[Resolved]  Cox & Kings India — refund of one way helicopter fare from kedarnath to base helipad

We booked a personal tour with guides for six week around India and Nepal from January to February 2018 with Cox and Kings Indian branch and regret having spent all that money with such a badly organised company. Their staff our so uneducated in the travel industry. To start with, we were not advised that the Toy Train to Shimla (Himalayan Queen) - ( My wife 2 years earlier had travelled to Shimla on the Toy Train which had comfortable seats facing in the direction of travel), our seats could only accommodate 2 children under 15 yrs and not 2 adults. To travel facing backwards for 6 hours on journey, on seats not fit for 2 adults in a carriage which was dirty, was terrible and tiring experience. The toilet was dirty and filthy and we had only one toilet stop 3 hours after we had boarded the train. Cox and Kings did not advise us on the condition of travel on this train, nor did they organise any food or drink for our journey.
Our next and worst disaster was our tour on Palace on Wheels train. Again my wife had used this service 2 yrs ago and said the train journey was great. Not so this time. Cox and Kings should have advised us that the original Palace on Wheels train was scrapped last year, due to its age and was replaced with a train so old and dilapidated. The next day after boarding the train we were kept away from it, for the whole day because they had to service the carriages and train. The train was so run down and dirty. Complaint to Cox and King management on our return back to Delhi and received no answer. We also complaint to Palace on Wheels management on the train but go no explanation from them, as to why the train was taken out of service. Requested a full refund from Cox and Kings due to misrepresentation last March and the reply back is that they are looking into the matter.
We are both pensioners I am 81 and my wife 72 yrs. We expected guides who can relate to us what we got were youngest out of school who had no idea on how to communicate with elderly people. Cox and King were aware of our ages during our booking.
We were not advised by Cox and King staff prior to our trip to Kathmandu, that we needed visas. We spent one and half hour in a queue at the airport to buy a visa, which cost us $25 (American dollars) each. The country was in such a bad way, due to the earthquake, the roads had so many potholes the cars had to navigate through them making each journey hazards and time consuming.
In Cochin our transfer from airport to houseboat was an utter disaster, our driver took us to the wrong port to board our boat, hence wasting 2 hours. He did not speak english which made matters worse.
We had to cancel so many excursions due to tour guides being so young. No refunds from Cox and Kings.
I would recommend not booking any travel tours with Cox and Kings, because you do not get any refunds, management do not reply back to your emails or complaints. We are due a refund on our disaster at Mumbai airport by Air India airlines, which Cox and Kings confirmed in the first week of March, we still await this refund.