I have a trip to Britain planned in a couple weeks and am doing some advance look at B&B cancellation policies in case the ash issues don't let up in time for us. One (from Rick's guide book) says that they will charge for the entire stay of several days if I don't cancel 10 days before the arrival, which makes me think I should find another B&B now with a more flexible policy. Has anyone had to cancel B&B's this week, and what have you found out? Are they more flexible than their stated policies?
Posted by
Troy, Oh, USA
2804 posts
Hi Michelle, I know a lot of people on this site believe in booking all their B&B's in advance. We only book our first night and last night of our trips. When we are ready to stop for the night we look for a B&B and have never not found one, and never spent a lot of time finding one, and this has been from May thru August. So even during the summer you can always find a room at a B&B without any trouble, or you can go to the local tourist information center and they can get you a room. If you can cancel without being charged now I would. You didn't say if this B&B is at the start of your trip or not, if it's at the start I would find another one for at least the first night. Is this in London or out in the country? If we know more details could help you better.
Posted by
Montreal, Quebec, Canada
8293 posts
Michelle, maybe you could phone the B&B in question and ask them how flexible they are willing to be in light of the present situation.
Posted by
OP
Seattle, WA, USA
14 posts
Thanks for the replies! This B&B is in Edinburgh and the middle of our trip, and I should definitely email and ask them specifically before doing anything else. We are planning to stay several days, and I got "already full" responses from other B&B's I checked with, so I'm a bit nervous about just arriving without something pre-booked. This might be a good chance to go outside of my comfort zone!
Posted by
Santa Rosa, CA, USA
1446 posts
We were scheduled to fly to England on 9/11 and had all our B&B's and hotels booked. Needless to say, we didn't make it but ALL B&B's and hotels did not charge us for a single day.
Posted by
Sherborn, MA
73 posts
My experience with B&Bs has always been that if they can find someone else for your room, they'll usually give you a refund no matter what their stated policy. (The only exception was the crazy alpaca lady in Nova Scotia, but that's another story....)
If the ash problem continues, then there will be people stuck in Britain who need your room, so the owners should have no trouble filling their B&B.
Posted by
OP
Seattle, WA, USA
14 posts
I contacted the B&B and they are changing the cancel-without-penalty date to the day after my flight. This still gives them several days to find another booking if we can't make it. As Ashley mentioned, whatever they lose in people who can't fly in they can make up in people who can't fly out!