James Villas Recensioni 

My husband and I, and our friend, booked a holiday in Paphos, Cyprus, the first week of October 2023. We selected a villa in Paphos called Beach Haven, James Villas being the provider. This was a modern, contemporary, lovely villa. The whole holiday was (thankfully) booked through Trailfinders. At 10.40 pm, the evening before we were due to fly, we received a text from Trailfinders 24 hour desk, informing us that they had just received a message from James Villas that we had been moved from Beach Haven villa, Paphos to a villa in Coral Bay (Coral Bay is a good 10-12 miles outside Paphos). We had an early morning flight to Cyprus, so at this point, we just had to proceed. We had a transfer taxi booked at Paphos Airport, for which we had to pay another 20 euros on top of our original transfer payment, because it was a longer journey to Coral Bay. I was so upset when we went into the villa in Coral Bay. It was well below the standard of Beach Haven; screws hanging out of electrical fittings, light bulb not working, some electrical points taped over, awful beds and bedding that did not fit, in need of updating – we had paid for marble style bathrooms with spacious walk-in showers - we had a shower tray with a plastic curtain. Fortunately, Trailfinders had stayed in touch with us, and managed to get us moved to a villa in Paphos, but not until the Wednesday of our holiday. When we pulled up outside the villa in Paphos on the Wednesday, we instantly recognised the villa next door as the Beach Haven villa, our original booking, which is now named Laurus 1. We were in Laurus 2, which met the requirements we were looking for. Beach Haven was already occupied when we arrived, and I had the opportunity to speak with them. They had originally booked Laurus 2 (the villa we were now in) for two weeks, but before leaving for their holiday, had been informed that they had been moved to Laurus 1, no explanation given. So, their first week of holiday was in the villa we had booked, and we were moved to the Coral Bay villa, WELL BELOW THE STANDARD WE WERE PAYING FOR. We “lost” two days of our holiday (Monday and Tuesday), and we didn’t get a chance to do all we had planned to do in Paphos. We had not rented a car with our villa booking, because we expected to BE IN PAPHOS. We are grateful to Trailfinders who helped us through this. The disappointment of this holiday was all caused by James Villas’ appalling service. SHAME ON YOU JAMES VILLAS.

In response to your reply to my review, you quote "Looking in to your booking further I can see we contacted your travel agent with a number of options before your travel." Why would you be offering a number of options when we had already booked and paid for Beach Haven? Only reason I can think of is that you had overbooked it. I see there are other reviews on Trustpilot complaining that their villa had been overbooked. However, I note their is a review which states that James Villas has now closed for business. Hmmmmm.

We have booked villas, flights and cars through James Villas for a number of years but our recent experience will lead us to book through any other company / platform in future. James Villas for us used to be a premier villa rental organisation but now appear to give the same level of protection as other cheaper alternatives.
Main issues during our holiday: No WIFI for 7 days, pool turned green for 5 days, villa was tired and in need of maintenance and an uplift, inaccurate villa details, no water for 1.5 days (which I actually fixed in the end), issues with jacuzzi bath, villa is overlooked by a block of apartments, next door villa and is built alongside a public car park. Three separate building projects going on in the small village which meant we had breakfast to a back ground of JCB's breaking rocks. Greece has to build but we weren't informed or offered alternatives. There were numerous other small issues which we didn't expect from a James Villa.
To add insult to injury James Villas have offered a "gesture of goodwill" of just £50 above what they gave us for a complaint about a dangerous car they rented for us back in 2012 ! and, we have to spend their "gesture of goodwill" with them !
Part of the problem here I believe is that if there is a problem James Villas appear to act only as a 'go between' they don't actually take responsibility.
In response to James Villas reply :
Perhaps this is an automated reply or perhaps it is what is now commonly known as a falsehood whichever, we did not agree to anything, we were TOLD what they would give as a " gesture of goodwill " which by the way we have to spend on another James Villas holiday ! I wouldn't book with this organisation again, not because of the issues we experienced but because of the way they have handled our complaint.

We booked a villa in Lanzarote for a week. Prior to arriving to the villa we went to a supermarket to buy some food. When we arrived, we noticed there was a hire car parked on the driveway and the code we were given for the key box was wrong. We managed to work out what the code was but there was no key inside. As it was Sunday afternoon, we called the customer service line and got through to the India team. We explained the situation and they said they will call us back. After a while they called back and said the local Spanish team will contact us. Again after a while the Spanish team contacted us but they were unable to explain what was going on and why we couldn't get in the villa. Then they said they will contact the maintenance guy- we thought he would be able to let us in but when he finally called us he said the previous guests extended their stay for an extra night. He said he spoke to James Villa multiple times to remind them that we were booked in that villa and they will have to sort something out for us. So they knew the whole time! We got this information after sitting on the driveway for over 2 hours. It was getting dark and late and the food we bought was going bad. We called the India team again to find out why they didn't tell us straight away that the villa was double booked and why they didn't contact us in advance. They said we should book a hotel room for that night. There was no apology or attempt to fix the issue on their end. Awful customer service. They should have been the ones sorting out the temporary accommodation for us instead of leaving us to do it all ourselves. We tried to go to the nearest hotel but as it was last minute they were fully booked and turned us away. We then received a phone call from the Spanish team who wanted to know if the maintenance guy contacted us. We explained what he told us about the double booking. As you can imagine we were extremely unhappy and stressed out at this point. The Spanish team found out that the villa directly next door to the one we booked was empty and we could stay in there for the night. We were relieved that we had somewhere to stay however we lost at least €40 worth of food and spent 2 hours on the street stressed out. And to top it all off the door to the villa next door was unlocked the whole time, the door lock was broken so the door wouldn't lock. We spent the whole night worrying that someone could easily break in. We were able to move into the villa we originally booked the following afternoon but the only "apology" we got from James Villa was "Sorry for the confusion." This was pure neglect from them and not a confusion! The cherry on top was when a pool cleaning man appeared out of nowhere and poked his head over the fence to find out if he can come in and clean the pool. The reason we picked this villa was because it was very private. I was sunbathing topless and as I didn't expect a stranger to show up, it really frightened me and I felt uneasy for the rest of the stay. We will not be using James Villa again and definitely do not recommend unless you want your holiday ruined.

Upon arrival the provided key code was incorrect. Once we had figured it out there was no key in the box. Rang customer services who passed us to the "local team" (3rd party management company), the "local team" gave us the phone number of the caretaker who told us that the current occupants had extended their stay by a day, and he had told them multiple times and had been informed it was solved and we had been relocated (we hadn't obviously).

I then had to go back to James villas customer support, who told us to book a hotel and they will reimburse us. We went to a nearby hotel and were sent away, when the "local team" rang and told us that the villa next door had been empty the entire time and asked us to go there. All in all it was 2.5h of sitting/walking in 30° heat after spending the entire day travelling by the time we got in. Then the following day we elected to move back to the originally booked villa as it was much more private and that's why we booked.

During the course of our time there the pool cleaner visited twice, both times just walking around without knocking on the door which really took away from any privacy we felt we had, putting a real downer on combined with the issues we had during our entry.

The villa itself was lovely, well appointed and very private and comfortable as expected, but James villas management and customer service leaves a lot to be desired, and we certainly won't be coming back to them.

An awful holiday experience with James Villas. Arrived to find the villa in Greece already occupied. After contacting the company they explained we had been moved to another (far worse) villa. Oh, and that they meant to tell us this back in July. We had no choice but to stay. The villa had a steep spiral stair and the only pool access was down this stair and through a bedroom. The bed also had bed-bugs and we were both eaten alive.
James Villas used to run a great business, but clearly they have given up on this approach and just want your money. Awaiting compensation.

Loyal customer for well over ten years and will not book with them again. Booked a villa to find out at short notice it has been double booked. The alternative offered was not to the same standard. They tried to stress it was £500 more, which they would cover, however this was just due to size of villa and not reflective of similar or better quality. No compensation or support to find an alternative. Ended up spending £800 more on accommodation. Once a reliable, customer focused and quality brand is now just a booking agent with limited resources. Book with online booking agent- cheaper and probably more reliable.

"The following booking will need to be cancelled or re allocated as property is fully booked during this time.
Owners had blocked off the dates in system but this has unfortunately not synced through to our system and so we have taken an over booking." - took them over a month to realise and had I not contacted the owner, we would have shown up to no accommodation.

Appalling customer service, many issues with Villa not dealt with properly. Subsequent complaint raised after we got home - including highlighting an issue where French law is being broken - not dealt with either. They are happy to take your money but then won’t take any responsibility when things go wrong saying refer to their T&C’s…. Do not use this company.

Our villa in Kolympia in Rhodes was burgled and we decided to book an early flight home. We contacted James Villas to let them know. Given that the villa is inherently insecure, the least we expected was a good will gesture for the fright this had caused, not to mention the extra cost for the flights and curtailment of our holiday, but they offered us nothing

We have just returned from a beautiful holiday in Portugal. We stayed at Vivenda Duarte Villa, after the most horrendous day at Faro airport where we landed and our 6 cases were still in Newcastle. Ryanair were useless and didn’t help us at all so the first 3 days were ruined. This villa and this company made up for that, it was spotlessly clean, beautifully presented and perfect for us. We had a leaking shower which was fixed straight away by the lovely man who lives next door. Thank you James Villas for excellent customer service, please could you teach Ryanair how it’s done? Big thank you to the cleaners who do an amazing job we would highly recommend this villa and this company and also Booking.com.

We are currently staying at casa becker villa ( lanzarote). We were a large family of 7 adults 3 babies and an elderly lady of 82. The villa was chosen because it had free WiFi in all areas and you had the option to pay an extra £150 for the pool to be heated which we needed for the babies... On arrival there was no WiFi and the pool was cold, we rang James villa and they said they would contact the management company. We are now on our 5th day of a 7 day holiday and we've had to ring everyday for an update. We still have no WiFi and have had to use a cold pool. I found some of James villa staff polite but a couple were very rude. All they kept saying was we understand your frustration but still there was no outcome...We only have 2 days left of our holiday and now in the process of getting some refunds..I travel a lot and this was my very first time using a villa and i will not use James villas again. We had come away as a large family to spend some quality time together bevause of a bereavement and it's been very stressful...This is why I have given an honest rating of 2 stars

We have been staying in Villa Bini Aida in Binibeca Menorca and would like to inform others to AVOID. The whole villa is in dire need of a complete refurbishment. We realised the location being near to the airport and on a busy road would have some noise, but not that the villa had no double glazing to lessen this. The beds have very thin, hard mattresses which need replacing. The outside furniture needs replacing also. We booked this villa as a James Villas offer, had we paid the prices on the website for next year we would have been mortified! we have stayed in many villas over the years and this is without doubt the worst. It is listed as being in James Villas Signature collection. It makes us wonder what the rest are like!!

There were a lot of good things about the villa: clean, well maintained and newly refurbished however there were also a few issues. I had an accident with the suspended chair on the first day. When I sat back into it, the fixing gave way, the chair dropped to the ground and the heavy chain hit me on the face and neck. It bruised my face and neck, hurt my back and cut my nose. I'm under 12 stone so I think that the expandable fixing had worked its way loose. It was only being held by one M12 bolt which I suspect would not pass British H&S regulations. The shower was also not in the best working order, the rain shower fired water everywhere and the other adjustable shower head was held up with a cable tie and was blocked by calcium deposits due to the hardness of the water. Finally there is a building site behind the villa where some new residences are being built. They start early in the morning due to the heat of the midday sun and from the looks of things this is a long term project so any prospective clients should be aware that they will be disturbed by jackhammers and JCBs at different points of the day. Apart from that Rhodes is certainly worth a visit.

We have been loyal customers and booked Villas with James Villas many times before, however our most recent experience with them has been beyond negative and quite frankly disgusting. Our villa was so unpleasant, dirty and dilapidated that we felt unable to stay a single night there. When we contacted the company, whilst initially sympathetic, they basically said there was nothing they could do. We were abandoned and left to find alternative accommodation ourselves in peak holiday season. More than three weeks on and three emails later we have still heard nothing except an initial automated response. We are completely out of pocket having had to unexpectedly find money for alternative accommodation and incur extra unforeseen expenses, so much so that this has put any plans of another holiday in jeopardy. James villas you have not only ruined one very precious holiday, but you are now in danger of ruining two!

Warning warning ⚠️ This company does not have an exception policy! Warning ⚠️ this company has no exception policy! Please think carefully before booking. A company with an exception policy of which there are a high number, would be a company like TUI. If you want that extra comfort then ask the question. Do you have an exception policy?

Booked villa for 2024, no flights now available from James. Had to pay up front to secure flights. James then cancelled our villa due to an error on their website for pricing. Offered replacement for 2x original price. Now left with flights not refundable and no villa to stay in with prices going up rapidly with all villas. Very poor service. If by resolution you are referring to refunding me my deposit and cancellation of my holiday, then I don't think that is really a resolution more a cop-out.

For a further update it is now 3 days after cancelling my holiday and I am chasing my refund. Which I was promised would be in my account today at the latest and is not.

This is such a shame to write, as have been on several villa holidays with James villa before and they have all gone smoothly and the villas have been nice. However, we had a villa booked in Skopelos which with the recent floods meant that our flights got cancelled and we had no way to get to the island. We spoke to James villas several times during this and asked if they would be able to cancel the villa or give us a credit note for the value. We even asked if we could move the booking and pay any difference in cost. All they could say to us was no. It was impossible, and that we should try to find another flight to a flooded island. They didn’t even attempt to do anything, and therefore we have lost all the money on our booking as we physically cannot get to the island. The staff are nice and it’s not their fault, but it’s just a horrible position from the company when we have used them before and they certainly could have at least tried to help. Such a shame, this is will be last time I will ever use this company due to this. There are better ones out there.

Warning: be careful booking James Villas.

I reserved a villa with James Villas and booked flights around this only to be told the villa was never available.

After my reservation confirmation, James Villas got in touch much later via email to say that the property was never available to book. I was told that the way the system is designed, for their last minute deals, means that this is common: they only check if the property is still available once the reservation has been made. This is not mentioned anywhere, so I booked n flights for a family of 6 given that I was told I had a reservation.

Awful design to put the customer in this position. The customer service team tried to help but offered no apologies after James Villas put us in that position.

James Villas used to be a good company, used them since 2008 - you could trust their listings and the accuracy of their description - they used to source their own villas with private swimming pools and you could assume there was a minimum standard and checks done before listing any property on their web site.

They are now just an agency to other agencies and European sites - I booked a private villa with a private swimming pool and paid for it online - the property did not have any reviews on James Villas web site but I trusted the description - I came accidentally across some reviews of the same property on other web site over a month before the booing date- it turns out the villa was an annex and the swimming pool is inside the landlord home who lives next door - there was also a flight training centre very close - nothing of this was mentioned in their listing - when contacting James Villas they were useless and helpless and asked me to contact the landlord directly to resolve any issues - I now came back from this holiday and it was even worse than expected.
James Villas is now just like eBay but they don't even guarantee the transaction and don't add any value - just add cost, you could get a proper villa somewhere else for half the cost - I made friends and relatives who used James Villas in the past on my recommendation aware - would not use or recommend again

Be very careful with this company. We arrived to find our villa owner was away on holiday and so were left stranded. James Villas had confirmed and re-confirmed our arrival date and time but apparently not told the owner. We were left in the middle of nowhere and they were unable to resolve this. They made us speak to their local office and sort it out ourselves. A reimbursement has been offered but still hugely out of pocket and a totally disrupted holiday. Be very careful as their business model appears to be booking/communication only meaning there is little help when there is a problem.

We booked a 2 week holiday to Portugal, the Algarve with James Villas, we chose the Villa called: Alcantarilha Villa, in Armacao de Pera, Algarve, in July 2023 for 14 nights.

On the booking it is advised to hire a car, which we did. But when we go to the Villa there was a car parked on the premises and the main gate was locked?

I found this very odd considering the fact that hiring a car has been advised so surely James Villas, must know that anyone would prefer to park their car on the premises and not just on the main road due to the potential of damage to the car.

Anyhow we decided to get on with our holiday but as the days went on, it was quite irritating to come back to the villa everyday and observe this eyesore i.e. a car with a car cover parked where our car should be?

Towards the end of our holiday, I could not take it anymore and I emailed James Villas, as it became obvious to me that I have been paying for someone else’s parking. I told them this is obviously the case and I think it is only fair that we be compensated for this.

Here is the reply I received back to my surprise:

"Good afternoon

Thank you for your email.

Please be advised we could have dealt with the issue at the beginning of your stay if this was reported but i have now sent an email to the villa owner to ask what they can do so you can park your car on the drive.

Kind regards

Xxxxx"

I just could not believe what I was reading. I complained about this rude reply to James Villas of which the manager who subsequently took up my double complaint agreed that this was no way to send such a reply to a customer, most especially to a customer that has book 3 Villas in 12 months with them.

To cut a long story short, they apparently contacted the owner of the Villa and the owner said the car parking space was not part of the deal to rent the Villa.

To say I was shocked would be an understatement.

I doubt that James Villas would receive my custom again, what a terrible bunch of people. They lack basic customer service and empathy. James Villas are able to take you money but not deliver on service.

There are much better alternatives out there.