Macao Warnings Or Dangers

While traveling in S.E.Asia last fall, I decided to spend a few days in Macau, to see the new construction and visit the heritage sites. Under Macau, Orbitz listed a number of hotels on the bay, shown on their map as 1 mile from the center of town, in a neighborhood called Bihai. When I arrived, I went through customs, called the hotel, and was told to get a cab from the ferry terminal. At the terminal, I entered Chinese customs and was detained for several hours for unexplained health inspection. This teaming worker border crossing has no provision for foreigners. Luckily, I had arrived very early, was able to call the hotel, cancel the reservation, walk back to Macau, and check in at another hotel. I e-mailed Orbitz, as their 800 number does not work overseas. I called Orbitz to inform them of the error on their site when I got home. When the charge showed up on my MerrillLynch Visa account, I requested it be removed. Orbitz said that the booking was self booked, and they would not remove the charge. I called the Bihai hotel, and they confirmed the reservation was cancelled and no charge was made. I believe Orbitz’s policy is dishonest. So much for the safety of on-line bookings!