Warning about booking hotels from UK and paying in EU

UnsureAboutthis

It's the first time I've booked a hotel in the EU/Spain. This is usually left to our children but I thought I'd give it a go

We (me and oh) are going away this week.
I found a hotel on the web and there was a link to the hotel site where they said it was "cheaper.
Yes, it is/was cheaper but her comes the warning unless this is common knowledge.

For 5 night, the pounds sterling price was 1180 pounds - This price was plastered on the email
confirmation in three places and two of those were in bold writing. I booked this about 3 weeks ago.
The price included 'free cancellation" IIRC about 24 hours before arrival
The hotel site did not give me an option to pay before arrival.

On the email confirmation, along with the pounds sterling price of 1180 was in lighter writing
a total sum of 1445 euros.  Just above this was mentioning 'approximate price next to the pounds price." The email confirmation talks about twice, "hotel rate" referring to euros from pounds. 

I rang the hotel and asked what the "hotel rate" and was advised it was the current "market rates.

This is the thing you need to look out for.
The price we got in the email confirmation meant we'd have to get at least 1 EURO and 20 cents.
The tourist exchange rate has never been that high during the last three weeks it was at best 1.15 Euros. I got 1.1265 yesterday via the post office home delivery and the price we need to pay is not 1180 but a 1277 pounds a 100-pound difference

I had a look at another hotel, same trick.

Yes, if you have the option to pay beforehand fine, otherwise be aware and I strongly feel the email confirmation should make it very clear that price is  SUBJECT TO EXCHANGE RATES AT THE TIME.

Don't take my work for it - have a look yourself
Yes, if rates shot up ie pound vs Eruo it may go in your favour but my gripe is the email is not clear and they have used a "rate" that was non-existent.

In fairness to the hotel, they are not the only ones playing this game

DullGreyGuy

If you pay at the hotel anywhere in the world you will almost certainly be paying in the local currency just as a tourist to the UK would be charged in GBP. Not everyone in the world is good with FX rates or maths and so many overseas companies default to showing you the price in the local currency of your web browser but note that this is an illustration not the price you are locking into as they dont want the FX risk. 

Using a card machine with a foreign card will normally trigger the option for dynamic conversion into your home currency but this should almost always be declined because the rates are terrible. Thats the acquiring banks doing however not the merchant, certainly for modest sized companies they dont get to share in the poor fx rate's benefits. 

bagand96

It's not a trick.

You are booking a hotel in Spain, you will pay that hotel in the local currency which is Euro.  Many websites will know from your IP address that you are UK based and present a GBP equivalent price for ease.  But almost always you'll pay in the local currency.  This is commonplace across the industry.  Same when booking for example via Booking.com, they often present a GBP price in the results, but if it's pay at the property it will be local currency and this is made clear in the Terms.

The hotel will display an indicative rate at the time of booking (and 3 weeks ago €1.20 was not unreasonable), they can't possibly predict what the rates will be at the time you pay.

Cash forex services are also not the best way to spend abroad.  A decent travel credit card yesterday at the Mastercard rate would have cost you £1263 for your €1445.  

flaneurs_lobster

Which booking site did you use? Does it have the option to pay in local currency?
Did you check the price of booking the hotel directly (and paying in Euros)?
Any spend overseas will almost certainly be cheaper if you pay in local currency and let your bank/cardco do the exchange later.

UnsureAboutthis

You are all missing the point. I'm new to booking in euros and paying at the hotel. The mail had been plastered three times and twice in bold the pounds/sterling price and "hotel rate" was used. The euro price was in lighter writing and once only.

My point is which has been missed (there was no option to pay in the UK as stated in my OP) the email confirmation should make it CLEAR that the price is SUBJECT to pound/vs euro exchange rates. If they had done that, there would be no thread by me. As importantly, the "hotel rate" -  why not direct me to the 1 euro 20cent "hotel rate" they used ie point me to evidence that about three weeks ago you could get anything close to 120 cents for a pound.

UnsureAboutthis

flaneurs_lobster said:

Which booking site did you use? Does it have the option to pay in local currency?
Did you check the price of booking the hotel directly (and paying in Euros)?
Any spend overseas will almost certainly be cheaper if you pay in local currency and let your bank/cardco do the exchange later.

flaneurs_lobster said:

Which booking site did you use? Does it have the option to pay in local currency?
Did you check the price of booking the hotel directly (and paying in Euros)?
Any spend overseas will almost certainly be cheaper if you pay in local currency and let your bank/cardco do the exchange later.

No as per my OP
The point is as mentioned in my OP and above. 

flaneurs_lobster

Might be able to comment further if you tell us which site you used to make the booking.

daveyjp

As above.  I've just checked prices at two European hotels I have or will be staying in via the actual hotel website (not a consolidator).  Both give prices in the local currency, not in GBP.

bagand96

UnsureAboutthis said:

You are all missing the point. I'm new to booking in euros and paying at the hotel. The mail had been plastered three times and twice in bold the pounds/sterling price and "hotel rate" was used. The euro price was in lighter writing and once only.

My point is which has been missed (there was no option to pay in the UK as stated in my OP) the email confirmation should make it CLEAR that the price is SUBJECT to pound/vs euro exchange rates. If they had done that, there would be no thread by me. As importantly, the "hotel rate" -  why not direct me to the 1 euro 20cent "hotel rate" they used ie point me to evidence that about three weeks ago you could get anything close to 120 cents for a pound.

It's a Spanish hotel operating it's business in Spain, there's no requirement on it to offer an "option to pay in the UK".  The website likely offers the GBP price (or any other foreign currency) dynamically based on live exchange rates sourced from somewhere.  Three weeks ago the Mastercard GBP/EUR rate was €1.19, so it's perfectly reasonable to assume the interbank rate would have been around €1.20 if that's what the site bases it's rate on.

If you want to lock in a GBP rate at the time of booking and the hotel doesn't offer pre-pay, then it would have been better to book through an UK based site or agent who would give you a GBP rate.

Out of interest which hotel?

UnsureAboutthis

flaneurs_lobster said:

Might be able to comment further if you tell us which site you used to make the booking.

Might be easier if you noted that I used the "hotel" site as mentioned in my first post.

My point is very clear, ie the email confirmation should have MADE IT CLEAR that the plastered x 3 price in pounds sterling was SUBJECT to the current EXCHANGE rates when paying at the hotel
The other point is and no one has come close to talking about - please direct me to a 1 euro 20cent tourist exchange rate about three weeks ago. The best rate at the time was just over 1.1465e

la531983

What has the tourist exchange rate have to do with rates displayed on websites that will use the Visa/Mastercard rate?