Russians Trapped In Pattaya Following Collapse Of Tour Company

[tvgrus]

I understand what this people are NON-smart They will remember this lesson.

[gregb]

I guess what I don't understand here is that apparently the hotel elected to extend credit to this tour operator. They must have extended credit, because if they didn't, then there would be no way for the bills to have been unpaid.

Then, because of their poor decision to extend credit to a client who was not credit worthy, they attempt to hold the innocent travellers responsible and confiscate their belongings until a 3rd party makes good on their debts?

The problem here is that the hotel made a stupid decision so that they could fill more rooms. It was the hotel that made the mistake, and the hotel that needs to suck it up and admit they are the ones responsible. If the answer is that the nobody in the hospitality industry prepays and you must extend credit if you want to stay in business, then the hotel owner was responsible for including a surcharge for this risk in the fees they charge the tour companies.

Can someone here who is trying to argue that the hotel was justified in doing what they did please address these issues. Others in this thread have made theses statements already regarding prepayment, and then they are promptly ignored by those seeking to justify this reprehensible behavior.

So please answer this:

Why should a hotel be allowed to hold an innocent 3rd party responsible for their bad decision to extend credit to a non credit worthy tour company?

If the hotel doesn't trust the tour company, they need to demand prepayment. If the hotel wants the business from the tour company despite the risk, then that is the hotel's choice and the hotel's responsibility. If the hotel misjudged the risk, then they need to learn from this experience and change their business model. In no case is it the traveller's responsibility to pay for the errors of the hotel.

[Nisa]

If you were the hotel owner and someone didn't pay his bill, what would you do?

+1

But they did pay their bills, to the hotel official appointed agent

Some people are a tad thick to understand this.

Or are just not so ignorant in understanding the Travel Agency is not an agent of the hotel as much as a credit card company is not an agent of the hotel nor is a bank which a check is drawn from nor is an insurance company who refuses to pay the medical bills of a patient nor am I an agent of the hotel if I sell you the room I booked through them & failed to tell you I had yet to pay the hotel.

You can twist and turn and look at this from the most bizarre stance you want but the bottom line is the guest is responsible for the bill if the billed party refuses unless the hotel, in the contract relieved the guest of paying in the event the Travel agency didn't pay ... which any reasonable person knows would not be the case.

Why not complain about the airlines who in your mind also saw the travel agency as their agent and should have been bound to fly these people home for free. Why do you think the UK demands travel agencies have bonds to cover such things? Because these things happen all the time where travelers get stuck & screwed when agencies go under.

Clearly they didn't pay their bill or there would not have been any problems with the hotel. They paid a 3rd party for a travel package. This 3rd party took their money.

Edited February 2, 2012 by Nisa

[Nisa]

Failed Travel Agency 'Stole' From Tourists

By

Natalya Krainova

Investigators have opened a large-scale criminal fraud case against the management of one of Russia's largest tour operators, which left more than 3,500 clients stranded in Russia and abroad when it went bankrupt over the weekend.

Read (

The Moscow Times

) more:

http://www.themoscow...l#ixzz1lGkH24Gy

But lets keep pretending that Thais are some how responsible for this mess.

Edited February 2, 2012 by Nisa

[Nisa]

Why should a hotel be allowed to hold an innocent 3rd party responsible for their bad decision to extend credit to a non credit worthy tour company?

What you fail to understand is these things happen all the time all over the world in tourist destinations and the guest (person who received the goods and services) is ultimately responsible for the bill. The hotel provided services to these guests and they deserve to be paid by the people who benefited from their services. Regardless if Grandma promised to to pay the bill but then died, the guest is still responsible. The travel agency (just like Grandma) did nothing but make a promise to pay the bill. Be it a hotel or airline, the person receiving the services is ultimately responsible for the bill. I guarantee you there was no contract between the hotel and the guest or the hotel and the agency that said they guest wouldn't be responsible in the event of non-payment. In fact, I would bet just the opposite was in the contract just as it is when you receive medical care and have insurance ... the person receiving the service is ultimately responsible for the bill.

Interesting how so many want to make the hotel out to be the bad guys here but no mention of the airlines who also wouldn't honor their issued tickets .... but I'm confident there would be attacks against the airlines too if we could just verify it was a Thai airline.

Get with reality .. these people got burned by the travel agency .. not anybody else.

[jshorts]

I guess what I don't understand here is that apparently the hotel elected to extend credit to this tour operator. They must have extended credit, because if they didn't, then there would be no way for the bills to have been unpaid.

Then, because of their poor decision to extend credit to a client who was not credit worthy, they attempt to hold the innocent travellers responsible and confiscate their belongings until a 3rd party makes good on their debts?

The problem here is that the hotel made a stupid decision so that they could fill more rooms. It was the hotel that made the mistake, and the hotel that needs to suck it up and admit they are the ones responsible. If the answer is that the nobody in the hospitality industry prepays and you must extend credit if you want to stay in business, then the hotel owner was responsible for including a surcharge for this risk in the fees they charge the tour companies.

Can someone here who is trying to argue that the hotel was justified in doing what they did please address these issues. Others in this thread have made theses statements already regarding prepayment, and then they are promptly ignored by those seeking to justify this reprehensible behavior.

So please answer this:

Why should a hotel be allowed to hold an innocent 3rd party responsible for their bad decision to extend credit to a non credit worthy tour company?

If the hotel doesn't trust the tour company, they need to demand prepayment. If the hotel wants the business from the tour company despite the risk, then that is the hotel's choice and the hotel's responsibility. If the hotel misjudged the risk, then they need to learn from this experience and change their business model. In no case is it the traveller's responsibility to pay for the errors of the hotel.

Your logic is from a western point of view.

It is not the Thai way.

[samsiam]

the Travel Agency is not an agent of the hotel

Clearly they didn't pay their bill or there would not have been any problems with the hotel. They paid a 3rd party for a travel package. This 3rd party took their money.

Do you have a copy of the contract between the booking agent and the hotel or airline do you ??

I used to own and run a tour company some 15 years ago. A booking agent, be they hotel, travel agency, guesthouse in country or overseas, would call and book a customer onto one of our tours for the next day, next week or next month...we accept the booking, the traveler gives us their ticket on the day, proving they have paid the booking agent.

We then invoice the booking agent at the end of the month and they pay us usually within 30 days....this is how it works the world over unless individual arrangements are made differently, but this is/was the norm back then.

If the booking agent did not pay us, we took the booking agent to court for payment, not the traveler.

So why can't you understand here this is the same thing but times by 300 or whatever.....the hotels and airlines dispute should be with the booking agency. Presumably the package tour group had a coordinator/guide travelling with them, they would be handing over tickets and paperwork to the hotel and airline upon arrival to confirm booking and payments.

Hotels and I presume airlines work like this all over for group bookings...so while they have accepted this for years and conducted business for years like this then one goes belly up...tough titties and this is where your insurance kicks in....no insurance...tough titties again.

[gregb]

Why should a hotel be allowed to hold an innocent 3rd party responsible for their bad decision to extend credit to a non credit worthy tour company?

What you fail to understand is these things happen all the time all over the world in tourist destinations and the guest (person who received the goods and services) is ultimately responsible for the bill. The hotel provided services to these guests and they deserve to be paid by the people who benefited from their services. Regardless if Grandma promised to to pay the bill but then died, the guest is still responsible. The travel agency (just like Grandma) did nothing but make a promise to pay the bill. Be it a hotel or airline, the person receiving the services is ultimately responsible for the bill. I guarantee you there was no contract between the hotel and the guest or the hotel and the agency that said they guest wouldn't be responsible in the event of non-payment. In fact, I would bet just the opposite was in the contract just as it is when you receive medical care and have insurance ... the person receiving the service is ultimately responsible for the bill.

Interesting how so many want to make the hotel out to be the bad guys here but no mention of the airlines who also wouldn't honor their issued tickets .... but I'm confident there would be attacks against the airlines too if we could just verify it was a Thai airline.

Get with reality .. these people got burned by the travel agency .. not anybody else.

Sorry. This attitude is quite simply wrong. These tourists did everything correct. The hotel erred by extending credit to an unworthy tour company. Interesting how some people think the hotel should not take responsibility for their own actions.

Many people want to make the hotel the bad guy because the hotel IS the bad guy. The hotel is refusing to take responsibility for their mistake. Everything was always and at all times under the hotel's control. They were the ones who extended credit to someone who did not deserve it. Blaming someone else for your failure is not acceptable in business, and the hotel deserves to be punished for it.

And yes, the airlines should be forced to honor the tickets also. This has nothing to do with Thailand, despite Nisa's unsuccessful attempt to portray them as the victim. It has to do with a corrupt travel industry that attempts to make innocent tourists shoulder the burden of their own incompetence and greed. There is no way any tourist can be aware of the intricacies of the contractual arrangement between the tour agent and their vendors. Holding them responsible for the hotel (or the airline's) mismanagement is unethical, and it should not be tolerated by people of any moral standing.

Just because someone is evil and that evil is prevalent in a particular industry, does not mean I should "get with the program" and condone it. It is wrong, and the people who perpetrate it should be ashamed.

Edited February 3, 2012 by gregb

[Nisa]

Why should a hotel be allowed to hold an innocent 3rd party responsible for their bad decision to extend credit to a non credit worthy tour company?

What you fail to understand is these things happen all the time all over the world in tourist destinations and the guest (person who received the goods and services) is ultimately responsible for the bill. The hotel provided services to these guests and they deserve to be paid by the people who benefited from their services. Regardless if Grandma promised to to pay the bill but then died, the guest is still responsible. The travel agency (just like Grandma) did nothing but make a promise to pay the bill. Be it a hotel or airline, the person receiving the services is ultimately responsible for the bill. I guarantee you there was no contract between the hotel and the guest or the hotel and the agency that said they guest wouldn't be responsible in the event of non-payment. In fact, I would bet just the opposite was in the contract just as it is when you receive medical care and have insurance ... the person receiving the service is ultimately responsible for the bill.

Interesting how so many want to make the hotel out to be the bad guys here but no mention of the airlines who also wouldn't honor their issued tickets .... but I'm confident there would be attacks against the airlines too if we could just verify it was a Thai airline.

Get with reality .. these people got burned by the travel agency .. not anybody else.

Sorry. This attitude is quite simply wrong. These tourists did everything correct. The hotel erred by extending credit to an unworthy tour company. Interesting how some people think the hotel should not take responsibility for their own actions.

Many people want to make the hotel the bad guy because the hotel IS the bad guy. The hotel is refusing to take responsibility for their mistake. Everything was always and at all times under the hotel's control. They were the ones who extended credit to someone who did not deserve it. Blaming someone else for your failure is not acceptable in business, and the hotel deserves to be punished for it.

And yes, the airlines should be forced to honor the tickets also. This has nothing to do with Thailand, despite Nisa's unsuccessful attempt to portray them as the victim. It has to do with a corrupt travel industry that attempts to make innocent tourists shoulder the burden of their own incompetence and greed. There is no way any tourist can be aware of the intricacies of the contractual arrangement between the tour agent and their vendors. Holding them responsible for the hotel (or the airline's) mismanagement is unethical, and it should not be tolerated by people of any moral standing.

Just because someone is evil and that evil is prevalent in a particular industry, does not mean I should "get with the program" and condone it. It is wrong, and the people who perpetrate it should be ashamed.

If this was an opinion you were expressing it would be one thing but you are simply wrong. People are not let off the hook simply because a person who agreed to pay the bill doesn't. There is absolutely no question you are wrong as you simply need to read about the other travel agencies that have gone broke and left travelers stranded .. especially in Russia where it is becoming common.

You may believe that customers are entitled to free services from some third party when the customer's agent, responsible for paying the bill, doesn't but that is simply not the world we live. The hotel, the airlines and the customers represented by the travel agency got screwed by the travel agency. I you ever owned a business and were responsible for paying your staff so they can support their families you might understand the concept of needing to be paid for services rendered and not needing to be paid for services rendered unless it is free because some third party took advantage or stole from the customer.

If you use a travel agency like this then you should do your homework first and be aware that Russia Travel Agencies and their customers having been having this happen the last years. You should also not travel to another country without access to funds in case something like this or some other emergency arises.

It is absolutely illogical to believe a bank should not repossess your car because the person who signed the loan for you stop making payments. Any contract you have with the person who signed the loan contract is worthless to the bank because just like any company, they have a right to be paid for goods or services or to with hold those goods and services.

Again, it is one thing to have an opinion of the way you think the world should work but completely another to state it works in a way it doesn't and to lay blame on an entity for doing what is legal, accepted and common.

[Jingthing]

I think practically and obviously, travelers in these kinds of situations usually are going to have a problem in most any country. I don't think that is the point. I think seizing people's lockbox contents (typically passports and other important PERSONAL documents) is the point. I think that is disgusting and outrageous behavior and unworthy of any ethical business operation.

Edited February 3, 2012 by Jingthing

[Nisa]

If the booking agent did not pay us, we took the booking agent to court for payment, not the traveler

As will the hotel in this case, for any unpaid bills, but in the cases you speak about the guests were long gone from the hotel. And if agency didn't pay the hotel would have every right to also sue the guest and it would be on the guest to in turn sue the agency.

Why don't you simply do a Google news search and read not just about customers of this travel agency having these same issues in many countries but also all the stories about similar companies going under leaving people responsible for hotel bills and airline tickets.

You can pretend all you want this is some unique situation or about bills being paid late or whatever but the fact is that this is a travel agency that went under without adequate bond to ensure creditors get paid and this is what happens in this situation ... simply read the news.

The customer's beef is with their agent .. the travel agency. The hotel's beef is too but ultimately they have every right to go after the person who was provided the goods and services. In the cases you explain it is much simpler and more likely to result in payment by going to the travel agency ... but in this case (reality) going to the guest who was still there made the most sense ... especially when it is illegal to bill a company in Bankruptcy without doing it through the bankruptcy court.

As I read other articles about this, some people had the foresight to buy travel insurance and will be reimbursed for these their troubles and money they had to shell out because of the tour company going under.

[SiamRose]

Why should a hotel be allowed to hold an innocent 3rd party responsible for their bad decision to extend credit to a non credit worthy tour company?

Because, This Is Thailand.

[kujirasan]

some people had the foresight to buy travel insurance and will be reimbursed for these their troubles and money they had to shell out because of the tour company going under.

In most of Western Countries and Japan, it is compulsory to insure travelers by the tour companies , well Russia may be Geographically in Europe or West, but beyond physical location never been part of it! Around turn of century the Literary critique Vissarion Belinsky(Виссарио́н Григо́рьевич Бели́нский) commented that the country, in the subconscious is always guided by Tatar Morals, and laws! Wonder if they ever Westernize and adopted Western Legal System!

http://smotri.com/vi...id=v1985801ab60

Edited February 3, 2012 by kujirasan

[axel2001]

Meanwhile, Lanta-tour paid all bills to thai hotels.

[FOODLOVER]

Meanwhile, Lanta-tour paid all bills to thai hotels.

If the manager of the Hotel would have simply accommodated the guest, but nooooooo. Now have poop for PR. Will never stay at Hotel St. Nisa as well.

Edited February 4, 2012 by FOODLOVER

[tvgrus]

Meanwhile, Lanta-tour paid all bills to thai hotels.

This is money from VTB biggest russian gov bank. Forced to pay before Putin elections. Lanta is a broke.

[gregb]

Meanwhile, Lanta-tour paid all bills to thai hotels.

If the manager of the Hotel would have simply accommodated the guest, but nooooooo. Now have poop for PR. Will never stay at Hotel St. Nisa as well.

Are you implying that Nisa is actually allowed to run a hotel? God help us all. No wonder the hospitality industry is in the state it is in. If anyone knows where that is please tell me so I will know where to avoid.

I prefer to give my business to people who actually take responsibility for the problems they create. Certainly neither of the hotels mentioned in the article will ever be seeing business from me.

[pattayadingo]

Travel Insurance ring any bells? Or do Russians not have that facility?

[KeyserSoze01]

I think that is disgusting and outrageous behavior and unworthy of any ethical business operation.

So, it's business as usual then.

[tvgrus]

Russian "Lanta" back from nowhere. Starts payments with gov's money. But bussianes is dead. No chance to give this money back to Gov's...

Edited February 7, 2012 by tvgrus

[transam]

Travel Insurance ring any bells? Or do Russians not have that facility?

Eeeeeeer.... No. But they have lots of cabbages.

[yougivemebaby]

Any updates? Are the Russians going to colonize walking street?

[tvgrus]

Everybody going home WS is all yours! )

[yougivemebaby]

Everybody going home WS is all yours! )

Go throw some rotten cabbages and eggs at the people that left you stranded there..

[Nisa]

Meanwhile, Lanta-tour paid all bills to thai hotels.

If the manager of the Hotel would have simply accommodated the guest, but nooooooo. Now have poop for PR. Will never stay at Hotel St. Nisa as well.

Are you implying that Nisa is actually allowed to run a hotel? God help us all. No wonder the hospitality industry is in the state it is in. If anyone knows where that is please tell me so I will know where to avoid.

I prefer to give my business to people who actually take responsibility for the problems they create. Certainly neither of the hotels mentioned in the article will ever be seeing business from me.

A tour company asks for credit, as it has done for 12-years, but doesn't disclose it is in serious financial problems and could face shut down at any moment ... Yet this is the hotel's problems.

Your continued thinking that the hotel should take responsibility because they granted this company credit but then should the same logic apply to the customers of the tour company. Should they have not done their homework and gotten travel insurance and be blamed themselves for choosing a failing tour company?

I guess you believe that the 1,000+ people who have paid for hotel and airfare through this tour agency should be able to still go on their trips at the expense of the airlines and hotels.

You seem to assign responsibility in a very strange way. It is clear the tour company is the one who screwed their customers and vendors. Secondly, people are ultimately responsible for themselves which includes being prepared for emergencies ... especially ones like this that are not uncommon in Russia these last years ... if you travel without travel insurance and don't have access to funds in case of an emergency then you need to only look in the mirror to see who is at fault and not blame a foreign business for not providing you free services.

Your mind is in some kind of ideological world as opposed to the real world where hotels need to be paid and airlines don't fly people for free ... in other words people get stranded when tour companies collapse and there is no insurance or bond by the tour company or their government to cover their debts. This is not only legal but common practice. One only needs to read the news to see this is the case time and time again ... especially with Russian tour companies but lets keep blaming the Thai hotel because it make sense in fantasy land.

I'm am not saying the hotel acted properly with treatment of the guests but there is absolutely NOTHING wrong with demanding payment for services rendered or kicking those out who refuse to pay or decided to go overseas with no access to even a small amount of emergency funds. A hotel is a business and not the Red Cross. These were people who could afford to go on an overseas trip and not poor starving kids from Africa smuggled into Thailand.

Edited February 10, 2012 by Nisa

[pastitche]

Russian rudeness in legendary and exemplary, and that perception has enormous effect on people dealing with Russians, in 1941, French Prisoner of War in Poland rioted and large number were shot by German guards, they refused to eat on the same table with Russians, which were mainly high ranking officers, the French complained that is like eating with pigs, the destruction of upper classes during revolution left the country with only peasants, the etiquette and conventional code of conducts, table manners etc went extinct, if any one has had a chance coming across Russian communities that had left Russian during Revolution, in Canada , France etc will find the difference, recently the Russian ministry of education has decided to teach etiquette in schools, as well in Russian itself the Government is referred to as KLEPTOCRACY , collapses of this sort are common occurrence. Peter the Great, was well know for stealing anything that wasn’t bolted to the floor while staying in Europe (Holland) , On the other side Thai hoteliers are not know for generosity, or charity, once they have lousy customer like Russians, this type of reaction is not unusual. Unless the Thai tourist authority and police implement same policy as for Angolans, and designate specific hotels and condition for them, this type of disaster will occur incessantly.

Well I'll have to go check my history but I seem to remember that the French Revolution took place a century or more before Russia's and that all those tumbrils took the aristocracy (including the king) to meet Madame La Guillotine.

Is your point that in some way European table manners are a sign of breeding? Or are you suggesting that societies with different dining customs are essentially inferior to the European-American one? They, in themselves vary too - Americans frequently eat only with their fork and that in the wrong hand, Italians dip bread in their soups and sauces.....

Since the Russian revolution was early last century, when and where did you meet these groups of refugees with personal memories of pre-revolution times?

A purely personal story; as a student I had a flatmate who was African. He used to pare his fingernails very short with a razor blade and when I asked him why he explained that at home he ate with his hands so it was for hygiene. There is no right or wrong etiquette; if you are European your mediaeval ancestors (assuming that they were privileged enough not to live as peasants in daub and wattle huts) did not shrink from eating in a way which would make someone as sensitive as you appalled.

I suggest that you look at the etymology of "trencherman" which has evolved to mean someone with a healthy appetite

[z12]

Considering the cold weather, the russians should be happy to be stuck there.

Edited February 10, 2012 by z12

[FOODLOVER]

Meanwhile, Lanta-tour paid all bills to thai hotels.

If the manager of the Hotel would have simply accommodated the guest, but nooooooo. Now have poop for PR. Will never stay at Hotel St. Nisa as well.

Are you implying that Nisa is actually allowed to run a hotel? God help us all. No wonder the hospitality industry is in the state it is in. If anyone knows where that is please tell me so I will know where to avoid.

I prefer to give my business to people who actually take responsibility for the problems they create. Certainly neither of the hotels mentioned in the article will ever be seeing business from me.

A tour company asks for credit, as it has done for 12-years, but doesn't disclose it is in serious financial problems and could face shut down at any moment ... Yet this is the hotel's problems.

Your continued thinking that the hotel should take responsibility because they granted this company credit but then should the same logic apply to the customers of the tour company. Should they have not done their homework and gotten travel insurance and be blamed themselves for choosing a failing tour company?

I guess you believe that the 1,000+ people who have paid for hotel and airfare through this tour agency should be able to still go on their trips at the expense of the airlines and hotels.

You seem to assign responsibility in a very strange way. It is clear the tour company is the one who screwed their customers and vendors. Secondly, people are ultimately responsible for themselves which includes being prepared for emergencies ... especially ones like this that are not uncommon in Russia these last years ... if you travel without travel insurance and don't have access to funds in case of an emergency then you need to only look in the mirror to see who is at fault and not blame a foreign business for not providing you free services.

Your mind is in some kind of ideological world as opposed to the real world where hotels need to be paid and airlines don't fly people for free ... in other words people get stranded when tour companies collapse and there is no insurance or bond by the tour company or their government to cover their debts. This is not only legal but common practice. One only needs to read the news to see this is the case time and time again ... especially with Russian tour companies but lets keep blaming the Thai hotel because it make sense in fantasy land.

I'm am not saying the hotel acted properly with treatment of the guests but there is absolutely NOTHING wrong with demanding payment for services rendered or kicking those out who refuse to pay or decided to go overseas with no access to even a small amount of emergency funds. A hotel is a business and not the Red Cross. These were people who could afford to go on an overseas trip and not poor starving kids from Africa smuggled into Thailand.

Nothing wrong with demanding payment from the company that you have a contract with but throwing the innocents on the streets in a foreign country, unconscionable.

[Nisa]

If the manager of the Hotel would have simply accommodated the guest, but nooooooo. Now have poop for PR. Will never stay at Hotel St. Nisa as well.

Are you implying that Nisa is actually allowed to run a hotel? God help us all. No wonder the hospitality industry is in the state it is in. If anyone knows where that is please tell me so I will know where to avoid.

I prefer to give my business to people who actually take responsibility for the problems they create. Certainly neither of the hotels mentioned in the article will ever be seeing business from me.

A tour company asks for credit, as it has done for 12-years, but doesn't disclose it is in serious financial problems and could face shut down at any moment ... Yet this is the hotel's problems.

Your continued thinking that the hotel should take responsibility because they granted this company credit but then should the same logic apply to the customers of the tour company. Should they have not done their homework and gotten travel insurance and be blamed themselves for choosing a failing tour company?

I guess you believe that the 1,000+ people who have paid for hotel and airfare through this tour agency should be able to still go on their trips at the expense of the airlines and hotels.

You seem to assign responsibility in a very strange way. It is clear the tour company is the one who screwed their customers and vendors. Secondly, people are ultimately responsible for themselves which includes being prepared for emergencies ... especially ones like this that are not uncommon in Russia these last years ... if you travel without travel insurance and don't have access to funds in case of an emergency then you need to only look in the mirror to see who is at fault and not blame a foreign business for not providing you free services.

Your mind is in some kind of ideological world as opposed to the real world where hotels need to be paid and airlines don't fly people for free ... in other words people get stranded when tour companies collapse and there is no insurance or bond by the tour company or their government to cover their debts. This is not only legal but common practice. One only needs to read the news to see this is the case time and time again ... especially with Russian tour companies but lets keep blaming the Thai hotel because it make sense in fantasy land.

I'm am not saying the hotel acted properly with treatment of the guests but there is absolutely NOTHING wrong with demanding payment for services rendered or kicking those out who refuse to pay or decided to go overseas with no access to even a small amount of emergency funds. A hotel is a business and not the Red Cross. These were people who could afford to go on an overseas trip and not poor starving kids from Africa smuggled into Thailand.

Nothing wrong with demanding payment from the company that you have a contract with but throwing the innocents on the streets in a foreign country, unconscionable.

You are absolutely incorrect in your statement that it is "unconscionable" as it is common in this situation (do a Google news search) and is perfectly legal and reasonable for a hotel to kick out guests, and/or demand payment from guests when bills are not paid. The guests were ultimately responsible for their bills and most (if not all) bought travel insurance, as reported by the news, which clearly stated this and explained THE GUESTS would be reimbursed for THEIR expenses in a situation like this.

Here is just one of a number of similar situations that have occured in the last year (not to mention these Russian guests were not given free hotel stay in any country this tour company operated) ... Goldtrail Travel collapse leaves British tourists stuck at home and abroad ... http://www.guardian.co.uk/travel/2010/jul/17/goldtrail-collapse-greece-turkey-holidays

[TAWP]

Nisa >> We can all see that you fail to understand contract-law. Congratulations.