Travel firm Agoda urged to improve business after booking troubles
TOKYO (Kyodo) -- The Japan Tourism Agency has urged the Japanese arm of online travel agency Agoda Company Pte. to improve its business practices due to booking problems, a source familiar with the matter said Monday.
In March, the agency asked Agoda International Japan to address problems including repeated cases of travelers arriving at hotels to find no record of their paid bookings. In some instances, the reservation details provided to hotels were incorrect.
The following month, the company submitted a list of measures to the agency outlining how it would address the booking issues, but some hotel operators in Japan said the problems were still occurring as of June.
Based in Singapore, Agoda, a subsidiary of the world's leading online travel service provider, Booking Holdings Inc., provides services in 39 languages and employs staff in 27 markets, according to the company.
If the company fails to implement drastic measures, the Japanese government may impose administrative penalties, the source said.
Toyoko Inn Co., which operates a major hotel chain in Japan, warned travelers on its website on June 16 about booking issues involving Agoda and its partner firms. It cited cases of incorrect room types and reservation dates, as well as instances where rooms were listed on Agoda at significantly higher prices than those set by the hotels.
Toyoko Inn said various issues have arisen from the resale of rooms by Agoda's partner companies and that travelers must contact those firms directly to resolve problems, including reservation cancellations.
The hotel operator issued the warning after failing to resolve the booking issues through discussions with Agoda.
"Our customer care team swiftly and appropriately responds to solve problems whenever trouble arises," the Tokyo-based Agoda International Japan said.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
38 minutes ago
Japanese Flights Affected by Conflict in Middle East
News from Japan Economy Jun 24, 2025 16:43 (JST) Tokyo, June 24 (Jiji Press)--Some flights departing from Japan have returned to the country or been canceled amid high tensions in the Middle East following U.S. strikes in Iran, Japanese transport minister Hiromasa Nakano said Tuesday. 'We will make every effort to grasp the situation and ensure safety,' Nakano told a news conference, emphasizing that the government will continue to collect information. There are no direct flights between Japan and Iran, according to the minister. Direct flights between Japan and Israel have been suspended due to the recent heightening of tensions. According to Japan Airlines, a flight that departed from Tokyo's Haneda Airport shortly before 11 p.m. Monday for Doha, Qatar, turned back to the airport after airspace over Qatar was temporarily closed. The airline has decided to cancel flights between Haneda and Doha for the time being. Nakano said that 47 Japanese-related ships were operating in and near the Persian Gulf as of Monday and that the government has received no report of damage to any of them. [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.] Jiji Press
38 minutes ago
Japan Post's Transport Biz Permit to Be Revoked Wed.
News from Japan Jun 24, 2025 16:40 (JST) Tokyo, June 24 (Jiji Press)--The Japanese transport ministry plans to formally revoke Japan Post Co.'s general motor truck transport business permit on Wednesday as it failed to properly conduct mandatory roll calls for its delivery drivers, informed sources said Tuesday. After the revocation, Japan Post will be unable to use some 2,500 delivery trucks and other vehicles for its transport business for five years. The ministry also plans to issue a safety order under the trucking business law to ensure that Japan Post properly conducts roll calls for alcohol and health checks of delivery drivers using minivehicles at post offices nationwide. In addition, the ministry will ask Japan Post's more than 200 operation managers who are responsible for roll calls to return their qualifications. According to the ministry, it has found through special audits that roll calls were not conducted or roll call records were falsified at 82 of the 199 post offices inspected. [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.] Jiji Press
Japan Today
an hour ago
- Japan Today
Ishiba to face tough upper house election on July 20
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, 68, has been head of Japan's minority government since October. By Hiroshi HIYAMA Japan will hold an upper house election on July 20, the government said Tuesday, with Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba battling low approval ratings driven partly by public frustration over inflation. Ishiba, 68, has been head of a minority government since October, when he led the ruling coalition to its worst general election result in 15 years. Voters in Tokyo on Sunday also knocked his Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) from its position as the largest group in the city assembly, in a local election seen as a bellwether for the upcoming national vote. The LDP has led Japan almost continuously since 1955, and observers see the country's opposition parties as too divided to mount a credible challenge to its power. But the election for parliament's upper house, required by law to take place following the most recent lawmakers' session, could still be tough for Ishiba. "We must respond properly to high prices, and create a Japan where people can live with peace of mind," the prime minister told reporters on Monday evening. "We are determined to sincerely appeal to the Japanese people so they feel tomorrow will be better than today." Half of the 248 upper house seats are up for grabs in July's election, with the winners expected to serve a six-year term. There will also be a by-election for one vacant seat in Tokyo. The LDP coalition, which currently holds 141 upper house seats, needs to win at least 50 to achieve Ishiba's goal of maintaining a simple majority. Rice prices have more than doubled over the past year in Japan, due to shortages driven by a supply-chain snarl-up. Government efforts to bring the price of the grain down by releasing emergency stockpiles have helped approval ratings for Ishiba's cabinet tick up from rock-bottom. A poll published early June by public broadcaster NHK showed that 39 percent approved of the cabinet, up from a low of 33 percent in May. Japanese elections often have low turnout rates -- which can work in the LDP's favor -- and the July 20 vote will be held during a three-day holiday weekend. Conflict in the Middle East could also fuel a "perception that the traditional party of government offers the safest pair of hands to manage international affairs during times of crisis", said James Brady of the Teneo consultancy. © 2025 AFP
