I had an absolutely horrible experience booking through Booking.com, and I strongly advise others to avoid both the platform and the property I stayed at.My friend and I drove 6 hours from London to reach our accommodation — Washingtons Emerald 2 Bed Executive Apartment, Drumaldrace, Washington, NE37 1SR (near Durham) — arriving at 10 PM, a time that was pre-agreed with the host. To our shock, the PIN code for the key safe was incorrect. Despite multiple attempts, we couldn’t access the property.To make matters worse, the host had an overwhelming list of 20+ strict and unreasonable house rules, including a requirement to leave shoes outside (with no slippers provided) and expectations for guests to clean the property to a spotless condition — essentially doing the host’s job. It felt more like a punishment than a relaxing stay.We tried calling the host repeatedly — no response. In desperation, we contacted Booking.com. A representative named Genevieve initially assured us that we could book a hotel for the night and that we would be reimbursed. She also promised to send alternative accommodations. None of that happened — no follow-up, no alternatives, no refund.Frustrated and exhausted, we had no choice but to drive back to London in the middle of the night. At 3 AM, the host finally messaged with a new code — far too late.We called Booking.com again in the morning. This time, Elisaj answered and promised to call back with a resolution. Again, no call back. On our third attempt, we spoke to Doha, who had already been misinformed by the host — he falsely claimed we had stayed at the property and that the original code was correct. Booking.com sided with the host, completely ignoring the facts.The wait times were appalling — 45 minutes just to get through, followed by repeated holds of another 45 minutes each time they claimed to be “checking with seniors.” By this point, it felt like they had already flagged our number and were deliberately avoiding resolution.Key Takeaways:❌ Avoid non-refundable bookings on Booking.com.❌ Avoid Washingtons Emerald 2 Bed Executive Apartment — excessive rules and an unresponsive host.✅ Book only cancellable accommodations, and once verified, consider dealing directly with the landlord.⚠️ Booking.com offers no real protection for guests and has no accountability for host behavior.We never got to stay, never received a refund, and were treated with complete disregard.Totally unprofessional — avoid this property and avoid Booking.com.We never got to stay, never received a refund, and were treated with complete disregard.Totally unprofessional — avoid this property and avoid Booking.com.
