If your flight is delayed overnight and departure moves to the next day, the airline pays for the hotel: it must offer you a free room, transport between the airport and the hotel and meals in line with the wait, even when the delay is caused by bad weather or an air traffic control strike. If it does not, you can book a reasonable hotel yourself and claim the cost back with receipts. Compensation of €250, €400 or €600 is a separate right.
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Flight delayed overnight: who pays for the hotel?
Article 9 of Regulation (EC) 261/2004 says that when you have to spend one or more nights waiting for your flight, the airline operating it must offer you hotel accommodation and transport between the airport and the hotel. For delays, this applies when the new expected departure is at least the day after the time originally announced; for cancellations, when the replacement flight leaves the next day.
The ticket price does not matter and neither does the cause: care is owed even in extraordinary circumstances, such as a storm or an airport closure, and for as long as the wait lasts. If snow closes the airport for two nights, the airline has to look after you for two nights.
What you are entitled to while you wait
| Situation | What the airline must offer |
|---|---|
| Delay of 2 hours (flights up to 1,500 km), 3 hours (1,500 to 3,500 km) or 4 hours (longer) | Meals and refreshments in line with the wait, two phone calls or emails |
| Departure moved to the next day | Hotel, airport–hotel–airport transport, meals |
| Delay of 5 hours or more | Also a refund of the ticket if you decide not to fly |
| Arrival 3 hours or more late | Also €250, €400 or €600 in compensation, unless there were extraordinary circumstances |
The hour-by-hour thresholds are explained in our guide on a flight delayed by 2, 3 or 4 hours.
If the airline does not give you a hotel
The airline has to offer care, not wait for you to ask. In practice, late at night with many flights disrupted, passengers are sometimes left without instructions. In that case:
- Ask at the airline desk or the ground staff for a hotel and transport, and note the name and time if you are told to sort it out yourself.
- Book a reasonable hotel near the airport: a standard one, not a luxury hotel.
- Use ordinary transport: shuttle, bus, train or a taxi if there is no alternative at that hour.
- Keep every receipt: the hotel invoice, food and drink receipts, tickets and taxi receipts.
- Claim the money back from the airline using its expenses form, with the receipts attached.
The European Commission's guidelines say that if care was not offered, expenses must be reimbursed when they were necessary, reasonable and appropriate. If the airline did offer a hotel and you chose to book another one, you may only get back the value of what was offered. How to prepare the claim is covered in our guide on a flight cancelled at the last minute.
If you live in the city you are flying from
If the delay leaves you stuck in your home city, for example at Dublin Airport with a flight to Rome, you do not have to take the hotel: you can go home and come back to the airport the next day. Ask the airline whether it will cover your transport there and back, and keep the receipts. A hotel you do not use is, of course, not paid for.
Hotel and compensation: two separate rights
The hotel and meals deal with the inconvenience of waiting; compensation makes up for the delay itself. They are independent:
- if the delay is the airline's own problem, such as missing crew or a technical fault, you are owed the hotel plus €250 up to 1,500 km (such as Cork–Amsterdam), €400 from 1,500 to 3,500 km (such as Dublin–Tenerife) and for flights within the EU over 3,500 km, and €600 over 3,500 km outside the EU;
- if the cause really is extraordinary, such as bad weather, there is no compensation but the hotel is still owed.
Costs the regulation does not cover, such as a prepaid night at your destination or a missed excursion, can only be claimed as further damage under the Montreal Convention.
How to claim compensation for the delay
With DelayFlight24 you can check for free in 2 minutes whether your delayed flight qualifies for compensation: enter your details on the flight delay compensation page and we handle the claim, reminders and, if needed, court action. Nothing to pay upfront, and you only pay 25% + VAT if you get compensated. If the delay made you miss a connection, read our guide on missed connections.
Frequently asked questions about hotels for delayed flights
My flight has been moved to tomorrow morning: does the airline have to pay for a hotel?
Yes. If departure moves to the next day, the airline must offer you a hotel and transport to it, as well as meals.
The delay is due to bad weather: am I still entitled to a hotel?
Yes. Extraordinary circumstances rule out compensation, not care: hotel, meals and transfers are still owed.
I paid for the hotel myself: how do I get the money back?
Send the airline an expenses claim with the invoice and receipts. Necessary and reasonable costs are reimbursed.
How much can I spend on a hotel I book myself?
The regulation sets no cap, but the cost must be reasonable: choose a standard hotel near the airport.
Am I owed compensation on top of the hotel?
Yes, if you arrive 3 hours or more late and the cause was not an extraordinary circumstance: €250, €400 or €600 per passenger.
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Find out more
- Air passenger rights
- Delayed flight: when you can claim compensation
- Cancelled flight: refund and compensation
- Overbooking: what you are owed
- What our service costs
Article updated on 07/11/2026 by the DelayFlight24 editorial team.