Hotels in 2026 will change the rules of booking rooms

Since 2026, Russian hotels have been implementing updated rules for the provision of services, including the possibility of checking in on a driver's license and free cancellation of reservations the day before arrival.

Key developments

• Accommodation without a passport: From January 2026 (actually from autumn 2025, by the decision of the government), tourists will be able to settle in hotels with a driver's license.
• Cancellation: Without financial losses, you can cancel the reservation one day before the date of arrival.

The new rules for the provision of hotel services and other accommodation facilities will come into force from March 1, 2026. They regulate settlement, and some norms are already in practice.

From 2026, hotels in Russia are required to wait for a guest within 24 hours - from the time of scheduled check-in to the checking hour the next day. During this period, the hotel cannot cancel the reservation. Previously, there was a mechanism of “non-guaranteed booking”, in which the reservation was canceled if the guest did not arrive on time.

Cancellation rules for reservations

• Cancellation before arrival: The tourist has the right to refuse accommodation with a full refund.
• Late cancellation or no-show: If the notification came late, the guest was late or did not appear at all, he will have to pay for the room one day in advance.
• Hotel refusal: The hotel can unilaterally cancel the reservation only if the tourist is fully compensated for all losses.

Hotel responsibilities

• As before, the provision of services includes a free ambulance call, availability of a first aid kit, delivery of correspondence and wake-up on request.
• Since March 2026: Boiling water is no longer a duty, but hotels must be prepared to provide a blood pressure monitor.

All hotels and other accommodation facilities must be in a special register. Without this, booking through online aggregators will become impossible.

Source:https://ria.ru/Photo: https://www.personalguide.ru/

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