Booking.com vs Airbnb may save you some money

It's definitely good to shop around. Sometimes I use booking just as a search engine, because they have more search filters than most other sites I've found, and then I book directly whenever possible. Occasionally expedia/hotels.com has cheaper prices than booking, depending on the property. AirBnB usually is not the cheapest option in my experience but they often have rentals that are not available on other platforms

I've noticed the same—and I get AA points/miles on booking.com, to boot.

But... I used booking.com for an apartment reservation I made a couple of weeks ago for a stay in March. Previously, I've received prompt (maybe automated) communication from the host, but not in this case. And with boockin.com I have no way to reach out. I'm sure it's premature to worry, but I do wonder—at what point should I be concerned...?

I use Booking for many of my hotel reservations as well, mostly because the reviews are from people who have actually stayed at the property. However I will caution that occasionally there are surprises - my last trip I had a surcharge for using credit card for payment that wasn't noted anywhere in the terms and conditions. Not horrible surprise but still not expected.

Scudder, you should be able to direct message the property through the Booking platform, which I would do just to allay your nerves. Open your reservations page and near the top is an icon that looks like a cartoon chat bubble - the property should be listed there. If all else fails, you can also message the Booking customer service people.

Scudder, there is a way to reach out to your lodging. Look at your reservation screen. I believe on the left side there’s a line that says contact owner or something like that. It takes you to a message screen where you and the owner can message back and forth through booking.com. It’s not a chat but similar to email. I use it often.

Thanks, CL and Carol—I'll look for that chat function.

Scudder, you can send a message to the host on booking.com. Go into your reservation on the webpage and look around—-my “your booking is confirmed” page has a pink box with several headings, and links in blue to “message property”.

In addition to the aforementioned “message property” option on booking dot com's site/app, what I do is go find the place's other listings/presence on the web and note their email address (sometimes easy to find, sometimes not - often all you need to do is literally google "hotel_name email address" and it pops up), along with lots of other useful details.

Everything goes on a single "accommodations" page in my travel plan booklet for that trip.

While I would typically follow the booking platform's wishes (contact the accommodations via their system), and that usually works fine in advance, once I'm on the road, I want the freedom to call, email or yell at them if I need to reach them. Having ALL their contact info in one handy place makes that easy if needed. Booking dot com isn't going to care or need to know that we missed a flight connection and will be there a few hours later than planned.

For every place we stay, I gather the hotel name, physical address, email address, phone number, website URL, and GPS coordinates. That, along with how the room was booked (price, credit card used), what's included/what's not (eg breakfast? wifi? parking?), room details (sea view? king bed?), check-in and check-out times, confirmation numbers, cancellation policies, how many nights we're there for, date of the booking, and details of my last contact with them. Basically, every little detail about the place that I won't remember 11 months later.

I do use booking dot com often; in many cases I find the same property is bookable via several different methods, but (often) only booking dot com provides an option for free cancellation or other amenities that I find valuable (and yes, sometimes a lower price, but for me the lowest possible price is not always my only/primary criteria...these days I'm perfectly wiling to pay a bit more for flexibility).

David, I make a screenshot of my reservations and all subsequent correspondence through Booking.com messages and save all of those in an iCloud folder. Same for all types of tickets. And, I’m old-school; I also print them to keep a folder per trip as I’m planning.

When 2020 brought cancellations, etc., those screenshots were vital to substantiate a few reservation refunds, especially anything that had been switched to a different date and the message trail erased.

We found that even when the rental rates were comparable, the Airbnb cleaning fee made the Booking.com price the winner. Also Booking.com gives you the exact location so you can check it out on Google Streetview.

Has anyone cancelled a booking.com reservation on booking.com where booking.com had free cancellation but the hotel website did not offer it? Were there any problems?

Yes. A few times. Its a nice deal unless you are a AirBnb owner and people realizing they can tie up a half dozen units and choose 2 days before arrival leave you send 5 others with no income.

It's why there are more listings on AirBnb than Booking.com

Michelle,
Yes, I have cancelled a number of booking.com reservations.
Easy and without issue for Switzerland in 2018, before deciding to book an air/land package with BA.
In December 2022, I booked 3 different properties on 3 different islands in the Azores for our Sept-Oct 23 trip. I rebooked two of those for different dates. I ended up changing my mind on the 3rd property and booked something else. I message each property apologizing for the cancellation/rebooking due to extending/changing our travel dates. The property owner that I did not rebook with was kind and even offered me a wealth of island information.
I was very pleased with my past experiences and am hoping for the same with this Italy trip.

Has anyone cancelled a booking.com reservation on booking.com where booking.com had free cancellation but the hotel website did not offer it? Were there any problems?

Yes very often - and no money changes hands either because I rarely have to pay a deposit with booking until a week or 2 earlier. I will often hold multiple bookings for the same dates and make adecision nearer the time