Extortion by Hotel/Makemytrip

[superstar@123]

Hello everyone, I need your urgent advice.

On September 28, 2024, I booked a hotel in Goa through HDFC SmartBuy for my stay starting December 25, 2024, and paid the full amount upfront. However, I just received a call from the hotel informing me about a mandatory Christmas Dinner Gala, for which I am now required to pay ₹2,100 per person! (total amount will be around 12k for all members).

(This amounts to nearly 50% of the total cost I’ve already paid for the stay!)

This feels both unfair and unethical. Has anyone else faced a similar situation, or do you have any suggestions on how I should handle this?

I’ve already raised the issue with the hotel and MakeMyTrip (HDFC SmartBuy’s partner), but neither has been cooperative so far. I’m currently discussing this with HDFC, but in the meantime, if anyone has any advice or has dealt with something similar, I’d greatly appreciate your input!

Thank you in advance!

 

[sousnake]

tagging few folks ..
@SSV @BVC @vaibhav111 @Vasuki @Sriim @Wealth is my birth right! @bhavyegoel

 

[tachniki]

I have seen this (for Christmas and New Year dinner) in most of good resort and hotel's term and conditions. At times, they mention even when I am not booking for those periods. I do agree it is unfair. But it is part of their t & c. If it was not shared with you during booking, go ahead and make some nosie on twitter. If branded hotel, they will hopefully care.

 

[sahilgulati5]

All brand hotels have this if u r staying with them on 25th or on 31st dec they charge you irrespective of whether you like it or not. This is happening from past few years.

 

[RAMESH BABU N]

Most of the hotels are now resorting to such dirty tricks. AFTER TAKING FULL ADVANCE - weeks or even months in advance - they are either

* Cancelling the booking in the last minute (when you are about to start your travel)

* Falsely intimating that some repair work is going on n not possible to accomodate

* Offering an alternative hotel - which is exactly not a hotel - but a rented house - away from the locality or at a god-forsaken-place

* The travel sites - which forced you to pay 100% or 50% advance - taking their own sweet time to respond or arrange for returning the money. Taking upto months to refund - that too - after adjusting some fee for service rendered

THIS RACKET IS IN PRACTICE FOR THE LAST 1 YEAR - MORE SO FROM POPULAR DESTINATIONS - like Goa, Varanasi, Ayodhya, Bangalore, Delhi. Specially, during wedding dates n special religious/festive days.

Be it MMT or EMT or Treebo or GoIbibo or Yatra or Cleartrip....,

These service providing platforms are OK - but they are unable to curb this malpractice done by individual properties - small n unbranded hotels.

 

[SHUB11]

I have seen this....newyear and Christmas gala dinners are mandatory...you may negotiate some discounts by creating noise.

 

[keerthirahul123]

Yes i have faced this and there is no way around it... You can probably negotiate on the prices etc.

 

[superstar@123]

Yes i have faced this and there is no way around it... You can probably negotiate on the prices etc.

But whether you were told at the time of booking ?

 

[sourpai]

It is usually mentioned at the time of booking also. You can try booking same property again via smartbuy and check T&Cs, or cancellation policy and you will find it.

 

[superstar@123]

It is usually mentioned at the time of booking also. You can try booking same property again via smartbuy and check T&Cs, or cancellation policy and you will find it.

That must have been introduced now but when I booked it, nothing of that was mentioned and neither its appearing in my booking voucher.

 

[sourpai]

That must have been introduced now but when I booked it, nothing of that was mentioned and neither its appearing in my booking voucher.

I have booked many properties and it is usually always mentioned when doing Dec month bookings. Don't think it has been introduced now as you mentioned. It must have been there. Best thing you can do now is negotiate on pricing and get it down as much as possible

 

[superstar@123]

I have booked many properties and it is usually always mentioned when doing Dec month bookings. Don't think it has been introduced now as you mentioned. It must have been there. Best thing you can do now is negotiate on pricing and get it down as much as possible

If that would have been mentioned, I have not booked it in the first place!
If it was there, it should have been mentioned as well in the voucher as well !

 

[superstar@123]

I have seen this....newyear and Christmas gala dinners are mandatory...you may negotiate some discounts by creating noise.

I am making noise for sure !!!
I am not going to leave it like that !!

 

[CARDBITRAGE]

Sadly, this is the case in most resorts/hotels around Christmas and New Year, so they are not scamming you. Your only option is to pay or request a reduction of the amount. The same would've been mentioned if you had booked directly with the resort or an OTA. It happened to us a few years ago in Goa and we convinced the resort to waive the charges for 2 out of 4 pax after some squabble as we did not want to participate in the gala dinner.

Alternatively, you can ask the resort to refund the amount stating that nothing about the gala dinner was made aware to you while booking, and if you're lucky, they may accept to waive the charge or cancel your booking. If that doesn't help, catch a hold of the smartbuy team and work it out with them.

 

[sourpai]

If that would have been mentioned, I have not booked it in the first place!
If it was there, it should have been mentioned as well in the voucher as well !

Sure... just giving you an example of one random property I checked on Smartbuy for Coorg for 25th to 26th dec booking... Pls check special instructions

While I am trying to tell you T&Cs, please fight it out if you feel so with restaurant. I do not agree to this policy as well

 

[tachniki]

This one actually says Christmas eve, which is 24th December. But OP is being asked to pay for 25th.

Sure... just giving you an example of one random property I checked on Smartbuy for Coorg for 25th to 26th dec booking... Pls check special instructions

While I am trying to tell you T&Cs, please fight it out if you feel so with restaurant. I do not agree to this policy as well

View attachment 78106View attachment 78107

 

[Sriim]

tagging few folks ..
@SSV @BVC @vaibhav111 @Vasuki @Sriim @Wealth is my birth right! @bhavyegoel

No relevant experience, sorry

 

[BVCBVC is verified member.]

tagging few folks ..
@SSV @BVC @vaibhav111 @Vasuki @Sriim @Wealth is my birth right! @bhavyegoel

Till now I haven't faced this kind of scenario, I personally don't travel during Christmas Eve.

If anything mentioned in T&C you are bound it.

 

[Swastik]

This one actually says Christmas eve, which is 24th December. But OP is being asked to pay for 25th.

It's Christmas and new year's eve, not Christmas eve

 

[shashankrt]

Hello everyone, I need your urgent advice.

On September 28, 2024, I booked a hotel in Goa through HDFC SmartBuy for my stay starting December 25, 2024, and paid the full amount upfront. However, I just received a call from the hotel informing me about a mandatory Christmas Dinner Gala, for which I am now required to pay ₹2,100 per person! (total amount will be around 12k for all members).

(This amounts to nearly 50% of the total cost I’ve already paid for the stay!)

This feels both unfair and unethical. Has anyone else faced a similar situation, or do you have any suggestions on how I should handle this?

I’ve already raised the issue with the hotel and MakeMyTrip (HDFC SmartBuy’s partner), but neither has been cooperative so far. I’m currently discussing this with HDFC, but in the meantime, if anyone has any advice or has dealt with something similar, I’d greatly appreciate your input!

Thank you in advance!

This is not new and neither illegal. Check your hotels terms and conditions. This gala thing will be mentioned.

This is the reason I never travel in last 2 weeks of Dec and 1st week of Jan as most hotels will rip u with these gala nonsense