Booking.com Ignored My Refund Request for Hostal Fernando Barcelona Stay

On June 15, 2025, I made a reservation through Booking.com for Hostal Fernando in Barcelona (confirmation number: 51631607**) for a stay between October 1–5, 2025. I paid a total of €539 using my credit card. However, I realized the next day that my visa would not be valid for those dates, so I immediately tried to cancel the booking. I contacted the hotel through the “message the property” option in the app, but since I had missed the free cancellation window by about 8 hours and the chosen rate was listed as “non-refundable,” my cancellation request was denied.

The hotel informed me that my reservation was still active and that I could cancel through Booking.com, but no refund would be issued. They added that if the room was resold, I could receive a 50% refund of the total amount. Although the property appeared fully booked for those dates, no refund was ever processed, and the entire €539 was charged.

I reported the issue to Booking.com customer support, but aside from receiving an automated response, I never got any follow-up or solution. Other than trying to cancel, I had no alternative resolution options.

Considering that I attempted to cancel nearly three months in advance, I find it unfair and disappointing that no refund was provided. This situation reflects poorly on both customer satisfaction and Booking.com’s flexibility policies. I request at least a partial refund of 50% (€269.50) of the total amount. After this experience, I do not plan to use Booking.com again.