Trip ruined: Booking.com accommodation price increased by $100 a night after confirmation

• Bride-to-be Ana Luiza Sestrem says she faced a $100 nightly increase – or cancellation – for her pre-booked accommodation.
• Sestrem booked the Canterbury getaway in October and was informed of the price rise a week later.
• Booking.com later offered to cover the cost difference as a gesture of goodwill after a media inquiry.

A bride-to-be has been left frustrated after being given two unappealing options: pay an extra $100 a night for accommodation she’d already booked – or cancel it altogether.

Ana Luiza Sestrem, 33, had booked the Canterbury getaway in early October to celebrate her engagement with friends.

“The accommodation was within the price range ... so I made the reservation three weeks in advance,” Sestrem said.

She said the property was “just the perfect location” and had an outside hot tub that was the ideal size for her and five friends.

However, Sestrem said a week later she received a message from Booking.com informing her the rate she had booked using its website was incorrect.

“I was told I would have to pay $100 more per day or cancel the reservation so they could relist it at the increased price,” she told the Herald.

According to Sestrem, the accommodation's price went up from $286.29 per night to $410.13. Photo / Rafaella Melo

She said the accommodation went up in price from $286.29 per night to $410.13.

“They offered me a discounted rate of $380, but that was still absurd. The error was not my fault,” Sestrem said.

She messaged the host directly.

“He explained that this had happened with other clients too [and] I could choose to either pay a higher amount or cancel it. So I had no choice but to cancel it,” she said.

“By the time they informed me about the price change, my other accommodation options were no longer available. I ended up booking a less ideal location due to an error that wasn’t mine.”

Sestrem said she had been a Booking.com user for almost 10 years.

“From now on... I will choose a different platform,” she told the Herald.

“I am so disappointed with them for not having a policy to protect loyal customers.”

Booking.com is one of the largest platforms for accommodation in New Zealand. Photo / 123rf

A Booking.com spokesperson said the company was sorry for her experience.

“In this instance, the property did not have the correct occupancy guest pricing in place on our platform at the time the guest booked their stay,” they said.

“Nevertheless, Booking.com will cover the cost difference for their booking as a gesture of goodwill.”

The company offered this resolution after being approached by the Herald.

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