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Booking hotels

  • 18-06-2009 4:01pm
    #1
    corblimey
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 4,475 ✭✭✭


    I'm going to Japan in a couple of months and have booked 4 hotels for the trip. All have confirmed by email that the bookings have been made, but none have asked for any money yet. They all say I can pay cash or by credit card when I get there. All the hotels have a 'cancel 48 hours before to avoid fees', but what's to stop me just not turning up? If I found a different hotel a day before I got there, why can't I just take it and not contact my old hotel?

    Frankly I thought it was kinda dodgy the first time it happened, like 'has my booking really gone through?' but with all 4 hotels doing the same thing, it appears to be quite normal for that part of the world.

    I think I'm just concerned that if I have the freedom to not turn up at any time, they have the freedom just to cancel my booking. No money has changed hands, so I would consider no contract has really been made.

    Any advice?


Comments

  • #2
    eve
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 427 ✭✭eve


    corblimey wrote: »
    ...but what's to stop me just not turning up? If I found a different hotel a day before I got there, why can't I just take it and not contact my old hotel?...

    There's nothing stopping you going to another hotel and not telling them - BUT they will still charge your card!

    Most hotels (at least in Europe) have a clause whereby if you cancel with less that 24 hours before your first night, they will charge the cost of the first night to your card anyway. And if you don't show up on the first night of your booking with them, they will charge you 2 nights stay directly to the card the booking was made on.

    Their website or the email you got should give you their cancellation/no-show policy. Or if you can't find it send them a mail asking about it.


  • #3
    corblimey
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 4,475 ✭✭✭corblimey


    eve wrote: »
    There's nothing stopping you going to another hotel and not telling them - BUT they will still charge your card!
    Oops, left an important part out of my OP. Not only did no money change hands, they didn't even ask for a credit card number or anything. They have my home address, my email address and my phone number, so they could hassle me a bit, but I doubt they'll "send the boys around".


  • #4
    eve
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 427 ✭✭eve


    That does sound really odd. I have never come across anywhere that allowed you to complete a booking without asking for a credit card number.

    Maybe Japanese hotels are just very trusting ;)


  • #5
    P. Breathnach
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 12,089 ✭✭✭✭P. Breathnach


    eve wrote: »
    That does sound really odd. I have never come across anywhere that allowed you to complete a booking without asking for a credit card number.

    Maybe Japanese hotels are just very trusting ;)

    Maybe that is the Japanese way. The culture is different in Japan, and maybe hotels there are accustomed to people keeping a deal. Or maybe in these recessionary times an unsecured booking that might be honoured is better than no booking at all.

    I would not take OP's view that no contract has been made, although I recognise that enforcement might be difficult.


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