Breakaway Destination Guides (International)

Hotels, like airlines, engage in the practice of overbooking.

What do you do when you check into your hotel to find out that someone else is already in your bed? Hotels in Paris, Venice and London are indulging in this practicing of overbooking. The most common excuse given is that the room has 'flooded' and guests are then moved to an often inferior hotel.

Hotels, like the Airlines, engage in the practice of overbooking, but whereas European airlines are obliged to offer you a fixed amount of compensation when they bump you off a flight, no similar rule applies to Hotels.

If you booked the hotel and transport as part of a package through a tour operator or travel agent, the holiday should be covered by the Package Travel Directive and the company you booked with will be obliged to consider any claim for compensation.

However, if you are one of the rapidly increasing number of travellers who book hotels through online agencies like Expedia or lastminute.com they can wash their hands of you, claiming that your contract is with the individual hotel and not with them.

When you book online, you need to be clear as to who you are contracting with. Check where the other party is based, because if they are in a different country it may be more difficult to get compensation if things go wrong.

If you arrive at your hotel and find the room is unavailable for any reason, you should give the company you have the contract with the chance to put things right and offer you alternative accommodation. If no alternative is offered, or the alternative isn't comparable then you could pay for alternative accommodation and claim the cost back when you return home.

If you end up in substandard accommodation, you can claim the difference in value between the hotel you booked and the replacement, plus possibly compensation for loss of enjoyment. All of the above will be difficult if you have pursued your hotel through an overseas party. To avoid this, book with a credit (not debit) card as the card issuer will be jointly liable with the hotel for any breaches of contract.

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