I just got this message on Expedia from my hotel months after I booked my stay:
> Dear <name>, We sincerely apologize for the inconvenience caused by an error in our system, which has unfortunately resulted in your room being double-booked. We completely understand your frustration, and we deeply regret that we are unable to host you on this occasion. As a gesture, we would like to offer you a 15% discount on your next stay with us. We hope to welcome you in the future and provide you with a more enjoyable experience. In the meantime, we kindly ask you to cancel your booking. Rest assured, you will receive a 100% refund for the inconvenience caused. Once again, we are truly sorry for this situation and thank you for your understanding. Please feel free to call us if you have any questions. Best Regards, <Hotel>
It feels rather weird that they are asking me to cancel instead of them doing it themselves. What should I do? Am I entitled to still getting a room?
Thanks.
EDIT: Thanks everybody for your input. I ended up replying, insisting they get me a room of equivalent quality and will report back soon.
Amir said:
They are asking you to cancel so it gets treated as a voluntary cancellation.
Or it is a phishing email.
Either way, don’t do anything—if it is Expedia and not a scam, they will get in touch again.
Don’t cancel it yourself. They’re likely trying to make it look like a voluntary cancellation, which protects them more than canceling it themselves. Let them handle it.
Don’t cancel. This happened to me. Is it the hotel that’s messaging you and not Expedia, right? Contact Expedia. They will be the middlemen in what’s going on at the hotel. The hotel can’t cancel you, which is why they’re asking you to cancel yourself. Expedia gave me a better hotel room in a better area and covered all additional charges for the upgrade. And if you had multiple suites as I did, tell them that so they find you the same number of suites.
Don’t cancel. They owe you more than 15%. They need to put you somewhere else at the same comfort (they pay for it) and give you something for your inconvenience. They probably emailed multiple people to see who will give in.
This happened to me as well with a hotel in Italy. They tried to get me to cancel, but I contacted the booking platform (in my case, Booking.com), and they stepped in to find me an alternative hotel at no extra cost. Don’t cancel it yourself—let Expedia handle it. Reach out to them, explain the situation, and ask for alternative accommodations or compensation. Save all messages just in case you need to escalate. It’s their mistake, not yours!
Do not cancel. It’s either a scam or a mistake at the hotel’s end. Arrive at the hotel on your booked date. It’s Sweden; as long as it’s a reputable place, the hotel will take care of any issues on your arrival and will fix it.
Sweden has strong consumer protection laws; you might be able to make them honor the reservation or pay you if it is short notice. Is it in the next 11 days? Nobel Prize week is December 6-12, hotels usually charge full rack rate or more.
I’ve just gone through a similar thing. If you cancel, Expedia will say there is nothing they can do. They will relocate you if you show them the email.
A lot of European countries have laws against this from happening, meaning you’re legally entitled to compensation of some kind. Unless there’s a very good reason behind it, like your booked room being trashed.
Normally, the hotel that messed up would find and pay alternative accommodation for you.
I’d reply to them with a complaint but not cancel.
If you cancel your reservation, it becomes your problem. You are stuck finding another room on your own.
If the hotel cancels your reservation, it’s their problem. They have to compensate you and/or find you a room of the same class and also deal with any fallout from the reservation system (i.e., Expedia).
Honestly, it does feel off that they’re asking you to cancel instead of taking responsibility themselves. By doing that, they might be trying to avoid penalties or bad reviews on their end from Expedia. If they’re the ones canceling, it could reflect poorly on their profile. You could try pushing back and insisting they find you an alternative room at their property or cover a comparable stay nearby. Since you’ve had the booking confirmed for months, you definitely have some leverage. If they still refuse, reach out to Expedia’s customer service. They might be able to help you either secure a replacement booking or ensure the hotel takes proper accountability.
And while the 15% discount is nice in theory, it feels pretty weak when they’re putting you in such an inconvenient spot. Definitely advocate for something better!