Frequently asked questions

FAQ and practical information about your stay in our vacation rentals. Reservation and general conditions. Deposit and payment. Check in and check out. Some hints to make your stay even more pleasant.

How do I see how much it will cost?
Select one of our apartments. Check carefully all information related to it. Select your dates. The system will automatically come up with the best rates. Rates may vary according to the period of the year and length of stay. Calculate the total amount of your stay. From that point you will be able to continue and make a reservation request.

How can I make a reservation?
On the home page of our reservation system, kindly select the apartment you wish to book. Check the availability for the desired period. Our calendars are up to date and reliable. When we confirm a booking, the calendars are updated automatically. If available, select the requested dates. Follow the steps online and make a reservation request. We will come back to you very shortly with a confirmation proposal. To confirm your stay you will need to pay a deposit online with your credit card. Please note that other booking options might exist for dates shown as available. Booking options have no special priority. Options need to be followed by the payment of the deposit to be confirmed. Only the first paid will be confirmed. The other existing options will then be automatically cancelled.

The system is rejecting my dates although the calendar shows the room is available
A minimum stay may apply for the dates you are trying to select.

Check in and check out
Please note that our apartments are available earliest at 4:00 pm on the day of arrival and should be left at 10:00 am latest on the departure date. Check in time is between 4:00 and 8:00 pm, unless otherwise agreed.

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FAQ - Frequently Asked Questions about the Sales Conditions

1. Question - Why have such a long and precise Sales and Conditions page? 

1. Answer - Having the conditions on our site is mandatory by law. If you came accross sites or places without this, it only means that they are not complying with French and European rules and regulations. A lot of people offering accommodation are not always aware of the legal aspects. If a problem occurs, they will be in trouble and will put their guests into trouble. The content of our sales conditions is what is provided by the French administration and professional organizations. We did not write them ourselves. This is explained in the first paragraph. When a tourist is renting an apartment or a house, his legal status is not different from a family or anyone renting a furnished flat for any other personal reason. The main philosophy is very simple and easy to understand: the renter must take good care of what he rents.

2. Question - What is "taking good care"?

2. Answer - The answer is very simple: not being careless! Let us take some examples: breaking a glass can happen to anybody. Unless it is thrown against the wall in a moment of anger, it is an accident. During more than 3 years of activity at Le Clos de la Rose (our Bed and Breakfast near the Champagne vineyards), we had to change maybe 5 glasses. We never asked anybody for a single penny because of a glass. And we never had any other damage but a fireplace window shield broken by accident (fire was mishandled). The client's insurance paid for it.
But a renter thinking that because he is paying a rent entitles him to be unbehaved should be charged for the damages. A renter having his black shoes shining with some costly bath towel should be given the towel to take home and be charged for it. A renter not caring for removing his shoes full of mud when he comes back from a walk and crossing the house and the sleeping room carpet with them is an unbehaved person and should be charged for the extra cleaning. All this has more to do with behaving and education than with real risk.

3. Question - In the sales conditions it states "the tenant promises to take out insurance against tenancy risks" and below it states "the landlord promises to insure the accommodation against tenancy risks on the tenants behalf". Does that mean I do not have to take out the insurance?

3. Answer - It is mandatory to have a personal insurance here around. Most of the personal insurances cover the risks when travelling and renting another place for a short period of time. But since in some countries it is not mandatory to have a personal insurance, we are obliged to mention this and make sure the traveller takes this into consideration. As an owner we have an insurance for majors risks. But this does not cover the damages our guests might create. Kindly check with your personal / home insurance if unsure.

 4. Question - The sales conditions state that the credit card print taken as a security deposit will be valid for a 1 month period after departure of the traveller. I would have thought it would be cancelled when we leave, if we left the place as we found it?

4. Answer - The reason is very simple to understand: it is impossible to inspect in detail the place when people leave. Most of the problems are often discovered much later. Take our Le Colombier house in Riquewihr. It is quite large and full of antiques and a lot of sophisticated equipment. Some of them are used only from time to time. Other owners say such a problem is sometimes discovered by the following guest only and not by the house maid. Should a place remain empty for a week or 2, you see that a month delay comes to reality even if it is not always the case.

5. About our cancellation policy-As for most of online sales / bookings, deposits paid to us are not refundable. Why?

5. Answer- Everybody will understand that a hotel with 50 rooms can be quite flexible because a cancellation has a limited effect on them. Since we have only a very small number of apartments, we cannot take the risk of blocking them, turn down a lot of requests and end up with somebody who changes his mind when the stay gets nearer. The policy we are applying is widely applied for holiday rentals all over the world. We understand that the traveller might face some unforseen circumstances. Therefore we strongly recommend you take a cancellation insurance.
Rmk: If you pay your deposit / stay with some credit cards like a Visa Premier or Mastercard Gold, your credit card is usually offering you a free cancellation insurance. Check with your credit card company. Anyway, a cancellation insurance can be obtained from most of the banks and is rather cheap.

Should you have any other question, do not hesitate to ask.