Surely you have ever heard of La Vida es Bella packs , a company that is dedicated to the commercialization of experiences such as a stay in a hotel, a dinner in a restaurant or a day of horse riding. In fact, it is very likely that you or someone close to you have enjoyed these packs in the first person.
It is the option for those who prefer to give experiences rather than something material, which I think is fantastic. I would never exchange two hotel nights in an unfamiliar city for a brand-name pair of shoes, although obviously there will be those who prefer otherwise.
The fact is that not everything is as beautiful as it seems. When you buy or get one of those packs as a gift, your odyssey begins, especially when it comes to stays. Why? Because all the hotels put problems when you book and the customer service of La Vida es Bella leaves much to be desired.
Bad experiences
That there are hundreds of outraged customers is no accident. All you have to do is search the forums or inquire on the La Vida es Bella Facebook page to realize that something is wrong. There are many who decide to leave negative comments about their experience when booking. I quote verbatim some of those that I have been able to read:
– «The perfect gift to ruin someone’s vacation … Nobody here solves anything for me. All the planning to celebrate my husband’s birthday to hell! I hope someone will contact me … »
– «Nothing, they lie in everything is throwing money away».
– «Does any of your advertisers let you redeem the pack? Because I just find obstacles to be able to exchange mine ».
– «They gave me the ‘three days with flavor’ I have followed the steps for the reservation, but when I get to the confirmation code, it tells me to put the three numbers by scratching the gray part. Well, in the gray part there are five numbers, put it in the way you want it tells you (insert the valid confirmation code) … what code. I have sent two emails, one on 09/25/2016 and the other days later through the website and as of today without any response ».
Your Facebook page, by the way, is pretty neglected. The same thing happens with their blog, so I’m afraid it must not work out too well for them . That of receiving so many complaints and not solving them invites you to live in the dark. You can’t update your wall so happily when you know you’re going to be peppered with negative comments. Not if you can’t come up with convincing answers and keep your word.
Sorry, we don’t have availability for those dates
With this, the same thing happens that usually happens with Groupalia, LetsBonus and company. As you go to the sites paying less than what they usually charge for the service they are going to provide you, you find yourself with many problems when booking . If you call a hotel and book without saying that you are going with a La Vida es Bella pack they will put a red carpet for you when choosing the day you prefer, but when you say that you come with the pack in question things will change so much that you will believe be talking to another receptionist.
I do not know if they are in cahoots or not, but what is clear is that hotels are not doing their part . If they are not in league, Life is Beautiful should take action on the matter so that a correct service is offered. In fact, that this happens only serves to hear a multitude of negative comments towards a business model that seemed to be the bomb when it saw the light, but that over the years is fading because of the obstacles that one is Finds from when you open the pack and choose the destination until you enjoy it (if you can enjoy it).
Problems when booking through the Internet
It is curious because in some hotels they tell you that you must make the reservation through the Internet , accessing the website that La Vida es Bella created for that management. It is uncomfortable, but it is not an insurmountable problem, unless the same thing happens to you as other users who have not been able to complete the reservation online.
They ask you for a series of data that you must enter. Everything is correct until you get to a section in which they ask you for three digits that are in the gray part of the pack where the activation code is. You scratch it to see the number and you are surprised to see that there are not three digits, but five . Obviously, when entering the five digits gives you an error, the same thing happens if you try to enter the first three, the last three or the three in the middle (desperation leads you to try everything).
Anyone there?
When that happens to you, the anger you get is considerable, but you stay calm because you know that you can contact customer service . Error! That customer service, which you can call using 902 or a free phone number (913 605 545), is a robot that tells you exactly what you have been doing to try to complete the reservation. Then it gives you several options to speak with the staff of La Vida es Bella, and that’s when you want to prepare a complaint. Call when you call, their lines are always busy. Also, far from leaving you with the typical catchy music on hold, they hang you up and leave you with a silly face that is too much . I guess they do it because there is no one answering those calls, so they don’t want to have you hooked on the phone for three hours at all. A detail for your part.
Anyway, I encourage you to tell your experience (not the pack, the reserve one) and tell us if you have managed to solve a problem like the one I just described. Now that Christmas is coming and more than one will give a pack of Life is Beautiful to their loved ones, it will be good to know how to act.
Update : There seems to be a fix for the triple digit thing. If in the first step, in which it asks for the activation code, you write the activation code plus the reservation code all together (example: 810123123BE1234567), they do not ask you for the three digits at the end and you can make the reservation without any problem. I do not understand why it is not explained on the reservation website.