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Cancelled holiday due to lack of internet

370 replies

Rainingcatsandog · 27/06/2026 14:19

We were due to go to the Highlands today for a week. The holiday company informed us that the internet isn't working due to a general issue on the area and they don't know when it will be fixed. I was offered £75 off or the chance to change the date .I took the latter.
I'm now feeling annoyed as I think we should have been offered a full refund.
Does anyone know my rights?

OP posts:
TonTonMacoute · 28/06/2026 11:06

People are getting bogged down with whether or not the internet is vital for holiday, when OP has asked what her rights are re compensation.

OP, your rights are whatever is in the Terms and Conditions of the rental agreement (with Airbnb, Vrbo, Booking direct or whoever).

I imagine the people who live up there are mightily annoyed that they have no internet, and are trying to run lives and businesses without it, and from what I understand getting compensated for that is like getting blood out of a stone.

I suspect that what you have been offered is what is in the T&Cs, and you will not be entitled to anything more, but you should check.

Laura95167 · 28/06/2026 11:08

Im surprised you got offered the £75 tbh

Most holidays you pay extra to use WiFi. So id have been happy deciding on the two generous offers given

riversofjoy · 28/06/2026 11:10

Bikenutz · 28/06/2026 10:42

Hand washing clothes isn’t a relevant analogy.

It’s about being organised. You’re more likely to get the holiday you want if you have done some planning in advance. You can be more present and less glued to your phone. You can spend more of your holiday relaxing.

If you arrange everything on the fly, missing out (because popular experiences / eateries book out), or paying over the odds becomes more likely.

Being less reliant on the internet means you might also need to talk to locals. Shock horror! You are reminded that unlike netizens, most people are helpful in real life.

This is completely irrelevant though. For example- alcohol isnt "necessary" for having a good time on holiday but many people would be annoyed if they couldn't have a glass of wine or a beer on holiday because its their bloody holiday and they want to do things they enjoy and like to do to relax. You could equally argue that alcohol isnt great for your health so therefore people should suck it up and not moan about it because it's actually doing them good!

I dont go on holiday to improve my character or build moral fibre, I go on holiday to relax after many months of work stress and if I want access to the Internet then thats what I will damn well choose.

Stop lecturing people on how they should/ought be having fun

Smudgesmith · 28/06/2026 11:18

This is honestly hilarious. You are going to the Highlands of Scotland. Its beautiful and in the middle of knowwhere. You dont need Internet and if you do buy a hot-spot. We went a few years ago in a camper. Certainly not worth postponing a trip you've planned and assuming you've booked time off.

LizardLines · 28/06/2026 11:21

I would pay extra to have no access to internet while on holiday.

Maybe you could stay at home and look at pictures of the highlands online?

oncemoreuntothebeachdearfriends · 28/06/2026 11:23

Surely the main point is that part of the advertised facilities is not available, and not whether Internet access is necessary or desirable?

Whether the refund is a reasonable amount is another matter.

riversofjoy · 28/06/2026 11:23

LizardLines · 28/06/2026 11:21

I would pay extra to have no access to internet while on holiday.

Maybe you could stay at home and look at pictures of the highlands online?

Maybe you could just turn off wifi on your phone? 🤣 its perfectly possible to disconnect from the internet at any given time

Growlybear83 · 28/06/2026 11:26

SparklesWithSynergy · 28/06/2026 10:11

If there is no Internet, then is there even a phone signal?

Presumably there are still land lines?

Casperroonie · 28/06/2026 11:26

Rainingcatsandog · 27/06/2026 14:19

We were due to go to the Highlands today for a week. The holiday company informed us that the internet isn't working due to a general issue on the area and they don't know when it will be fixed. I was offered £75 off or the chance to change the date .I took the latter.
I'm now feeling annoyed as I think we should have been offered a full refund.
Does anyone know my rights?

Its your holiday, your money so you decide.

20 years ago no one needed Internet, now you even need it for basics like banking or make an emergency call. So no, it is not really OK to not provide Internet for whatever reason, it's not the 80s.

Bikenutz · 28/06/2026 11:27

SparklesWithSynergy · 28/06/2026 10:23

I don't use the radio in the car, I use Spotify

And if I am in the car already it's because I have a plan to go somewhere specific. I don't want to sit in the car working out where I'm going because my original plan has to change due to traffic or train cancellations

Let me break this down for you ..

You work out how you’re getting to your destination in advance and buy any travel tickets needed using internet. If you want, you can check for major delays, diversions, road closures using a mapping app like Google maps, or RAC/AA/ National Highways websites.

Then once you’re underway, use said mapping app, or satnav. Phone data bolt ons are cheap so buy one from your provider if you don’t have enough data in your plan.

Navigation apps still continue to work in most of the UK even where the 4g signal is poor, provided you don’t change the route. But you can come unstuck with this in some remote / mountainous areas, or abroad, so still know the rough route you’re taking.

Your car radio has a feature called Traffic Announcement. TA is an automatic traffic bulletin alert system. Radio stations that broadcast travel updates set a TA flag (a digital signal) in the FM broadcast. When a traffic bulletin starts, your radio interrupts whatever you’re listening to (Spotify, etc. switches to the station broadcasting the announcement then returns to your previous audio afterwards. It should inform if a road near where you’re driving is closed due to an accident, or there’s a diversion, it’s another way to find out information that isn’t dependent on internet signal. It comes through the FM radio signal. So you can listen to Spotify and still use it.

Caffeinepleasenow · 28/06/2026 11:33

YANBU to want internet, even if you did just want it to have a scroll on your phone!

I think if you'd not wanted to, or been able to, go on a different date, then a full refund would've been reasonable.

Bikenutz · 28/06/2026 11:36

oops pressed send too early..

Then when you arrive at your WiFi less holiday cottage, use the 4g on your phone if there’s a signal.

That’s a key question for the OP - what’s the internet needed for, is there a solid 4/5g signal there, and if so, is that sufficient for what they need? If not, offering to move the date seems reasonable.

From a consumer law POV, a full refund is unlikely unless the cottage was sold along the lines of - fast WiFi included - ideal for remote work. Usually full refunds would be made if for example, the cottage was uninhabitable - no water, for example.

Bikenutz · 28/06/2026 11:38

If they offered a full refund, it would be a goodwill gesture. They would be unlikely to be forced to give it to the OP. But do ask if that’s something you might want. They might say yes.

Banannanana · 28/06/2026 11:39

Why would you go to one of the most outdoorsy remote parts of the country and then your priority be the internet? Surely it’s part of the fun to have a break away from that…..you’re going all the way there and want to use the internet?

Drivingmissrangey · 28/06/2026 11:41

I’m with you OP. I’d be more stressed not being able to check my emails than I would be about dealing with what’s in the emails. A couple of days maybe, but not a whole week. It’s actually in my contract that I continue to check emails regularly when on annual leave so I’d be stuffed.

Has the company said what the mobile signal is like? If that’s decent then presumably you can just cope with that? But often in remote areas people rely on the broadband for any kind of communication nowadays.

Drivingmissrangey · 28/06/2026 11:42

Growlybear83 · 28/06/2026 11:26

Presumably there are still land lines?

I can’t check my emails on a landline.

Jellycatspyjamas · 28/06/2026 11:43

AnonymousCapybara · 28/06/2026 10:57

Where is this? As someone who lives and works in the Highlands (and by this I travel the entirety of the highlands for work) there's really a handful of little pockets with no mobile Internet. Fair enough broadband does go down but you'd still have access to the Internet I'm sure?

The whole of the Highlands? From loch Lomond side to Sutherland? That’s a hell of a patch. I’ve definitely been in places where phone signal was sketchy at best and certainly not strong enough to hotspot - it’s not at all unusual to find accommodation is in a bit of a dead spot.

hahabahbag · 28/06/2026 11:46

Why do you need internet? I don’t watch tv etc on holiday - that’s for boring home life times in winter. I think they were good to even tell you

SheilaFentiman · 28/06/2026 11:47

Growlybear83 · 28/06/2026 11:26

Presumably there are still land lines?

It’s quite unlikely that a dwelling set up
as a holiday home has a landline.

SheilaFentiman · 28/06/2026 11:47

Most holidays you pay extra to use WiFi. So id have been happy deciding on the two generous offers given

I have never paid extra to access the wifi in a holiday cottage.

Snugglemonkey · 28/06/2026 11:51

Frequency · 27/06/2026 15:07

But you could prepare for all of this in advance if you knew there would be no internet. Download media instead of streaming it, look up attractions before you leave, print off the weather forecast and directions...

And surely, at some point, you'd be going to a pub? Use that as an opportunity to re-check the weather and download more media if you need to.

We use the internet on holiday, but only because it is convenient. Not having it wouldn't be a deal breaker, especially if we knew in advance. We mostly use it to stream background music for when we're sitting on the deck in the evening, chatting, etc. Downloading a couple of playlists would work equally as well.

You could, but I don't want to. We like to spend the evening watching something, or listening to the things we feel like and choosing what we fancy at the time. We check out the weather and plan the next day. Dc like an hour on their games after a busy day, while we cook.

It is a holiday. People should be doing what they enjoy.

hahabahbag · 28/06/2026 11:53

@SparklesWithSynergy. I’ve just got back from a month away and hand washed my clothes! Honestly people aren’t willing to do anything different these days it seems - just stay at home if you aren’t willing to compromise. I’ve seen things, experienced things etc I never would have been able to if i had insisted on WiFi, washing machines etc though to be honest even remote areas had at least 4g if not 5g. Tv is on (at home) having not looked at one for a month except foodball in the occasional bar (not my choice!)

SheilaFentiman · 28/06/2026 11:56

I would far rather a broken washing machine than broken internet. Chuck in a tube of travel wash and a few extra pairs of knickers, wash some t shirts in the sink part way through the week… a much easier work around than downloading stuff to an external hard drive or bringing a portable dvd player, a pile of local history books and a couple of jigsaws

riversofjoy · 28/06/2026 11:57

hahabahbag · 28/06/2026 11:53

@SparklesWithSynergy. I’ve just got back from a month away and hand washed my clothes! Honestly people aren’t willing to do anything different these days it seems - just stay at home if you aren’t willing to compromise. I’ve seen things, experienced things etc I never would have been able to if i had insisted on WiFi, washing machines etc though to be honest even remote areas had at least 4g if not 5g. Tv is on (at home) having not looked at one for a month except foodball in the occasional bar (not my choice!)

Completely missed the point!

The issue isn't whether someone can cope without Wi-Fi or a washing machine, it's that they paid for facilities that were advertised and didn't receive them. If a hotel advertises a pool, air conditioning or breakfast and they aren't available, most people would quite reasonably be annoyed too. That's not being unwilling to compromise, it's expecting to get what you paid for.

Also, saying "I managed without it, so everyone else should" doesn't really follow. Not everyone is you. HTH

sweatymessi · 28/06/2026 11:59

I have camped often without wifi for a weekend which was fine. However a week in a house etc I want to be able to stream, listen to podcasts, read on my kindle, check on elderly parents (cameras & one lives abroad), look up new recipes, read the papers etc & the rest of my family do similar.