Tuesday, February 20, 2018

Is TravelGenio a Scam?

It is always a good idea to compare the flight prices across multiple travel agent sites before actually buying them. Skyscanner is a web site that lets you compare the flight prices across multiple sites such as TravelGenio, Tripsta, and eDreams.

TravelGenio, has always been the poortest performer across many of the flight booking sites that I tried. However, I keep falling for them again and again as they list the lowest price. But, TravelGenio is the best in their bait-and-switch pricing strategy. For example, a price may be listed as 506 Euro. But when you are about to pay, it will increase by 10 Euro for many of the popular cards. As of today, only Visa Credit and Maestro cards offer the promised price. Others have an increase of 10 Euro for the flight of 506 (thus making the price 516 Euro).

However, I had even worse experiences with them.

I share my 2 bad experiences below:


First bad experience:

After booking the flight and everything was finalized and confirmed (they even had the payment finalized from my debit card), Travelgenio sent me the below email from the address infort@corp.travelgenio.com.

Caro Cliente,
Tal como lhe informamos no processo de compra, a reserva que tentou realizar não pôde ser confirmada pela linha aérea.
Como alternativa, realizámos uma reserva com a melhor tarifa disponível e com vôos semelhantes.
A nova reserva que realizámos possui localizador 4KB5FY e está garantida durante o dia de hoje.
Necessitamos, por favor, que nos confirme se deseja adquirir ou não esta nova reserva, caso contrário, procederemos à sua anulação sem qualquer tipo de gasto.
Envio-lhe em outro e-mail o itinerário detalhado da reserva para que possa verificar se os vôos são do seu interesse.
Ficaremos aguardando as suas instruções.
A tarifa mais económica que lhe podemos oferecer é 60.00 Euros superior ao importe que reservou inicialmente
Muito obrigado.

[Goolge Translation:
Dear Customer,
As we inform you in the buying process, the reservation who tried to perform could not be confirmed by the airline.
Alternatively, we made a reservation with the best available rate and with similar flights.
The new reserve that has held locator 4KB5FY and is guaranteed during the day.
We need, please let us confirm whether to purchase or not this new reservation, otherwise, proceed to its cancellation without any expense.
I send you another e-mail the detailed itinerary of booking so you can check if the flights are of interest.
We'll be waiting for your instructions.
The lowest fare we can offer is 60.00 euros to import higher than initially reserved
Thank you very much.
]


I replied:
Hi,
When I initially checked, the price indicated 752 Euro for 2 passengers. Then when I was about to pay, the price increased to 806,70 Euro, and I still paid and reserved the tickets. So that already is an increase of around 54 Euro.

Are you telling me that you are going to charge me an additional 60 Euro, making it 866 Euro, or are you telling me that you are going to charge 120 Euro more (60 Euro per person), and make it 926 Euro?
This is so frustrating. Please let me know and clarify how much is the current price, and how much, in addition to the 806 Euro that was reserved I should pay, so that I can confirm. Also let me know, how long will it take you to refund the amount, if I decide to cancel the booking.
Is there is a way I can create a bug report or feedback for this weird behaviour of the system?

I have used Travelgenio before, and it never had similar issues. It seems probably some management or other policy changes leading to this behaviour. I would stop using Travelgenio and instruct my friends and colleagues to do so (through social media, and travel reviews, etc), if this issue is not smoothly resolved.
Also, is this a real email, or a scammer impersonating Travelgenio? The email looks so unprofessional and extremely weird.

Regards,
Pradeeban.


Their reply:
Dear Customer,
 
Thank you for contacting Travelgenio.
 
In reference to your e-mail we inform you that the total amount is eur 864.74.
Please let us know on how to proced with the booking.
 
Yours sincerely,



I replied:
Ok, you may proceed with this for the total amount of 864.74 Euro. Please finalize this soon. Please do not keep randomly increasing the price further.
Also send a finalized invoice and confirmation to my email account once this is done and completed.
I do not want to mess up with my travel due to the mishaps in your system and policies.

Regards,
Pradeeban.


I was angry. So I replied once more:
I booked using Travelgenio, because it indicated 752 Euro. Otherwise, I would have used Travel2Be which showed a bit higher price (around 800 Euro, if I remember correct). Now finally I have to pay 864.70 Euro due to the inefficiency in Travelgenio. I wish your system was more effective. Also I noticed that the flight slots are quickly filling up. So I want to finalize this sooner. I do not want you to further increase the price or change the flight schedules.

I will be happy with your customer service, if you still could go ahead with 806,70 Euro, the amount I paid for, during the registration. If customer satisfaction is nothing for you, and if you still think it is not possible, you may go ahead with the 864.74 Euro as I indicated in the previous email.

I am writing up a blog post based on this experience. The ending and the verdict of that review blog post depends on how this issue is resolved.

Thank you.
Regards,
Pradeeban.


Eventually, I checked the prices online and with the local travel agent, and it turned out the prices went up during this delay, even in the other web sites. So I decided to pay TravelGenio the additional amount they asked, despite feeling betrayed.


During this conversation, I was not aware that Travel2Be actually has a partnership with TravelGenio, and they are probably owned by a single company. I later learned that from the TravelGenio web site itself, and from the signature of the emails I received:


Dear Customer,

Regarding the invoice for this booking, we have forward the information given to the corresponding department and as fast as possible you will receive the corresponding invoice.

We remain at your full disposition should you have any questions or need any further information.

Thank you and kind regards,


TRAVELGENIO/TRAVEL2BE

--
Giuditta
User Satisfaction Agent
Travelgenio.com



Second bad experience: 


Interestingly, I did not really remember the first experience when I booked another flight after some time. I just went for the cheapest option.
I paid for TravelGenio once more for another flight. Only after paying, I realized something not right. I immediately sent them this email:


When I was booking, it showed 154.01$. Suddenly the total appeared as 157.01$ with no explanation. Pls see the screenshot.
I expect an explanation how the 3$ is added to the final value magically.
Regards,
Pradeeban.
3$ magically added to the price.



Their reply:

Dear Pradeeban Kathiravelu,
Thank you for contacting our Advanced Support Department and sharing your comments with us. The feedback of our customers helps us to improve our products every day as well as the customer care provided.
We are writing to you regarding your booking T6T7FI.
In reference to your query, let us inform you that the prices shown at the availability page are subject to discounts and/or surcharges that will apply according to the payment form selected by you when you do the purchase.
At the payment page you can verify the payment methods available as well as the surcharges that apply to each one of them. If you select a payment method without discount, the price will change and the page will be immediately updated. As a consequence and before you confirm your booking definitely, you will be able to see, next to the “purchase” button, the final price you will have to pay according to the selected payment method.

However, and even if the final price, including surcharges, was shown before you confirmed the purchase, we understand your situation and therefore, as a goodwill gesture, we have refunded the amount corresponding to 3 usd, as you requested.
We hope you will travel with us again soon.
Kind regards,


Their reply was weird, cryptic, self-serving, and unnecessarily long (also not at all apologizing for their mess up). They just should have apologized for the technical glitch and refunded. However, I indeed received the 3$ back to my bank account. Nevertheless, if I did not pay attention, or if I did not complain, I would have lost my 3$.


Summary: TravelGenio may not be entirely a scam. But it follows shady business practices. Travel2Be is in fact another site managed by them.


VERDICT: AVOID TravelGenio and Travel2Be at any cost! 

TravelGenio and Travel2Be are scams. So what are the alternatives? Read my recommendations - My experience with flight reservation sites

74 comments:

  1. Hi,

    thank you for your post. I'm currently struggling to find any of my reservations on"manage my booking" on the three airlines I'm booked on. Did you actually get on your flight? i've read reviews of flights not booked. or flights were booked only one way, then return flights were doubled. im furious at myself for not doing enough research before the purchase.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Sorry for the late reply. I was in the similar situation as you. Frustrated and irritated. I got on the flights after paying the extra money they demanded - I had no choice by that time. I hope you got the flight too. Now I always avoid TravelGenio and its affiliates such as Travel2Be.

      Delete
    2. Can you please help in letting me know by when do the tickets come in?
      My card has been charged and i got an email confirmation from them stating tickets will come in 72 hours, its been 36 hours already and no ticket
      They dont reply on email or pick calls

      Delete
  2. Scampedia is an app which wants to help you make your smartphone fraudulent free and share your scam story freely without being identified
    scammers list App

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Do you know the limitation of the Scampedia Scammers List App you created? It works if you want to create awareness of unknown online scammers such as the popular "Nigerian princes". But it is irrelevant when we deal with a well-known company such as TravelGenio that attempts to scam its customers. Thanks for sharing the link anyway. It does not work though.

      Delete
  3. Cuidado al comprar un boleto aereo con Travelgenio on Skyscanner,no son responsables, realizan o hacen ventas de boletos sin tenerlos disponible,te dicen esta confirmado tu booking pero luego de 3 a 4 horas te dicen que esta cancelado el booking,

    Booking cancelled - 2XWP48, que forma de trabajar tan irresponsables,esto tiene un nombre:ESTAFA

    stay away from Travelgenio, they are not seem to be scammers.they are scammers

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Sorry to hear this happened to you. Travelgenio is indeed scammers.

      Delete
  4. I have read your article, it is very informative and helpful for me.I admire the valuable information you offer in your articles. Thanks for posting it..Hotel Frankfurt-Oder

    ReplyDelete
  5. i was almost going to buy a ticket from Travelgenio but changed my decision after reading all these review. Thanks for heads up

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I am glad you avoided the risk. Often when I check flight prices on SkyScanner, TravelGenio or Travel2Be come as the cheapest. I carefully avoid these 2 sites. Sometimes new websites pop up with the cheapest offer. I give them a chance, after checking their rating and a Google search for their reviews. Good luck.

      Delete
    2. I WAS BOOKING TICKET FLIGHT ON TRAVELGENIO ALSO BUT STILL CAN'T DO PAYMENT TRANSACTION BCOZ MY MASTERCARD DEBIT CAN'T PROCCES...AND NOW THE STATUS OF MY TICKET IS PENDING ...AND CAN I BOOKING TO ANOTHER TRAVEL AGENT DIRECTLY OR WAITING AFTER SOMEDAYS

      Delete
    3. I booked my ticket in travelgenio. Booking got cancelled but they claimed the payment. When I M trying to contact customer care there is no proper number or email id to contact them. I got 1026AED loss by this people...please don't use this for bookings

      Delete
  6. Horrible! I bought two tickets via travelgenio for my mom, myself and extra luggage, and for the full price for all of it at the checking in 36 hours before the flight they processed only one ticket for myself being the main passenger and entirely denied the mistake or refunding the difference after being hung up on so many times, spending an eternity on hold and not wanting to transfer me over to a supervisor. They're only after your money and zero customer service. Never again and strongly suggest to stay away from these crooks!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Indeed, a scam company with a shady business practice. I don't use them even when their ticket prices are much cheaper than elsewhere.

      Delete
  7. I guess this mess shit used to happen to people who book their flights spontaneously or a few days before traveling. And I’ll also say these issues of having ongoingly flight troubles during or after the booking,don’t happen in any country. Therefore I cannot totally dislike travel2be or travelgenius on my zone. And I’d finally advise anyone to do diligent research on the online travel agencies he wants to travel for in order to avoid useless stress or frustration

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Not true. In my experience of booking flights between 30+ countries in North America, Europe, and Asia, I have used several travel websites. TravelGenio was always the bad apple, regardless of the time I booked. And no, I don't book spontaneously or a few days before the departure. TravelGenio often increases the price or does some stupid shit after you pay (if you read my blog post, I have mentioned 2 such situations where TravelGenio was a culprit, and others too have mentioned their experience in the comments). I am happy that this did not happen to you or in your region. But that does not mean it did not happen to others. Our collective observations highlight that TravelGenio is shady, if not a scam.

      Delete
  8. Dear Pradeeba,

    I am writing to thank you for your post. In fact, I almost bought my tickets from TravelGenio website. They are indeed shady!

    ReplyDelete
  9. Never ever use them! Worst company ever. I booked a round trip to Europe through Travelgenio/travel2be (they are the same company). My flight was canceled due to the weather, and I could not travel as there was no alternative. Even though the airlines was refunding Travelgenio refused to refund me saying they didn't see the cancellation in their system. I called them 4 times, wasted 3 hours, and finally forced one operator to contact the airlines because their system was wrong. The operator promised me that they refund my outbound trip, but they still refused to refund my inbound trip because, even though I purchased the tickets as a round trip, they purchased as two separate trips, and they would not refund for the outbound trip! Better yet, I did not get the promised refund for the outbound trip even after a week, so I contacted them. And then they said "As we have previously informed you, unfortunately a refund is not possible, this means that you will not receive the money in your account." How condescending and stupid one can be? Also also, some of the operators I talked on phone barely spoke English...Also also, for all email correspondences, they called me "Mr." even though I am female (with a doctorate degree and I sign my email with "Ph.D.). I don't know how they could mess up this much...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I am sorry you had to deal with their nonsense.

      Their call centers and customer reps must be from non-English speaking countries where they can get them for a cheaper wage. That must explain the poor English and bad email skills.

      Delete
  10. Pradeeban Kathiravelu hi i purchased my tickets from travelgenio for a reasonable price but i can't get into the my bookings portal of the main airlines which includes air canada. Will it cause any problems during the check in ? Please respond ASAP.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I would recommend calling AirCanada and confirming with them. That will give you peace of mind.

      Delete
    2. Hi Dr. Pradeeban Kathiravelu, in recent I have to cancelled my flight ticket from Washington to Shanghai ( come with cancellation protection) which bought from travelgenio. My flight was cancelled and now I am asking for refund, they really suck with no reply and further notice about this. Please advice me on this issue. Tq

      Delete
    3. With the COVID19 making every air travel go crazy, even the flight companies are not returning the flight fare on time, even with the cancellation protection. No wonder TravelGenio isn't responding.

      At this point, I am worried that you have no option other than to wait. I have a few flights cancelled (directly booked via the airline). Still waiting for the refund (the airline replied. Just it is more than 3 months passed now, for the refund).

      Too many flight cancellations, and no airline or travel agent is prepared for this.

      Take care.

      Delete
  11. hello there...I just had a horrible experience with them today...my wife with two kids drove 4 hours to the airport, only to find out that Travelgenio did not make the bookings even if they charged me and sent me message all was ok! I called them and I was very angry, since my family lost the flight, and they just said that there was "an error in their system"!!! Just this! Not even an apology! Aferwards they "offered" to book me another flight, the next day, but I would have to pay them extra!!! I could not believe what I was hearing! After a lot of screaming at them, they found me tickets without extra cost but two days later! There was never an apology! It was a horrible experience! Never again!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I am sorry you had to deal with this. Indeed. They are horrible. Even when their tickets are 100$ cheaper, I don't use them anymore these days.

      Delete
    2. the question remains: how can they still be in business with such a horrible record?n and is it possible to sue them for compensation if you suffer damage due to their mistake?

      Delete
    3. They must have some terms and conditions in tiny font that prevents you from suing them. :) How can they be in business? Because most of the time, their price turns up to be the cheapest. Even I fell for their scam until I started to notice a pattern from them. Most people just buy their tickets from whoever seem to offer the cheapest. That's how these travel agents manage to be in business.

      Delete

  12. My mom also faced the same issue. They lack transparency and I'd advice everyone to use another 3rd party site or just go directly to the airline. Travelgenio charge me more despite paying more to get the flexible ticket arrangement. They charged me 300 EUR. The customer service is also slow and multiple different personal respond to you. All in all a terrible experience and highly recommended NEVER to use

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes, they are shady, indeed. Even if they show the cheapest price, I don't use them anymore.

      Delete
  13. I made a booking last night with travelgenio. They sent me reference number for saudia airlines, i checked in saudia and the reference number is working and the booking is confirmed but we were not charged the amount yet although we entered the debit card number and all for the payment. Till now, they did not debit the corresponding amount for the bookings made. No ticket yet and payment was not confirmed yet by the travelgenio. Can i eventually book another from direct saudia site? Or it is not allowed since we already have confirmation from saudia airlines thru travelgenio?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The reference number is working. That means, the booking went through. They will charge you soon. Give them 24 - 48 hours. They are not giving you away the tickets for free. Don't book again. You risk the chance of losing money as Travelgenio will eventually (rightfully) charge you for your booking with them.

      Delete
  14. DO NOT USE TRAVELGENIO - they are either completely incompetent or they are complete scammers
    I booked my flights and when the confirmation came through the payment had been taken but the depature date was wrong. I then spent two hours getting through to their office in spain where i was told i had to pay an extra 147 euros to change the date - even though their site had made the error. I paid under duress over the phone - in addition to the £354 already paid for the flights. I was told i would get my tickets by email in 2 hours. 4 hours later - no tickets - rang again and was told i had been sent an email: this said they could only take payments through a secure link - so i paid using that. Still no tickets - phoned again, explained, ten minutes on hold and cut off. THEN had an email saying my booking had been cancelled. Rang the airline direct - Pegasus - and they confirmed no booking in place. RANG Travelgenio AGAIN and straight away told them if they cut me off or did not resolve the problem I would sue them - explained YET again - 20 min later they said they would cancel my booking and i could rebook again if i paid another 468 euros then and there. I declined as I had already , according to my banl, had three payments sent to them for well over £600. I told them to cancel the booking and refund all 3 amounts - while i had been on the phone i had booked direct with Pegasus on their site and managed to have the tickets downloaded before Travelgenio had decided what they were going to do.
    I will never use them or sky scanners again - AVOID!!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Sad to hear. Hope you get this resolved soon.

      Yes, I always avoid TravelGenio these days for the same reason. But Skyscanner has nothing to do with these scams. Skyscanner is just a listing site like Google. They list all the other travel agent web sites and let you compare the price conveniently.

      Continue to use Skyscanner. Just make sure to do your own research before using any of those travel agent sites listed in Skyscanner to purchase your flight tickets.

      Delete
  15. They are thugs. They have refused to give me a a refund inspite of the airlines refunding them.

    ReplyDelete
  16. Travel2be is also a scam. I just booked a ticket and it showed one price but debited my card for much more. Apparently they have some condition that the offered price is valid only if you pay through Maestro Card (I couldn't find any such condition) and it charges much more without telling you that.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Travel2Be and Travelgenio are owned by the same company. They are basically the same.

      Delete
  17. Hi!
    So, I booked my tickets from Malaysia to London on the 4th of October. I got the first email saying booking has been done, and the second email with the confirmation of ticket and booking reference. I even logged onto the Emirates app with the booking number and my booking is listed on it there. Is there anything to be worried about? I was thinking of changing my return flight date from London so I was going through google to look on how the process would be and I found all these forums about the company and now I'm worried. Is there anything I can do to absolutely confirm my flight?

    I am due to fly to London on the 23rd December.

    Thank you!

    ReplyDelete
  18. Hi Pradeeban,

    I used Travelgenio for 7 years as they are the cheapest...... so far so good till this time. The airline modified.my flight which not suit me. I called Travelgenio asked to find alternative options, but i have been told there was not any. And the staff so kind and easy to help me cancelled my filght, and said the refund process depends on the airline. So I contacted the airline, they said it would be 14 business days. And nowwww, after 15 business days, still nothing in my account. I called Travelgenio again, the staff told me the waiting time would be 30days to 90days......I didn't think much till I searched their reviews.....freak me out.... do u think I will get my refund? or any suggestion from you? as I read about people still waiting for their refund after 8 or 10 months...... Thanks very much Pradeeban!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi,
      I agree TravelGenio tends to be one among the cheapest. However, I won't buy from them.

      The reason, my first few experiences (yes, I gave them multiple chances) with them were terrible.

      Since you did not encounter problems so far, it worked smooth for you.

      Look at it this way: Canceling is nothing. They can of course be "kind and easy" to help you cancel. But until you get the money refunded, there was no success (we don't merely want to cancel the ticket and forget it. We want the refund!!!)

      I have heard that TravelGenio is horrible that even after the airline refunded them the fare, they take their own time to process and refund it to you.

      You are right that they have taken 8 to 10 months to refund the money, and some people even gave up their hope on receiving the refund after almost a year. You may be able to send a dispute through the credit card company. Contact them and analyze your other options.

      TravelGenio/Travel2Be is predatory. But they are not alone. Many other booking sites such as Vayama have predatory practices too. It is safe to book directly from the airline. Of course that is typically more expensive.

      Delete
    2. i was booking ticket by travelgenio also..the status it was confirm ,but when i try to do payment its not succesfull..now the status of my ticket is still pending bcoz the payment reason...

      the question is,,can i booking the same ticket directly to another agency or waiting until some days until my ticket booking in travelgenio get expired ??? and is the ticket status in my
      travelgenio will be expired or still contiue??

      Delete
  19. This is my very first attempt of booking a flight from Nigeria to Ghana on travelgenio. The service being received presently is very horrible. I am even considering them as a scam. After payment and expecting a ticket to be issued. I checked their costumer- unfriendly site, only to be told ticket would be ready in few hours. After about an hour, I received a mail that my booking has been cancelled. NO REASON was stated, nor any information about the cash refund.

    No official customer email contact on the website. I had to scout for phone numbers to contact. Attempted calling twice at midnight and following morning, the phone rang for over 5 and 7minutes respectively. The calls were not picked.

    How do I manage such a situation.

    My booking and money are hanging in the hands of a STRANGER.

    ReplyDelete
  20. Trulyyyyy TravelGenio is a scam!!!! I will never book a flight in TravelGenio again. NEVER!!!!! When we tried to get a refund because of the Corona Virus outbreak. It’s so hard to communicate with their agents. All their Agents Hang-up through all our conversations! Very unprofessional. First they said, we will get our refund, through email and expect it after 7 Days. But when I call them to verify the amount that we’re going to refund, they said, the person who sent to us is WRONG! LIKE WHAT THE FUCK!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. These days, I try to use the flight booking sites directly, as much as possible. That helps with cancellations.

      I had to cancel a flight with Singapore Airlines and Qatar Airways due to Coronavirus. Received 100% refund with the Singapore, and like 67% with Qatar (both cheap/non-refundable tickets -- but purchased directly from the airlines.)

      Can you try to contact the airlines directly and get the refund, at least partially?

      It should work if your destination is, China, Singapore, Japan, South Korea, Italy, or Iran. Otherwise, I think it is highly unlikely to get it refunded at this point (since it is not announced a pandemic yet).

      Delete
  21. Trulyyyyy TravelGenio is a scam!!!! I will never book a flight in TravelGenio again. NEVER!!!!! When we tried to get a refund because of the Corona Virus outbreak. It’s so hard to communicate with their agents. All their Agents Hang-up through all our conversations! Very unprofessional. First they said, we will get our refund, through email and expect it after 7 Days. But when I call them to verify the amount that we’re going to refund, they said, the person who sent to us is WRONG! LIKE WHAT THE FUCK!

    ReplyDelete
  22. Hi
    Im going through head ache and heart ache with this agent Travelgino.
    Booked my tickets from Singapore to Athens via Dubai as transit.
    All went smooth but they have sent a email that i have to stay back in Dubai for 4 days and 3 nights.
    Have tried email with no response and called their office and answering machine responds and cuts off.
    Can any one advice how to catch hold of this agent.
    My email is joekl36@hotmail.com

    ReplyDelete
  23. I sent email to Travelgenio 2 weeks ago. I still haven't received any response. Worst customer service.

    ReplyDelete
  24. I booked couple of tickets for my parents from India to USA using Travelgenio , becuase of COVID 19 all flights have been cancelled. It was very difficult to contact them as there is no official email and they keep calls on hold for hours and disconnects by itself.After trying multiple times, somehow my call has been picked and after long long conversation (because they kept my call on hold after my ever answer to their ques), they confirmed me I need to pay 100 more Euros to keep my reservation and they will allow me to book later (Airlines gave the feature for free as all flghts are cancelled). I felt suspicious after the call and find out on internet that it is scam likely website. I reached out Airlines and my job has been done in 5 minutes. Travelgenio Sucks

    ReplyDelete
  25. I have been trying to contact Travelgenio since 14 March 2020 about return flights booked with them from George, South Africa to Johannesburg then on to London Heathrow connecting on fromthere t Shannon, Ireland. I was worried that Covid 19 might affect my flights. Itbturned out that the flights were cancelled but Travelgenio failed to respond to numerous mails sent to them and were uncontactable either by phone or through their website. I had to buy separate tickets home for myself and my wife and still have no idea if Travelegenio have any intention of ever getting back to me. This feels like a company that should not be allowed to operate.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes. They suck.

      You should contact the airlines directly. Although usually airlines don't entertain contacting them directly if you don't purchase the tickets from them, this is an extra-ordinary situation.

      You may not get a full refund. But you will at least get a partial refund or a travel voucher. Good luck and take care.

      Delete
  26. Travelgenio seems a FRAUD, a BLUFF, a DECEIVER,a THIEF. My flights to Sweden from Manila with my family (2 daughters and my husband) is scheduled April 26,2020, that is exactly today. After I have purcchased our tickets thru travelgenio last 4 April,2020, I was expecting they would send me an email of the confirmed tickets. I had to contact them by filling out on the contact form on their website before I got an email confirmation. After few days, I received an email from cust.service@travelgenio.com that ONE OF MY FLIGHTS WAS CANCELLED, without telling specific details, it did not state WHICH flight it is ,since we have 3 flights from Manila to Stockholm. So I replied to them with my text asking them which flight was cancelled ,and if the flight was cancelled by the airline. No answer. I waited. After waiting for more than 2 weeks, LOT Polish airlines sent me 2 separate emails, they sent the email last week and the other day, 2 days before our departure date, they stated that our flights were cancelled due to covid19. I sent again email to travelgenio, not only 3 times but countless times. One email reply from them saying the same phrases " refrain from sending email to customer service or do not contact by telephone" same thing written on their website. I called them 3 times, one got through after waiting on the line for almost 4 minutes or so, then they just HUNG UP. So RUDE. I havent got a concrete detail of our flight booking, even after I sent them an email telling them to proceed to one time exchange from the airlines,I agreed to take a travel credit voucher but I doubt if travelgenio will ever give us our vouchers. The airlines cannot proceed to giving us vouchers since I booked the trip via travel agent so they insist that I should contact travelgenio instead. I doubt they would respond to any if my emails. As of now, I am so anxious , frustrated, and furious, I felt betrayed somehow for being ignored and neglected by travelgenio. I am finding ways and reading online on how I can sue this company.WORST EXPERIENCE. I dont throw money like pouring water on the ground. I let KARMA haunt them. I should have read reviews before I booked. Next time, I will book DIRECTLY from the Airlines and not from travel agencies. Bad experience gives best lessons. NEVER AGAIN.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I am sorry to hear you have to go through this.

      TravelGenio is indeed sketchy, as you can see from all the comments. Buying directly from the airlines is always better.

      Currently, whatever flight is canceled is mostly due to COVID-19. I wonder why the airlines and flights keep selling flights and then not refunding during this extra-ordinary times. My guess is, as they are having loss due to dropped international travels, they are try to get the money from us as much as possible by not refunding.

      Delete
  27. Hi am eldose iam also booked 3.. 2way ticket.. from (kochi)india to abudhabi... but..case of coved19... that ticket atomticaly cansil.. first week of aprial.... after i get this messege from... both side Dear BESSY Thomas,
    Ref. Booking ID:....

    We inform you that due to the expansion of COVID-19 most of the airlines are cancelling their flights.

    If your reservation has been affected and your flight has been cancelled, we will proceed to request a refund from the airline.

    Once the airline has authorised the refund, we will return the money to the payment method used when making the reservation.

    We will keep you informed of the progress of the reimbursement process.

    We’re sorry for the inconvenience caused.

    Kind regards,
    Travelgenio.com

    PS. Please do not answer this e-........ after... i try to cont..to traval.... but thay dont have propper conta details... also today i chek.my. refund details..but give the detais this . This operation is not available, since your reservation is not cancelled. If you want to cancel your reservation, go to "Cancel my reservation".

    Did you find the information useful? Please... my flight automatical cansl first week aprial... this is not good... atlist give a good information by mail... dont cheet as like this time....

    ReplyDelete
  28. I bought a ticket for my daughter from India to Johannesburg and due to covid 19 pandemic she could not travel, I just want travelgenio to change the dates to 10/12/2020, its a struggle to change such a simple thing like that. I tried calling them several times ,e-mailing them but still there is no response

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I have same problem .. this travel agent is bloodsucker try to avoid them

      Delete
  29. flight changed and got no information. they never admit their responsability. i paid an extra fee to change the flight date even if it is their fault,scammers,customers care agressive ,doesnt care,hang the phone if u try to explain. phone calls takes at least 30 minutes for 30 secondes unhelpfull person that is ready to tell you listen to me or i hang the phone. i was asked to pay 50 +50 for a flight change due to their irresponsible fault. i missed an important meeting . i had to deal with them all day long to change the flight date. i was feeling really bad and not welcome and nothing for them at all. simply if you want to destroy your holiday plans/ business/ important meeting just book with them. i dont know how they are still operating in an european country. those people should be behind bars

    ReplyDelete
  30. I was very disappointed with Travelgenio when I bought a ticket and when I wanted to pay the price, it immediately changed and I had to pay more, and also I tried to call the travel agent, it was very difficult and also they were unprofessional and very rude and didn't know how to communicate with customers. From now on I will never buy tickets from them and I suggest it is better to buy tickets directly to the airlines sometimes their prices are also very cheap. Be careful with travelgenio as far as I know, travel agents are the worst with their services and they are also not good at speaking correct English. Travelgenio Bloodsucker

    ReplyDelete

  31. I was very disappointed with Travelgenio when I bought a ticket and when I wanted to pay the price, it immediately changed and I had to pay more, and also I tried to call the travel agent, it was very difficult and also they were unprofessional and very rude and didn't know how to communicate with customers. From now on I will never buy tickets from them and I suggest it is better to buy tickets directly to the airlines sometimes their prices are also very cheap. Be careful with travelgenio as far as I know, travel agents are the worst with their services and they are also not good at speaking correct English. Travelgenio Bloodsucker

    ReplyDelete
  32. You are right. AVOID THIS TRAVELGIO. Thake took my money and didn't provide the tickets!!!!

    ReplyDelete
  33. I made the same mistake! Should've read the reviews before booking, they are terrible everywhere and now I know why. It has the worst customer service of any travel services I've used in my life. They'll charge you $40 for "priority access" after which you may not get responses to your emails, you'll be on hold on calls forever, your "priority" refund processing will take up to THREE months, AND worst yet if you have concerns about that timeline they'll say there's NO path to raise your concerns/ escalate so you have to arrange for a new flight with your money blocked for all that time, and their response is basically 'deal with it'. They also have hidden deductibles (~$100) from the "full refund" they promise that they won't tell you about when you book. For anyone for whom $3140 is a big amount, be careful.

    ReplyDelete
  34. How did you even make contact with them? I can't even reach somebody. I called the airline directly and asked them to look for names on "booked" flight. Names were not on list on supposed outbound flight that was "confirmed" by Travegenio. I'm careful, but I suppose not at the same time since I feel scammed. The first red flag was that I did not receive an e-mail for payment of 799.98 USD. So I screen-shot the Screen that said "We have received your payment! Your booking will be processed as soon as possible." So I thought maybe they will send me an e-mail the next business day. Well now its a week, no e-mail no anything. I did not spell my e-mail incorrectly because I double-check every detail before confirming a large payment. I just got robbed. I also screen-shot the reservation number they gave me. Wish me luck as I try and obtain a refund.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You may be able to dispute the charge with your credit card company in this case.

      Delete
  35. Hi Pradeeban,

    Appreciate your guidance, I have booked with travel 2 be, but after reading the reviews I am worried, I have received booking confirmation from travel 2 be, emirates airlines direct customer care and website, everywhere it say booking is confirmed. Is there something I need to worry about, can travel to be cancel/modify my booking without my knowledge ?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi,
      You are fine. You will have issues only when you try to cancel/modify your flight. They will make a big fuss and will not refund, etc. Especially during the COVID19 days, this is why I am directly booking with the airlines even if I have to pay more for that.

      Safe travels.

      Delete
    2. Hi muzkhatik,
      I have the same concern as yours. I have received confirmation. Also the website shows the ticket confirmed. Did you get your tickets? I am worried.

      Delete
    3. I received the email confirmation and it’s mentioned tickets will come within 72 hours
      Its been 36 hours already but it tickets are sent. Payment is already made
      Any idea if the tickets dont come or they come late?

      Delete
  36. I BOOKED DAY BEFORE YESTERDAY 2 TICKETS THROUGH TRAVELGENIO.QA WEBSITE BUT STILL HAVE'NT RECEIVED E-TICKET& ANY REFERENCE NUMBER.

    Your booking with Travelgenio

    Congratulations! Your booking is confirmed.

    The payment of the ticket has been completed through the Visa Credit card ending in 9388.


    Your Booking ID is 19257318.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. That is concerning when you do not receive the e-ticket within 24 hours. Did you check the spam folder?

      Did you manage to contact the TravelGenio customer service? If this does not work, best approach is to quickly contact your credit card company and ask them to decline the transaction, mentioning Travelgenio is committing a fraud.

      Delete
    2. Hi Pradeeban,
      I have the same concern. I received booking confirmation. Even the Flight website shows the confirmation. But I have not received tickets yet. It's been a day.

      Delete
  37. I wanted to book a ticket on the website of Travel2be. When I had to pay the banking app told me payment was succesfully, but then I came back at their website and they told me 'payment failed, try again'. I didn't receive an e-mail. There is no money of my bank account (maybe tomorrow?). But when I gave my e-mail on their website for more information about my booking, I could check my flight details and it said 'payment is processing'/'tickets didn't confirm'. Now I cancelled my flight... Will they still take money of my bank account?

    ReplyDelete
  38. I wanted to book a ticket on the website of Travel2be. When I had to pay the banking app told me payment was succesfully, but then I came back at their website and they told me 'payment failed, try again'. I didn't receive an e-mail. There is no money of my bank account (maybe tomorrow?). But when I gave my e-mail on their website for more information about my booking, I could check my flight details and it said 'payment is processing'/'tickets didn't confirm'. Now I cancelled my flight... Will they still take money of my bank account?

    ReplyDelete

You are welcome to provide your opinions in the comments. Spam comments and comments with random links will be deleted.