Dear Travel Troubleshooters: I booked a hotel in Cancun, Mexico through Booking.com. Since it was during high season, I was worried that the hotel would be full and not accept reservations.
So I contacted Booking.com and the hotel. The hotel did not respond to my messages, emails or phone calls. When contacted, Booking.com promised to make further attempts to contact them via email and phone, but carefully declined to say what they would do if the hotel did not respond.
Booking.com claimed that the reservation was valid, but that I would have to wait until I arrived at the hotel to find out if it would be honored. If a hotel does not accept your reservation, Booking.com recommends calling the hotel for assistance.
If I need to call Booking.com, I’m worried that international calls will be expensive. If another hotel is available during the busy season, you will definitely incur significant additional costs. Do I have to sleep on the street if there is no space available?
Booking.com says we have to live with this uncertainty. I would like to cancel my reservation, but reservations are non-refundable. My impression of their customer service is that there is concern for protocols and a complete disregard for their guests. Can you help me?
— David Marsh, West Midlands, England
Answer: Strictly speaking, Booking.com reservations are non-refundable, so the platform is entitled to keep your money. However, you must also respond to messages. If you don’t hear anything, it’s a sign of trouble.
There is no rule that says hotels have to accommodate guests after they have made a reservation. However, common sense suggests that if the hotel accepts your reservation, you should be able to answer a few questions about the room and independently confirm your reservation.
Now, to be fair, Booking.com did send a confirmation email, and a subsequent email confirmed that the reservation was a deal. But reading between the lines of the paper trail, it seems even Booking.com is starting to worry. What if the hotel isn’t going to honor your reservation? Do you have to sleep on the sidewalk?
I followed all the steps leading up to the resolution. I contacted the hotel via email, phone, and text message. I then contacted Booking.com. (You could also escalate your case to one of Booking.com’s customer service executives. I publish their names, phone numbers, and email addresses on the consumer advocacy site Elliott.org. )
I think it’s perfectly reasonable to expect a hotel to answer your questions after you book, especially for a completely non-refundable hotel. The hotel should have provided you with a written guarantee that you would have a room.
If you read between the lines, you’ll see why you were worried. I found great rates on Booking.com and they were too good to be true. I contacted Booking.com on your behalf and a representative confirmed your story. She said Booking.com confirmed your reservation and contacted the property on your behalf. Booking.com also promised to cancel non-refundable reservations for free if we were not contacted. After no response from the hotel, Booking.com responded as promised.
“We can confirm that your reservation has been cancelled, and our team is in the process of processing your refund,” a Booking.com representative told me. I checked my credit card record and saw that the hotel hadn’t charged me yet, so everything was fine.
Christopher Elliott is the founder of Elliott Advocacy, a nonprofit organization that helps consumers solve problems. Email chris@elliott.org or contact elliottadvocacy.org/help/ for assistance. (c) 2025 Christopher ElliottDistributed by King features Syndicate, Inc.
For more travel information in the Bay Area and beyond, follow us on Flipboard.
First published: January 20, 2025 at 8:15 a.m. EST
