Terms of Use/Common Questions – For properties booked through Lonely Planet
These help and terms pages should answer all your burning questions about the ins and outs of booking properties through the Lonely Planet booking service on our Hotels & Hostels website (http://hotels.lonelyplanet.com). When using the Lonely Planet Hotels & Hostels website for browsing or booking accommodation through Lonely Planet, you accept the following terms between you and us (Lonely Planet Publications Pty Ltd), so you should read them carefully. We may change these terms occasionally (and may or may not let you know), so check them regularly.
The Lonely Planet Hotels & Hostel website is now listing hotels and hostels from our recommended booking providers. When booking your hotel room or hostel bed through one of these providers, you leave our website. It is the provider’s responsibility to observe all fulfilment, billing and customer service. These pages don’t apply to booking through recommended providers, so we encourage you to check the provider’s terms and conditions before you make a booking.
Quick links
How do I make a booking?
When you have decided on a property that’s bookable through Lonely Planet, all you have to do is follow the step-by-step instructions to book it and pay the deposit. You will receive an invoice by email to confirm your reservation (you may wish to print this confirmation). You pay the balance directly to the property when you arrive and you will need to have valid photo identification to show to the property when you arrive.
We review properties and manage the Lonely Planet booking service, but we do not provide, own or operate any properties. When you book through Lonely Planet, your booking is made directly with the property - we simply facilitate the booking.
When placing a booking through Lonely Planet, you may use the free text box to submit special requests. We encourage the properties to meet reasonable requests, but we can’t guarantee that properties will honour every special request.
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What's the difference between "Book Now" and "Request"?
When you search for accommodation on Lonely Planet Hotels & Hostels you will notice that some results will be tagged as “Book Now” and others as “Request”
- “Book Now” – means that a property has specifically allocated space for the particular time and date requested. Bookings referred to as “Book Now” will be instantly confirmed with the property as soon as you receive the booking confirmation from us.
- “Request” – means that a property has not specifically allocated space for the particular time and date and your booking request will need to be sent to the property to be confirmed. You will receive an email notification from us that your request is pending and we will advise you via email within 48 hours that your request has been either confirmed or cancelled (depending on the response from the property). If a property fails to accept your booking request within 48 hours, the booking will be automatically cancelled, and your credit card won’t be charged.
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How much is it and how do I pay?
Properties available to book through Lonely Planet have set their own prices inclusive of all taxes.
When placing a booking through Lonely Planet, you will need to pay a non-refundable deposit to secure your booking, which we collect on behalf of the property. If you place a “Request” booking, we will collect your credit card details, but will not deduct the deposit until the booking is confirmed by the property. The deposit is 10% of the total amount payable for the booking and is payable by credit card (Visa or Mastercard). You will be required to pay the balance directly to the property on arrival. It is up to the property how you pay the balance, and some properties may not accept credit card payments for the balance – contact the property directly if you need to confirm the method of payment of the balance before you arrive. You do not pay us any additional fees - we collect fees from the properties for facilitating the booking.
When booking, you choose a currency for display of prices and payment of the deposit, from one of several common currencies. The prices listed are set by the properties based on their local currency, which we convert into your chosen currency using exchange rates published by a reputable source. The deposit amount will be charged to your credit card in your chosen currency. Your credit card provider may charge additional fees for payment in a currency other than your card’s home currency. Your invoice will state (in local currency) the balance amount due to the property, and you will pay that amount in local currency to the property.
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What is the Lonely Planet Hotels & Hostels guarantee?
Our aim is to ensure that the prices listed by properties on Lonely Planet Hotels & Hostels are the lowest available online and are no more expensive than booking through the property directly. If we find out that a property is not abiding by this policy then we may remove the property from our booking service.
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Can I view my booking on-line?
You can view all your bookings made through Lonely Planet. Just go to the 'My Account' section and select 'View'.
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Can I change or cancel my booking?
You can do these things for bookings made through Lonely Planet:
- cancel a booking
- change your date of arrival
- change the number of nights of your stay; or
- make a new booking
You should contact the property directly using the details provided on the invoice if you need to:
- change your room type; or
- amend a multiple room booking
You must notify the property of any changes/cancellation at least one clear day prior to the first day of your booking. 'One clear day’ means at least 24 hours before 12.01am of the first day of your booking (for example, if the first day of your booking is the 10th of March, you have until midnight on the 8th of March in the place where the property is located to modify or cancel). If you do not notify the property of a cancellation one clear day prior to the first day of your booking the property may charge your credit card for the first night of the booking.
To cancel a booking made through Lonely Planet, you will need to select 'My Account'', click on the 'Edit’ button and select 'Cancel Booking’. Remember, your 10% deposit is non refundable once your booking has been confirmed. If you cancel a “Request” booking before the booking is confirmed by the property you will not be charged the 10% deposit. (If you need to cancel a “Request” booking you should do it straight away as some properties will be quicker than others to confirm bookings.)
To change your booking dates select 'My Account', click on the 'Edit’ button and select 'Change Dates'.
If you want us to do any of these things on your behalf then you can Contact Us. There is a fee payable for this service which you will be notified of before we provide this service.
If a change to your booking results in a reduction in the price payable for the booking you will not be entitled to a refund of the deposit. (For example, you book 3 nights at $50 per night (total $150), and pay a 10% deposit of $15. You then change your booking to make it only 2 nights (total cost $100). You won’t receive a $5 refund on your deposit.) If a change to your booking results in an increase in the price payable for the booking you will be required to pay a further 10% of the increase at the time the change is made to secure the amended booking.
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I haven't received an email to confirm my booking / my amendment / my cancellation, what should I do?
Within the 'My Account' section, by selecting "View" you'll find the details of all your transactions.
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What if I've forgotten my password?
Visit 'My Account', enter your email address and select 'forgot your password', and we will then send you your password via email.
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When do I need to check in by - how long is my room held?
The 10% non-refundable deposit secures your room or hostel bed with properties booked through Lonely Planet. If you do not arrive at the property by midnight of the first day of your booking, the property may cancel your booking and charge your credit card an amount equal to what you would have paid for the first night of your booking less the deposit paid for that night. The deposit paid for the remaining nights of your booking will not be refunded. We recommend that you contact your selected property to notify them of any potential late check in to avoid any confusion about when you’ll arrive.
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Is Lonely Planet Hotels & Hostels secure and what do you do with my credit card details?
We use all reasonable efforts to ensure that all credit card transactions made on hotels.lonelyplanet.com are secure and payments are processed securely. We do not store your credit card details or provide them to any third parties other than to the properties you’ve booked. We will not be responsible for any unauthorised charges which appear on a credit card used on our booking service. You acknowledge that we are not liable for any default or error on behalf of any third party in processing your credit card. If you have a query or dispute about 10% deposit debited to your card and paid to us, please Contact Us.
By making a booking through Lonely Planet, you authorise us to fax your credit card details to the property, if it is stated on the payment page that the property requires a credit card to hold the booking (not all properties will require this). The property will hold your credit card details as security for your booking and may only use your credit card details if you don’t show up (see “When do I need to check in by?”).
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Where are my contact details and what happens to them?
Your profile is stored in the
'My Account’ section, and you can change your details in this section. By selecting ‘Edit’ then ‘Your Details’ you can make any necessary changes.
By making a booking through Lonely Planet or emailing us you will be supplying us with 'personal information'. We collect this to administer and help you use the Lonely Planet booking service, contact you about bookings and keep in touch with you (but only with what you ask for).
We will store your details securely in a profile which you can access and update at any time. Sleep easy, we won't sell your contact details to marketing companies for spamming! But we may disclose information about you to properties you book with, our service providers and to other companies in the Lonely Planet family. If you'd like to find out more, please read our privacy policy.
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What happens if a property does not honour my booking?
If you have booked accommodation through Lonely Planet and the property is not able to honour your booking on arrival, the property is responsible for organising, , alternative accommodation of an equal or better standard, for the same price, in a similar location with similar facilities for the term of your booking. If you are unable to satisfactorily resolve the issue with the property then you should Contact Us.
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What if I have feedback or comments? Or what if I have a problem with a property?
Great, bad, or ugly, have your say about properties by reviewing them yourself. You can add your review from the details page for each property.
We will make every effort to ensure that properties booked through Lonely Planet handle your bookings correctly and meet your expectations. If you have an issue that cannot be resolved with the manager of the property and you feel you need assistance in rectifying the matter, you can Contact Us. We have the discretion to remove properties that receive unfavourable reviews from authors and travellers.
We also welcome feedback about your experience on Lonely Planet Hotels & Hostels Contact Us.
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What if a property is removed from Lonely Planet Hotels & Hostels?
If a property booked through Lonely Planet is removed from our booking service, the property must continue to honour any bookings made prior to the removal. If the property is no longer booked through Lonely Planet, we will notify you that the property has been removed and give you the opportunity to confirm or cancel your booking (and receive a refund of your deposit if you cancel).
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How do I redeem my 40% guidebook discount from the Online Shop?
If you book your accommodation with a property through Lonely Planet, you will automatically receive a promotion code to get 40% discount at our Online Shop. The promotion code details will be sent to you in your Booking Confirmation email, under “More Sweet Deals with Lonely Planet”. To redeem the discount, simply visit our Online Shop, add the selected product(s) to your basket and type the promo code in the Promo Code area. This discount is not applicable on properties booked through our recommended booking providers, or to other offers, and excludes theme packs, digital products, 3rd party products and delivery fees.
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Who can I contact and how?
You can Contact Us at any time about bookings made through Lonely Planet . Fees will apply if you make a new booking, modify a booking or cancel a booking through us rather than on the Hotels & Hostels website. You will not be charged a fee if you are giving feedback or making a complaint about a property or Lonely Planet Hotels & Hostels, or if there is a problem with a property that you want resolved. The property contact details are listed on hotels.lonelyplanet.com and on the invoice.
For bookings made through our recommended booking providers, please contact the provider directly (contact details are at Contact Us
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What about my bookings through recommended providers?
When booking your room or hostel bed through one of our recommended booking providers rather than through Lonely Planet, you leave our website. These help and terms pages don’t apply to booking through recommended providers. It is the providers’ responsibility to observe all fulfilment, billing and customer service. Before you make a booking, check the providers' terms and conditions about things like how to book, pricing, payment, changes, cancellations, check-in requirements, privacy, security, problems and feedback. To access our recommended providers links, go to the Contact Us page.
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What else do I need to know?
OK, here's the fun legal stuff but it's important so keep reading!
As we only facilitate bookings through the Lonely Planet booking service, we have no liability in respect of the provision of accommodation. Your contract for the provision of accommodation is directly with the property itself. Subject to law, we have no liability to you in respect of any loss, liability or expense that you may incur in relation to our website or your bookings.
Remember that if you're relying on information or opinions from reviews by our authors and travellers or information provided by properties, you do so at your own risk. After all, an author's or another traveller's opinion is just that - an opinion - so use your common sense in making your selection. While we make every effort to ensure reviews we provide, and property descriptions and amenities lists provided by properties, are accurate and current we cannot warrant them to be error free. But we welcome your feedback if you disagree with our review or a property description.
If there is an error regarding a property booked through Lonely Planet and it impacts on your booking (for example, an incorrect price is listed), we may need to cancel your booking. We will try to contact you as quickly as possible, and we will try to accommodate your needs in making an alternative booking. If you made a booking through Lonely Planet and the price listed on our website was incorrect, we will give you the choice of either re-booking with the correct price or cancelling your booking.
We work hard to make sure Lonely Planet Hotels & Hostels and our booking service performs the way we want to, but unfortunately, we can’t make any guarantees. We exclude all implied terms, except where the law implies a term that we can’t exclude. If we breach such a term, to the extent possible, our liability to you will be limited to us re-supplying the services or supplying equivalent services to you.
These terms are the entire agreement and understanding between us and you in relation to your use of Lonely Planet Hotels & Hostels or our booking service. These terms are subject to any statutory rights you may have under relevant laws.
If anything in these terms is unenforceable, illegal or void, then it is severed and the rest of the terms remain in force.
Any legal issues arising will be dealt with under the laws of the state of Victoria and Australia, since that's our website’s home.
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