Vacation - How much is a "few minutes' walk" to the beach? A court has now ruled
A hotel that is 1.3 kilometers from the beach is not "just a few walking minutes from beautiful beaches" as the Munich District Court ruled in a judgment published on Monday. A travel agent who promoted the hotel despite its distance must pay for the costs of a replacement hotel and damages – a total of 1795 Euro.
A woman filed a lawsuit who had traveled to Costa Rica with her nine-year-old daughter in 2022 and discovered at the location that the booked boutique hotel, described as "only a few walking minutes from the best restaurants and beautiful beaches [...] distant," was actually 25 minutes from the beach. At the reception, she was told she would have to take a taxi there.
After consulting a local contact person of the travel agent on site, the mother then booked a replacement hotel. She demanded the costs and damages for a vacation day spent changing hotels from the travel agent – and now receives a judgment from the court in her favor.
Plaintiff planned a child-friendly vacation – supposedly
The 1.3 kilometers to the beach could only be walked back in five minutes at a speed of approximately 15.6 kilometers per hour. And that is "even for experienced runners an ambitious pace," the court decided. "Given that the plaintiff was aware during trip planning that she was traveling with a nine-year-old child – she did adjust her leisure activities accordingly – it cannot be assumed that she could keep such a pace."
Additionally, the court noted that the approximately 9000 Euro for twelve days (without flights) represented a "high-priced segment of travel." "The plaintiff, who herself advertises 'unforgettable luxury trips,' must measure herself against her own claims," the court said. "In the opinion of the court, at least at a high-priced luxury trip, 'a few walking minutes' should not exceed normally five minutes at a normal walking pace."
The tour operator should have accurately represented the hotel's proximity to the beach, as the Munich Local Court stated in its judgment concerning a woman's vacation to Costa Rica. The travel agent's promotion of the hotel, which was 1.3 kilometers from the beach and required a taxi ride, led to the court ordering compensation for a replaced hotel and damages.
Faced with the reality that the advertised "few walking minutes" to the beach was actually a 25-minute taxi ride, the plaintiff planned a different vacation itinerary to accommodate her nine-year-old daughter and incurred additional costs, which the court deemed unacceptable in a high-priced luxury trip.
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