Terms and Conditions

General Terms and Conditions for the Hotel Accommodation Contract

1. Scope of Application
1.1 These Terms and Conditions apply to contracts for the rental provision of hotel rooms for accommodation purposes, as well as to all additional services and deliveries provided by the hotel to the customer in this context (Hotel Accommodation Contract). The term “Hotel Accommodation Contract” includes and replaces the following terms: accommodation contract, guest accommodation contract, hotel contract, hotel room contract, seminar contract, conference contract, conference package.
1.2 Subletting or re-letting of the provided rooms, as well as their use for purposes other than accommodation, requires the prior written consent of the hotel. Section 540 (1), sentence 2 of the German Civil Code (BGB) shall not apply insofar as the customer is not a consumer.
1.3 The customer’s general terms and conditions shall apply only if this has been expressly agreed in writing in advance.

2. Conclusion of Contract, Contracting Parties, Limitation Period
2.1 The contract is concluded when the hotel accepts the customer’s application. The hotel is entitled to confirm the room booking in text form.
2.2 The contracting parties are the hotel and the customer. If a third party makes a booking on behalf of the customer, that third party shall be jointly and severally liable together with the customer to the hotel for all obligations arising from the hotel accommodation contract, provided that the hotel has received a corresponding declaration from the third party.
2.3 All claims against the hotel are generally subject to a limitation period of one year from the statutory commencement of the limitation period. Claims for damages become time-barred after five years, irrespective of knowledge. These shortened limitation periods do not apply in cases of liability for intent or gross negligence, or in cases involving injury to life, body, or health.

3. Services, Prices, Payment, Set-Off
3.1 The hotel is obliged to keep the rooms booked by the customer available and to provide the agreed services.
3.2 The customer is obliged to pay the agreed or applicable prices of the hotel for the provision of rooms and for any additional services used by the customer. This also applies to services and expenses incurred by the hotel at the customer’s request to third parties. The agreed prices include the applicable statutory value-added tax (VAT).
3.3 The hotel may make its consent to a subsequent reduction requested by the customer in the number of booked rooms, the hotel’s services, or the customer’s length of stay conditional upon an increase in the price for the rooms and/or other hotel services.
3.4 Hotel invoices without a due date are payable in full within seven days of receipt, without deduction. The hotel may demand immediate payment of due claims at any time. In the event of late payment, the hotel is entitled to charge statutory default interest at the applicable legal rate, currently 8%, or 5 percentage points above the base interest rate for legal transactions involving a consumer. The hotel reserves the right to prove higher damages.
3.5 Upon conclusion of the contract, the hotel is entitled to require an appropriate advance payment or security from the customer, such as a credit card guarantee, a deposit, or similar. The amount of the advance payment and the payment dates may be agreed in writing in the contract. Statutory provisions remain unaffected in the case of advance payments or security for package travel.
3.6 In justified cases, for example if the customer is in arrears with payment, the hotel is entitled, even after conclusion of the contract and up to the beginning of the stay, to demand an advance payment or security within the meaning of the above Section 3.5, or to increase the advance payment or security agreed in the contract up to the full agreed remuneration.
3.7 Furthermore, at the beginning of and during the stay, the hotel is entitled to require an appropriate advance payment or security within the meaning of the above Section 3.5 for existing and future claims arising from the contract, insofar as such payment or security has not already been provided in accordance with the above Sections 3.5 and/or 3.6.
3.8 The customer may only offset, reduce, or exercise a right of retention against a claim of the hotel if the counterclaim is undisputed or has been legally established.

4. Withdrawal by the Customer (Cancellation) / Non-Utilization of Hotel Services (No-Show)
4.1 Any withdrawal by the customer from the contract concluded with the hotel requires the hotel’s written consent. If such consent is not given, the agreed contractual price must be paid even if the customer does not make use of the contractual services. This does not apply in the event of a breach by the hotel of its duty to respect the customer’s rights, legal interests, and interests, if this makes it unreasonable for the customer to adhere to the contract, or if the customer is entitled to another statutory or contractual right of withdrawal.
4.2 If a deadline for free withdrawal from the contract has been agreed in writing between the hotel and the customer, the customer may withdraw from the contract up to that date without triggering any payment or compensation claims by the hotel. The customer’s right of withdrawal expires if the customer does not exercise this right in writing vis-à-vis the hotel by the agreed date, unless a case of withdrawal pursuant to Section 4.1, sentence 3 applies.
4.3 Withdrawal or cancellation by the customer is free of charge up to 14 days prior to the arrival date. From 14 days up to 7 days prior to arrival, cancellation fees amount to 60% of the package price; up to 7 days prior to arrival, 80% of the package price applies; and on the day of arrival, 100% of the total package price is charged. Exceptions apply to bookings made with a non-refundable rate.
4.4 Withdrawal or cancellation of wellness treatments is free of charge up to 48 hours prior to the appointment. Thereafter, cancellation fees amount to 100% of the treatment price.

5. Withdrawal by the Hotel
5.1 If it has been agreed in writing that the customer may withdraw from the contract free of charge within a certain period, the hotel is also entitled to withdraw from the contract during this period if other customers request the contractually booked rooms and the customer does not waive their right of withdrawal upon inquiry by the hotel.
5.2 If an agreed advance payment or security, or one requested pursuant to Section 3.5 and/or 3.6 above, is not made even after the expiry of a reasonable grace period set by the hotel, the hotel is likewise entitled to withdraw from the contract.
5.3 Furthermore, the hotel is entitled to withdraw from the contract extraordinarily for objectively justified reasons, for example if:
force majeure or other circumstances beyond the hotel’s control make fulfillment of the contract impossible;
rooms are booked under misleading or false statements of material facts, e.g. regarding the identity of the customer or the purpose of the stay;
the hotel has reasonable grounds to assume that use of the hotel services may jeopardize the smooth operation of the business, the security, or the public reputation of the hotel, without this being attributable to the hotel’s sphere of control or organization;
there is a breach of the provisions set out above in Section 1.2.
5.4. In the event of a justified withdrawal by the hotel, the customer shall have no claim for damages.

6. Provision, Handover, and Return of Rooms
6.1 The customer does not acquire any entitlement to the provision of specific rooms.
6.2 Booked rooms are available to the customer from 3:00 p.m. on the agreed arrival date. The customer is not entitled to earlier access.
6.3 On the agreed departure date, the rooms must be vacated and made available to the hotel no later than 12:00 noon. If the room is vacated late, the hotel may charge 50% of the full accommodation price (list price) for use beyond the contract period until 6:00 p.m., and 100% thereafter. This does not establish any contractual claims on the part of the customer. The customer is free to prove that the hotel incurred no damage or a significantly lower charge for use.

7. Liability of the Hotel
7.1 The hotel is liable for its obligations under the contract with the diligence of a prudent businessperson. Claims by the customer for damages are excluded. Excluded from this limitation are damages resulting from injury to life, body, or health, if the hotel is responsible for the breach of duty; other damages resulting from intentional or grossly negligent breaches of duty by the hotel; and damages resulting from intentional or negligent breaches of essential contractual obligations typical for the contract. A breach of duty by the hotel is deemed equivalent to that of its legal representatives or vicarious agents. Should disruptions or defects in the hotel’s services occur, the hotel will endeavor to remedy them upon becoming aware of them or upon immediate notification by the customer. The customer is obliged to make reasonable efforts to help remedy the disruption and to minimize any potential damage.
7.2 The hotel is liable for items brought in by the customer in accordance with statutory provisions, i.e. up to one hundred times the room rate, but not exceeding €3,500. Liability for money, securities, and valuables is limited to €800. Money, securities, and valuables may be stored in the hotel safe or room safe up to a maximum value of €2,000. The hotel recommends making use of this option.
7.3 If the customer is provided with a parking space in the hotel garage or on a hotel parking lot, even for a fee, this does not constitute a safekeeping contract. The hotel is not liable for loss of or damage to vehicles parked or maneuvered on the hotel premises or to their contents, except in cases of intent or gross negligence. The provisions of Section 7.1, sentences 2 to 4, apply accordingly.
7.4 Wake-up calls are carried out by the hotel with the utmost care. Messages, mail, and goods deliveries for guests are handled with due care. The hotel assumes responsibility for delivery, safekeeping, and—upon request and for a fee—forwarding of such items. The provisions of Section 7.1, sentences 2 to 4, apply accordingly.

8. Final Provisions
8.1 Amendments or additions to the contract, the acceptance of the application, or these General Terms and Conditions for the Hotel Accommodation Contract should be made in writing. Unilateral amendments or additions by the customer are invalid.
8.2 The provisions of package travel law effective as of 01 July 2018 also apply.
8.3 Please also observe the separate data protection provisions.
8.4 The place of performance and payment is the registered office of the hotel.
8.5 The exclusive place of jurisdiction — including for disputes relating to checks and bills of exchange — in commercial transactions is the registered office of the hotel. If a contracting party meets the requirements of Section 38 (2) of the German Code of Civil Procedure (ZPO) and does not have a general place of jurisdiction in Germany, the registered office of the hotel shall be deemed the place of jurisdiction.
8.6 German law shall apply. The application of the UN Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods (CISG) and conflict-of-law rules is excluded.
8.7 Should individual provisions of these General Terms and Conditions for the Hotel Accommodation Contract be or become invalid or void, this shall not affect the validity of the remaining provisions. In all other respects, the statutory provisions shall apply.

© Hotelverband Deutschland (IHA) e.V. | Status: September 2023