It was the last week of 2021 when we planned a road trip to MP.
A long-awaited trip, braving the Corona and the wintry weather. The highlight of our trip was Khajuraho - the city of monuments.
To ensure a safe and comfortable stay, we booked the Hotel Ramayana and made the full payment in advance using the OYO app.
On the day we reached Khajuraho, we called the hotel reception when we were about two hours away from the hotel, just to ensure that the rooms were ready for us.
But the moment we said that we had booked the hotel through OYO, the response was very curt and we were informed that all the rooms were booked - there was no accommodation for us. When we stated that we had made the full payment in advance, we were directed to sort out with OYO.
We were shocked at their behavior and had no option but to contact the OYO team. The customer representative informed us that we would need to talk to the Service Desk. I requested them to transfer the call, but they were unable to do so.
In my third attempt, I managed to get the direct number for the Service Desk and called them.
On each call, I shared my concern and they put me on hold to check with the hotel, but never got back to me. I repeated this call three times talking to three different reps to explain my situation.
Finally, we received a call from the hotel that they would make some arrangements for us. We were relieved that our ordeal had ended and headed towards the hotel. But on reaching Hotel Ramayana, we were told that they would accommodate us in some other hotel.
Now, this really irked us and talking to them I realized that booking the rooms with advance payment was useless. At this point, the Service Representative from OYO said that when they had accepted the payment the hotel rooms were available, but when we reached the hotel, all rooms were occupied. The reps could have informed us, but either they themselves were not aware due to lack of communication or they knew they had messed up and were trying to cover it up.
Till date, I fail to understand the process followed by OYO, but one thing was clear - there was absolutely no communication between OYO and the hotel, each continued to blame the other, while we watched helplessly and shivered in the chilly wintry weather with our two daughters, stranded in an unknown place.
It was then, that I realized how futile was my discussion and attempt to gain accommodation in that hotel. Because, painfully, at this point the OYO Service Representative threatened me that I could cancel my booking and get my money refunded.
So, I had no option but to accept the hotel’s offer to put up at another hotel nearby.
A man on a scooty guided us to the hotel and when we went inside to check the rooms, we were aghast. The hotel that we had booked had a rating of 4.6, while the hotel that they offered had a rating of 3.7. Understandably, the hotel rooms were in very poor shape.
Amidst this commotion, the scooty man just vanished, without providing any inputs at the new hotel. The new hotel had no idea of the situation and we were left to fend for ourselves.
We then started hotel hunting. Thankfully, we got a decent one nearby and checked in around ten in the night.
I have learnt lesson the hard way. Going forward I would be making hotel reservations directly and not through OYO.
Hope my post rings a warning bell so that you can act with prudence and avoid such unpleasant situations in the future…