Major Hotel Brands and Their Adjusted Policies

Corporate legalese has infected everything, even luxury hotels. Not even the front desk staff seem to know what’s going on—refund confusion is sky-high. $747 billion swapped hands in 2024 across U.S. hotels, and yet, the rules are less clear than ever.

Marriott’s Updated Terms

I read the new Marriott Bonvoy policies twice and still had to call a manager. “Best available rate”? Not always refundable, which makes no sense. If you hover over the details, you’ll see suites booked with points vs. cash have different rules. Bonvoy call center reps sometimes give the wrong info—Marriott blamed “outages,” but their April press kit just said “guest-friendly flexibility is evolving.” Whatever that means.

Advance purchase rates? Even Platinum Elites get stuck. In 2023, 38% of my little sample group didn’t get their hotel refund, even with documentation. Marriott’s CEO, Anthony Capuano, told investors changes would “align with partner site bookings.” Vague much?

If anyone cracks the code for why European Marriotts sometimes offer last-minute refunds but New York ones don’t, let me know.

Hilton’s Approach to Refunds

Trying Hilton lately is like ordering a coffee with too many options—supposedly simple, but always more complicated than you expect. Hilton Honors tiers now sometimes matter more for refunds than the actual rate. A Diamond elite friend got comped a night after making noise on social media, so maybe that’s the real secret. Hilton’s FAQ is a mess of ambiguity.

Prepaid rates? Mostly nonrefundable, unless you’re in Asia-Pacific, apparently. Fine print now says “special event periods” mean refunds vanish if you blink. Last time I checked in, the desk agent blamed “software upgrades” after denying a cancellation—pretty sure IT changes are eating legit requests now.

The luxury brands (Conrad, Waldorf Astoria) say they “balance flexibility with exclusivity.” Not sure what that means. If you Google “Hilton refund,” you’ll find Reddit threads longer than the policy PDFs. And at 2 a.m., who actually remembers to take timestamped photos to dispute a chargeback? Not me.

Booking Platforms Respond: booking.com, Hyatt, and Radisson

Booking.com—honestly, I don’t even know where to start. Every time I try to cancel something, I feel like I’m in a game of “Spot the Hidden Fee.” I mean, maybe I’m just paranoid, but the way their refund policy keeps shifting around? Wild. Hyatt at least puts their stuff out there, but sometimes I almost miss the days when you had to decipher those weird call center scripts. Radisson? Sometimes they’re blunt, sometimes I have no idea what’s happening, and I’ve definitely spent entire afternoons on hold just to hear “your call is important to us.” Sure it is.

booking.com’s Role in Hotel Cancellations

Booking.com’s cancellation policy is basically a mood ring. One day, I’m offered free refunds like it’s a clearance sale, and the next, I’m staring at non-refundable rates with the little exclamation point of doom. I talked to a front desk manager (no, I’m not naming anyone, January 2025, they asked for privacy, whatever) who basically said Booking.com doesn’t force hotels to refund anything, but loves to act like “flexibility” is their middle name.
I fake-booked a five-star in Rome—no, I didn’t actually go, wish I could—and the cancellation info was basically camouflaged. “Free cancellation until 48 hours before”? Not if you book a flash deal.
The whole “instant confirmation” thing is a joke when you realize the refund rules are buried or just plain weird if you use a promo code or some third-party payment. Their chatbot, I swear, is either ignoring me or just looping answers. I tried to get a refund after a canceled flight, waited three days, and got the same useless FAQ link every time. Maybe it’s just me, but I doubt it.

Hyatt’s Policy Adjustments

Hyatt’s loyalty desk (Annette, or maybe it was Jeanette? April 2025, Platinum line) rattled off some new “flexible” rate rules—except, uh, they’re not flexible. Used to be you could cancel almost up to 24 hours before check-in, now it’s 72 hours or more, especially for the fancy properties, and nobody really advertises the change.
Their website? Hides stricter policies behind a tiny asterisk. If you’re using Hyatt points, you might get more wiggle room than if you pay cash, but honestly, neither of the two agents I asked wanted to actually commit to an answer. Inspires tons of trust, right?
I overheard a guest in the lobby arguing that she was promised a “24-hour risk-free window”—the manager just handed her a printout and shrugged. Am I supposed to read it through the force of will?
Some Hyatt city hotels list blackout dates and longer lead times for suites or club rooms, supposedly because “demand forecasting technology” told them to. I don’t buy it. How does that help me get my deposit back? No clue.

Radisson’s Customer Experience

Radisson’s approach is, I guess, “just say it.” When I called about a lost deposit, the agent flat-out said most top-tier hotels and “special event” days are basically no-refund now. No one ever defines “special event.”
Radisson says they give “personalized support” for members, but after twenty minutes of bouncing between reps, I was told to call the hotel directly. So, the platform just punts. I know someone who works at a Radisson (let’s call him M.) who admitted the call center just reads scripts all day. Consistency, but not in a good way.
Gold or Platinum Radisson Rewards members sometimes get “courtesy exceptions,” which means, in reality, a ton of emails and delays. When I had to cancel, I documented everything and still waited three weeks, plus two escalations, for a refund. System feels like it’s designed to see if you’ll give up.