CAN I CHANGE THE DATES FOR MY TRIP?
Have a question? Ask our expert Simon Calder
Q I have booked the wrong dates for a trip to Paris with my partner, who it now turns out has an important meeting on the day of travel. The online travel agent I used has been most unhelpful and said the Eurostar and hotel booking is non-refundable, non-changeable, non-everything in the world.
I’m wondering what I could do to simply change the dates by two days and to prevent trouble with my other half? There must be something I can do to get this changed.
Vahini N
A Whatever your travel agent says, Eurostar tickets are changeable, if seats are available on the trains you wish to switch to (which they almost always are). But it comes at a price. In standard class, the fee is £30 per leg, which works out at £60 return for each of you. In addition, if the prevailing fare on the train you
want is higher than the level that you paid – for example, if you booked on a train for which the fare was £59, but the current price level for the train you want is £74 – then you will need to pay an extra £15 on top. So regrettably you could end up paying an additional, say, £100 per person for the change. (Oh, and by the way, Eurostar says: “If the new fare is less expensive, unfortunately we can’t refund the difference.”) With some Eurostar tickets available at as little as £58 return, you might prefer to start again.
Regarding the hotel, even if the travel agent refuses to countenance a change, you could try contacting the hotel directly and see if they are prepared to change the dates for you. Experience shows the chances of success are low, particularly since the hotel will not be earning a whole heap from your booking, but it has been known to happen. You may be able to negotiate paying a little extra for the trouble.
Next time, you might choose to book through a local travel agent rather than online with a firm which is headquartered abroad. The chances of someone fighting your corner should increase.
Every day, our travel correspondent, Simon Calder, tackles a reader’s question. Just email yours to s@hols.tv or tweet @simoncalder