Yosemite Basecamp

We finally got a room at 1:30 AM, exhausted and furious, after spending hours in the cold with nowhere to sleep. We’d driven from NYC after booking two rooms through Agoda on July 4, more than four months ahead. The listing made it sound like there were multiple rooms, but it was actually one studio with a small bunk bed room underneath. One reservation had been cancelled, but the studio booking still showed as active, so I thought we were all set. We arrived October 11 at 7:40 PM. The property was pitch black, with no staff or lights, even though check-in was supposedly available until 10 PM. We called the listed number again and again for over 30 minutes, with no answer or call back. A man walking his dog knew the people who run the place and tried calling the owner for us, but got nothing. A guest also tried to help us reach someone. The couple staying there said they’d spent more than two hours trying to reach anyone the night before when they checked in. This seemed to be a pattern. We tried every number we could find for ECHO adventures, Elisabeth, and her husband Ryan, but heard nothing. After two hours outside in 30 degree weather, searching the dark property, we heard a phone ringing. The couple in the studio, which looked just like the one we had booked, gave us another number for the person running the place. That went unanswered too. We traced the sound and found an abandoned iPhone on the ground outside. It was the phone for that alternative number. With no room access and no one answering, we had to leave and look for somewhere to sleep. Local hotels were sold out. A kind stranger at a local bar happened to know Ryan, and after three long hours we finally reached him. His wife Elisabeth quickly took over. She was dismissive and unapologetic from the start, with what I felt was an arrogant tone. First she said she hadn’t checked Agoda lately, then said my reservation didn’t exist. Next, she said Agoda had never sent it to her, though my reservation had been cancelled. It felt like she was shifting the blame to me. She eventually admitted she’d seen the messages and calls but hadn’t responded because she was “confused” about why someone was trying to check in, since she thought she was full and all expected guests had arrived. She said she’d also seen the Agoda chat and chosen not to reply. She acknowledged ignoring calls from guests and someone who knew her during those three hours. She never apologized. Her solution after leaving us stranded was, “Try booking.com or Airbnb.” No offer to help, no responsibility, no basic decency. A nearby hotel took pity on us and made up a room at the last minute. It was expensive and the heat didn’t work. At 8:30 the next morning, Elisabeth came to our door to get her lost phone, not to apologize. When I brought up the night before, she said, “You turned out to be my hero, even though I couldn’t help you yesterday.” She asked what I was paying for the room and told me to “enjoy your stay,” then remarked “so pricey and not heat.” Guests knew they were being filmed, mostly because of the phone we found. One guest in the video suggested I take it and bring it the next morning to speak with Elisabeth. That was filmed too, in case there’s any doubt. None of the pictures show faces, because that’s the decent thing to do. Everyone tried to help except you. Save yourself the stress and misery. There are many wonderful, honest hosts in the Yosemite area. Elisabeth and Ryan aren’t among them.