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Discover Australia Holidays
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- 3 reviews
- 5 likes
Do not book with this firm
This firm is dodgy. Buyer beware.
Our dealings are a repeat of previous reviews including unsatisfactory contact by phone or email. Unable to provide alternative dates due to Co-vid cancellation but take out 20% cancellation fee. No customer service at all
2yrs of continual lies, deceit & unethical practices
Please read all reviews there is a pattern
Worst experience with zero honesty and nil customer service
Due to Covid our hotel booking had to be canceled so we were issued with a “forward credit” to use later. Fast forward one year when we asked to rebook the same hotel. To summarize 20+ phone calls later by me (often being put on hold for up to an hour) with promises to email me & phone me back to confirm the booking. After 3+ weeks out of desperation I became rather nasty/ angry snd extremely rude to the consultant I was dealing with (always the same person)
After a month and uncovering continual lies, deceit & unethical practices with threats to take them to court we finally got a refund.
Read the reviews and I urge you never to use this Travel Agency to book any trip
If owed money don’t give up ever
Insist on getting your money back
The worst collection of people I’ve ever dealt with
I booked a hotel in WA through Discover Australia, which due to covid, we couldn’t get to. I was issued a credit. When I tried to rebook this credit I was told someone would contact me “within two week”. How long does it take to rebook, the same hotel?
No one called me, I called back, I was put on hold for an hour. No return call. I kept calling, no follow up.
Eventually after 3 weeks, we got a credit note, not what I wanted. After 4 weeks a quote for the same hotel, 50% more than we payed. I checked with the hotel, their rate was the same an...
- 2 reviews
Very poor company to deal with.
We are booked for a train and river cruise holiday for 18th May and after many phone calls and promises we still have NO documentation for travel.. I am now again on hold to yet another call centre. Just got off hold - no result. I will never use this company again. Very poor to deal with. Looks like another legal battle looming just like some of the other reviews.
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Discover Australia, worst company to deal with.
Discover Australia would not correspond with me regarding emails I sent, itinerary, vouchers promised or ever returning calls. I demanded to speak to a supervisor or I was going to seek advice from my solicitor. I finally was put through to a supervisor who promised me that she would forward the itinerary and other necessary documents but received nothing until I contacted my personal travel agent. He helped me by communicating with D.A. I had to pay $500 extra to cover the price increase, to receive some documents before I left for Alice Sprin...
Read moregs, The Ghan and Darwin. The only way I was going to use the free $500 Bonus Vouchers was if I were going to travel all around Australia. All up I saved $3.00 from the vouchers. I received no daily hotel breakfast in Alice Springs even though it was included in the package. When I met with the other travelers that booked with D.A. all had similar complaints about the communication and correspondence. Lucky for me the trip itself didn't have any problems compared to some who had their flights changed at the last minute or their names were not listed on the shuttle bus to the hotel. AAT King Tours, I recommend to anyone. They were very friendly and knowledgeable about the area where I traveled. I will never book with D.A. again.- 2 reviews
Rubbish company
I have been trying to book with DA using the credit I have from a Covid cancelled trip from 2021.
My experience has been similar to others - unanswered emails, no information about how credit can be used to rebook.(Other companies give a certificate of credit), no-one who answers has any information and cannot put you in touch with a supervisor. They just say you'll be contacted in a couple of weeks.
It's daylight robbery -holding onto our credit, refusing to give a refund but lack of information on how to use the credit.
What a let down for a company using the name Australia in their title.
Trip over with this company
After my the initial review we went on the holiday. They lived up to the first review. Anyone we met who booked through them just groaned at the name. All had similar issues of misleading info, hard to communicate and not receiving goods they had paid for eg upgrades.when we got there a further 2 things occurred The all inclusive tours did not include park passes you had to have to go on the tours. The real classic was when our tour from Uluṟu to Alice Springs was cancelled and we were not informed. We found out from another unhappy customer ...
Read morewho was advised weeks before. We were told we could go the day after or before and lose the tours booked. We tried everything to get to the Alice, all hire cars booked etc. then it turned out if we changed the booking to another day then there was no accomodation available at either end! After spending half a day communicating with DA we went on the community bus which was basically a milk run for the indigenous. Glad we found some transport but definitely not a tour from AAT as promised. Buyer be very aware and don’t use- 5 reviews
- 1 like
DO NOT BOOK WITH THIS COMPANY!
Holiday Max / Discover Australia are the same company & are very dishonest , phone calls are fobbed off & never returned , emails are completely ignored don't book with them there are plenty of honest companies in Australia & this isn't one of them , would hate people to go through what we had to trying to get back what was owed to us & you will never get it all back that's their MO
Not Happy with this company
D/Aust shouldnt be able to treat people the way they do. They don't follow up any mistakes they do. It is impossible to have anyone return your calls and emails they won't return our money that is owing to us the are a absolute disgrace would recommend you not book any holidays with them they only make it so stressful.
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- 2 reviews
I’m beginning to dread our trip instead of looking forward to it.
We are due to travel with this company soon and have received no paperwork or times for our trip at all. The times we do have came from other companies, for instance the airline contacted us with flight details. There has been no brochure or leaflet describing our holiday - we don’t even know where we will be staying. Part of the joy of a holiday is in the anticipation, yet I am beginning to dread our forthcoming trip. What an expensive let-down.
- 3 reviews
- 4 likes
Still waiting for travel documentation
We, that is my sister and I, like many others are still waiting for our travel documentation to travel on the Ghan to Alice Springs and then Darwin in less than 2weeks. We know we have flight bookings and they have booked the Ghan. That is because we have received notification from the airlines and beyond journeys. Not sure if we have accommodation in Alice Springs or Darwin. We will give them a call. Due to COVID and our original booking being cancelled and our previous lack of communication from DA we refused to hand over any more money when...
Read more rebooking our trip and if we could have we would have cancelled the whole trip and booked it ourselves. On rebooking and after much delay by them we deleted some of the tours on offer(apparently you can) from our itinerary to bring our costs into line with what we had previously paid because yes you guessed it, they wanted lots more money, and are self touring to Uluru and Kings Canyon and at a much reduced rate than what they wanted to charge. We also get to do the all the extra tours we want to do which aren’t included. If you are thinking of using this company. DON’T!!! JUST DON’T!!! We are going to ring and email them every day until we leave or get our paperwork. Book direct with the companies you wish to travel or do tours with. Will save you heaps of time, angst and possibly dollars.Don't Book with this company
Booked a $16,000 trip on the Indan Pacific and touring around Perth with these guys for Sept 2020. Was cancelled due to Covid and we were told the train won't refund. They rebooked us for April this year and I emailed them straight away to say we couldn't travel as we are in NZ and couldn't get back without doing MIQ. They just refuse to answer us by email or phone call. We are distraught to think we will lose all this money and we are pensioners. They are terrible and I cannot stress enough Do Not Use them under any circumstances. The apparent only person who can help us is the one and only booking agent and she refuses to answer the phone. It is just not good enough. What can we do from NZ? Nothing just get ripped off
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The Worst Travel Company - DO NOT BOOK WITH THEM, AVOID
Booked online February 2021, paid fully in April 2021. Trip was due to be in August, cancelled due to Covid, rebooked for October and also cancelled.
Paid $12,500 for 13 night Alice Springs, Uluru, Ghan Gold Class from Alice Springs to Darwin, including 5 nights in Darwin. Rebooked for end of March and have now returned.
Worst Travel Agent, Upselling, Not approachable and would not entertain any changes. Flying to Alice Springs via Adelaide, requested a stop in Adelaide to visit family, no transfers or accomodation required but they would ...
Don’t Use This Company
Discover Australia and their international division Holiday Max are hideous to deal with. Never answer phone, or say they will pass on a message, that never happens. Never reply to emails. Say they are 2 separate companies, but share a physical address and ABN. While they hold our credit to random, squeezed more money out of us. When a prepaid jumping crocodiles tour failed to arrive, now fighting for a refund. I just want to delete the whole miserable experience I have had with them and move on with my life. But DO want to warn others
- 2 reviews
- 2 likes
Haven't had my holiday yet, but service is the worst.
Booked and paid for our holiday june 2021 and due to medical issues have been trying to change it to 2023. Have been trying for 4 months to get answers as to wether the original holiday has been cancelled and rebooked, but have made at least twenty phone calls, sent emails all to no avail. If they can't get this simple request for information right what hope do we have with getting our holiday right. I have lost all confidence in Discovery Australia and would cancel our holiday but cancellation will cost us probably $2000 of our $8000 dollar holiday. These people are not what we hoped for and wouldn't recommend them to anyone.
Questions & Answers
Is it normal to pay full cost of train trips 15 months ahead of the actual trip?. It seems very strange. Peter
No it is definitely NOT! Do not book with these people - Super shonky. We are submitting complaints to A Current Affair - ACCC and any forum that we can find.
No, does not sound normal. Contact Kuranda Railway direct and they have pick up and drop off from Cairns.
For bookings call 1800 KSRAIL(577 245) in Australia
+61 7 4231-9045 outside Australia
https://www.ksr.com.au/Pages/Default.aspx
Sounds bad here we were just about to book a 9 day tour syndney Perth on Indian pacific
We are really angry about the behaviour of this company. It is cold comfort to know how many other people have had similar dreadful experiences. We are trying to get the company investigated but not h...
Read moreopeful. My advice is to stay clear - Book direct with the Indian Pacific.I couldn't agree more. I have booked my trip on the Indian Pacific with Beyond Rail. So many travellers we ran into had horrific experiences with Discover Australia. Don't book with them!!!
Why doesn't this company answer their phones. Promise the world and deliver disappointment. Do not use them.
Unfortunately I saw the poor reviews too late. I had already booked and paid. I have written a letter to A Current Affair asking them to investigate this company. I suggest you do the same. The more p...
Read moreeople who bring this to the public's attention the betterI have also written to a Current Affair and I agree that if more people write then there will be a better chance of it being investigated. This company needs to be exposed!!
I'm in similar boat too. Saw the bad review too late. Have credits from Covid cancellation and now wish to rebook that trip again in June. No response. No help from the reception just the same respon...
Read morese that email was received and someone will contact me. It is nearly three weeks now! If I don't hear back by next week looks I will be contacting ACC and Current Affair as well.Get an answer from our members and Discover Australia Holidays representatives
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