Cancelling a hotel - how is payment returned.

Posted by tommyquicksand on 11/24/24 11:10 AM

This is more a generic travel question but as there is no generic forum and I'm thinking of booking hotel in Amsterdam that I may need to cancel so I'm asking it here.

Does anyone know whether when you pay a hotel upfront but need to cancel later (within their cancellation period), do they simply reverse the charge or do they pay me back in euros? The first is no FX conversion takes place and i get back exactly the same amount I paid in my own local currency, the second one FX is applied which means I will get less back than what was paid.

Or does it depend on the hotel?

Posted by Sam

Green Bay

11/24/24 11:30 AM

21150 posts

In my experience, you can either book and pay now at a slightly lower price, but there is no cancellation. Or book a cancellable room and pay nothing until a day before (or perhaps a few days before). Depends on the individual hotel and location.

Posted by TravelBug79

Indiana

11/24/24 11:41 AM

925 posts

That is a question for the specific hotel, as cancellation policies will vary.

Posted by Frank II

Freedonia

11/24/24 12:31 PM

16277 posts

As stated, every hotel has different cancellation policies.

If you book a hotel in Amsterdam, you will be charged in the local currency (Euros) so the refund would also be in Euros.

Some hotels will give you the option to pay in dollars instead of Euros. Don''t do it. Always pay in the local currency and let your credit card company calculate the exchange. It will always be better than the hotel's exchange rate. This is also true of restaurants, stores, etc.

Very few hotels wil have you pay up front for a refundable room. Some may allow you to do that or to pay on arrival. Choose pay on arrival. This way, if you do cancel, you don't have to worry about a refund.