Hotel Bookings – Know Your Rights and Avoid Traps

Before booking a hotel room, always thoroughly read the cancellation, payment, and no-show policies. Hotel policies vary wildly, and assuming standard rules apply can be a costly mistake. Read on to learn how to protect yourself before and during your stay.

No 14-Day Cooling-Off Period This is the most common misconception: under EU law, the standard 14-day right of withdrawal for online purchases does not apply to the provision of accommodation if the contract provides for a specific date or period of performance. Unless you explicitly book a “flexible” or “free cancellation” rate, your booking is binding the moment it is confirmed, and canceling it will usually incur a fee up to 100% of the price.

Transparent Pricing and Taxes The hotel or booking platform must quote the total price—including all applicable mandatory fees and taxes—clearly and at the very beginning of the booking process. Note on Tourist Taxes: While you are at the destination, the hotel may require you to pay a local tourist or city tax. If this tax cannot reasonably be calculated in advance, the booking platform must still clearly inform you of its existence before you finalize the reservation.

The Ban on “Opt-Out” Traps (Pre-ticked boxes) Under EU consumer law, you must explicitly agree (opt-in) to any additional paid services, such as airport transfers, travel insurance, or premium room upgrades. Traders are legally prohibited from using pre-ticked boxes (where you have to uncheck a box to avoid paying). If a booking site charges you for an extra service via a pre-ticked box that you failed to notice, you are legally entitled to a full refund of that specific charge.

Insurance? Check the Scope! Think carefully about whether you actually need additional travel or cancellation insurance. Before accepting any policy offered during the booking process, read the terms and conditions to ensure you are not duplicating coverage you already have (e.g., through your credit card or existing travel insurance).

Double-Check Your Booking Do not click the final booking button before verifying the dates, guest names, and room types. Even immediately after making a reservation, changing these details will likely incur administrative fees. Remember: your reservation becomes legally binding upon confirmation, even if you did not have to enter your credit card information upfront.

Secure Your Evidence In case of technical problems during the online booking process, or if the final price suddenly jumps just before payment, take screenshots immediately. Having clear records of the booking steps and confirmed prices will be your strongest evidence if you need to file a complaint later.

Ready to unwind and recharge, you go on your well-deserved holiday. But it soon turns out nothing is the way you’d imagined it to be. The food is bad, the room is dirty, or the waiters are far from friendly. If such things occur, you should take the right steps — that’s a prerequisite for receiving appropriate compensation.

Collect evidence
If you want to file a successful complaint, it is usually not enough to merely describe deficiencies. As a holidaymaker, you should collect evidence, preferably by shooting useful photos and videos that show the defects in their context (for example, photos of the entire bathroom — not just a single dirt spot that has been greatly enlarged).

Try and remedy the situation
Do you believe silence is golden? That is definitely not true when it comes to travel defects! You should report defects and inconveniences immediately and request remedy. Sometimes, the problem can be solved quickly — by recleaning the room, supplying missing amenities (such toilet paper, towels, or a hair dryer), or providing alternative accommodation. In such cases, you can still enjoy the holiday you have booked as expected.

Find your own solution (under certain circumstances)
If the hotel does not respond to your complaint, you may be able to find a solution yourself by looking for an alternative in a similar price segment. If, for example, the quality of the hotel’s food is far below par, you may want to dine elsewhere and claim back the money you paid for it from the hotel. Of course, you should pay attention to proportionality: if you have booked full board and the hotel food does not taste good, you can’t fill your stomach at a five-star restaurant that charges astronomical prices. You should make do with the local restaurant.

Make a complaint in writing
If you have made a complaint on the spot and the matter has not been resolved, you should try once more to find an out-of-court solution: after you have left the hotel, make a complaint in writing and demand a price reduction or compensation.

Do you think all you can do is hope for a successful police investigation, as that is the only way to get your stolen items back or receive compensation for damages? That is not necessarily true. In many European countries, landlords are liable for any damage to, destruction of, or theft of items the guest has brought into the accommodation establishment. This has been laid down in the Convention on the Liability of Hotel-keepers concerning the Property of their Guests. Please check if the country in question (in which the hotel where you have suffered the robbery is located) has ratified this European agreement.

There is no right of withdrawal for accommodation bookings and other leisure contracts if the service has to be provided at a certain time or within a certain period of time. If you cancel, you may have to pay a cancellation fee.