What is Dummy Hotel Booking and Why Do You Need Dummy Hotel Bookings for Visa Applications?

A dummy hotel reservation is simply a hotel booking specifically used for the purpose of getting a visa. The booking is created depending on your travel dates and once you know the outcome of your visa application, the hotel reservation dates can be changed or the booking can be cancelled if your visa gets rejected.

Why Do You Need Dummy Hotel Bookings for Visa Applications?

There are several answers to this question.

The main reason for the need for dummy hotel bookings for visa applications: On most embassy website, you will find a list of requirements that you need for your visa application. On each of these requirement lists, you will find a few requirements that are the same for almost all countries:

•        A hotel booking or reservation for your entire intended stay

•        A flight reservation with return flight

It is not exactly clear why the embassies require this information, because on the same page you will usually find a sentence stating, “It is advised against purchasing any tickets before the visa application has been approved.” It can be argued that this might be an outdated requirement, dating from the time when visa agents would book and hold the ticket for you until you confirmed that you wanted it. The other argument is that the embassy and visa officer do need to know your intended travel dates so they can approve your visa accordingly. No matter what the reason behind this requirement though, it is still mandatory and still a requirement you need to oblige to.

The embassies want proof of a reservation of both your flights and hotels, but they do not want you to actually pay for anything yet (in case your application is rejected).

As per the Regulation (EC) No 810/2009 of The European Parliament and of The Council of 13 July 2009, establishing a Community Code on Visas known as “Visa Code”, Proof of Accommodation is a rule of the visa application procedure that each Schengen country ought to apply to their foreign visa seekers.

A dummy hotel reservation is simply a hotel booking specifically used for the purpose of getting a visa. The added advantage of getting a dummy hotel reservation is you do not pay for the hotel up front, so you will not lose any money if your visa gets rejected. There is just a basic service charge to the travel agent who does everything for you.

It seems straightforward enough, but the problems is; where can you get dummy hotel bookings for visa applications? Before creating Schengen visa flight reservation, we were wondering the exact same. Many hotel booking websites will allow you to book a room without paying for it first, but this does not apply to all, and in addition, there is the added stress of having to remember to cancel a bunch of different reservations. This is particularly stressful for applications like the Schengen Visa, where you will have to show a big itinerary of booked hotels for long trips in different cities.

To make a hotel booking without paying the price you could use the services of Schengen Visa Itinerary. We also offer Flight Reservation and affordable Travel Insurance to complete your visa requirements.