As a Christmas gift for my boyfriend last year, I bought a £125 voucher for a Land Away Double Flying Lesson from Virgin Experience Days. This was held in various locations across the south of England, including Elstree which was particularly attractive as it is accessible by tube (we are based in London).
When we got round to booking it, we found that the locations had been altered to only four, none in the south of England. This deems the voucher unusable, as we would have to travel some distance and stay overnight etc, increasing the overall cost.
Virgin advised us to switch the voucher to another flying lesson – which are all more expensive – or split the money we paid over various separate experiences.
Apparently you can’t receive a refund after 14 days of buying the voucher, even though the gift I bought was altered. KY, London SE16
This is the second time in a month that Virgin Experience has appeared in this column. All too often customers are left high and dry after venues and activities are changed (as external suppliers and venues are used), and they are left battling trying to get something that suits them, or a refund.
The location you were planning to book recently stopped offering this facility and Virgin told us it is working to source a replacement in the area. The experience is still available at three other locations and the voucher is flexible so can be exchanged for another experience day to the same value.
Given your preference for something near local public transport, Virgin relented and said: “Now we are aware that the opportunity to travel to the Elstree location by tube was a key factor for KY in choosing this gift, on this occasion we are happy to offer a refund.”
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