good luck!

such things and scams as these are absolutely scandalous and you have my utmost support and sympathy.

E.

thank you so much for posting this and warning us all. we all have an importnat lesson to learn from this.

it sounds like a scam and i hope you get your money back, good luck! i think this is illegal, but the company will do everything and anything (probably including: hiring fancy lawyers, lying, denying everything and saying that all info was clear on the website, and altering the website). if i were you i would take a print screen shot - it's the print screen button on your keyboard, on my keyboard it's near the top right - and then click paste onto a microsoft office word document. just in case they alter the website you will then have clear evidence.

this sounds absolutely horrific and appalling and cheats like this should never be allowed to get away. if you need any support i'd be glad to help, such as in posting complaints and appeals to the company or law courts. i'm sure we'd all be willing to help in this.

my deepest sympathy to you, E.

And I have also been ripped of my them - Avoid otbeach.com at all costs!!!

My experience is very similar to KellyT's. I was booking a different destination and then that last page popped up giving baggage options / extra costs. I closed the page etc.. and booked the very same flights and apartment (cheaper too) elsewhere. I got confirmation e-mails for the two new bookings and went off-line.

Next day I was surprised to find a booking confirmation e-mail from otbeach.com!

I checked all my bookings etc. and the web sites I'd used before finally following otbeach.com's own procedure and e-mailed them to cancel and ask them to refund all monies. I also stated that the booking was a mistake.

I was sick with worry and then I got their response - if cancel I lose all the money I paid.

I have since searched the internet and found loads of complaints about them, their dodgy practices and their extremely poor / ignorant customer service.

I see they are called otbeach.CON elsewhere.

I am looking at all ways to get my money back off them and at the moment am looking to go through the court system.

I wiill let you know how i get on.

KellyT - can you please let me know how you get on too?

I have also been ripped of my them - Avoid otbeach.com at all costs!!!

Please beware of using this dodgy travel company to book your holiday. I have been completely conned by them and don’t want anyone else to make the same mistake.

I saw a holiday to Egypt which I wanted to book and otbeach seemed the cheapest (how wrong I was!) I went ahead with the booking and was given a TOTAL AMOUNT (which you naturally assume means TOTAL!) after entering my bank details it started to give me options to add baggage, well how can you go to Egypt for 2 weeks without baggage!!! It was an extra £30 per person – adding the baggage and in-flight meals would add a further £90 after I have already been given the final amount. This made it too expensive and then alarm bells began to ring as I wondered what sort of company would operate like this – conning you into paying more when you have already been given a final figure.

Anyway I cancelled the process – I did not complete the baggage, in-flight meals section and did not see the ‘updated’ total amount. I was slightly concerned they would have my card details even though I had not seen or confirmed the new final amount or clicked on the ‘complete transaction’ button. I phoned otbeach and explained to a sales person what had happened and how unethical this process was, she re-assured me that if I didn’t complete the transaction I would not be charged.

I then went on to book the same holiday, with travelrepublic (who I have used before and can thoroughly recommend) the baggage, meals etc was added before the total was calculated – as it should be.

Then to my surprise an hour or so later I had a booking confirmation e-mail from ot.beach, I immediately rang them to say there had been a mistake but they said the booking had completed and if I wanted to cancel I would loose 100% of my money (which had been paid in full as holiday is less than 6 weeks away) They weren’t interested in my explanation, I therefore put the details in a letter but have heard nothing from them.

I therefore have 2 of the same holiday booked. I contacted my bank as surely its illegal to process the card details when I have not confirmed the final amount, nor did I click on the complete transaction button but the bank don’t think they can do anything I gave them my card details.

I’m looking at loosing £900 which I really cant afford to do. Please stay away from ot.beach, they are only interested in taking your money (fraudulently as I see it!) and now not interested in helping me at all.

I have to say that I helped my daughter book a holiday with this company in July last year and can only report positive feedback for them. The price was unbeatable, and the hotel in Turkey was excellent. We booked transfers separately and there was no confusion on the site when we booked. This was July 2008, and I would not hesitate in using them again.

hi there we booked with ont to egypt i have to say they were excellent/we weretold therewere meals on flights olso there were no transfers unless you paid extra/the hotel was one of the best hotels we have been in/that includes cuba/brazil/magarita and the usual resorts in europe i would use them again

i was just about to book with onthebeach and strayed onto this site, thanks for the adv, ive not much money to spare so grateful for the warning, i wont bother with the site any longer

So sorry to hear that you have had such bad luck with onthebeach.com we went with them in 2006 and found them to be helpful we are due to go to fuerteventura with them in march and are now a little worried ,we can only hope that they are as much help as they were in 2006 we have asked for help and at the moment they have been very helpful towards us again so sorry to know that you have had such bad luck

on the beach! they shouldn't be allowed to trade.

We booked a holiday with these people to the Dominican Republic @ the Bahia Principe.

whilst there the hotel was closed down as all guest we're suffering from some kind of food poisoning/water polution.

We had two small children with us and we was very frightened with this experiance.

On our return to the UK we got intouch with Onthebeach...

They have refused any refund or compensation." apparently there is a loop hole where this can company refuse any liability due to them booking seperate flights & accomadation." {something to bare in mind}

Not only did we lose £3,500 on a holiday, we have all suffered seriouse illness in the uk.

Thomas Cook however did compensate thier customers with around £5,000 comensation each!!

we've learnt the hard way but it really doesn't pay to go for the cheaper option.

Thanks for that Hogweed I was just about to book with them. I was wondering if everything was included and now I know. I will stick with greatlatedeals instead, at least they tell you before taking any money what the "TOTAL" cost is after adding on the transfers etc.

Don't give up getting justice, companies like this need people like you.

Club Travel 2000. They were a flight only company to the Canaries and ITB used them to provide flights and then when they went bust there were no end of problems. Good Luck.

matt r:

Hi Hogweed

My neighbours suffered problems with otb following the collapse of CT2 and it got reported to the CAA. I t turned out the CAA (Do i need to say allegedly here?) were investigating them already. Prior to going to court you should contact the CAA - Civil Aviation Authority that is - and also ABTA. I think you would find them very useful and helpful. ABTA have a legal dept I'm sure and an Ombudsman. But I think if you told OTB the CAA and ABTA were getting involved they'd soon back down.

Thanks for that, good advice. But we’ve already involved ABTA and they haven't; replied. CAA... might be worth a try!

What was CT2?

Hi Hogweed

My neighbours suffered problems with otb following the collapse of CT2 nad it got reported to the CAA. I t turned out the CAA (Do i need to say allegedly here?) were investigating them already.Prior to going to court you should contact the CAA - Civil Aviation Authority that is - and also ABTA. I think you would find them very useful and helpful. ABTA have a legal dept I'm sure and an Ombudsman. But I think if you told OTB the CAA and ABTA were getting involved they'd soon back down.

Heh heh yeah, you never know. Interestingly, since I complained, their website went down for most of yesterday, and they've altered the Terms & Conditions now to include a tiny piece fo small print sayign that airport transfers aren't included!

Good thing I saved all their original pages on my computer before they did so... B)

Hmm phone em up and be very polite and reasonable on more than one occasion and hope they are award winningly unprofessional. Now you know how to switch off the recorder don't you? :-) I did it once and it nearly made my life. Reputable scottish institution, someone got cold feet about what they said and changed their story to boss. I e mailed boss and asked if he would like to here tape? Oddly enough he didn't and sorted things out double quick. Companies must inform a caller that they are recording but believe it or not they can do as little as put it on their letter heading!!! Make a letter heading, put it at the bottom, leaving it in what the Americans call 'the bathroom', when you win celebrate with a glass of Shampoo and perforate the letter heading.