Cancelling to re-book last minute

[AndyAudi]

Is this really a thing?

I’ve always been,
I know where/when I want to go. I’m booking it to make sure I get what i want.

However twice now in recent years folk I’ve travelled with have been “let’s book this on cancellable rate then see what’s on nearer the time” (accommodation).
(Last time they did cancel & switch for a better ski chalet deal)

It got me thinking, must be like a domino effect & a pain in the a for accommodation providers if folk regularly do this.

Booking.com seem to advertise the cancelable rates option quite clearly with different rates sometimes for notice given - (I know circumstances change for folk but generally thought most would insure for the possibility of not requiring their booking)

[bristolracer]

There’s only one way holiday prices are going this year if flying is involved, and it ain’t going down.

[Screenwash]

I always make cancellable reservations. Plans can change. Have certainly had some cheaper rental cars when switching and rebooking nearer the date. Not so much with hotels, but quite often rooms come up at “nicer” hotels that were previously fully booked.

[AndyAudi]

bristolracer said:

There s only one way holiday prices are going this year if flying is involved, and it ain t going down.

Interestingly I actually wondered “If less folk can afford to fly, there may be surplus accommodation at the other end?”

Flights & accommodation booked separately with us due to differing airports

[Puggit]

We go away a lot at weekends in the UK, fleixble rooms at Premier Inns. Quite often the rate on the day can be cheaper than the flexible option, so we book the rate on the day and cancel the flex room.

[Matt..]

I travel a lot and always book cancellable accommodation to reserve it and change if I find something better, change my plans, or the price changes. I often don't book accommodation at all until the day. On a trip earlier this year I cancelled the accommodation after I checked in (we got a full refund), and called a place we had booked for a few days later and changed the dates to go there early, then booked new accommodation for the other days. Being flexible with accommodation can make travel more enjoyable.

Being able to cancel easily is a reason I use sites like Booking.com.

Edited by Matt.. on Thursday 2nd April 11:08

[alangla]

I tend to do this as well. Often you either get a promotional offer coming up (I’ve just cancelled and rebooked a hire car because of this, knocked about 15% off), a “free breakfast” rate, or, once your plans are nailed on, you can often rebook onto a non-refundable rate. The premium for a cancellable rate usually varies from nothing (hire cars, many Premier Inn rooms) to a few quid for some hotels, but it’s generally not expensive, typically a couple of percent. I wouldn’t do it for flights or train tickets: usually the premium is far too high for that though I have cancelled a package holiday & replaced it with a DIY effort at the same hotel and airline, though this was a different combination of departure and arrival airports. If the tour operator had been more helpful then I might have kept the package.

[_Rodders_]

Done it once or twice.

Don't necessarily cancel but ring the travel company up and ask for the difference refunding.

They've always accepted so far.

Can't see it happening this year though, our Morocco trip next month has gone up £1500 since we booked, or around +70%.

[Sheepshanks]

I can't be bothered to keep looking once booked but some people make a hobby out of constantly checking.

[snuffy]

I've noticed of recent that the price difference between the cancelable and non-cancelable rates seems to have increased.

Until maybe a couple of years ago, there was often little in it, say £10 a night for a reasonable hotel, so we'd book the cancelable option. But the last few I've booked, it's creeping up and often, sometimes, maybe £50 a night. So now we've trended to book the non fundable option.

And this appears to have happened since Covid, whereby of course, hotels suddenly had to deal with 100% cancellations.

[alangla]

snuffy said:

I've noticed of recent that the price difference between the cancelable and non-cancelable rates seems to have increased.

Until maybe a couple of years ago, there was often little in it, say £10 a night for a reasonable hotel, so we'd book the cancelable option. But the last few I've booked, it's creeping up and often, sometimes, maybe £50 a night. So now we've trended to book the non fundable option.

And this appears to have happened since Covid, whereby of course, hotels suddenly had to deal with 100% cancellations.

The thing is, the situation being discussed on this thread is effectively a product of the hotel’s yield management strategy. If they were to say “guaranteed cheapest price or we’ll pay the difference/double the difference” then people would be prepared to lock in earlier, but, to my knowledge, the only significant operator that does this is Haven caravan parks. I guess the railways tend to sell advanced fares in tiers with the lowest first, so I suppose they shouldn’t come down. With everything else the price is dynamic and there is a definite risk of it getting cheaper nearer the time, especially if the operator launches a promo. Booking cancellable reservations effectively turns it into a one-way bet for the customer, so it’s pretty much a rod the travel industry have made for their own backs.