Aldgate by Excel Apartments

I paid 126 euros for two nights, but was asked for a £350 deposit. My card wasn’t accepted when I tried to pay it on the first day, and on the second day the deposit had gone up to £500. I didn’t pay that much for a damage deposit when the apartment cost 114 pounds for two nights. When I called to ask why it had increased by £150 in a day, the woman on the phone denied that the previous amount was £350. Avoid this apartment!

We booked the apartment for a graduation celebration, five women, all over 25 except one who was 24. On check-in day, staff refused to let us in because of her age, even though we explained she’d only join us briefly and leave after an hour or two, without staying overnight. They accused us of lying. The male staff member I spoke to was rude and unprofessional, kept cutting off my calls, spoke disrespectfully, and refused check-in. He made us cancel through the app and said we’d get a refund. We’d paid £180 for the night, but never got it back. More than two weeks of calls and emails later, they’re still refusing to return our money. This ruined our special day, and the treatment was unacceptable. I’d warn others against booking here. The staff were dishonest and unprofessional, with no respect for customers.

We booked in the evening after already travelling to London. There were three of us, all women on our own, and they still turned us away without refunding anything. We were left stranded on the street at night. They clearly don’t care about your safety and were happy to take the money knowing they’d refuse us. It felt like a trap, honestly like a scam. They keep your money even though they won’t let you stay, which is disgusting. I wish I’d read the reviews first, because it looks like this has happened to others. They hide the “25+ age limit,” so you think you’re eligible to book, even though UK consumer law requires major restrictions like this to be clearly shown before payment. Check the other one-star reviews. Save your money and stay somewhere that shows its rules clearly and doesn’t leave women on the street. Disgusting.

They called me on the day of my booking and said I had to cancel. Although they have a no-refunds policy, they insisted I cancel it myself and promised they’d refund me, even talking me through the cancellation steps. Something felt fishy, so I recorded the whole conversation with their team. I have an open dispute with them now. I’ve seen reviews on multiple platforms describing the same company doing the same thing. I’ve attached the cancellation confirmation in case they try to deny this happened, as they have with previous reviews. Don’t book, it’ll end badly. They’re scam artists.