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Frequently asked questions:-
Log in: On the left of the main apartments page is a log in area. This is not complicated and takes 5 second: just type in a name, like 'Sarah', and a unique password, like 'Renoir1234', where 1234 is the last 4 digits of your phone number, say. Then later you can click the Add button on an interesting apartment and later you can come back and find all your favorites by logging in again. Also you can enquire about one apartment and then forward your enquiry to all your favorites. Search for your apartment: We've made it as easy as possible to search for your ideal apartments by as many criteria as we can think of: area, number of bedrooms, provider type, indicative price etc. This is one of the ways we add value. [How do you add value?] Narrow the search: If you find too many apartments are showing, then check you have included the number of days stay as some have minimum stay periods. Also specify the number of guests as all will have maximum numbers. When you find at least one of interest... Get price and availability: When you find an apartment of interest, your first question may well be whether an apartment is available and what the price is. There is no central database of availability as there are so many different providers. To confirm price and availability please use the enquiry form which is designed for this purpose, before you email or telephone. Then when you phone or write, we can match up your requirements. We can see your enquiry more clearly if you do this. [Should I enquire about the same apartment through different agents?] The Enquiry form: When you make an Enquiry through the Enquiry form for an individual apartment, the details you give are recorded in our database: arrival, departure, number of rooms required etc...all the details that we know from experience are important. If you later telephone us, we can then see quickly what your dates and requirements are and we will have the contact details of the providers in front of us on screen. [Why is it important to fill in the enquiry form?] Also we can forward your enquiry as appropriate. Distributing your enquiry: To deal with the lack of a central database of availability, we invented a forwarding procedure to allow you to distribute your enquiry easily to various providers. When you submit the Enquiry form you can forward to the enquiry to various providers with just a few more clicks. Receiving a reply: When you submit the Enquiry form on the Internet, our Internet server (ie the web site) sends an enquiry by email directly and immediately to the apartment provider, ie the person who owns or operates the apartments. They check and decide whether they have availability and they confirm the price, inclusive per day. When they confirm the price, an email gets sent to you in the same way via the web site. Securing the apartment reservation: When you get an email confirming the price and availability, it comes from shortstay-london.com, but the information in it has been provided by the apartment provider, and so is reliable and up to date. The email will contain a link to a secure page on the Internet where you can provide credit card information. We use this card to confirm the booking. At present we do this by fax to the apartment provider. A confirmation is issued from the provider to your email address. Businesses can get an invoice if required.[What is a secure page?] [What if I cancel?] [Can I book directly with the apartment provider?] [Can I view the apartments?] [Is it cheaper to book direct?] [Will you reward me if I book through you or return?] [Who are you?] Asking questions when booking: When you book you can give further instructions or ask further questions. [How do I ask further questions when I book?] Frequently asked questions Why is it important to fill in the enquiry form? In practice, people forget important details when they send an impromptu email, details like the arrival date, number of bedrooms required, whether there are any children in the group etc. Then we need to telephone or email to check these - sometimes international time differences will cause further delay and expense. On the telephone, it is very difficult to communicate details like email address. We just don't have the time or money to extract these details from an enquirer who may not be serious about their enquiry. This may mean that your email gets ignored. [top] We would expect as a minimum policy that you would be allowed to cancel without penalty if you give at least two weeks notice. For reservations within two weeks, cancellation should be allowed although there may be a charge. Any charges for cancellation should be notified to you and accepted by you by email or other writing. [top] Although there is much scope for improvement, we try to assist both you and the apartment provider:
It is a page on the Internet where the data transmitted from your browser to our server is encrypted in transit. When it arrives it is secured by the same password protection that we rely on to secure our own data. [top] Yes, if they are available. Obviously, you or a friend need to be in London to do this. Just request this and we will confirm the arrangements. [top] Will you reward me if I book through you or return? Yes, we will give you on request a net 1% return on your net of VAT rental, this is the same as a supermarket loyalty scheme and the refund is in cash to one person, who either makes the booking or recommends a friend who books. This is payable to you within 1 month of the completion of your trip or payment of commission on the booking, whichever is later. In addition, returning visitors to ID=1, 6, or 198, receive a 10% discount on the first week published prices (applies to minimum two week stays). This also applies if you recommend a friend and have yourself stayed in these apartments before. The arrangements in this paragraph are subject to confirmation when booking. These are valuable offers that could earn you hundreds of pounds. [top] This web site was developed and is run mainly by myself, John Dillon, 566 Manhattan Building, Bow Quarter, London E3 2UL. I have lived in London since 1990. I am a member of the London Tourist Board in relation to the grading of apartment ID=1 as four star. I can occasionally accompany people on viewings to apartments. I am happy to view apartments for you to check the condition, if requested. You can telephone me on 07815 863 330, or fax/phone: 020 8983 1260 or email: john@shortstay-london.com.[top] Serviced apartmentsAn apartment is considered serviced when it comes with weekly or daily cleaning and the rental includes all bills other than telephone calls. However, they vary: the more services, the more expensive the apartment will be, and the more like a hotel, more 'unitised', possibly smaller. However, there are exceptional providers of serviced apartments provided to the business community and these are also available to tourists. For instance, click here for: modern daily serviced apartments in Kensington, Notting Hill. (Queens Gate Gardens is near Gloucester Road.) Sometimes the best apartment is one provided for business travellers but in the low season for them. London vacation apartmentsLocations suitable for vacations in London include most areas from Canary Wharf due to the Jubilee Line link and its 'modernity', to Maida Vale in the north west, due to its proximity to Paddington on the Circle Line (15 minutes from Heathrow by express train), but for the most popular click here for: Kensington, Notting Hill, Sloane Square, Hyde Park and, more recently, the South Bank (good value). Business standard apartmentsA large industry surrounds the provision of apartments to companies for their employees providing a professional standard of accommodation and service. We list several such suppliers of short stay apartments suitable for a typical business budget, for instance, in the City and Docklands areas. Temporary accommodation apartments are the preferred option to a hotel for stays of a week or more. We recommend the following links for business standard apartments in these locations: [click the links] (1) Kensington, Notting Hill, Bayswater, Liverpool St; (2) City and elsewhere, and soon Canary Wharf; (3) Westminster, Kensington, Canary Wharf. These are superb apartments from established professional suppliers suitable for medium term stays at business quality level, but also available to tourists. Providers of quality apartments We like you to have a good apartment experience. Our advice is to understand the suppliers of apartments. These fall into various categories:
We cannot guarantee the quality, maintenance or service standards of apartments. Howewver, we do not list certain operations which have had problems with these issues including apartments provided through yourstay.com or apartments4u.com. These have been complained about regarding aggressive charging of credit cards, use of disappearing companies and misleading advertising. Apple Mac and Internet Explorer If you use a Mac, please use Safari, Netscape or other browser as IE does not show the pop-up pictures and has some other problem with the secure page. Use of this web site is subject to this disclaimer. Any contracts for the provision of accommodation are made with the apartment provider. While wew strive to provide accurate information, we make no representation regarding the quality, maintenance or final delivery of your apartment. For further terms and conditions see the following link: terms and conditions. |
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