Gate1Travel

I got back from a small group tour in Canada on 6/22/24. The tour itself was great - terrific tour guide, a nice small group, and lots of adventures.

However, my husband fell ill with Covid and felt terrible, disoriented, and weak. When I called the emergency number to get an earlier flight home (two days early), I got a five-hour run-around. 'There is nothing available,' they said, even though I could see open flights on my phone. They kept saying, 'let me talk to a manager', and 'the website will not let me book it,' even though I could get to the purchase point on my phone.

Finally, for an extra 1600.00 change fee, they booked it.

I had to figure out how to get us to the departure city, two hours away, with zero help from them. I will attempt to use the very expensive travel insurance we purchased, but based on other reviews, I expect we will find ourselves out a lot of money and very disappointed in a company I had trusted before.

Our ambassador, 'Serge,' was rude and lacked diplomacy with us and several other travelers. He rambled endlessly throughout the entire duration of our bus travel about politics and religion, and occasionally mentioned a local feature too late for us to take a photo of the attraction.

It didn't feel much like a vacation, with breakfast at 6:30 a.m., a 7:30 departure, only to wait to get into the hotel after a truck-stop lunch at 1:30 p.m., and a late dinner often lasting past 8-9 p.m. Only one meal was included most days, and we had to fend for ourselves with what's available at 'convenience pricing' the rest of the time. Our bus driver had to advocate for us to get water! I recommend the company, but NOT our guide.

He appeared to be a financially mismanaged, lonely old man who needed the position to have a meal and a bed, as he wore the same outfit for the duration of our trip. A shrewd and narcissistic person who wouldn't admit fault, he was deemed *** by several of the women on the tour.

Title: Lost $600 with Gate 1 Travel: A Warning to Future Customers

My recent experience with Gate 1 Travel has left me not only disappointed but out of pocket by a staggering $600. If you're considering booking with Gate 1 Travel, let my misfortune be a cautionary tale.

Despite purchasing trip cancellation insurance with the assumption of flexibility, I found myself navigating a labyrinth of confusion when attempting to cancel my trip.

Gate 1 Travel's opaque policies and lack of transparency regarding insurance coverage left me stranded, unsure of my rights and options.

Upon following their instructions to file a claim with Arch Solution Insurance, I faced further frustration. The process dragged on for eight agonizing days, during which I was left in limbo, unable to plan or make alternative arrangements.

What's more appalling is Gate 1 Travel's dismissive attitude when I sought recourse for my losses. Despite my grievances and the significant inconvenience caused, they refused to refund my $600 deposit or offer any form of compensation. It's clear that customer satisfaction is not a priority for Gate 1 Travel.

In conclusion, my $600 loss serves as a stark reminder of the risks associated with booking with Gate 1 Travel.

Their lack of transparency, poor communication, and refusal to take responsibility for their shortcomings make them a company to avoid at all costs.

Consider this a warning to all prospective customers: don't make the same mistake I did. Take your business elsewhere and spare yourself the frustration and financial loss.

Rating: 0/5 (If I could give a lower rating, I would)

THE ABSOLUTE WORST. Dishonest, incompetent, fraudulent.

We booked a trip to Europe with them, and it was a mess from start to finish.

The flight that we paid extra for (it's worth the extra money for me to fly nonstop) was changed by the airline to include a stop, but Gate 1 wouldn't refund the extra amount they charged me for it. They also refused to call Delta about the flight change - even though Delta told me that all Gate 1 had to do was call to request the change back to a nonstop flight for me (at no extra charge). After I called Gate 1 out on this, they suddenly claimed that they HAD called Delta, but that they didn't know when and didn't know who they spoke with, and they couldn't call with me on the line.

They also promised me a $450 credit to make up for the extra night of hotel I could not be used because of their incompetence, and said they would apply it to my account. However, they did not actually issue that credit.

When I brought it up, they told me that since I'd made final payment prior to their issuance of the credit, they weren't going to give it to me anymore.

Excuse me, but YOUR inability or failure to do what YOU promised to do is not my fault or my problem.

This is further evidence of incompetence, dishonesty, and fraud.

Gate 1 clearly does not care one bit about their customers or their reputation.

Gate 1 should go out of business. I'm reporting them to the various state agencies for their dishonest business practices.

they cancelled our flight then changed the flight to earlier flight so I have to rushed packing my belongings. when we get to armsterdan our flight with klm was delayed for another 4 h0urs our flight supposed to be 12 noon but able to leave at 4pm.

they told once we get to New York get to nearest delta counter and let them book us to our final destination. we reached New York City . employee of delta air were upset why we were not book to our final destination . im so tired I cannot deal with this employee who are just passing the bucket from one place to another .

I don't want to travel again with gate 1 if you put me to fly with klm airplane. try and fly with klm , its a bad experience .I hate the aggravation and the uncertainty of flying with klm.

I arrived at Munich airport during the snow storm. I was then on the plane to Krakau for 4 hours before the flight was cancelled.

Upon deplaning and trying to get my luggage to no avail for 4 days it became clear that a part of my tour which was a gift to myself was never going to happen. I called Gate 1 emergency number and spoke to someone who was not very helpful. I then tried several more times to reach someone to no avail. I do realize that you can't control the weather, but Poland was the country I wanted to visit the most.

I eventually made it to Prague and met up with the group. However, I am very concerned about a trip I have booked in September to Greece with my daughter. I am asking for partial compensation for the market tour.

I hope you can help me. Thank you

I have been to Ecuador, Columbia, Portugal, Morroco and Greece with Gate 1. I always purchased the travel insurance, but it was useless for me when I needed it in Greece.

On the second day, I felt ill and knew I could not go on, so I removed myself and stayed in Athens. The tour manager was more interested in getting me to sign a statement I volunteered to leave the group than she was in my well-being. She wanted me to go to the hospital without any support, which I was afraid to do in a foreign country. It was some sort of respiratory illness, but I didn't know at the time.

I self-tested three times and it was not Covid. I went to the pharmacy and purchased over the counter remedies. When I got home, I filed a claim for the part of the trip I missed and was denied. I am suspicious the paper I signed had something to do with it.

There was very little support from Gate 1 and the insurance company was of no use. From this ordeal, I learned that if everything goes well, the Gate 1 experience is pretty good, but if there is a problem like I had, not so much. I have another trip planned, but I am not too thrilled about it and will probably end up forfeiting the deposit.

I am pretty sure they are not going to refund me. I felt it important to share and if I do decide to go with them in the future, I will definitely buy independent travel insurance.

We loved Gate1 until our flight that we booked through them was cancelled. We have gone on 5 trips and loved them all but we learned the hard way about their policy.

They own the flight until the flight. If flight is cancelled, they simply cancel the flights for the entire trip and rebook at last minute rates. They called us to tell us it would be $2200 more and we would need to arrive a day early (meaning lose another day of work) and pay an additional $220 for hotel.

This became no longer an Affordable Trip to Italy. Also, you will be sitting in the last seat next to bathroom.No help from customer service at all!