Whats your booking killer?

[Denali]

Like most, looking to go somewhere local to have a break and theres no Hilton or Novotel nearby so looking at B&Bs, AirBnB, rentals ect and my instant, close the window, do not save, dont bother looking at the pics is if I see Queen bed. I dont mind paying more for nice but a queen bed is an deal breaker for me. I prefer 2 x single beds over a queen or would book two rooms (which Ive done)

Im also not a fan of shower over bathtub of death (especially if no hand rail) but if the bed is a king and the other features are winners, I will consider it for a cracker of a place.

So whats your travel booking deal breaker? Multi-rise & no lifts, no onsite parking or cheap looking linen?

Edit: I think we can all agree that C19 was everyones booking killer this year

 

[Pushka]

Like most, looking to go somewhere local to have a break and theres no Hilton or Novotel nearby so looking at B&Bs, AirBnB, rentals ect and my instant, close the window, do not save, dont bother looking at the pics is if I see Queen bed. I dont mind paying more for nice but a queen bed is an deal breaker for me. I prefer 2 x single beds over a queen or would book two rooms (which Ive done)

Im also not a fan of shower over bathtub of death (especially if no hand rail) but if the bed is a king and the other features are winners, I will consider it for a cracker of a place.

So whats your travel booking deal breaker? Multi-rise & no lifts, no onsite parking or cheap looking linen?

Edit: I think we can all agree that C19 was everyones booking killer this year

Great question. Depending on length of time, is a gym for longer stays (we are both much better when there is access for MrP to have one); but the clincher for me is if it advertises Families with children and the children stay for free and there are heaps of children's activities with no place for adults to escape. We had a holiday in Vanuatu totally ruined at this time of the year when the Victorian holidays arrived and the place went from comfortable and peaceful to scores of screaming brats - they were demanding me me me kids, not polite ones, while their parents who were travelling as a group took a heap of chairs, plonked them in a large group, drank and ate while their kids ran rampant and getting in the way of the staff because THEY were on holidays.

 

[Spongbob]

Room size: if room size is not shown, I will not book.

 

[jakeseven7]

No aircon in the bedroom (for hot climates).

Still so many hotels don’t have either a unit or a vent in the bedrooms!

 

[Spongbob]

And if reviews of the hotel highlight "location" as the main attribute and nothing else.

 

[Pushka]

And if reviews of the hotel highlight "location" as the main attribute and nothing else.

So many reviews on Booking.com have the rating as Extra Clean! Now, that is good but exactly what I'd expect anyway.

 

[p--and--t]

Whats the booking killer?

Domestically - nothing, lots suitable vacancies and flights - but keep having to cancel, apply for refunds, because of state borders

International - after being burned with fees and charges for covid-19 cancellations waiting until a few countries sort out their mess and are safe to travel to combined with waiting for clearer signals from Canberra pollies on international travel ban.

 

[RooFlyer]

Potential noise is my booking killer.

The only thing I take notice of in reviews is whether they report noise - either from within or from outside the hotel. I'll always look to see if there is a nightclub or late night attraction in the hotel or nearby, using Google Street View. For India, check to see if it is a noted wedding venue.

 

[LadyC]

Definitely must have a king bed. Where we are staying at a hotel, I also do a very thorough assessment of breakfast before booking. We are particular in our diet and breakfast is our main (and often only) meal, so the breakfast needs to be good quality and offer what we like. Family friendly is also highly preferable when travelling with a child.

 

[VPS]

If they show lots of photos of the surrounding areas - beaches hills etc but very few of the accommodation itself. I like to see a photo of every room and I also think they should have a floor plan. It makes it much easier to make a decision

Also - if you're going to rent out your place either get a professional photographer or at least have some half decent photos. If I see lousy photos I click close

Also - as I'm usually travelling alone I need it to be somewhere that I'd feel safe wandering around at night alone. Also will almost always avoid showers over baths

 

[smiliemonster]

After reading what others have written and agreeing with most of them, I now sound quite fussy! For the main part I'll look for alternatives if there's no:

• king bed
• aircon

Not total deal breakers, but preferred:

• walk in shower
• reasonable lighting in the room
• food options in or close by

Noise and resort/destination/other made up fees also having me looking elsewhere, though of course that's not always possible in places like Las Vegas and Hawaii.

 

[Franky]

Like most, looking to go somewhere local to have a break and theres no Hilton or Novotel nearby so looking at B&Bs, AirBnB, rentals ect and my instant, close the window, do not save, dont bother looking at the pics is if I see Queen bed. I dont mind paying more for nice but a queen bed is an deal breaker for me. I prefer 2 x single beds over a queen or would book two rooms (which Ive done)

Im also not a fan of shower over bathtub of death (especially if no hand rail) but if the bed is a king and the other features are winners, I will consider it for a cracker of a place.

So whats your travel booking deal breaker? Multi-rise & no lifts, no onsite parking or cheap looking linen?

Edit: I think we can all agree that C19 was everyones booking killer this year

Agree with the shower over bath of the broken wrist in the case of my wife....

 

[I love to travel]

Noise and not being close to public transport.

 

[luxury-lizard]

Here's my list of "killers" (for hotel or holiday apartment):-

• Size - ie small hotel rooms (less than 30 sq m) or small holiday apartments (less than 70 sq m for a one-bedroom)
• at least queen bed
• no aircon in hot/warm climate (including summer in Europe)
• shower over the bath
• no lift if more than 2 flights of stairs
• poor outlook (e.g. busy street, car park)
• less than ideal location (which is of course very relative)
• for hotels - no on-site restaurant
• No mini-bar/fridge
• potential for noise (e.g. nightclub, wedding venue, etc)
• if required - no parking on-site or nearby (at a "reasonable" price - 40EUR per day in some European cities is not uncommon).

Of course the problem is you can't always tell if all of the above conditions are met.

All others things being equal - here's the deal impacters - ie why I would choose one place over another even if price is a bit higher:-

• Nespresso machine (or similar)
• Breakfast included
• View/location
• King bed
• on site parking (if driving)
• Photos of all rooms/spaces (very leery of any place without a picture of the bathroom - usually means no walk in shower)
• Age of property or indication of when last renovated (pictures are often misleading)
• Mini-bar which does not have an auto-detect pricing
• If holiday apartment - check-in procedure (some are so complicated) and ability to stop car at front door to unpack

 

[Daver6]

When a hotel has several different rooms at different prices but they're all the same size and you can't actually tell what's different between them all (I'm looking at you Hilton Sydney). I like to make an informed decision, so when it's just confusing I tend to give up and move on. Floor plans are a massive help.

 

[astrosly]

If I can't tell from the pictures that the room has one or more decent sized windows that aren't blocked by a wall then that's a deal breaker for me.

After Rendezvous Hotel Sydney's attempt a few years ago when they were overbooked to instead of providing me a quality room of equal value to that I had booked gave me a windowless internal room which felt like a concrete bunker. No deal. Far too claustrophobic for me.

 

[astrosly]

When a hotel has several different rooms at different prices but they're all the same size and you can't actually tell what's different between them all (I'm looking at you Hilton Sydney). I like to make an informed decision, so when it's just confusing I tend to give up and move on. Floor plans are a massive help.

Indeed. Currently looking to book the DoubleTree Melbourne but facing the same problem, almost all rooms are listed the same size with the same amenities but vary in price by as much as 50%. Guessing it all depends what you see when you look out the window and I can't really tell from the photos. Difficult to be informed so already looking elsewhere.

 

[jenib]

For the past couple of years I have been booking direct rather than through third parties. For country or suburban properties I try to book properties that adjoin/are affiliated with clubs (e.g. RSL or sports clubs) as they seem to be good value, support the local community and generally have reasonable food options. They also often give benefits over the third party booking agents such as free breakfast/free internet etc.

I have stopped booking one major chain after my daughter was bullied at a sporting event by a rich b**** who runs a company that provides housemaid services to them and was caught out for tax evasion. I know it isn't the chain's fault but I am not willing to give my money to them if it supports that person.

 

[sammy]

* Kids stay and eat free
* No fridge (needed for meds)
* Shower over bath
* Tiny rooms

 

[oztraveller]

- If the hotel mentions kids in any form of promotion (kids stay free; kids club; etc) i strike the property of my list;
- if the shower is over the bath, definitely forget it;
- a spa or jacuzzi in the room (yuk), how gross;

What I look for:
Breakfast included in the rate; a location close by public transport; reasonable extra cost for Executive level.