Is it common to pay for riad stay in advance?

The reason I ask is that while booking a riad I got a price, then asked what their cancellation policy was. The reply was a little frosty, and of course there was a higher daily rate for the cancellation option. No problem.

However, the actual policy turned out to be no charge for cancellation up to 2 weeks before arrival, then we would have to pay the entire 3 night stay in advance. And we would be sent an "international money transfer" link to pay. That just seems odd to me based on what I've read here, and my experience dealing with the other riads.

Any thoughts?

TIA - R.

It doesn’t sound odd to me, but then you have to expect that all small businesses set their own requirements. You don’t say where the riad is and if it’s in a city if you’re not comfortable with the terms there will be plenty to choose from, just one element to consider when making a choice. If it’s in a place with less availability then you may have to live with it. Most businesses don’t have policies that discourage healthy numbers of bookings.

I so rarely change bookings I’ve made in advance that though I like the peace of mind of being able to cancel, I almost never do. So if it sounded good to me otherwise I’d have no qualms. But if you like freedom to cancel and do so fairly regularly, find another place. I very occasionally “eat” a prepaid booking if it’s worth it to me. It’s all a balance, all up to you.

Thank you, MmePerdu - I have gone with flexible where I can get it, and pay-in-advance where I can't. We have never cancelled a hotel that I can recall, I just like flexibility. But as you say, we can always "eat" a booking, and I'm not going to miss out on a great place to stay just for flexibility. Somehow that actually cancels out the overall flexibility.

- R.