Cancellation management of reservations in tourist accommodations

In general, there is no common or standard policy for cancelling a reservation at tourist establishments. The form of cancellation is given by the guidelines and management guidelines that each site has. That is why no establishment is obliged to follow established rules, although some criteria do not harm the client excessively.

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The cancellation date

The key factor when dealing with a cancellation of a vacation rental or hotel reservation is the date of the cancellation. The establishment's response to the customer cannot be the same if they cancel their room a few months before arrival than if they do so just a few days in advance. In this sense, multiple decisions can be made based on the cancellation advance notice date:

• Do not charge fees if the reservation is canceled at least one week in advance
• Charge 50% of the total cost of the reservation if the cancellation occurs 48 hours before the client's arrival
• Charge the customer for the first night, in case the stay was long, if they cancel within the last 72 hours
• Free cancellation up to 24-48 hours before the day of the reservation.

Refundable and non-refundable rates

It is necessary to specify very clearly to customers which rates are refundable and which are not in the cancellation policy. If the rate is non-refundable, it is necessary to clearly indicate to customers that cancellations are not accepted, so the full reservation would have to be paid regardless of when the cancellation occurs. It is also possible to be a bit more flexible with customers and indicate until what date a non-refundable rate can be cancelled without incurring charges. Especially since non-refundable rates are a strategy that causes many customers not to book at our establishment. That is why this type of rate should be accompanied by interesting offers. In other words, a non-refundable rate would be for those promotions that seek to attract customers at very competitive prices. Any decision in this regard will depend on a reasonable cancellation policy that is always specified in the terms of the reservation so that the customer is not surprised.

Cancellation policy

Specifically, it is necessary to review the cancellation policy periodically that we have in the hotel or tourist apartments. The most common thing is to allow customers to cancel their reservation within 48 hours after payment. If you do it in this time, you will be refunded in full. After this time, the refund will be 50% of the reservation.You need to book hours to attend to customers, to resolve potential incidents and manage cancellations. For this reason, it is convenient to have systems that allow you to have a global and integrated vision of the business, improve the agility of the processes and more. We recommend installing the smart lock that allows you to control access remotely, perform the traveler registration telematically, integrate with any PMS system (channel manager) and monitor the noise in your home.In short, the cancellation management of reservations is an issue that is always somewhat controversial for customers. The best thing in these cases is to try to seek greater flexibility for customers, but without being harmed in the hotel.