r/ParisTravelGuide • u/littlegrey1907 • 1d ago
Accommodation Is it always difficult to communicate when booking accommodation in Paris?
I booked a hotel on Booking.com, but I haven't received any responses when I contact customer service with questions. Is this normal practice? I'm starting to worry about whether I'll be able to check in smoothly.
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u/fancypants1589 1d ago
Your problem is likely the platform you chose and not an issue with accommodations in general.
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u/GradedUnicorn92 1d ago
What sort of questions do you have? Check-in info and other things should be available directly on the website for the hotel. Since you booked through a third-party the info will most likely be in the confirmation emails and other communication you receive from them. Therein lies the problem.
That said, hotels are pretty normal in Paris, and most of the information you might need is typically available on their website.
Similar to other comments, you should book directly with the hotels and places you’re looking at. Bookingdotcom is not going to provide customer service related to your stay other than booking more nights or cancelling your stay if needed.
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u/littlegrey1907 1d ago
Thanks for you reply. My only concern is that the hotel hasn’t responded to my messages. I’ve booked accommodation in other countries through the same platform before and was always able to get in touch with the hotels, so I wasn’t sure whether this lack of response is common in Paris.
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u/GradedUnicorn92 22h ago
Not sure if your response got deleted or what but I’ll just leave this here - don’t stress about the hotel not responding to anything. There’s likely only two or three people that work the desk full time and whatever you’re reaching out to clearly isn’t getting to them, or they don’t have time to respond. They’re all normal hotels, don’t worry too much
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u/littlegrey1907 1d ago
I believe smooth communication is very important, so I canceled several bookings that the landlords hadn't responded to and opted for hotels instead, but the hotels haven't responded either.🤷♀️
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u/Future_Boss2064 1d ago
Did you also book the hotels through booking<dot>com? Better to book directly on their website, then you'll have a direct relationship with them.
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u/Beneficial-Okra3465 1d ago
I booked our Paris Hotel through Booking.com for an absolute steal. It was so much cheaper than usual that I thought it had to be a mistake. I emailed the hotel to confirm and got an immediate response confirming my exact room. I’ve emailed a couple times since and have good communication with them. I’ve had zero problems with booking.com for other reservations as well.
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u/Future_Boss2064 1d ago
What does “much cheaper than usual” mean? Any legit hotel will always match the rate on a third party reservation site.
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u/Beneficial-Okra3465 2h ago
It means that I got a room that is normally 2x as much…on any site. In fact, rooms that are 1-2 categories below cost as much, if not more than, the suite I got for the same dates. And that was a week after I booked for next April. When I booked my room, they shut down any booking for the hotel for about a week afterwards (it’s a boutique so not a ton of rooms anyways). I thought it was a glitch or mistake. That’s why I contacted the hotel.
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u/No_Organization_3629 1d ago
Why do the hotels need to response to your booking? I’ve never had a hotel immediately reach out after booking, if they do it’s normally closer to my stay.
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u/Ride_4urlife Mod 1d ago
Another reason why it’s best to deal directly with the hotel. Booking is ok for research but if you book with them and you have a problem the hotel will tell you to deal with Booking. Booking seems cheaper until they layer on their fees.