Apartment WS Champs Elysees - Ponthieu

We spent months planning a Paris trip for my birthday on September 20, and booked through Booking.com well in advance. Five days before we arrived, the company said an electrical problem meant we had to move. We asked if the replacement would be fully equivalent for three people and were assured it would be. We got into Paris around 6:30 p.m. and asked for the entry codes. They took 40 minutes to send them, despite repeated messages, and we had to pay for an Uber to get there. The first room was tiny, had just one bed, and was far below what we’d booked. After I complained and we exchanged messages for about an hour, they sent another address and new codes. We paid for a second Uber. It turned out to be the room we had originally reserved. I found that odd, but thought maybe it had been repaired. Then they started sending frightening messages saying we had to leave immediately because our lives were at risk and the apartment could catch fire at any moment. They wanted us to return to the tiny first room. I refused. They kept insisting, then after more than four hours offered us two separate rooms, absurdly far from where we wanted to stay. We’d paid to be together near Champs-Élysées. The trip we’d planned with so much care was being ruined by the company’s confusion and incompetence, and I wasn’t going to accept that offer. After more than six hours of this, it was 11:30 p.m. and I needed to keep my family safe. I paid in full for another place with a different company, plus another Uber, so we could finally stay somewhere that matched the trip we’d dreamed of. I truly hope this account helps people avoid this company and encourages it to treat guests and their Paris plans with respect and dignity. Paris should bring happy, memorable moments, and our memories deserve to be wonderful. A company like this shouldn’t spoil that experience.