The family from the UK said they were stranded in New York City after finding the holiday apartment they’d booked and paid for “didn’t exist”. Picture: iStock

The Baker family, from Derbyshire, UK, had spent $A1790 on a Manhattan apartment on the booking website Hotels.com for a break over the northern winter.

But after an six-hour flight, the family said they arrived at their New York City destination to find the apartment block was locked up and the telephone number listing on the booking ad went straight to voicemail, The Sun reported.

The family of eight, which included three children aged eight, six and one, then had to wander the streets of the Big Apple trying to find new accommodation late in the evening, during the busy festive season.

Vince Baker said they had been reassured by Hotels.com the property would be open, despite some questionable reviews from previous guests online.

He told the BBC: “We were expecting a lobby and some sort of reception but it was just a private block, all locked up.

“The contact number we had just went to a holding message. Our holiday apartment didn’t exist, so we were just left there on the street with nowhere to go.”

The listing on the Hotels.com website. Picture: Hotels.comSource:Supplied

Hotels.com have since refunded Vince Baker the $1790 he spent on the property, as well as $2034 in compensation for the extra money he forked out for new, last-minute accommodation.

Hotels.com told Sun Online: “The apartment booked is a genuine property however, following a number of issues including those experienced by this customer, we have ceased booking activity for this apartment.

“In the event that there is an issue with a booking, we have processes to find alternative accommodation for customers at no additional cost and we are very sorry that this process didn’t work as it should have done in this instance.”

Just last week, Sun Online spoke to a group of friends who booked a skiing trip in Austria and were left out in the cold when they discovered the luxury chalet they booked on Airbnb was just an ordinary residential home.

Mirjam Klijnsma and her friend Muriel Ramakers, both from The Netherlands, had planned a skiing trip to Lech, Austria, for a group of their friends, which included six adults and five children.

This article originally appeared on The Sun and was reproduced with permission.