1
Brad Evans -
a week ago
Fraud Alert! By far, the worst experience I've ever had.
Booking a work trip for 3 in Cologne, I found Hotel Engelbertz on Expedia and reserved 3 of the 5 available rooms. We arrived early and left our bags with reception.
Two of us returned at approx. 3:00 to check in and were told they only had 2 rooms. When booking, we chose to pay on-site which doesn't guarantee availability. We told reception we still needed 3 rooms and asked about a cot and availability for a third room. They had no upcoming availability or a cot so we needed to figure out what to do. While deciding, they told us we had to give a credit card to hold the remaining 2 rooms. I gave my CC and went to see the rooms.
The rooms were so small that you have to back in just so you can walk out, had stained carpet with no AC and an awful odor. However, this wasn't the biggest issue.
On Expedia, we booked a nearby alternative, despite the additional cost.
We returned to the lobby where two people were now working. We told the original person we wouldn't be staying and returned the keys. At this point, we were told that my CC was charged for the entire stay and that they don't offer refunds. They left and we had to continue with Mohammad Almusen (sp?). I explained that we arrived 15 min ago to view the rooms and that the CC was just just to hold the rooms. He said there was nothing he could do, cancellations have to be 14 days prior to arrival and reiterated that they don't do refunds. At this point, my coworker and I are deciding what to do. He then calls me over to say they suddenly have a 3rd room. I'm sure he cancelled on someone. I said we already booked elsewhere and this wasn't an option. He's now quite rude so I asked for someone else. He said there's no manager on-site and that 3:00 was too late for us to call them. Getting nowhere, I call Expedia. The lady at Expedia was very helpful. Part of their due diligence is contacting the hotel directly to get their side. She tried a few times before Mohammad answered. My coworker started moving bags to the new hotel. He answers, yells at her about having 3 rooms and not offering refunds, and hangs up. She returns and tells me that she'll escalate the issue internally. I call my coworker to update him. While on the call, Mohammad calls someone, presumably the manager. He then says they'd issue a 10% refund. Lol. Strange since we were told multiple times that they can't/don't do refunds.
I told him this was unacceptable and called Visa. Unfortunately, they don't issue stop payments but directed me to their fraud department. After explaining the situation, they said their fraud department was for unknown charges and their dispute department would be better equipped to deal with this. The dispute department empathized and said they'd investigate but only after the charges were posted. They couldn't guarantee cancelling my card would work but assured me it would be dealt with.
Again, I tried talking with Mohammad and at this point, he said, "10% or I call the police." By now, there are other guests and he's had enough. Trusting Expedia or Visa, I took our remaining bags and left.
The next morning, Expedia calls to say the hotel will be issuing a full refund. Shortly after, we get a message from Sigurd Smith-Tönnessen, presumably the manager, telling us to return the keys. I asked about the refund but was ignored, insisting we return the keys. I asked again and was told one room was already refunded, which was a lie. I told him we returned the keys and he finally said, the refund was sent to an independent contractor and would be processed in 7-10 days. He said he didn't know about threatening police involvement.
On Aug 30, I finally received the refund, less $100 due to bad timing with the exchange.
Hotel Engelbertz is a nightmare and should be avoided at all costs! The rooms are awful, the staff is incredibly rude and dishonest, and they try to take advantage of tourists. Visit beautiful Cologne but stay elsewhere!
