General terms and conditions

Version 1 September 2017

I. Scope of application

  1. These terms and conditions apply to contracts for the rental of hotel rooms for accommodation as well as all other services and deliveries provided to the customer by Villa Contessa (Villa Contessa GbR, Marina & Oliver Runge, Seestr. 18, 15526 Bad Saarow / hereinafter also abbreviated to "Villa Contessa" or "Hotel").
  2. The subletting or re-letting of the rooms provided as well as their use for purposes other than accommodation require the prior written consent of Villa Contessa, whereby § 540 para. 1 sentence 2 BGB is waived insofar as the customer is not a consumer.
  3. The customer's terms and conditions shall only apply if this has been expressly agreed in advance and with the written consent of Villa Contessa .

II. Conclusion of contract, partners, liability and limitation period

  1. The contract shall only be concluded when either a) the written reservation confirmation of Villa Contessa has been signed by the customer and the reservation confirmation signed by the customer has been received by Villa Contessa or b) the customer guarantees his online reservation by depositing / providing the valid data of his valid credit card or c) - if this option is offered by the hotel in writing - the written reservation confirmation of Villa Contessa is reconfirmed by the customer by e-mail (without signature) and this reconfirmation has been received by Villa Contessa .
  2. The contracting parties are the hotel and the customer. If a third party has ordered on behalf of the customer, it shall be liable to the hotel together with the customer as joint and several debtors for all obligations arising from the contract, provided that the hotel has received a corresponding declaration from the third party.
  3. If the reservation confirmation deviates from the content of the registration, the content of the reservation confirmation shall become part of the contract, unless the guest has immediately objected, at the latest upon acceptance of the services.
  4. The Villa Contessa is liable for its obligations under the contract. In the area not typical for the service, liability is limited to intent and gross negligence on the part of the hotel.
  5. The limitation period for all claims of the customer is 6 months. This limitation of liability and short period of limitation shall also apply in favour of the hotel in the event of a breach of obligations in the initiation of the contract and positive breach of contract. The shortening of the limitation period shall not apply to claims for damages arising from injury to life, body or health which are based on a negligent breach of duty by the hotel or an intentional or negligent breach of duty by a legal representative or vicarious agent of the hotel. Furthermore, it does not apply to other damages based on a grossly negligent breach of duty by the hotel or an intentional or grossly negligent breach of duty by a legal representative or vicarious agent of the hotel.

III. Services, Prices, Payment, Offsetting

  1. The Villa Contessa is obliged to keep the rooms booked by the customer ready and to provide the agreed services.
  2. The customer is obliged to pay the prices of the hotel applicable or agreed for the provision of the room and the other services used by the customer. This also applies to services and expenses of Villa Contessa arranged by the customer for third parties.
  3. The agreed prices include the respective statutory value added tax. If the applicable VAT rate changes, Villa Contessa is entitled to adjust the prices to the new VAT rate.
  4. The local visitor's tax is not part of the accommodation price or accommodation arrangement and must be paid additionally by the guest. Any reductions are to be enquired about.
  5. Furthermore, the prices may be changed by the hotel if the customer subsequently requests changes in the number of rooms booked, the hotel's services or the length of stay of the guests and the hotel agrees to this.
  6. If the guest, for whatever reason, does not make use of bindingly booked services during his/her stay at Villa Contessa , he/she shall not be entitled to a refund, even on a pro rata basis, nor to a reduction.
  7. Unless otherwise stated in writing by Villa Contessa , invoices of the hotel are payable immediately and without deduction by the customer upon departure. The hotel is entitled to call in accrued claims at any time and to demand immediate payment. In the event of default of payment by the customer, the hotel shall be entitled to charge the respective applicable statutory default interest in the amount of currently 9 percentage points above the respective base interest rate of the ECB, in the case of a legal transaction with a business or in the amount of 5 percentage points above the respective base interest rate in the case of legal transactions involving a consumer. The hotel reserves the right to prove higher damages.
  8. Payments from credit card companies, cheques or bills of exchange shall only be made on account of performance.
  9. If the guest terminates his/her stay prematurely, he/she shall nevertheless remain obliged to pay the remaining remuneration, unless he/she proves that Villa Contessa has failed to provide a reasonable subletting service.
  10. The customer may only offset or reduce a claim of the hotel with an undisputed or legally binding claim.

IV. Withdrawal of the customer (i. e. cancellation) / non-utilisation of the hotel's services

  1. For cancellations / cancellations of contractually agreed services (according to clause II, number 1), the cancellation conditions agreed with the reservation confirmation of Villa Contessa apply. These cancellation conditions are already apparent to the customer / guest before the binding booking / reservation (during the booking process).
  2. A cancellation/cancellation must be sent to the hotel in text form.
  3. Cancellation by the customer of the contract concluded with the hotel requires the hotel's written consent. If this consent is not given, the agreed price under the contract shall be payable even if the customer does not make use of contractual services. This shall not apply in cases of default in performance on the part of the hotel or an impossibility of performance for which the hotel is responsible.
  4. If a date for withdrawal from the contract free of charge has been agreed in text form between the Villa Contessa and the customer, the customer may withdraw from the contract up to that date without triggering payment or damage compensation claims by the hotel. The customer's right of withdrawal shall expire if he does not exercise his right of withdrawal in text form vis-à-vis the hotel by the agreed date, unless a case of withdrawal by the customer pursuant to number 3 sentence 3 exists.
  5. If the customer's binding reservation is to be offset / paid for with a voucher, the cancellation conditions recorded on the booking confirmation apply adequately to the value of the voucher, i.e. according to the stated scale, the voucher loses value. This determines the remaining voucher value (stated in full euros). The remaining value of the voucher can be redeemed / offset for any services of Villa Contessa within the validity period stated on the voucher. Vouchers with a fixed booking date expire completely in the event of no-show.

V. Withdrawal of the hotel

  1. Insofar as a right of the customer to withdraw free of charge within a certain period has been agreed in writing, the hotel shall be entitled for its part to withdraw from the contract within this period.
  2. Furthermore, the Villa Contessa is entitled to withdraw from the contract extraordinarily for factually justified reasons, for example if - force majeure or other circumstances for which the hotel is not responsible make it impossible to fulfil the contract; - rooms are booked under misleading or false statements of material facts, e.g. the hotel has reasonable grounds to assume that the use of the hotel services may jeopardise the smooth operation of the business, the security or the reputation of the hotel in public without this being attributable to the hotel's sphere of control or organisation - there is a breach of clause I no. 2 above.
  3. The hotel shall immediately notify the customer of the exercise of the right of withdrawal.
  4. In the event of justified withdrawal by the hotel, the customer shall have no claim to compensation.

VI. Room provision, handover and return

  1. The customer does not acquire any claim to the provision of specific rooms. The hotel always guarantees the customer a room in the room category booked by the customer. Certain rooms (for example room no. 2) can only be guaranteed for bookings of 7 nights or more, provided that the desired room is in the room category booked by the customer. For the reservation of very specific rooms, a written confirmation from Villa Contessa is necessary.
  2. Booked rooms are available to the customer from 15:00 on the agreed day of arrival. For arrivals after 6:00 p.m., the guest is requested to inform the hotel in advance, otherwise the hotel reserves the right to allocate the room to someone else.
  3. On the agreed day of departure, the rooms must be vacated and made available to the hotel by 11:00 a.m. at the latest. The customer has the option of booking a "late check-out" (late departure) subject to prior agreement (requires the hotel's consent). Contractual claims of the customer are not justified by this.

VII Liability

  1. The hotel shall be liable for its obligations under the contract with the due care of a prudent businessman. Claims of the customer for damages are excluded. Excluded from this are damages from injury to life, body or health if the hotel is responsible for the breach of duty, other damages based on an intentional or grossly negligent breach of duty by the hotel and damages based on an intentional or negligent breach of duties typical for the contract by the hotel. A breach of duty by the hotel is equivalent to a breach of duty by a legal representative or vicarious agent. In the event of disruptions or defects in the hotel's services, the hotel shall endeavour to remedy such upon knowledge thereof or upon immediate complaint by the customer. The customer is obligated to contribute what is reasonable to him in order to remedy the disruption and keep any possible damage to a minimum.
  2. The hotel is liable to the customer for items brought into the hotel in accordance with the statutory provisions, i.e. up to one hundred times the room rate, up to a maximum of € 3,500, and for money, securities and valuables in accordance with § 702 BGB (German Civil Code), but only up to € 800. Money, securities and valuables can be stored in the hotel or room safe up to a maximum value of € 800. The hotel recommends making use of this possibility. Liability claims expire unless the customer notifies the hotel immediately after becoming aware of loss, destruction or damage (§ 703 BGB). For further liability of the hotel, the above number 1 sentences 2 to 4 apply accordingly.
  3. Insofar as a parking space is made available to the customer in the hotel garage or in a hotel car park, even for a fee, this shall not constitute a safekeeping contract. The hotel shall not be liable for the loss of or damage to motor vehicles parked or manoeuvred on the hotel's property and their contents, except in cases of intent or gross negligence. This also applies to vicarious agents of the hotel.
  4. Wake-up orders, information, postal and merchandise shipments are carried out by Villa Contessa with the greatest care, but are non-binding. Claims for damages, except for gross negligence or intent, are excluded.
  5. The hotel generally accepts no liability for services provided by partner companies of Villa Contessa .
  6. The guest is fully liable to Villa Contessa for all damage and defects caused by him or his fellow travellers, both in the hotel and in its outdoor facilities. The guest is also liable for the possible non-rentability of hotel rooms resulting from this damage.
  7. The guest is also liable for the loss of hotel property in the room provided.
  8. The hotel is entitled to claim the damage by way of a lump-sum compensation claim or to calculate an estimated amount for the individual damage and to make the amount due for payment immediately. The guest is at liberty to prove that the hotel has suffered no or less damage than the compensation demanded.
  9. The guest is not entitled to make payments until he has reported the damage to his insurance company, as the hotel is entitled to demand immediate payment of the amount of the damage.

VIII. Food and drinks brought along

  1. In all public areas of Villa Contessa (e.g. restaurant, café, wellness area and lobby) the consumption of food and beverages brought along is not permitted.

IX. External service providers

  1. External service providers or other third parties are not permitted to perform their commercial services at the hotel Villa Contessa or on the hotel premises without the written consent of the hotel Villa Contessa .

X. Other

  1. Out of consideration for other guests, pets are not allowed in the entire building of our Villa Contessa .
  2. All premises of Villa Contessa (including the hotel rooms) are non-smoking areas. However, smokers have the option of smoking on the balcony of their room, on the lakeside terrace of their room or in the designated smoking areas outside Villa Contessa .
  3. If the guest is transported free of charge by Villa Contessa , liability is limited in accordance with the motor vehicle insurance for personal injury and property damage.
  4. We reserve the right to correct errors as well as misprints and miscalculations.
  5. The Villa Contessa (Villa Contessa GbR) does not participate in dispute resolution proceedings before a consumer arbitration board.

XI. Final Provisions

  1. Changes or additions to the contract, the acceptance of the application or these terms and conditions for hotel accommodation must be made in writing and require the written reconfirmation of Villa Contessa. Unilateral changes or additions by the customer are invalid.
  2. The place of performance and payment is the registered office of Villa Contessa.
  3. The exclusive place of jurisdiction - also for disputes concerning cheques and bills of exchange - in commercial transactions shall be the registered office of Villa Contessa. If a contracting party fulfils the prerequisite of § 38 para. 2 ZPO (German Code of Civil Procedure) and has no general place of jurisdiction in Germany, the place of jurisdiction shall be the registered office of the hotel.
  4. German law shall apply. The application of the UN Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods and the conflict of laws is excluded.
  5. Should individual provisions of these General Terms and Conditions for Hotel Accommodation be or become invalid or void, this shall not affect the validity of the remaining provisions. In all other respects, the statutory provisions shall apply.