This summer I am travelling with a group of friends to Switzerland to support the Lionesses during Euro 2025. At the start of this year I tried to book our accommodation in Zurich on my phone via Booking.com.
But while I was doing it I got the “spinning wheel of death” and when the confirmation for the £1,215 booking arrived from the hotel it showed the date had reset to January and not July, when the tournament is on.
I called the hotel straight away and it promised to ring me back. I phoned several more times and was eventually told I was not eligible for a refund. But I didn’t want a refund; I just wanted the date of the booking moved.
Since then I have followed up in writing to the hotel and also to Booking.com but have not received a reply. I can’t afford to lose this money as it is nearly two weeks’ wages.
GP, Ascot
Your trip to support the Lionesses is costing a pretty penny once the match tickets are included, so this was a big setback. We have all found ourselves at the mercy of the pinwheel but when using an online travel platform such as Booking.com it is essential to pay close attention during the final stage when the T&Cs are spelled out. I looked at this hotel’s availability on 9 July (when England take on the Netherlands) and it has “non-refundable” rooms and others with “free cancellation” (until 8 July) for £30-£40 more a night.
Booking.com said: “Upon reviewing the case, we can see that the customer booked a non-refundable rate and requested to change the dates after the booking was confirmed. In such cases it is at the discretion of the accommodation partner to decide if they agree to a free cancellation and modify the dates, which, unfortunately, in this specific case they declined. However, we can confirm that we have offered the customer a partial refund as a gesture of goodwill, which the customer accepted.”
You have been refunded £1,000. It is not the full amount but you are pleased to have some spending money for your trip, on which you will stay in another hotel.
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