I booked my trip with All Singles Travel in February 2010 and I was sent a detailed itinerary showing the specific hotels that I would be staying in. All were in good locations and were 4 stars. I looked each one up on the internet and was pleased. Then, the first week of May 2010, I received an envelope from TSW Travel, an affiliate of All Singles Travel, with my travel tags, info as to flight delays, etc, and the very last page had detailed the accommodations. My trip was to begin on May 13 so this was received two weeks before departure. A cancellation at this point would mean no refund.
What I didn't notice was that this new little page listing the accommodations was now changed in 3 out of 4 cities! There was no amendment, no notice of change or any mention of hotel changes. I assumed such things would be brought to my attention or that I would be emailed, etc. I trusted that something of this nature would be flagged but it wasn't. The email that I did receive only said that the owner/operator Eric Kravitz would now be out of town and unavailable until the week of May 6, 2010. My trip was to begin on May 13, 2010.
So, the first hotel was what it was supposed to be but then from May 17 - May 23, every hotel was different and they were worse than the originally advertised ones. Check these out for yourself and see if they are apples and apples: In Rome, original hotel is Grand Hotel Palatino and the substitution is Residenza Di Ripetta. This hotel the bus dropped us two blocks away onto a busy street and told us to walk with our luggage to the hotel. In Florence, original hotel is Executive Hotel Florence and the substitution is Hotel Diplomat. This particular hotel was a dive. We were right across the street from a train station. The single women all felt unsafe in this area. In Venice, original hotel was Ca'dei Conti and substitution was Hotel Carlton on the Grand Canal. This location placed us 40 minutes walk from St. Marks Square, which is where our original hotel would've been.
Eric ** suggested that we pay 6 Euros to take us back and forth on the water taxis, etc. The bottom line is this is misrepresentation and possible fraud. There were other things wrong with this tour as well but I have chosen to stick to the accommodations to make it less lengthy. I believe that the operator of this tour benefited financially from switching these hotels. I don't think this is the first or last time that he will pull this stunt and I would like to get word out so that he can't do it to any more people.
