Bucko
Google
Booked through the business’s website and the calendar was not intuitive and I booked the wrong night. My bad. I realized my mistake the next day and tried to cancel less than 24hrs after booking. I was informed I was within 30days of the stay date so I was not eligible for a refund. I was in fact 30days from the stay date. The owner figured they were doing a favor by offering to refund 50%. The rationale: it’s a small business in a competitive market and cancellations make booking difficult so they have to be strict about their policy. To a degree, I understand this, but the benefit of being a small business is the flexibility you have when communicating directly with your customers. But before 60 days for a full refund, before 30days for 50%, and after 30days NO refund?? This is an unnecessary policy, one that I’ve never seen in any privately owned hotel/motel/b&b.
Two days after the initial 50% refund offer I reached out again and was told that offer was no longer available. So the options are to cancel for no refund so the owner can conceivably double their money by booking the room again or to keep the room and leave it empty. Congrats on the easiest money you’ve ever received, I guess. This policy works more as a customer punishment or some sort of accountability method…?
Don’t offer to book this through your website when you’re also offering it on Airbnb. I get using different platforms but you’re not standardized across the platforms. If you’re going to continue this ridiculous policy, update your website to make that refund cancellation policy WAY more obvious.
The only reason I’m giving a star for service is the caretaker was pleasant even though they are left mediating while the owner manages from outside of Astoria.
Would not recommend this place based on principle alone. I’ll update this if we end up staying here, but this experience has really soured it for me and we weren’t planning on staying that night anyway.
UPDATE:
Owner is not having it. They apparently misunderstood what happened. I booked two rooms. Next day called to cancel (30days from reservation). They offered 50% refund. I had to confer with other party involved with the stay. Responded two days later wondering if the 50% was still available. It was not. Asked if I wanted to cancel for no refund. So no. I do not want to cancel my reservation just so you can potentially rebook the room and get double the money. Is that petty? Maybe. But if I am going to be forced pay for a reservation I’d rather just keep it and do with it as I please. And now they’re bolstering their star rating with fake reviews.
Change your cancellation policy timeframe to a week, even two. If you can’t book rooms within that timeframe in your Airbnb that you manage from afar, that unfortunately sounds like a poor investment.