FAQ for Travelers & Guests 

Q1. What is Better Hotel Bureau (BHB)?
Better Hotel Bureau is a private, independent channel where you can share concerns or compliments directly with the hotel—without immediately blasting them onto public review sites. It’s built on a simple idea: most problems can be fixed faster, cheaper, and more humanely in private than in the court of social media. 

Q2. Why should I use BHB instead of going straight to social media or review sites?
Posting online might feel satisfying for a moment, but it can cause outsized financial damage and rarely leads to a thoughtful, personalized solution. BHB gives the hotel a fair chance to hear you, investigate, and make it right. You still keep your right to post publicly later—we just ask you to try the constructive route first. 

Q3. Am I giving up my right to leave a public review?
No. You are always free to share your experience publicly. BHB simply asks that you allow the hotel up to two weeks to respond and attempt a good-faith resolution before you go public. If they ignore you or fail to resolve the issue, you can still use traditional channels as you see fit. 

Q4. What kinds of issues should I submit through BHB?
Use BHB for service problems, billing questions, cleanliness concerns, noise issues, broken amenities, or anything else that affected your stay and deserves a fair look. You can also share praise—compliments about a great staff member or a well-run property help hotels reward the right behavior. 

Q5. What should I NOT use BHB for?
BHB is not for emergencies, safety threats, or criminal matters. In those cases, you should contact the front desk, hotel security, or local authorities immediately. It’s also not a platform for legal claims—those must go through proper legal or regulatory channels. 

Q6. Will the hotel know who I am if I submit a complaint?
In most cases, yes. Providing your name, contact information, and stay details helps the hotel research what happened and offer a meaningful solution. You may choose to limit what you share, but that may limit what the hotel can do for you. 

Q7. Is my communication through BHB public?
No. Your submission goes to BHB and then to the hotel’s management team. BHB will not publicize your comments, and participating hotels are required to keep them private as well. That said, we live in an era where even major banks and government agencies experience data breaches, so no system can promise absolute security. Please avoid sharing highly sensitive personal information and be thoughtful about what you write, just in case.

Q8. How long will it take to get a response?
Hotels are encouraged to acknowledge your case within a couple of days and to work toward a resolution as quickly as possible. BHB asks you to allow up to two weeks for the hotel to respond and resolve the matter before turning to public reviews or other channels. 

Q9. Is BHB on the hotel’s side or the guest’s side?
BHB is on the side of fairness. It assumes most travelers and most hoteliers are reasonable people who would rather fix problems than fight online. The goal is to protect good guests from being ignored and good hotels from being unfairly punished, while nudging both sides toward a civilized, good-Samaritan solution. 

Q10. Does it cost me anything to submit a case through BHB?
No. BHB is free for travelers. You don’t pay to file a concern, to receive a response, or to accept a resolution. Your only “cost” is a bit of patience while the hotel investigates and responds in good faith.

Q12. Can we recommend any hotel? 
Yes. If you know a hotel that would benefit from BHB, simply use the “Recommend a Hotel” link at the bottom of this page. Share the hotel’s details there, and we will contact them on your behalf to invite them to join the program.