Canceling a booking frees its seats and stops future installments. It does not give any money back by itself. Refunding is a separate decision, so pick the action that matches what you want to happen to the money.
You want to | Use | Booking becomes |
Cancel and keep the money | Cancel without refund | Canceled |
Cancel and give everything back | Full refund | Refunded |
Cancel and give part of it back | Partial refund, then Cancel without refund | Canceled, partially refunded |
Give some money back and keep the booking | Partial refund | Stays Confirmed |
All three actions are under Actions on a Confirmed booking. Cancel without refund is also there on a Pending booking that is waiting for its payment link.
Cancel without refund and Full refund can email the traveler that the booking is canceled. Partial refund never emails them: tell them yourself, for example with Actions → Message customer.
Cancel and keep the money
Open the booking and select Actions → Cancel without refund.
Choose a Reason and write Notes. Both are saved in the booking's history.
Leave Email the customer about this cancellation ticked to tell the traveler, or untick it to tell them yourself.
Select Confirm.
The booking is canceled and everything collected stays with you. Nothing happens on Stripe. A Pending booking is canceled the same way: it held no seats, and its payment link stops working.
Cancel and refund everything
Open the booking and select Actions → Full refund.
Check the amount shown in the dialog, choose a Reason and write Notes.
Leave Email the customer about this cancellation ticked to tell the traveler, or untick it to tell them yourself.
Select Confirm.
A refund cannot be undone. The money goes back to the traveler's card and the booking is canceled.
Full refund returns everything paid by card and not yet refunded, up to the booking total. On a booking that is only partly paid, that is what has been collected so far, and the booking still ends as Refunded. Money you recorded as paid offline is never refunded: if nothing was paid by card, the dialog tells you to use Cancel without refund instead and return the money yourself. For a partial amount, and for how refunds reach the card, see Refund a payment.
What a cancellation does
Releases the seats. A sold-out departure opens up again.
Cancels the payment plan and every installment still scheduled, so the traveler is not charged again.
Switches off any payment link still open for the booking.
Records the reason in the booking's history.
Emails the traveler, if you left the box ticked. The email says the booking is canceled, gives the trip date, and states the refund amount or that no refund applies.
A partial refund alone never releases seats.
If the traveler was not emailed, Actions → Send cancellation email on the canceled booking sends the same email later. It can be sent once per booking.
The traveler sent a cancellation request. Should I use these actions?
The traveler sent a cancellation request. Should I use these actions?
Answer the request instead: the traveler is then emailed the outcome and your message. See Handle a cancellation request. If you cancel or refund directly while a request is pending, Samba warns you, then closes the request as approved. The traveler does not get the outcome email — only the cancellation email, if you left the box ticked.
How do I cancel a GetYourGuide booking?
How do I cancel a GetYourGuide booking?
GetYourGuide bookings were paid on GetYourGuide, so only Cancel without refund is available. It does not tell GetYourGuide. Cancel the booking in your GetYourGuide supplier portal too, so the traveler gets their money back. See GetYourGuide bookings.
How much should I refund?
How much should I refund?
That is your decision. Samba suggests the amount your cancellation policy gives for the date. See Set up cancellation policies.