Contents:

In a given year, more than 1.5 billion people book some kind of trip. Of those, 70% do so online. The website Booking.com is a great place to find all the information you need about small hotels.

This Booking.com review will tell you everything you need to know about the site and answer some questions that people often have.

 

🧳 1. About Booking.com

Booking.com stands as a versatile online platform primarily dedicated to managing lodging reservations. However, its offerings extend beyond mere accommodations to include a diverse range of travel essentials such as vacation packages, flights, car rentals, and airport taxis. Recognized as an Online Travel Agency (OTA), Booking.com has become a one-stop-shop for travel enthusiasts.

At the core of its services lies the ability to book a vast array of accommodations, ranging from camping sites to luxurious 5-star hotels. The platform caters to diverse preferences, ensuring there's an option for every traveler's taste and budget.

Evolution of Booking.com:

Originally established in 1996, Booking.com has undergone significant transformations over the years, reaching its zenith by 2011. The platform's commitment to innovation is exemplified by the launch of its first mobile app in late 2010.

This app, now available for Android, iPhone, Microsoft Windows, and Kindle Fire, has become an essential tool for travelers, providing convenience at their fingertips. Download it from Amazon and explore the world of seamless travel planning.

 

🛎️ 2. Tips on how to use Booking.com

The Booking.com page can be hard to understand at first.
Some buttons, pictures, and customer reviews can be found. You can get to a lot of information quickly. Before making your choice, it's a good idea to look over the whole list.

Look at the big picture first, then click on the thumbnails right below it to get a better idea of the land. If you move your mouse over each thumbnail, you'll see a full-sized slide show of all the pictures and many ways to make your appointment.

If you're on Booking.com's home page, you can use the categories in the left column to get more specific results.

Available filters:

Be careful: Top Picks are more likely to show up for companies that pay Booking.com more in commissions (Preferred Partner property, shown by the yellow thumb up icon). They might not be the cheapest hotel on the list.

Reserve

In the top left corner, the first button you'll see says "Reserve." Though it might seem like a good idea to get right to work, there is a lot to learn first.

The prices are shown after you enter the dates of your trip. If you're just looking around, not knowing your exact travel plans can make things a little harder. But you can see right away what kinds of rooms they have. Type in some fake dates to find out what rooms are available and how much they cost.

Make sure you do a full check of the property you want to stay at so you don't find out that it has shared dorm rooms instead of private rooms. Watch out for this message above the results of your search: "Your results include some shared accommodations like dorm beds." If you don't want to be in a hotel, click on the link that says "Show me private rooms only."

Details and costs

You can see the different types of rooms by clicking on the "Info & Prices" tab.
It tells you how many people the room can sleep, the price right now, and whether you can cancel for free or lose your deposit. You can pick out how many rooms you want and book them right away.

Setting Up

The helpful list of all the services the hotel provides can be found on the Facilities tab. They give you things you might not have thought of before. Still, the property might suddenly look better once you know about it.

At the top of the list, the green facilities are the ones that people like the most about that location.

🏨 House Rules

Check-in and Check-out times are written in the House Rules. Policies on canceling and paying ahead of time are talked about, and there is a link to the terms of each ticket you might make. For instance, a room that can't be refunded, the ability to stop for free, or not having to pay ahead of time.

Keep in mind that the full price of the ticket will be charged if you cancel, change, or don't show up for an appointment that isn't refundable.

Children & Beds explains their rules about kids and cribs or extra beds.

In the "Pets" section, it says if pets are accepted and if there may be extra fees.

When more than one person books a room at the same time, they are called a "Group," and there may be extra fees and rules that apply.

It lists all of the credit cards that can be used at the hotel. Also, they might hold a deposit for the ticket until you arrive.

The small print

When you arrive, the person whose credit card was used to make the reservation must be there with that card. For a third-party credit card to work, a permission form MUST be signed and asked for during the booking process.

Please keep in mind that each hotel and place to stay has its own rules and ways of collecting payments. When you book your hotel, please always check this.

Reviews

There are overall scores and scores specifically for the following categories:

Scores are Awesome: 9+, Good: 7-9, Okay: 5-7, Poor: 3-5, Very poor: 1-3.

German, Italian, Arabic, Portuguese, Turkish, Romanian, Dutch, Polish, Hebrew, Swedish, Greek, Danish, Hungarian, Norwegian, Finnish, and Slovenian are the languages that the reviews are written in.

People who write reviews can be families, couples, groups of friends, people traveling alone, or people on work trips.

You can sort the reviews by Score (higher to lower), Date (newer to older), (higher to lower) Score, and (higher to lower) Score.

 

Filter Review topics by:

Map

Booking.com uses Google Maps to find all of its hotels.

If you move your mouse over a pin, you can see more information about it. When you click on the pin, you'll be taken to the page where you can see the hotel and make a reservation.

 

Ask a question❓

Can’t find the answer you were looking for? Click on the button and then ask a question about the hotel. Type your question(s), send, and enter your email address. You'll get an email letting you know that your question was sent. I tried it and it took at least 24 hours to get an answer.

When your question has been approved and replied by the partner, it will be shown on Booking.com. Please don't include rude comments.

 

How to Ask Questions❓

Your question(s) must only be about the room or property.

The questions should be thorough and help other visitors make decisions.
Personal information, political, moral, or religious comments, as well as advertising, should not be included. It will be deleted.

Customer Service is the place to go for problems with Booking.com services.
In ANY language, don't use bad language or words that sound like bad language with clever spelling. That includes racist comments, threats, sexually explicit language, violence, and encouraging people to do something illegal. Be aware of other people's privacy.
Booking.com will get rid of or hide information like email addresses, websites, phone numbers, social media accounts, and so on.

Booking.com is not in charge of or responsible for any questions or answers. They don't have to check the questions and answers before sending them out; they're just a wholesaler.

It's clear from Booking.com what their job is and how you can use the Q&A area.

Keep in mind that these rules are a lot like the Reviews Guidelines.

 

3. The Booking.com app

It's pretty easy to use the phone app.

On the Home page, you can choose to stay somewhere or rent a car. You can also look by destination, dates, rooms, and guest count. You check that area and send your Search if you are a business traveler.

On the Home page, your most recent searches are also easy to find. You can sell your home to make money while you travel, or you can sign up to get deals that are only available to members.

On the next page, you can sort the list of properties by:

1. Distance
2. Popularity
3. Number of stars (highest to lowest)
4. Rating in stars (lowest first)
5. Best reviews come first
6. Price with the most reviews first (lowest first)
7. Some filters are: budget (for the duration of your stay);
8. Star Rating Type of Property Facilities

Filters People Like

Powerful Filters (Online Payments, Chain, Review Score, Free Cancellation, and More)

On maps, each property is marked with how much it will cost for your stay.

From the menu bar at the top, you can choose the currency you want to see the entry in.

Note: Since you are looking at the ad on your phone, you may be able to get a discount. For instance, the ad says, "Because you're on your phone, you can save 10% on the room rate at this property."

You can see a few pictures of the location, as well as their review score and the number of stars if they are a Preferred Partner. You can read all the reviews, like the 2,478 that are on the sample home. The site has links to all the information you'd find on the PC version, and you can "heart" it to come back to it later. You can read a description of the place to get an idea of what the facilities offer.

You can pick from a number of rooms when you book, such as the Deluxe Queen Room or the Deluxe King Room. The payment and withdrawal policy is easy to see in green. You can even pick other choices that might mean your filter gets better.

After you click "Select," a blue button will tell you to "Reserve." At this point, you need to log in and finish the process.

The mobile app makes it seem much easier and less distracting to look at the homes and make your choice.

Booking a hotel without a credit card

If you happen to not have a credit card or would just like to not use it on booking.com, you have the option to book accommodations without it.
First, choose your destination and stay dates, then scroll down the page until you see the reservation policy option in the menu on the left.

There are options like "free cancellation" or "no prepayment", and "book without credit card". Just pick the option you want and booking.com will show you a list of available properties. The downside of this method is
that it narrows down your options a lot, and some places won't have any options available at all.

 

💵 4. Best Price Guarantee

Price Match Assurance:

The Best Price Guarantee empowers you to claim a refund for the difference if you find your reservation at a lower price on another website. Contact Booking.com promptly after booking, at least 24 hours before check-in, providing the link to the alternative offer, which must be online and accessible when checked by Booking.com.

Checklist for Claims:

The competing offer must be for the same property and accommodation type.
It should align with the same check-in and check-out dates.
The cancellation policy and conditions must match.

When You Cannot Make a Claim:

• If the other offer conceals property details until after booking.
• If part of a loyalty or rewards program.
• If part of a special promotion or deal.
• When your current reservation is Booking.Basic.
  

Advice for Shoppers:

Look for "Found this room cheaper somewhere else" on your confirmation page or in "View all bookings."

Thorough research before booking mitigates the need for post-booking refund pursuits.

What is Booking.Basic?

Introduction to Booking.Basic:
Booking.Basic is a tier in Booking.com's accommodation offerings, typically seen in European and Asian hotel listings. It surfaces when the rate provided to Booking.com isn't the most economical online option.

Key Features:
Rates are non-refundable.
Guests discover the third-party provider after completing the booking.
Navigate this tier cautiously, understanding its non-refundable nature and the information disclosure post-payment.

 

👌 5. Booking Process on Booking.com

Embarking on your journey with Booking.com is a seamless process, and the search functionality is designed to cater to your specific needs. Here's a step-by-step guide:

1. Fill in the Search Box:

1. Enter your desired Check-In and Check-Out dates.
2. Specify your destination or the name of the property you have in mind.

2. Tailor Your Search:

1. Indicate the number of adults (ranging from 1 to 30) accompanying you on your stay.
2. Specify the number of children (0 to 10) accompanying you.
3. Choose the number of rooms you require (from 1 to 30).
4. If your travel is work-related, check the "Traveling for work" option.

3. Utilize Filters Below the Search Box:

Dive into an array of filter options situated beneath the search box, allowing you to customize your search according to your preferences. These include:

1. Budget: Set your budget range.
2. Popular Filters: Explore accommodations favored by other travelers.
3. Recommended for You: Tailored recommendations based on your preferences.
4. Star Rating: Choose accommodations based on their star ratings.
5. Distance from City Center: Specify your preferred proximity to the city center.
6. Fun Things To Do: Explore accommodations near exciting activities.
7. Availability: Ensure availability on your selected dates.
8. Deals: Uncover special offers and deals.
9. 24-Hour Front Desk: Find accommodations with around-the-clock service.
10. Reservation Policy: Filter based on cancellation policies.
11. Meals: Include accommodations with specific meal offerings.
12. Stay Type: Tailor your stay experience.
13. Property Type: Choose from a variety of property types.
14. Landmarks: Stay near your preferred landmarks.
15. Bed Preference: Specify your bed preferences.
16. Review Score: Choose accommodations with preferred review scores.
17. Facilities: Filter by available facilities.
18. Room Facilities: Customize based on room amenities.
19. Neighborhood: Stay in a preferred neighborhood.
20. Chain: Select accommodations from specific chains.
21. Property Accessibility: Find accessible accommodations.
22. Room Accessibility: Filter based on room accessibility.

 

Navigate effortlessly through these options to discover the perfect accommodation tailored to your unique preferences. Booking.com ensures a personalized and comprehensive search experience, allowing you to book with confidence.

Map Exploration on Booking.com

Booking.com integrates the power of Google Maps to enhance your accommodation search. Here's how you can leverage the map feature for a more immersive booking experience:

1. Interactive Map Features:
   Hover your mouse over a pin on the map to glean details about various properties.
   Clicking on a pin seamlessly links you directly to the property's page, where you can explore and proceed with reservations.
2. Transportation Options:
   Below the map, find a convenient list of transportation options to get to your chosen accommodation.
3. Discover Similar Hotels:
   If you're intrigued by a particular hotel but want to explore alternatives, click on the "Show similar hotels" link. This feature presents a curated list of comparable hotels in the area, with top picks displayed first.
4. Ask a Question:
   If lingering uncertainties persist, click on the "Ask a question" button. Pose your queries, provide your email address, and submit. You'll receive a confirmation email, and within approximately 24 hours, expect a response after approval.
5. Questions and Answers Guidelines:
   Guidelines ensure that questions are property and room-related, detailed enough to aid other travelers, and devoid of inappropriate or promotional content. Booking.com emphasizes respect for privacy and disclaims any responsibility for the content.

 

❌ 6. How to Cancel Your Booking?

Canceling your reservation on Booking.com is a straightforward process, but understanding the details is crucial:

1. Review Cancellation Policy:

Enter your Check-In and Check-Out dates to view the specific cancellation policy for your booking. For instance, you might find options like free cancellation up to 48 hours before arrival.

2. Check Terms and Conditions:

Examine all terms and conditions associated with your reservation, including the property's cancellation policy. These details are available in your booking confirmation.

3. Cancellation Options:

Some bookings may have no pre-payment requirements, meaning you pay upon arrival. The ability to cancel depends on the property, and any fees are charged by the property directly, not Booking.com.

4. Non-Refundable Bookings:

Non-refundable bookings typically involve charges for cancellations. However, you can request a free cancellation through the booking management feature, appealing to the property to waive the cancellation fee.

5. Changing Dates:

Non-refundable bookings usually do not allow date changes. However, successful waiver requests may open the possibility to re-book your desired dates without fees.

6. Confirmation Email:

After canceling a booking, expect a confirmation email within 24 hours. Check your Inbox and Spam folder, and ensure to confirm with the property that they received your cancellation.

7. Important Note:

Taxes, charges, and VAT are already included in the total price.

 

☎️ 7. How to contact Customer Service

Contacting Booking.com and accessing customer service is a seamless process, designed to address any concerns or queries you may have. Here's a comprehensive guide:

1. Customer Service Access:

Locate Customer Service links across the Booking.com site. In the prominent Customer Service block, describe your issue, and they will promptly identify the most efficient way to assist you.

2. Help Topics:

Access a drop-down menu covering a range of help topics, including:

• Cancellation
• Payment
• Booking details
• Communications
• Room Types
• Pricing
• Credit Cards
• Property policies
• Extra facilities
• Referral Rewards
• Security awareness
  

3. Online Booking Management:

Manage your booking, change dates, add rooms, or cancel your reservation through the online platform. Sign in using your confirmation number or PIN code. In case you've misplaced your confirmation email, enter the email used for booking to receive a resend.

4. Direct Property Contact:

If you prefer direct communication with the property for specific queries, signing in or entering your confirmation number and PIN is necessary to check your booking details.

5. Additional Links:

Explore various links at the bottom of the page for extensive options:

• Contact Booking.com
• Learn more about Booking.com
• For travel agents
• Unique places to stay
• Travel communities
• Facility types
• Countries, regions, cities, districts
• Airports
• Hotels
• Places of interest
  

6. Travel Agent Support:

If you're a travel agent, specific support options are available.

Booking.com ensures a user-friendly experience, allowing you to access assistance, manage bookings, and explore additional information effortlessly.

Feel free to sign in, use your confirmation number or PIN, and delve into the wealth of resources and support provided by Booking.com.

 

😕 8. Flaws of Booking.com

While Booking.com offers a convenient booking platform, it's important to consider the potential downsides:

• Limited Human Interaction:
  One drawback is the absence of live communication during the booking process. Despite detailed Q&A sections, specific questions or unique problems may not receive tailored responses.
  
• Possibly Not the Cheapest Rate:
  It's advisable to conduct your own price comparison before confirming your reservation. While Booking.com provides a Best Price Guarantee, ensuring the best rate available, proactive comparison ensures you make an informed decision.
  
• Best Price Guarantee:
  Despite the downsides, Booking.com offers a Best Price Guarantee, allowing you to claim a refund for the price difference if you find a cheaper reservation elsewhere. This guarantee reinforces the commitment to providing competitive rates.

In summary, while Booking.com offers convenience and a Best Price Guarantee, it's essential to be aware of potential limitations and conduct thorough research before finalizing your booking.

 

😊 9. Can you trust Booking.com?

Of course! We have always had a good experience with Booking.com, even when we made multiple reservations.

Even when there was a problem, like when we got to a resort and the front desk clerk questioned our ticket, Booking.com stepped in right away to fix it. Once we were sure over the phone, we called their customer service. As a result? We not only got the room we wanted, but we also got an upgrade for free. This event showed how good Booking.com's customer service really is, as they handled a possibly difficult situation without any problems.

Booking.com has a huge influence around the world; it has an amazing 28,425,726 listings in 148,470 destinations in 228 countries and territories. The website, which is offered in 43 languages, helps people book more than 1.5 million room nights every day. This huge reach shows that Booking.com has a big share of the travel business and a lot of power in that field.

The best place in the world to book accommodations:

• As a proud way to show that it has been a star in the travel industry since 2005, Booking.com calls itself "The World's #1 Choice for Booking Accommodations." A big part of its philosophy is to offer the best prices for every room. The "Best Price Guarantee" piece below goes into more detail about this idea.
  

Note: The "Best Price Guarantee" section has all the information you need about Booking.com's promise to offer the best prices.

 

🎁 10. Coupons and Gift Certificates

All of the places that Booking.com takes funds for accept gift cards. You can find these places by adding your Gift Card to your Booking.com Wallet and then looking for a home that has a Gift Card badge on it.
You can sign in and narrow your search for a place to stay by "Booking.com Wallet" to find properties that are eligible.
Sign in to your personal account and look in the Wallet to see how much money is left on your Gift Card.

In Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, and the UK, you can buy and send digital gift cards online right now. You will need to either log in to Booking.com or make an account in order to make this buy. You can pay with a credit card, but each card can only hold £500. You can buy more than one card, though.

To buy something online, click on this link: www.booking.com/giftcards.

In the Netherlands, you can also buy gift cards at some places. If you're not going to be in the Netherlands, don't worry—more countries are on the way. You might want to go back to the website link above a lot.

Keep in mind that the gift cards can only be used for new reservations, and they can't be reloaded. Get some new cards.

Note: Gift cards are only good for three years from the date they were bought.

 

🎫 11. Deals and promo codes

Claims like "Discover huge savings all over the world," "Search today's deals link," and "Today's best deals offer huge savings" These are just deals to get people to stay.
You have to go through almost the whole booking process on Booking.com before you can enter your coupon code.

On Booking.com's home page, choose the city where you want to stay and hit the big blue "Search" button in the upper right corner. This will take you to a list of all the deals that are available. You need to put the dates of your trip for Check-In and Check-Out. That's possible on either the home page or the second page. In either case, you need to enter the dates of your trip.

After that, click on Show Prices or See Availability. Pick a room and then enter the information asked for. In Next: Final Details, you can type in the Coupon or Rewards Code.

On the page with all the final details, there is a link near the bottom of the left column that lets you enter the code. It the link doesn't show up, it means the hotel you chose doesn't accept promo or reward codes.

When you're on a smartphone, the link to enter the reward code is right before you enter your credit card information.

As long as the rate parity conditions are in place, hotels might not be able to offer deals with lower prices than Booking.com. It might be worth your time to call the hotel and ask for a lower rate than the promoted special.

Note: You can't use coupons or reward codes to book plane tickets on Booking.com. It is better to go straight to the airport if you are going to use one.

Note: If you book through Booking.com, your loyalty program or the option to earn points will not be taken into account. This is something that you should make sure of when you book with the hotel.

 

📝 12. How to write a review

Looking for a great place for couples to get away in a small hotel?
Are you a business visitor in the city looking for WiFi, a place to work, or maybe a place to hold a meeting?

If you read the reviews, you'll definitely find honest opinions based on real stays written by real guests.

The hotel gives descriptions of the rooms, but it's the reviews from other guests that really help a visitor decide.

You might get a better idea of what to expect from your visit based on the review score, which is the average of all the reviews, good and bad.

12.1 Tips and Advice

The company behind Booking.com deletes old reviews 24 months after they were written so that they are still useful for people planning future stays.

A review can only be written by a customer who booked through Booking.com and stayed at the hotel in question. That makes it possible to make sure that reviews are from real people.

Booking.com wants you to share your story, with both good and bad ratings. You have to follow the rules, though. They plan to show a variety of points of view and events. This is very important for new people to know so they can make smart choices.

Booking.com treats contributions with the greatest attention. No matter how good or bad the review is, they will post the whole thing as soon as possible after it has been moderated to follow the Booking.com Guidelines. Their goal is for everyone to know what's going on with submitted material.

If you need to change your review and notes after you've sent them in, you can contact Customer Service.

All user-generated material and how the property responds to it must follow the same rules and guidelines. That's what Booking.com wants: the efforts to speak for themselves. Booking.com won't be the one to decide what's true. They are in charge of giving opinions to both guests and properties.

12.2 Criteria for Review

Relevant and family-friendly content is meant to be posted without censoring speech or strong views. It also works no matter what the tone of the message is.

Contributions should be honest, original, and fair, and they should have something to do with travel. People can make better choices if you give them more information.

Contributions should be acceptable for people all over the world. Do not use bad language or words that sound like bad language. Don't talk about politics, religion, ethics, or your own life. Content that is advertising will be taken down. Customer Service is the place to go for problems with Booking.com services.

The property partner shouldn't post on guests' behalf or give guests something in return for reviews.

Booking.com will not stand for people who try to hurt a rival by leaving a bad review.
Be aware of other people's privacy. Phone numbers, email addresses, web addresses, social media accounts, and other related things should not be included. Booked.com will get rid of or hide it.

The opinions given are those of Booking.com users and properties, not those of Booking.com. They don't take any blame for the reviews or responses. Booking.com is just a distributor of these comments and replies; they don't have to check them out and aren't actually publishing them.

This set of rules can be read on Booking.com by clicking on the link that says "Verified guest reviews from real Bookers."

 

😠 13. Is it possible to write fake reviews on Booking.com and other sites?

Of course, it is possible to fake any rating.

But that takes time, money, and danger!

Due to two strict rules, you must have booked through Booking.com and stayed in the hotel in order for Booking.com to check reviews and make sure they are real.

Most importantly, each review is checked against the rules listed above. The review method is also based on logic. There will always be different points of view. Any report that clearly doesn't fit within the normal range for a certain trait could be a red flag.
After reading all the reviews, it's up to you to make your choice.

There have been times when reviews were not so good. That being said, Booking.com (or any other platform) will move, and they might even block the hotel. That's not going to happen because Booking.com is too important to their business.

FAQ

Can I trust booking.com? Is it safe?
Booking.com can be trusted and is safe. They've been in business for a long
time and are one of the biggest rental websites out there.
Booking.com is a safe place to book your next trip.

 

Does Booking.com hide extra fees?
Travelers don't have to pay for their service; all you have to do is book
your trip and pay any taxes, fines, or fees that are related to the booking
only.

If I change my mind, will Booking.com charge my card?
To cancel on Booking.com, you don't have to pay a fee, but hotels and
hostels do. Every hotel and hostel has a different cancellation policy.
Before you book your stay, you should make sure you carefully read the
lodging provider's cancellation policy.