We booked our wedding anniversary celebration trip to Switzerland with Gate 1 Travel, through Virgin Vacations. Believe Virgin is the broker and Gate 1 is a supplier to Virgin Vacations. Our flights from PIT to NY to Zurich was re-routed due to an airline cancellation on the first leg. We contacted Gate 1 and gave them options for a later flight that would have delayed us for 2 hours, but still follow the original itinerary. Gate 1 was very unresponsive and made us wait for several hours in the airport, they gave us another flight option that added an extra leg and added half a day to the trip to Zurich.
Once arrived we were supposed to get a rental car with Hertz, as booked
with Gate 1. Once we got to the Hertz counter they had no rezervation for rental, in fact they told us they had a vaucher on our name that was cancelled by Gate 1 and if we want to get a car it would cost us 1100 for the week. So we had to pay the new rental fee after we already paid it through Gate 1. After numerous phone calls and e-mails with Gate 1, Joe from customer service told us to accept the new charges and we will get reimbursed once we get back to US. It has been 1 month since we got charged twice fornthe same rental car and we have still not seen any reimbursement, they keep giving us the run around. At this point we have started the dispute of charges through the credit card company. I am sick of waiting for our money and sick of their lies. They are crooks, do not get tempted by their low prices because you will ruin your vacation. I would never use them again!

VERY DISSATIFIED with Gate1. Six members of my family booked a tour of Israel and Egypt with Gate1 before the violence broke out. The trip is scheduled to depart in only three 47f3fweeks and the political situation continues to deteriorate, but Gate1 has not cancelled the trip, nor will it allow its customers to apply the deposit to a different Gate1 trip. It appears that Gate1 is hoping my family will forfeit the $2, 400 deposit rather than go through with a vacation in a war zone. I'll post an updated review of Gate1 if its position changes, but that doesn't appear to be likely.

In June 2009 I took a Gate 1 tour of Spain & Portugal. I paid Gate 1 in advance for an airport transfer ($100) from the Madrid airport to my hotel since I was arriving a day before the tour began. The driver never showed up (was told car trouble), so I took a cab for about $40. My Gate 1 tour guide promptly reimbursed me for the $40 in cash. Upon my return home I contacted Gate 1 to get reimbursed for the rest of the money owed me, $60. I was told by Gate 1 as far as they were concerned I had been reimbursed, case closed. Unacceptable. I will not patronize Gate 1 again!

I'm reading through the complaints against Gate 1 Travel and am stunned, because I just returned from the 10-day Discovery of Egypt (w/4 day Nile cruise) and had a spectatular time, with only one complaint in our group of c. 35 people. That concerned the stop at an alabaster shop in Luxor, at which some considered the prices & process objectionable. Our guide, Hussein, was thoroughly professional & informative, hotels were fantastic, Hussein even assisted us with making separate arrangements to use our "down time." He worked with everyone very cooperatively, kept to the schedule and insured we all got to see and do as much as possible. I was never a big fan of Gate 1 but now I have booked a separate tour to India in 2010. P.S. the M/V Cristal is a much better, relatively small ship, to use for Greek Island cruises.

As a travel writer, I have had the pleasure of visiting many international destinations. My last trip to Europe was a real eye-opener though. If you are traveling to Europe, I would strongly advise against using any outfit that utilizes MSC Musica cruise ships. We traveled through Gate 1 Travel, and had a very disappointing experience. In summer, this cruise line is dense with Italians, who make it very difficult for other nationalities to have a good time. There's alot of shoving, crowding and other examples of rude behavior that quite frankly surprised me, especially since we're all on vacation and trying to have a good time.

Food on this cruise through Greece was below par, with the Italian fare being mediocre at best, and very little Greek cuisine. Lines to get on and off the ship were very long, with many people not adhering to their place in line.

In retrospect, we should have known that this cruise line charged for many incidentals, including coffee, tea, juice and other beverages that are usually included on many other cruises. In comparing our dismal experience with other American travelers, we found that other cruise lines like Princess, NCL, etc. didn't charge for all these ancillary items. What a shocker when we went to the dining room for meals. Factor in the euro, and you can see how costs can rapidly escalate if you're not careful.

I thought most cruise lines were pretty much the same, but obviously, I'll do alot more homework before I take another cruise. Gate 1 did very little to keep our loyalty, and after taking 3 trips with them to Europe in the past, it's very doubtful that we'll be doing this again. How hard would it be to give us a real incentive to travel with this company in the future, especially with the economy being in such a sorry state.