I have booked my own flight and hotel online. If I have to cancel what will happen to my money?
If you have
planned a holiday where you booked the flights and hotel individually, you do
not have the same level of protection as with a package holiday.
Your rights
to cancel your flight and accommodation will be set out in the terms and
conditions of the contract.
Cancelling your flight
If you have
to cancel your flight or decide not to fly, you may lose the money you paid if
the flight has not been cancelled by the airline or if you have not booked it
as part of a package holiday.
If you
booked the flight yourself you have no automatic right to re-routing or a
refund. However, if you have to cancel because of COVID-19, you should contact
the airline. Some airlines may be willing to offer you other alternatives like
a voucher or credit note, or allow you to rebook your flight for a later date.
Cancelling your
accommodation
Check the
terms and conditions carefully to see what your rights about cancellation and
refund options. You should contact the booking site if you need to cancel. In
general, if you booked with a booking website, your contract is with the hotel
and not the booking website. You may need to go to the hotel directly to ask
for a refund. If you have a non-refundable hotel booking, it may be difficult
to get your money back if you have to cancel.
Travel insurance
If you
have taken out travel insurance to cover your holiday, check to see if flight
and accommodation cancellations are covered. If you are not sure, contact your
travel insurance provider directly to see if you can claim on your policy.
You can read more about travel during COVID-19 and your consumer rights on citizensinformation.ie.
During COVID-19, you can find comprehensive integrated information online at citizensinformation.ie/covid19/ and you can get daily updates on what’s changed on Twitter at @citizensinfo.
You can also get information and advice from:
- The Citizens Information Phone Service: Call 0761 07 4000, Monday to Friday, 9am – 8pm
You can continue to contact your local centre by email or phone using the details in the Find a Centre page on citizensinformation.ie.