresidentGate Travel
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, 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 RequestGate Travel will request the Vendor to confirm the service(s) on your behalfIf, for any reason, the service is not able to be confirmed, Gate 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 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
Re: Gate Reservation [redacted] / [redacted] Thank you for your request for information regarding the above referenced claim We certainly regret the client’s personal loss and disappointment at having to cancel their Gate reservation However, as had been previously explained to them, Gate policies are strictly dictated by our vendors and are non-negotiable It is for this reason, among many others, that we urge our clients to purchase an insurance policy Unfortunately these clients chose not to purchase one from Gate In respect for their circumstances we did approach our land vendors and, as explained to them in January, succeeded in obtaining a credit of $which can be used towards a replacement trip within one year The airline ticket is fully non-refundable and non-changeable Clients have been advised to contact our office in order to secure a replacement date Their travel must be completed by December 9, and the above mentioned $will be transferred to the new booking They of course are responsible for any additional price differences I regret that there is no more we can do, however as previously stated, our Terms & Conditions are a reflection of our supplier policies Respectfully, 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 responseIf 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” luggageLost is defined as: unable to be foundDelayed is defined as be late or slow; loiterThe 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 MalewaAccording to Gate 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 usWe were told by Yussef, on Tuesday 10/7, we would have to go to [redacted] (Malewa) to claim our bagsAt this time, I spoke with Gate supervisor-Elizabeth who reiterated over and over that they are not responsible for “lost” luggage and I would have to go to [redacted] to claimThis all stems from Gate not acting as our Agent, which they were paid to do so on our behalfYes, the airlines delayed our luggage and delivered to a place we were at the prior nightThat is not in disputeWhat 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 soTo have my travel agent claim, as MsP [redacted] does, that because I was on tour, which made getting our luggage to us difficult, is ridiculousHow can our travel agent claim this in good faith? They knew where we are located; after all they booked the lodges for usHow can Ms P [redacted] claim this made it difficult? How can Gate 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,hours after checking out? This delayed luggage is a direct result of Gate incompetence, lack of customer service and not acting as a proper agent for their client’sGate is using the delayed luggage, renaming it lost, as an excuse to shirk their responsibilitiesFurthermore, to claim one has been compensated by our travel insurance for our loss doesn’t begin to address the issues laid out in this complaintWe 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 agentIt is clear they did not do this Regards, [redacted]
Re: Gate Reservation [redacted] / [redacted] Thank you for your request for information in regard to the above referenced reservation** [redacted] reserved the trip online by herself using a [redacted] promotion She opted to purchase standard travel protection, which provides refunds for anything construed by the insurance carrier as emergency, and declined the cancel for any reason policy, which would have provided protection in form of travel credits for cancelation for any reason A Gate service agent sent her the terms of cancellation along with directions on how to proceed with cancellation process The client was unhappy as she claimed that she found the trip cheaper elsewhere We informed her that the airline would allow her to use the value of the airline ticket to complete travel for up to one year from the original date of purchase with an airline change fee of per person and of course any applicable fare difference As a goodwill gesture, we offered her a refund of her deposit Every attempt was made to try and work with ** [redacted] , however she would consider nothing less then a full refund She did initiate a credit card chargeback, however lost the dispute Please advise if you should require any additional information Respectfully, Ilene P [redacted] Senior Vice President
Re: Gate Reservation [redacted] / [redacted] Thank you for your request for information in regard to the above referenced reservation Upon review we found that indeed there was a delay in boarding the train The [redacted] did however board and depart as scheduled The train was reportedly high speed rail with only one stop in the town of Zaraogoza for the purpose of disembarking passengers The [redacted] did not have to disembark until they arrived at their destination The [redacted] received all services purchased and therefore we find no basis for refund of their tour However we do appreciate the confusion the [redacted] experienced at the rail station prior to embarking the train, and in respect for that issue are prepared to offer them $per person credit which may be applied towards any Gate escorted or cruise program purchased Upon written receipt of their agreement, the credits will be placed into their account They may be used at any time with no expiration date 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 reservation and traveled together, I will reply as a unit The relative Gate reservation number and passenger names are [redacted] / [redacted] / [redacted] / [redacted] Below please find our full November 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 Travel Nov 201411:22:From: "Christine S [redacted] " [redacted] @gate1travel.comTo: " [redacted] " [redacted] @ [redacted] Subject: Reservation Numbers [redacted] / [redacted] / [redacted] / [redacted] / [redacted] / [redacted] / [redacted] Friday, November 21, 11: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 expectationsThis is certainly never our intentionWe do appreciate that you have taken the time share your comments with us and given us an opportunity to research these issues for youThis particular [redacted] program does not include a tour managerWe do try to give as much detail as possible in the tour package highlightsThis package included the services of various English-speaking hosts and guides throughout, but no tour managerI regret any misunderstandingAfter 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 feasibleOnce [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 dayWhen 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 excursionAdditionally Hermanus is approximately a two hour drive from Cape Town, and therefore an entire day would have been requiredFlight itineraries only include whether or not a stop is included, not where that stop might beI can understand your apprehensions at learning that the stop was in West Africa, however not all countries in West Africa have been affected by EbolaSenegal 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 unsafeWith regard to your unanswered questions prior to departure, if you will please advise the dates of those issues, I will review our telephone recordsThe reservation process is several months long with numerous phone calls, and therefore those details would be necessary in order to research these concernsRegarding your delay at the Victoria Falls Airport, I am advised that the cause was the arrival of two flights at the same timeThe [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 providedI’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 nameNever-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 roomsThe lodge sincerely believed that providing two rooms was an offer of superior service, however they were pleased to provide the triple room as requested4) 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 presentationI 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 guestsThe hotel management apologizes for this.For the above inconveniences, the hotel wishes to provide a refund equivalent to one nights stay, $per room, for each of the group reservations, plus $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 requestHad 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 $per personWe are very pleased to read that overall the group enjoyed their stay at the [redacted] Lodge, and that you received exemplary serviceThe 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 ratingsAs 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 seasonThe scorpion and mouse in the guide’s room has been personally looked into by the lodge manager No previous groups had reported any similar issuesHowever as this is an authentic lodge in the bush, mice are certainly in the surroundingsTaking 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 brokenThe lodge manager made an alternative plan to use a gas freezerNo feedback was given to the guide on the drinks not being cool enoughFollowing 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 positiveIn conclusion, we believe that some issues do warrant compensation as noted aboveWe 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 pleasurableI 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 differencesI 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 $per person future travel credit, valid for any guided tour, escorted tour or river cruise until December 31, Upon receipt of each passengers written agreement, our accounting department will immediately refund $for each room at that [redacted] Lodge, $per person for the Namibia Village excursion and have the $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***Senior Vice President [redacted] @gate1travel.comph: ###-###-####, Ext ***fx: ###-###-####GATE 1More of The World For Less!Become a fan: www[redacted] com/gate1travelFollow us: www[redacted] .com/gate1travel
[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 Reservation [redacted] / [redacted] Thank you for your request for information in regard to the above referenced claim Per our response to the ***s earlier this month and having received no other similar guest feedback, we contend that these guests were never in any danger Gate took all precautions that in the event that there would be road blockages, our guests were escorted to their destination via tour bus Personal danger was no greater a concern on this tour than at any other time during any given tour Our Peru office confirms that there were no items thrown at the tour bus There was no report of violence directed at our passengers Regular briefings were delivered by our Tour Managers to the guests Gate even made an unscheduled stop at a hotel for a bathroom and rest stop and to meet quietly off the tour bus Alternate routes were scheduled in order to avoid road blocks, not because of safety concerns Refunds for non-provided services have been processed as follows: $on Oct (representing the Pisac Village Tour) $on Nov (representing the Cuzco Tour and Cuzco Home Hosted Dinner) In conclusion and after review, we find no basis for additional compensation Strikes in Peru are common, and although they can sometimes be the cause of itinerary or schedule changes, have never been cause for tour cancelation Respectfully, Ilene P [redacted] Senior Vice President
Re: Gate 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***
We do believe that had [redacted] visited the school she might have come away with a different opinion Until now we have never received a negative remark on our practice of aiding local school children On the contrary, the visits are received so well by both the schools and Gate guests that we continue to enhance the program throughout the world Gate does support these schools by way of providing supplies and constructing facilities No clients are ever asked for financial support There is never any pressure to bring “gifts” to the children I trust this well explains our position Sincerely, Ilene P***
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 meMy main reason for reaching out to the Revdex.com was because of the poor customer service I received and the unwillingness to helpPlease kindly address the issue of customer relations/service with sales rep that handled my case Thank you, [redacted]
[To assist us in bringing this matter to a close, you must give us a reason why you are rejecting the responseIf no reason is received your complaint will be closed as Answered] Complaint: [redacted] I am rejecting this response because:Gateis lyingWe did not leave the group on our own to find alternate solutions with [redacted] The tour manager [redacted] came out of the boarding area, through the security checkpoint and into the non-secure ticketing areaHe personally told us to stand in the line at the [redacted] ticket counter while he was trying to reach the local travel officeHe then disappeared without informing usThis act by him led us to being strandedI will contact my fellow passengers from the tour group to prove itI am even ready to get on a conference call and talk to him directly to confirm thisAnother lie that I would like to debunk is that we could have made our original international flight if we had stayed with the group (should I remind again that the tour manager asked us to leave the group and stand in line with [redacted] )The delayed flight left Namibia at 6:48pm and reached Johannesburg at 8:31pmI have a letter from [redacted] confirming these times (see attached files from [redacted] and [redacted] .com)Our connecting flight from Johannesburg was at 7:55pmHow do you expect us to make the 7:55pm connection if the delayed flight landed at 8:31pm?The final lie I would like to clarify is I did call Gatefor alternate travel arrangements after I was left strandedGateasked me to pay out of pocket to issue my air tickets to fly directly from Namibia to Frankfurt to USAThey never mentioned anything about staying on with the original delayed flight.It is pathetic that Gate will not accept responsibility for how their tour manager behaved and caused this hardship on usWe don’t care who you contract with locallyFor us, the tour manager is a GaterepresentativeIf the tour manager makes a mistake, he needs to own up to it and Gateneeds to be held accountable for such gross negligenceRegards, [redacted]
[To assist us in bringing this matter to a close, you must give us a reason why you are rejecting the responseIf no reason is received your complaint will be closed Administratively Resolved] Complaint: [redacted] I am rejecting this response because:The concerns stated in the complaint were addressed unsatisfactorily, generically, and selectively We were told that the Going to the [redacted] was closed because they had not yet put up the guard rails which needed to be done before it opened for the season and that it was usually not open at this time of year The response did not deal with the Tour Guide's incompetent and unprofessional behavior There was no evidence that anyone was incompatible or disruptive to the group and the tour guide never mentioned this to any of us It did not deal with the fact that the removal of people was stopped by the supervisor after he was called MsP [redacted] did acknowledge the Tour Guide's mistake in trying to throw the people off the tour ("Fortunately it did not become necessary.") Our claim follows this mistake that caused us a lot of emotional harm Regards, [redacted]
Gate 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 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 Reservation [redacted] /*** Thank you for your request for information in regard to the above referenced claim ** [redacted] purchased a trip on April 4, for travel on August 10, At the time of purchase, the Gate reservations agent explained the necessity of obtaining the requisite passports and visas, after which the Gate Terms & Conditions were sent again to Ms [redacted] following her payment Those Terms include the necessity of obtaining proper government documentation for international travel ** [redacted] contacted Gate on August from the airport Her companion had been denied boarding for lack of correct documentation She asked what options were available and was advised that they could go to the respective Embassy in NYC to obtain the visa She was advised the airline fees, providing they could fly the following day, as well as cancelation fees should they decide not to continue with their travel plans ** [redacted] had apparently thought, and stated as much to the Gate reservations agent, that her companion’s green card would be sufficient She also considered traveling alone without her companion Finally she decided that they would try to obtain a visa and travel the following day Gate called ** [redacted] the following day and was informed that they chose not to travel at all and advised us to cancel all services Again the reservations agent advised cancelation terms and fees ** [redacted] was not advised that she would receive credit for any services Upon review, we do not find that Gate acted incorrectly nor did we provide “ambiguous information” The reservation and subsequent services provided were strictly in accordance with our Terms & Conditions, agreed to by ** [redacted] at the time of reservation As this situation constitutes a last minute cancelation, service providers in accordance with contract have charged full penalty As such, no refund is possible Please advise if you should need any additional information or clarification Respectfully, Ilene P***Senior Vice President
Thank you for your request for information regarding the above-referenced claim [redacted] and her companion had participated in a river cruise which was unable to sail for much of the itinerary due to high water on the river It does happen during the cruising season that high or low water can affect the ability to sail and/or navigate under bridges and through locks The condition affects all river vessels, not only those of Gate In those cases, and as noted in our Terms & Conditions, the itinerary may be operated by motor coach and when necessary, accommodations will be provided by hotels We understand [redacted] disappointment When the ship is stuck, either because of low water condition or high water, the only was to accomplish the tour is by bus As long as the main itinerary features and itinerary are provided, the tour is not canceled nor is there monetary compensation for any necessary changes Never-the-less, we did approach the cruise ship’s management for consideration And although as previously stated the conditions were beyond their control and unavoidable, they have offered a goodwill gesture of $ refund per person Gate additionally added a goodwill future travel credit of $per person [redacted] has been made aware of the above offer and we trust that she and her traveling companion will choose to accept the settlement Sincerely, Ilene P [redacted] Senior Vice President
Re: Gate Reservation [redacted] / [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 $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, However Gate 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, $ Once we receive their agreement to our offer of compensation, we will process the refund directly Respectfully, Ilene P [redacted] Senior Vice President
Re: Gate Reservation [redacted] / [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 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 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 $ Upon ** [redacted] ’ agreement, we will process the $refund directly Respectfully, Ilene P [redacted] Senior Vice President
Re: Gate Reservation [redacted] / [redacted] [redacted] 's full refund was processedGate made no errors on her reservation Per our printed Terms & Conditions, which she necessarily agreed to prior to reserving her trip, "PRICES: Prices are per person based upon shared twin room occupancy." This is industry-wide standardUpon review, we find no basis for ** [redacted] 's demands.Kindly advise if you should require any further information Respectfully,Ilene P***Senior Vice PresidentGate Travel
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, 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 RequestGate Travel will request the Vendor to confirm the service(s) on your behalfIf, for any reason, the service is not able to be confirmed, Gate 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 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
Re: Gate Reservation [redacted] / [redacted] Thank you for your request for information regarding the above referenced claim We certainly regret the client’s personal loss and disappointment at having to cancel their Gate reservation However, as had been previously explained to them, Gate policies are strictly dictated by our vendors and are non-negotiable It is for this reason, among many others, that we urge our clients to purchase an insurance policy Unfortunately these clients chose not to purchase one from Gate In respect for their circumstances we did approach our land vendors and, as explained to them in January, succeeded in obtaining a credit of $which can be used towards a replacement trip within one year The airline ticket is fully non-refundable and non-changeable Clients have been advised to contact our office in order to secure a replacement date Their travel must be completed by December 9, and the above mentioned $will be transferred to the new booking They of course are responsible for any additional price differences I regret that there is no more we can do, however as previously stated, our Terms & Conditions are a reflection of our supplier policies Respectfully, 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 responseIf 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” luggageLost is defined as: unable to be foundDelayed is defined as be late or slow; loiterThe 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 MalewaAccording to Gate 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 usWe were told by Yussef, on Tuesday 10/7, we would have to go to [redacted] (Malewa) to claim our bagsAt this time, I spoke with Gate supervisor-Elizabeth who reiterated over and over that they are not responsible for “lost” luggage and I would have to go to [redacted] to claimThis all stems from Gate not acting as our Agent, which they were paid to do so on our behalfYes, the airlines delayed our luggage and delivered to a place we were at the prior nightThat is not in disputeWhat 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 soTo have my travel agent claim, as MsP [redacted] does, that because I was on tour, which made getting our luggage to us difficult, is ridiculousHow can our travel agent claim this in good faith? They knew where we are located; after all they booked the lodges for usHow can Ms P [redacted] claim this made it difficult? How can Gate 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,hours after checking out? This delayed luggage is a direct result of Gate incompetence, lack of customer service and not acting as a proper agent for their client’sGate is using the delayed luggage, renaming it lost, as an excuse to shirk their responsibilitiesFurthermore, to claim one has been compensated by our travel insurance for our loss doesn’t begin to address the issues laid out in this complaintWe 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 agentIt is clear they did not do this Regards, [redacted]
Re: Gate Reservation [redacted] / [redacted] Thank you for your request for information in regard to the above referenced reservation** [redacted] reserved the trip online by herself using a [redacted] promotion She opted to purchase standard travel protection, which provides refunds for anything construed by the insurance carrier as emergency, and declined the cancel for any reason policy, which would have provided protection in form of travel credits for cancelation for any reason A Gate service agent sent her the terms of cancellation along with directions on how to proceed with cancellation process The client was unhappy as she claimed that she found the trip cheaper elsewhere We informed her that the airline would allow her to use the value of the airline ticket to complete travel for up to one year from the original date of purchase with an airline change fee of per person and of course any applicable fare difference As a goodwill gesture, we offered her a refund of her deposit Every attempt was made to try and work with ** [redacted] , however she would consider nothing less then a full refund She did initiate a credit card chargeback, however lost the dispute Please advise if you should require any additional information Respectfully, Ilene P [redacted] Senior Vice President
Re: Gate Reservation [redacted] / [redacted] Thank you for your request for information in regard to the above referenced reservation Upon review we found that indeed there was a delay in boarding the train The [redacted] did however board and depart as scheduled The train was reportedly high speed rail with only one stop in the town of Zaraogoza for the purpose of disembarking passengers The [redacted] did not have to disembark until they arrived at their destination The [redacted] received all services purchased and therefore we find no basis for refund of their tour However we do appreciate the confusion the [redacted] experienced at the rail station prior to embarking the train, and in respect for that issue are prepared to offer them $per person credit which may be applied towards any Gate escorted or cruise program purchased Upon written receipt of their agreement, the credits will be placed into their account They may be used at any time with no expiration date 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 reservation and traveled together, I will reply as a unit The relative Gate reservation number and passenger names are [redacted] / [redacted] / [redacted] / [redacted] Below please find our full November 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 Travel Nov 201411:22:From: "Christine S [redacted] " [redacted] @gate1travel.comTo: " [redacted] " [redacted] @ [redacted] Subject: Reservation Numbers [redacted] / [redacted] / [redacted] / [redacted] / [redacted] / [redacted] / [redacted] Friday, November 21, 11: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 expectationsThis is certainly never our intentionWe do appreciate that you have taken the time share your comments with us and given us an opportunity to research these issues for youThis particular [redacted] program does not include a tour managerWe do try to give as much detail as possible in the tour package highlightsThis package included the services of various English-speaking hosts and guides throughout, but no tour managerI regret any misunderstandingAfter 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 feasibleOnce [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 dayWhen 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 excursionAdditionally Hermanus is approximately a two hour drive from Cape Town, and therefore an entire day would have been requiredFlight itineraries only include whether or not a stop is included, not where that stop might beI can understand your apprehensions at learning that the stop was in West Africa, however not all countries in West Africa have been affected by EbolaSenegal 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 unsafeWith regard to your unanswered questions prior to departure, if you will please advise the dates of those issues, I will review our telephone recordsThe reservation process is several months long with numerous phone calls, and therefore those details would be necessary in order to research these concernsRegarding your delay at the Victoria Falls Airport, I am advised that the cause was the arrival of two flights at the same timeThe [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 providedI’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 nameNever-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 roomsThe lodge sincerely believed that providing two rooms was an offer of superior service, however they were pleased to provide the triple room as requested4) 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 presentationI 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 guestsThe hotel management apologizes for this.For the above inconveniences, the hotel wishes to provide a refund equivalent to one nights stay, $per room, for each of the group reservations, plus $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 requestHad 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 $per personWe are very pleased to read that overall the group enjoyed their stay at the [redacted] Lodge, and that you received exemplary serviceThe 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 ratingsAs 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 seasonThe scorpion and mouse in the guide’s room has been personally looked into by the lodge manager No previous groups had reported any similar issuesHowever as this is an authentic lodge in the bush, mice are certainly in the surroundingsTaking 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 brokenThe lodge manager made an alternative plan to use a gas freezerNo feedback was given to the guide on the drinks not being cool enoughFollowing 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 positiveIn conclusion, we believe that some issues do warrant compensation as noted aboveWe 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 pleasurableI 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 differencesI 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 $per person future travel credit, valid for any guided tour, escorted tour or river cruise until December 31, Upon receipt of each passengers written agreement, our accounting department will immediately refund $for each room at that [redacted] Lodge, $per person for the Namibia Village excursion and have the $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***Senior Vice President [redacted] @gate1travel.comph: ###-###-####, Ext ***fx: ###-###-####GATE 1More of The World For Less!Become a fan: www[redacted] com/gate1travelFollow us: www[redacted] .com/gate1travel
[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 Reservation [redacted] / [redacted] Thank you for your request for information in regard to the above referenced claim Per our response to the ***s earlier this month and having received no other similar guest feedback, we contend that these guests were never in any danger Gate took all precautions that in the event that there would be road blockages, our guests were escorted to their destination via tour bus Personal danger was no greater a concern on this tour than at any other time during any given tour Our Peru office confirms that there were no items thrown at the tour bus There was no report of violence directed at our passengers Regular briefings were delivered by our Tour Managers to the guests Gate even made an unscheduled stop at a hotel for a bathroom and rest stop and to meet quietly off the tour bus Alternate routes were scheduled in order to avoid road blocks, not because of safety concerns Refunds for non-provided services have been processed as follows: $on Oct (representing the Pisac Village Tour) $on Nov (representing the Cuzco Tour and Cuzco Home Hosted Dinner) In conclusion and after review, we find no basis for additional compensation Strikes in Peru are common, and although they can sometimes be the cause of itinerary or schedule changes, have never been cause for tour cancelation Respectfully, Ilene P [redacted] Senior Vice President
Re: Gate 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***
We do believe that had [redacted] visited the school she might have come away with a different opinion Until now we have never received a negative remark on our practice of aiding local school children On the contrary, the visits are received so well by both the schools and Gate guests that we continue to enhance the program throughout the world Gate does support these schools by way of providing supplies and constructing facilities No clients are ever asked for financial support There is never any pressure to bring “gifts” to the children I trust this well explains our position Sincerely, Ilene P***
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 meMy main reason for reaching out to the Revdex.com was because of the poor customer service I received and the unwillingness to helpPlease kindly address the issue of customer relations/service with sales rep that handled my case Thank you, [redacted]
[To assist us in bringing this matter to a close, you must give us a reason why you are rejecting the responseIf no reason is received your complaint will be closed as Answered] Complaint: [redacted] I am rejecting this response because:Gateis lyingWe did not leave the group on our own to find alternate solutions with [redacted] The tour manager [redacted] came out of the boarding area, through the security checkpoint and into the non-secure ticketing areaHe personally told us to stand in the line at the [redacted] ticket counter while he was trying to reach the local travel officeHe then disappeared without informing usThis act by him led us to being strandedI will contact my fellow passengers from the tour group to prove itI am even ready to get on a conference call and talk to him directly to confirm thisAnother lie that I would like to debunk is that we could have made our original international flight if we had stayed with the group (should I remind again that the tour manager asked us to leave the group and stand in line with [redacted] )The delayed flight left Namibia at 6:48pm and reached Johannesburg at 8:31pmI have a letter from [redacted] confirming these times (see attached files from [redacted] and [redacted] .com)Our connecting flight from Johannesburg was at 7:55pmHow do you expect us to make the 7:55pm connection if the delayed flight landed at 8:31pm?The final lie I would like to clarify is I did call Gatefor alternate travel arrangements after I was left strandedGateasked me to pay out of pocket to issue my air tickets to fly directly from Namibia to Frankfurt to USAThey never mentioned anything about staying on with the original delayed flight.It is pathetic that Gate will not accept responsibility for how their tour manager behaved and caused this hardship on usWe don’t care who you contract with locallyFor us, the tour manager is a GaterepresentativeIf the tour manager makes a mistake, he needs to own up to it and Gateneeds to be held accountable for such gross negligenceRegards, [redacted]
We remind [redacted] that our policies strictly reflect our vendors policies We provided the maximum possible lenienceRespectfully, Ilene P***
[To assist us in bringing this matter to a close, you must give us a reason why you are rejecting the responseIf no reason is received your complaint will be closed Administratively Resolved] Complaint: [redacted] I am rejecting this response because:The concerns stated in the complaint were addressed unsatisfactorily, generically, and selectively We were told that the Going to the [redacted] was closed because they had not yet put up the guard rails which needed to be done before it opened for the season and that it was usually not open at this time of year The response did not deal with the Tour Guide's incompetent and unprofessional behavior There was no evidence that anyone was incompatible or disruptive to the group and the tour guide never mentioned this to any of us It did not deal with the fact that the removal of people was stopped by the supervisor after he was called MsP [redacted] did acknowledge the Tour Guide's mistake in trying to throw the people off the tour ("Fortunately it did not become necessary.") Our claim follows this mistake that caused us a lot of emotional harm Regards, [redacted]