Let me start by saying that AER LINGUS NEVER ANSWERS THE PHONE. It does not matter whether in the US or in Europe, THEY NEVER ANSWER THE PHONE. We were scheduled to fly back from Madrid to Washington, DC on September 28, 2024, via Dublin and as we prepared to leave our hotel we saw a text sent at 4 am from our tour company informing us that all our flights had been cancelled and we had been rebooked for the next day. No reason was given for the cancellation and no hotel or other compensation offered. NOTHING! Under those circumstances we went to the airport, boarding passes in hand, and proceeded to the AER LINGUS counter which we found out was not manned by AER LINGUS but contractors who were there only to check people in. We told the lead agent of our dilemma and she could not find any record of us! Upon contacting GO AHEAD TOURS, who originally booked our flights and tour, they said it was the airline's responsibility to issue a refund. AER LINGUS' on line response dumped the responsibility back on the tour company. We are still awaiting a refund for the original return flight as well as two one-way return tickets we were forced to buy on Air Canada through Montreal, allowing us to get home the same day. The best GO AHEAD TOURS could offer through their "Customer Loyalty and Engagement Specialist" was a "sorry this was not the outcome we had hoped for and thank you for your patience." We are seasoned travelers who have never experienced a situation like this. We are frustrated at the poor response from either company. We believe that AER LINGUS is in violation of EU regulations 261/2004 . Needless to say, we will never fly AER LINGUS again.