Active Hotels www.activehotels.com Review

Overall Rating

Easy to book online, and they link to a wide variety of hotels in Europe.

There is zero, read, zero customer service. Do not bother using any of the advertised email addresses if you have a problem as they simply do not reply.

I had a simple query about the lack of information advertised on one of their hotel websites (the telephone number of the hotel was not posted) which led to me missing a check-in time for an 11:00pm reception closure, I ended-up waiting 8 hours in the hotel car park to get checked-in the following morning. Unsatisfactory.

For anyone that's interested, here are the two messages I sent to www.activehotels.com, to which I have received no response to date (circa 1 month), not even a "sorry, we can't help in this case".

On their investor relations website (news link below) the following information is proudly advertised "one of Europe's fastest-growing Internet hotel services and we possess an extensive knowledge of the European hotel business environment and an entrepreneurial spirit that we expect will fuel future growth for Priceline Europe and priceline.com,"

Here goes my messages to them:

Dear support at activehotels, no reply received as yet to my previous message (see below).

Regards, Mark Bxxxxxxxxx

========================================
Message Received: Jul 19 2006, 01:23 PM
From: "Mark Bxxxxxxxx"
To: support@activehotels.com
Cc:
Subject: Hotel Contact Problems - Hotel Booking, 33******

Dear Active Hotels, I booked online to stay at Campanile B thune - Fouqui res-les-B thune (France) from Friday 14th for 2 nights (see transaction confirmation below).

Due to a delayed ferry crossing from Dover, I arrived at the hotel at 23:15 hrs to find nobody at reception.

Fortunately (I thought) I had with me a print of the hotel details web page which states:

"Late arrivals: Guests must arrive at the hotel prior to 23:00. Your room cannot be guaranteed after 23:00. If you can't change your time of arrival, please contact the hotel prior to 23:00 local time". But this page does not advertise the telephone number of the hotel reception!!

You see my problem, I knew I was going to be late well in advance of 23:00 hrs, but was unable to contact the hotel reception because of a simple error in the web designer omitting the telephone number for the hotel!

There was an automated room key dispenser outside, but a special booking code is required to access the key, I later found this booking code was only available from reception, but of course reception is closed after 23:00!

I therefore only stayed at the hotel on Saturday 15th (I have the check-out receipt to confirm this), and the receptionist said I should only be paying for the one night.

In view of my unfortunate circumstances in having to stay awake all night waiting for reception to open at 08:00 on Saturday morning, all for being 15 minutes late, and unable to contact the hotel due to the telephone number for the hotel being omitted from the Active Hotels website for this hotel, can you please refund me 1 nights accommodation at 65 Euro?

It would be much appreciated.

Yours sincerely, Mark Bxxxxxxxx

P.S. all other aspects of the hotel and service were most satisfactory!


There you have it, a situation any customer orientated company could resolve quite easily. Instead, activehotels.com choose to ignore this kind of query. Unsatisfactory.