Booking.com Allowed Hotel Artist Tirana to Withhold My Depósito Without Refund
I stayed at Hotel Artist Tirana in Albania from March 12 to March 14, 2025, with a reservation made through Booking.com. While only the room fee was shown at the time of booking, a €200 deposit was later withdrawn from my card without any prior notice or authorization.
When I contacted the hotel, they claimed it was a damage deposit that would be refunded 14 days after checkout. I did not agree to this and requested a cancellation, but Booking.com took no action. We had no choice but to stay at the property.
Upon check-in, we were also charged a so-called “city tax” of €4 per person for 2 nights, even though all taxes were already included in the booking confirmation. At checkout, the hotel staff offered to refund half the tax in exchange for a positive review, which was entirely inappropriate.
It has now been 26 business days, and I have still not received my €200 refund. I’ve messaged the hotel multiple times with no reply. Shockingly, they even video-called me twice via WhatsApp without ever responding to my written messages — which I suspect was a tactic to avoid leaving written evidence. Their behavior felt threatening and unprofessional.
I also discovered numerous complaints online about the same hotel doing this to other guests — charging deposits and never returning them. I reported the issue to Booking.com, but they continue to list this hotel, enabling it to defraud more guests.
How can a platform like Booking.com continue supporting a property with a clear pattern of customer abuse? By not taking action, Booking.com becomes complicit in these fraudulent practices.
I demand that Booking.com launch an investigation, remove Hotel Artist Tirana from its platform, and ensure full refunds for me and others who have been similarly exploited. This experience has been a major disappointment and a serious breach of trust.
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