Terms of Service

These Terms of Service apply when you visit HelloBalkan, create an account, list a stay or send a booking request. By using the site you agree to them. In these Terms, “we” and “us” mean HelloBalkan, the operator named in the Legal Notice. Hosts also agree to the Host Terms.

1. What HelloBalkan is

HelloBalkan is an online platform where hosts list holiday rentals in Croatia, Albania, Montenegro, Slovenia, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Serbia, North Macedonia and Kosovo, and where guests browse stays and send booking requests. We are an intermediary. We do not own, manage, inspect or operate the stays, and we are not a party to the rental agreement between a guest and a host.

2. Using the platform

You must be at least 18 years old and able to enter into a binding agreement. Give accurate information, keep your password safe, and tell us if you think your account has been misused. You are responsible for what happens under your account.

3. How booking works

You send a request. Choose your dates and number of guests on a stay and press Request to book. You do not pay anything at this stage.
The nights are held. While the host decides, the nights may be held for you for up to 48 hours.
The host accepts or declines. A booking exists only when the host accepts your request. You then receive a confirmation email with the host’s contact details. If the host does not answer within 48 hours, the hold ends and the request expires.
The rental agreement. When the host accepts, a rental agreement is made directly between you and the host, on the terms shown in the listing and in the confirmation.

4. Prices and payment

Prices are set by hosts, shown in euro and usually given per night. Cleaning fees, tourist tax and deposits, if any, are shown on the stay or confirmed before you book. HelloBalkan does not charge guests booking fees and does not handle payments. You pay the host directly, in the way you agree with them, usually when you arrive. We will never ask for your card details or for payment to a private account. If someone claiming to be us asks you for money, do not pay and report it.

5. Cancellations and changes

Cancellations and changes are explained in our Cancellation Policy. HelloBalkan does not decide or process refunds. These are handled between the guest and the host.

6. What guests must do

Give accurate names, contact details and dates, and the correct number of guests.
Respect the property, the neighbours and the house rules in the listing.
Not exceed the maximum number of guests without the host’s agreement.
Provide the identity details that the host needs to register you with the local authorities, where the law requires it.
Leave the property in the condition you found it, and pay for damage you cause.

7. What hosts must do

Hosts must follow the Host Terms. In short, hosts must have the right to rent out the property, describe it honestly, keep their calendar and prices up to date, answer requests, honour confirmed bookings, and follow local rental, safety, registration and tax rules.

8. Listings and content

Hosts are responsible for the content they upload. By uploading text, photos or other material, you confirm that you have the rights to do so, and you give us a non-exclusive, worldwide licence to display it on HelloBalkan and in our promotion of the platform for as long as the listing is online. We may review listings, adjust their formatting, and refuse or remove content that is inaccurate, unlawful or against these Terms.

9. Acceptable use

Do not use HelloBalkan to:

post false, misleading or illegal content, or list a property you have no right to rent out;
commit or attempt fraud, including asking for payment outside the agreed way or impersonating others;
harass, threaten or discriminate against other users;
copy, scrape or resell listings, photos or user data, or send spam;
interfere with the security or normal operation of the site.

10. Complaints and disputes

If something goes wrong, speak to the host first. If you need help, write to us and we will answer within a reasonable time and try to help, but we cannot decide disputes between guests and hosts. Consumers can also contact the consumer protection authority in their country. We are not obliged to take part in alternative dispute resolution unless the law requires it.

11. Liability

We work to keep listings accurate, but hosts provide the information about their stays and we cannot guarantee that every detail is correct or that a stay will be available. To the extent the law allows, we are not responsible for the acts or omissions of hosts or guests, for the condition of a property, or for losses that arise from a rental agreement. Nothing in these Terms limits liability that cannot be limited by law, including liability for death or personal injury, for fraud, or for intentional or grossly negligent acts, and nothing affects your mandatory consumer rights.

12. Intellectual property

The site, its design and its own text belong to HelloBalkan. Destination photos are used under the licences listed on the Photo credits page. Photos of stays belong to the hosts who upload them.

13. Suspension and closing an account

You can close your account at any time by writing to us. We may suspend or close an account, or remove a listing, if these Terms are broken, if we suspect fraud or a safety risk, or if the law requires it. When we do this we will explain why, unless the law prevents us.

14. Changes

We may update these Terms when the site or the law changes. The date below shows the latest version. We will tell hosts at least 30 days before a material change that affects them. If you keep using HelloBalkan after a change takes effect, you accept the new Terms.

15. Governing law

These Terms are governed by the law of the country where the operator named in the Legal Notice is established. If you are a consumer in the EU, you keep the protection of the mandatory consumer rules of the country where you live and may bring a claim in the courts there.