That hostel booking hack with the 24 hour cancellation window saved my tail in Madrid

I booked a hostel in Madrid last month for 4 nights through a third party site. Got to the place and it was a dump. Like mold in the bathroom and the AC didn't work dump. I remembered reading somewhere that if you cancel within 24 hours of check-in, some hostels will refund you. Turns out my booking had a free cancellation window up to 6 PM the day before arrival. I cancelled right then at 3 PM and rebooked a much better place two blocks over for 12 euros less per night. Has anyone else found that certain booking sites are better about these last minute cancellation policies than others?

2 comments

2 Comments

rivera.keith1d ago

You know, I used to be the kind of person who just booked the cheapest place and figured it'd be fine. But after a similar experience in Barcelona a few years back, I totally changed my mind. I booked a hostel that looked great online, but the photos were clearly from ten years ago and the place was falling apart. That 24 hour cancellation rule really is a lifesaver, and I think it depends more on the hostel than the booking site. I've had good luck with Booking.com's free cancellation policy, but I've also noticed that smaller, independent hostels are more flexible if you call them directly. It's funny how one bad experience can make you a lot smarter about traveling. Now I always double check the cancellation rules before I hit that "book" button.

robertsmith23h ago

Call the place directly before booking, they'll usually tell you the real deal on the rooms.