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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To ask for a refund of this accommodation

141 replies

areyoureadytobestrong · 27/08/2019 19:50

I booked two rooms (one double, one twin) via Booking.com. We’ve now arrived and the two rooms are in two unstaffed houses 8 doors apart. We have two boys aged 14 and 16 so it will be fine unless it isn’t .....unless there is a dodgy person in their unsupervised accommodation .....or a fire.
I called the owner who says he is fully booked/ nothing he can do and that Book8ng.com “won’t let him show it as separate addresses”.

I think this is unacceptable and have asked booking.com for a refund. Would appreciate any comments/advice.

OP posts:
Brefugee · 28/08/2019 09:44

I guess it hinges on if OP made it clear at the time of booking that one of the rooms was for older but still under-age children?

I always did that to be on the safe side. But if you don't do this kind of thing a lot it's easy to forget to do it.

OtraCosaMariposa · 28/08/2019 09:53

I guess it hinges on if OP made it clear at the time of booking that one of the rooms was for older but still under-age children?

I totally disagree.

I think it hinges on the fact that the OP was unaware that the hotel was spread over multiple buildings. I think that's a very unusual set up and something I wouldn't be happy with. I arrive at a hotel expecting to sleep in the same building as reception and where i'm eating breakfast. I don't expect to have to cross the road, or walk along the street.

If that's the set-up, they should TELL YOU when booking. Irrespective of whether it's one room, two rooms, families with children, two friends on a weekend away or a couple on a romantic holiday.

Is it really the norm to have guesthouses spread across two or more properties which aren't connected? It's not something i've ever come across.

adaline · 28/08/2019 09:58

Is it really the norm to have guesthouses spread across two or more properties which aren't connected?

It's not the norm, but it's not a rarity either. Plenty of hotels and guest-houses are spread across multiple properties - and besides, even if it's just one building, if you want rooms next door to each other, you need to request it when you book. You can't just assume it's something that can be accommodated when you arrive.

OP, could you post a link to the guesthouse or name it? It's not clear whether booking.com explains the situation properly at all. It really hinges on whether the website was clear or not.

proseccoaficionado · 28/08/2019 10:07

What really pisses me off nowadays is the fact that we get poor customer service and we still pay, almost never complain, etc. It's getting ridiculous and it's happening more & more often Confused

GoodbyeBlueMonday · 28/08/2019 10:10

I honestly can't get my head round people thinking this is acceptable. From what you have said, I read it as you booked two rooms, and have been given two rooms in two separate buildings in a residential type street, separated by 7 other houses that have nothing to do with the two guesthouses. Even if you had four adults going away together I don't think it would be acceptable to just say "oh, it doesn't let me advertise them separately". You book two rooms you expect them to be in the same building, not just the same general area!

whattodowith · 28/08/2019 10:20

At 14 and 16 they will be absolutely fine.

arethereanyleftatall · 28/08/2019 10:35

I have read the whole thread, well most of it.

I get that the op didn't get what she wanted.

But, there is a solution.

I think if you go through life complaining/whinging/being bitter about things like this; it makes your own life worse.

Original poster
areyoureadytobestrong · 28/08/2019 12:57

Thankyougoodbyebluemonday.

OP posts:
Original poster
areyoureadytobestrong · 28/08/2019 13:03

Thankyou brefugee and regmover

OP posts:
Original poster
areyoureadytobestrong · 28/08/2019 13:10

We talked through fire-drill and security, as a poster above suggested , and the kids took their own room down the road.
Nothing bad happened, as it doesn’t in 99.9999% of the situations where you have to take a risk you are not happy with or put up with some minor inconvenience.

But the place where we stayed actually had a different name(!) and I have complained. Luckily it was only one night.
As I say, a few doors away is fine at 14 but that’s not what happened here.

I’ll post again if we get a refund.

OP posts:
Quartz2208 · 28/08/2019 13:37

This should be used as really getting to what booking.com is. It isnt a travel agent it is a travel search engine that runs because properties sign up on it.

There is no contract with booking.com it is with the provider. Booking.com will and does only check that it exists - the rest is on the owner.

If you make a booking first you should check exactly what it is because that is on you - very much buyer beware

Quartz2208 · 28/08/2019 13:38

Also OP did the owner overbook and therefore move some rooms to a different hotel (quite usual in the hotel business)?

CornishMaid1 · 28/08/2019 13:43

I can't believe people think this is okay. Yes perhaps you should have asked for next door/adjoining rooms, but having them in the same building may not have been in a worry.

Regardless of ages, if I have booked two rooms in one guesthouse I would expect them to be in that guesthouse, not for half to get booked into a completely different guesthouse down the road.

I would not be happy to book two rooms in a Premier Inn for them to tell me when I turn up that one room is in the Premier Inn but the other is in the Travelodge down the road. It doesn't matter if they are owned by the same person, they are not the same business and not what you booked.

I hope you get somewhere with the complaint.

Coralfish · 28/08/2019 13:44

A lot of people are focusing on the ages of the children and it not being an issue. But I think the issue is that you did not get what you were expecting!! If I was with friends or my parents and we thought we were in the same B&B we would be annoyed to find that one room was halfway down the street. Surely most people would think the same. And what if they were younger children?

AryaStarkWolf · 28/08/2019 13:44

Maybe I'm wrong but I thought an adult had to be in each room unless they're adjoining rooms when you book through Bookings.com?

Original poster
areyoureadytobestrong · 28/08/2019 13:50

Thanks Cornish.

OP posts:
june2007 · 28/08/2019 13:52

Ok it's not what you wanted but I remember staying in places that were not bang splat next to my parents room.. Or in separate buildings. (but part of same complex.) I would say that in this case your teans are olderenough to be in on their own. They can find you if there is a problem. You could complain to say you thought they were going to be in the same building but they can turn around and say it is part of the same complex, and unless you ask for adjasent rooms then you may struggle.

transformandriseup · 28/08/2019 14:12

I wouldn’t be happy with this, the two DS will have their own key which means they can access the street and could be up to anything. My younger brother and I shared room on holiday as teens and we had a massive falling out. He stormed off and was gone for hours plus ran up a huge bill for pay per view tv. He was 15.

No way would I have wanted one parent in with me either. Imagine being 16 and sharing a room on holiday with your mum.

NuttyNutty · 28/08/2019 14:30

As someone working in the industry I can tell you 100% that no human being ever looked at your booking. It is all done automatically by the booking system. Anyone over 12 would come up as an adult and no special requirements would be flagged.
If you travel as a family you need to always put remarks into the booking asking for rooms next to each other and stressing that you have minors travelling. If you do this there is a good chance that you will get what you need because additional requests are processed by staff and forwarded to hotels.

Otherwise it is just the computer ticking the boxes. It will not be bothered by teenagers staying separately because it's just a machine.
I doubt that your complaint will be accepted. You can only complain if you didn't get something that you booked or requested and this is not the case here.

FiddlesticksAkimbo · 28/08/2019 14:37

Agree with those who say that the OP is being U.

Original poster
areyoureadytobestrong · 28/08/2019 14:50

Hi Nutty, thanks for the reply.

OP posts:
Quartz2208 · 28/08/2019 16:09

The difference is with the premier inn your contract is with them. You do not have a contract with booking.com it is with the owner

malmi · 28/08/2019 16:24

I stayed at a guest house that has the same setup. The profile on booking.com clearly states it under 'additional information':

Please note that the property comprises of different buildings, all within 30-200 yards of the main house where breakfast is served. Therefore it may not be suitable for guests with mobility impairment.

In any case, if it was a single house you might have got one room in the attic and another in the basement/outbuilding, so in future it's best to book direct with the venue to make requests for adjacent/nearby rooms.

If you don't stay then you have a case to demand money back. If you stay then you're getting what you paid for.

malmi · 28/08/2019 16:28

I stayed at a guest house that has the same setup. The profile on booking.com clearly states it under 'additional information':

Please note that the property comprises of different buildings, all within 30-200 yards of the main house where breakfast is served. Therefore it may not be suitable for guests with mobility impairment.

In any case, if it was a single house you might have got one room in the attic and another in the basement/outbuilding, so in future it's best to book direct with the venue to make requests for adjacent/nearby rooms.

If you don't stay then you have a case to demand money back. If you stay then you're getting what you paid for.

LochJessMonster · 28/08/2019 16:29

I'd complain. Completely separate houses is crazy.

What if you'd packed all the belongings in one suitcase? And only bought one toothpaste to share etc? You'd be running through the street in your nightie to pass over the Colgate.