A ghost booking is a reservation that was never truly viable, even though it appears confirmed. It often involves fake or invalid contact and payment details, duplicate holds by shoppers comparing options, or automated bot activity.
NB: This is an article from SiteMinder, one of our Expert Partners
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These bookings typically fail pre-authorisation or guest verification and convert into no-shows unless you catch and cancel them proactively.
What are common causes of no show hotel bookings?
Common causes of no-shows range from deliberate multi-booking strategies to simple oversights. Understanding these guest behaviors helps hotels design more effective preventative measures.
Many travellers create multiple reservations while comparing price, location, or amenities across several hotels. When they finally choose one property, they often neglect to cancel the others – especially when there’s no financial stake in each booking.
Some guests book speculatively while waiting on final details like flight confirmations, visas, or event tickets. If those plans fall through, the hotel reservation quietly becomes a no-show.
Ghost bookings can also arise from careless mistakes. A traveller may forget they made a reservation, double-book across different platforms, or assume the booking will automatically expire if they do not check in.
Key takeaways
- Travellers often hold multiple reservations while they compare options.
- Speculative bookings tied to uncertain travel plans easily become no-shows.
- OTA messaging around free cancellations encourages casual booking habits.
- Forgetfulness or misunderstanding of booking terms can also lead to ghost bookings.
What are ways to reduce hotel no shows?
Every empty room from a no-show is lost revenue you can never recover. The good news is that you can take proactive steps to lower the risk, combining clear policies with the right technology to make guests more accountable and engaged before arrival.
The scale of hotel no-shows: Industry data
- In some geographies, cancellations can reach 40% on major OTAs like Booking.com, highlighting the need for stricter safeguards.
- City hotels record cancellation rates close to 40% compared with 28% for resorts, showing how location and guest type influence risk.
- Guaranteed bookings backed by a credit card or deposit have been shown to cut no-shows to around 5%.
While strategies vary by property, some foundational steps work for practically any operator:
