I used Expedia to book a three-night stay at the 5-star Elements Byron Bay for my partner's birthday weekend in early January 2026. I chose to use Expedia because it advertised room availability, while other websites, including Elements' own website, did not.Expedia text messaged and emailed me to confirm the hotel booking (clearly stating 'Your hotel is confirmed' along with the itinerary), after which my partner and I booked our flights and arranged leave from work. I also booked several other activities and restaurants in Byron Bay for my partner's birthday.A few days later, Expedia called me to say that the hotel had no availability, and proposed several inferior alternatives at 'equal or greater price' - most of which were 4-star hotels/motels with two bedrooms, which offered no value to us and were substantially inferior to our original choice, which was a 5-star resort with numerous amenities on-site.Why advertise availability, take our money, and then send a separate confirmation email if there's no stock available? In most jurisdictions, this would be misleading or deceptive conduct and amount to a breach of consumer law. Some might even consider this a 'bait and switch'.Expedia offered no other remedy besides a refund, leaving my partner and me with no option but to book directly with the resort for a later date and reschedule our flights, incurring a $198 AUD flight change fee.Terrible experience that left my partner and me extraordinarily disappointed and inconvenienced.My partner and I have resolved to go out of our way to discourage others from using Expedia.
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