General business and reservation conditions

for accommodation contracts at Serways Hotel

1. Scope

The hotel (hereafter ‘Serways Hotel’) leases to a guest (hereafter ‘guest’), guest and Serways Hotel hereafter individually ‘party’ and together ‘parties’, the agreed hotel room with the agreed facilities (hereafter ‘hotel room’) for the agreed duration of the stay (hereafter ‘accommodation contract’). These general business and reservation conditions (hereafter ‘T&Cs’) are applicable to accommodation contracts for the leasing of hotel rooms, including all additional services and deliveries of Serways Hotels provided to the guest within this context.

2. Conclusion of contract

2.1. With the reservation of a hotel room, the guest provides Serways Hotel with the completion of an accommodation contract based on the T&Cs made available beforehand. Subject to availability, the Serways hotel guest receives booking confirmation (email, fax, in person), depending on the type of booking. The accommodation contract between Serways Hotel and the guest concludes with the guest’s receipt of the booking confirmation, with the payment of the room rate by the guest, or with the handover to the guest of the means of accessing the room (key card or access code) – whichever occurs first.

2.2. Offers from Serways hotel for the conclusion of an accommodation contract are subject to confirmation and non-binding. Serways hotel may decline to conclude an accommodation contract with a guest at its discretion.

2.3. The guest is not entitled to be provided with a particular hotel room. He/she is only entitled to be provided with a hotel room within the room category booked.

3. Reservation, cancellation

3.1. The following terms ‘basic reservation’ and ‘guaranteed reservation’ differ from one another in that the room is merely reserved in the case of the basic reservation, whereas the payment of the room is guaranteed by means of the provision of credit card details for a guaranteed reservation. The term ‘cancellation’ refers to the withdrawal of the guest from the accommodation contract.

3.2. Should the guest not arrive at Serways Hotel by 6 p.m. in the case of a basic reservation, the reservation expires for the full duration of the reservation without substitution and the reserved hotel rooms become free to let. In the case of a guaranteed reservation, the reservation of the hotel room will continue to be honoured for the guest after 6 p.m.

3.3. The guest may cancel basic or guaranteed reservations free of charge up until 6 p.m. on the day of arrival provided this is not specifically precluded prior to completing the reservation. Cancellation of guaranteed reservations after 6 p.m. on the day of arrival is not permitted and will not invoke cancellation of the accommodation contract. In this case, the guest remains obliged to pay the accommodation fee for the first night less fifteen per cent (15%) for expenses saved. The same is true if the guest does not appear on the day of arrival and has not cancelled his/her reservation. The guest is at liberty to demonstrate that the expenses saved by Serways Hotel are higher.

3.4. For guaranteed reservations of several days, all following nights from the second night are cancelled should the guest fail to arrive. In the event of an earlier departure, subsections 3.3 and 3.4 clause 1 apply to basic and guaranteed reservations respectively.

3.5. For group trips, the special conditions stipulated in subsection 8 apply.

3.6. Should the guest decide to pay an online reservation via a third party (e.g. Internet portals) using an online payment system, any online change to or cancellation of the reservation is subsequently only possible in accordance with the specifications of the third party.

3.7. Furthermore, irrespective of other statutory rights of rescission and following the prior setting of a notice period, Serways Hotel is entitled to withdraw from the accommodation contract – providing this is not legally redundant – if:

  • Force majeure and/or other circumstances beyond the control of Serways Hotel prevent the fulfilment of the accommodation contract;
  • Hotel rooms or spaces are culpably booked using misleading and/or false information and/or do not disclose
  • essential details; ‘essential’ details may include the identity of the guest, the ability to pay and/or the purpose of the stay;
  • Serways Hotel has justified reason for assuming that the utilisation of the services rendered may damage the smooth business operations of, the security of or the public image of Serways Hotel, whereby this cannot be attributed to the domain and/or organisational scope of Serways Hotel;
  • the purpose of and/or reason for the stay is illegal;
  • there exists a violation of subsection 5.2.

3.8. The justified withdrawal of Serways Hotel does not constitute the basis for a claim to compensation or reimbursement of expenses on the part of the guest.

4.  Arrival and departure

4.1. Subject to availability, Serways Hotel will provide the guest with a hotel room in the agreed room category and/or with the agreed facilities on the day of arrival, generally from 2 p.m., but never later than 3 p.m., and no later than 5 p.m. for tour groups. To access Serways Hotel and the hotel room, the guest receives a key card or access code when checking in at reception.

4.2.On the day of departure, the guest must vacate their hotel room by noon at the latest, leaving it in an undamaged state. Thereafter, Serways Hotel may charge the guest one hundred per cent (100%) of the room rate, based on the delayed vacation of the room, for its usage after the end of the contractual period. The guest may demonstrate that Serways Hotel has incurred no or a significantly smaller loss.

5. Terms of use

5.1. Only those persons declared in the booking are authorised to use the hotel room. The maximum occupancy for the respective room category may not be exceeded. Babies up to two (2) years old accompanied by at least one (1) full-paying adult may be accommodated in the same hotel room free of charge. An additional bed for babies up to two (2) years old is provided free of charge. Children up to six (6) years old generally stay free of charge in the parents’ bed. Children aged six (6) years old or older, or those under six (6) years old requiring their own bed, are treated as adults and are charged at the full rate. Family rooms are intended solely for families. The maximum occupancy for a family room in this instance consists of one (1) or two (2) adults and one (1) to three (3) children up to the age of eighteen (18) accordingly, with a maximum of four (4) persons.

5.2. The subletting or reletting of the allocated hotel room, as well as its use for purposes other than accommodation, is strictly forbidden and requires the prior written approval of Serways Hotel, whereby § 540 paragraph 1 subsection 2 of the German Civil Code (BGB) is waived insofar as the guest is not a consumer. For tour groups, subsection 8 additionally applies. Furthermore, the transfer or sale of accommodation booked at Serways Hotel is not permitted. In such cases, Serways Hotel is permitted to cancel the booking, in particular if the guest has given false information regarding the nature of the booking and/or payment during the transfer/sale to a third party. Subsection 3.8 applies to such cancellations. Use of the hotel room for a purpose other than accommodation is expressly forbidden.

5.3. The guest must adhere to the house regulations provided during his/her stay at Serways Hotel.

6. Room rates and other fees

6.1. The room rate to be paid by the guest serves as compensation for the provision of the hotel room by Serways hotel within the arrival and departure times presented in subsection 4. For any reserved or unsuccessfully cancelled accommodation – regardless of any actual usage or stay on the part of the guest – the full room rate will be charged.

6.2. The applicable rates are total gross rates excluding additional services (large and/or small breakfast and/or charges for pets) and include all mandatory taxes, charges and fees. In the event of changes to tax, charge and fee rates, as well as the effective collection of new taxes, charges and fees of which the parties were previously unaware, Serways Hotel reserves the right to adjust its rates accordingly. Local fees payable by the guest according to the respective municipal law are not included, such as surtaxes or accommodation taxes.

7. Terms of payment

7.1. The room fees, along with the cost of additional services, are due for payment at the latest upon the guest’s arrival at Serways Hotel, regardless of the date of the invoice. In the event of non-timely payment, Serways Hotel is permitted, where required by law and following prior warning thereof, to cancel the accommodation contract with immediate effect, whereupon the guest must vacate the hotel room forthwith.

7.2. Subsection 7.1 notwithstanding, Serways Hotel is permitted, even for basic reservations, to demand from the guest a prepayment of the accommodation costs up to the amount of the expected bill total for a reservation period of more than one (1) night. Alternatively, the guest may choose, with the agreement of Serways Hotel, to provide an appropriate security in the form of a credit card guarantee.

7.3. Serways Hotel accepts cash in euros, transfers, EC and Maestro cards, and the following credit cards: Visa, Mastercard and American Express. Serways Hotel reserves the right to accept other payment methods (cash in other currencies and/or other credit/debit cards), but is not obliged to do so.

7.4. The rights of offsetting and retention may only be exercised by the guest if the underlying counterclaims are uncontested or established as legally valid. 

8. Special conditions for tour groups

By derogation from or in addition to the other provisions in these T&Cs, the following applies for a group of at least fifteen (15) full-paying guests for whom a joint reservation exists (‘tour group’):

8.1. During the reservation, a spokesperson for the tour group with overall responsibility (’spokesperson’) should be communicated to Serways Hotel.

8.2. Prior to the tour group’s arrival, Serways Hotel should be provided with a list of the names of all participants.

8.3. During the reservation process, the spokesperson will receive from Serways Hotel a booking confirmation with the essential information pertaining to the registered reservation, check-in information and, where relevant, security guarantees and other payment conditions. Tour group reservations are always guaranteed reservations within the context of subsection 3.1 and therefore require the provision of credit card details.

8.4. The sum total of the accommodation fees is to be paid via bank transfer to the bank account of Serways Hotel specified in the booking confirmation or that is provided to the designated spokesperson by Serways Hotel after completion of the reservation.

8.5.Serways Hotel is permitted to demand payment of the accommodation costs for the tour group, including the costs for additional services within the context of subsection 6.3, twenty-eight (28) calendar days prior to the arrival day at the latest, or, should the booking be made later than twenty-eight (28) calendar days prior to the arrival day, at the time the reservation is made and irrespective of the date of the invoice. Should the tour group and/or respective guest fail to pay the accommodation costs by the due date, Serways Hotel reserves the right to charge the sum of the accommodation costs to the credit card provided. Should no payment be made by the due date or should the credit card provided not be chargeable, Serways Hotel is permitted, subject to legally regulated grace period provisions, to withdraw from the accommodation contract and/or to exercise the extraordinary termination of the contract and to otherwise let the hotel rooms reserved for the tour group and/or respective guest (without previously informing the guest) without the guest deriving any right to claim against Serways Hotel. Furthermore, Serways Hotel is also permitted to demand credit card details as security and to charge these in the event of possible damage caused by the tour group to the corresponding amount.

8.6. Serways Hotel is permitted to demand from the spokesperson a security deposit of up to five hundred (500) euros per tour group upon its arrival at Serways Hotel, in particular for possible additional services within the context of subsection 7.1, as well as potential damage.

8.7. In contrast to subsections 3.3, 3.4, the tour group may cancel or amend its reservation free of charge up to twenty-eight (28) calendar days prior to the arrival day. For cancellations and/or amendments after this time, the full room rate less fifteen per cent (15%) for expenses saved is to be paid. The guest is at liberty to demonstrate that the expenses saved by Serways Hotel are higher.

9. Liability of Serways Hotel

9.1. Serways Hotel is fully liable for damages caused intentionally or through gross negligence, as well as for damages arising from injury to life, body or health, with the assumption of guarantees and in the event of product liability for damages in accordance with the German Product Liability Act (Produkthaftungsgesetz), as well as in other cases where German law stipulates full liability.

9.2. Serways Hotel is liable for damages arising from culpable violation of essential contractual duties (cardinal duties). Cardinal duties are basic duties forming the core of this accommodation contract, which were essential for the conclusion of the accommodation contract and upon whose fulfilment the guest relies and may rely. Should Serways Hotel fail to comply with cardinal duties due to basic negligence, the liability of Serways Hotel will be limited to the sum that was foreseeable at the moment that the service in question was rendered and is typical within the context of the accommodation contract.

9.3. Unless otherwise stipulated in subsections 9.1 and 9.2, liability is excluded.

9.4. Should disruptions or shortcomings in the performance of Serways Hotel occur, Serways Hotel will endeavour to remedy these as soon as they become apparent or are immediately reported by the guest. The guest shall do whatever can be reasonably expected in order to help overcome the disruption and to keep possible damage to a minimum. Moreover, the guest undertakes to advise Serways Hotel in good time regarding the possibility of unusually severe damage.

9.5. Insofar as the guest is provided a space in the hotel garage or car park, including for a fee, no contract of safe custody shall arise. In the event of loss or damage to motor vehicles parked or moved on hotel property or their contents, Serways Hotel is only liable within the provisions of subsections 9.1 to 9.3.

10. Theft and damage

In the event of theft of or damage to possessions, including in case of fire, water damage or other damage in the hotel room, the guest is obliged to inform hotel staff immediately and to do all that could be reasonably required to aid the investigation of the theft or prevent damage.

11. Pets

Bringing dogs or cats (hereafter ‘pets’) requires prior notice on the part of the guest and the approval of Serways Hotel; for other animals, permission should be obtained from Serways Hotel following confirmation of the specific species. Serways Hotel may refuse permission in all cases and at any time without stating its reasoning. A maximum of one (1) pet per single room and two (2) pets per double room is permissible. An additional charge is due for each pet, the amount of which will be communicated by Serways Hotel to the guest when notice is given. Exceptions include guide dogs, hearing dogs and other similar service dogs. These may accompany guests free of charge and at any time.

12. Food and drink purchased or prepared off-site

The consumption of food and drinks purchased or prepared off-site is forbidden in public areas. Breakfast may only be consumed in the spaces designated for this purpose. There is no takeaway option for breakfast components. It is prohibited to prepare food in the hotel rooms. 

13. Termination of the accommodation contract

13.1. Serways Hotel is permitted, in compliance with legal provisions regarding grace periods, to withdraw from the accommodation contract if the guest fails to pay, or pays only part of, a due prepayment or security deposit by the stipulated deadline.

13.2. Serways Hotel is permitted, in compliance with legal provisions requiring a written warning, to cancel the accommodation contract for good cause with immediate effect if the guest is under the influence of illegal drugs during his/her stay at the hotel, uses the hotel room to exercise a commercial activity with customer traffic, uses the hotel room for prostitution, or repeatedly insults or physically attacks hotel staff or other hotel guests despite a warning. Furthermore, the guest may in such cases be expelled from the establishment.

14. Closing provisions

14.1. Should individual provisions of these T&Cs be or become ineffective or invalid, the validity of the remaining provisions shall remain unaffected.

14.2. The laws of the Federal Republic of Germany shall apply with the exception of the UN Law on International Sales and conflict-of-laws provisions.

14.3. The place of performance and payment, and the exclusive place of jurisdiction – including for cheque and exchange disputes – in commercial dealings is Serways Hotel’s local competent regular court. This rule concerning the place of jurisdiction also applies should the guest have no general place of jurisdiction in Germany. Serways hotel is however entitled to present a claim or any other legal action at the general place of jurisdiction of the guest.