'Pay Up Or Lose Booking': Goa Techie Calls Out Kerala Resort Over Mandatory New Year's Dinner

A Goa-based techie has slammed a five-star resort in Kerala after it allegedly imposed a mandatory New Year's Eve gala dinner charge on his family's stay, warning that their non-refundable booking would be cancelled if they refused to pay the additional amount.

Vedant G, an X user, shared a screenshot of an email from Vibe Munnar Resort and Spa, detailing his unpleasant experience. He said he had booked the property in Munnar to ring in the New Year with his family through a non-refundable reservation. However, the resort subsequently informed him that guests staying on December 31 would have to pay an additional charge for a compulsory gala dinner.

Calling out the resort's policy, Vedant questioned the rationale behind making guests pay for an experience they had never opted for in the first place. He argued that if the dinner was compulsory, the resort should have explicitly mentioned the additional charges and conditions before accepting the booking.

According to the email shared by Vedant, the resort informed him that festive-season supplements would apply to all guests staying at the property on New Year's Eve. The charges varied depending on the package selected: Rs 4,599 per adult for the teetotaller package, Rs 2,299 for children aged between 6 and 12, Rs 6,599 per adult for the Indian Made Foreign Liquor (IMFL) package and Rs 8,599 per adult for the Extra Neutral Foreign Liquor (EMFL) package.

Okay, this is such a bullshit policy.

A few days ago, I booked a property in Munnar to celebrate New Year's with my family. It's a non-refundable booking.

Now they've introduced a MANDATORY gala dinner and say they'll cancel my booking if I don't opt for it?

Firstly, such things shouldn't be mandatory. And if they are, this should be clearly disclosed before someone books the property. How do you expect people to accommodate such last-minute changes?

— Vedant G. (@VedVery5) November 3, 2026

While the teetotaller package included food and soft beverages, the IMFL option covered food and Indian liquor. The EMFL package, meanwhile, included food and foreign liquor.

The resort reportedly emphasised that the additional charges were “mandatory for all guests staying on the respective dates” and would be levied “over and above the room reservation amount.”

It also sought Vedant's confirmation on whether he wished to proceed with the arrangement. However, the email left little room for negotiation, explicitly stating: “In case you do not wish to avail of the mandatory gala dinner, we regret to inform you that we will be unable to retain the reservation and the booking will have to be cancelled.”

Vedant described the policy as unfair, particularly given that he had already paid for a non-refundable reservation. He questioned how customers could be expected to accommodate unexpected expenses introduced after their bookings were confirmed, especially when their travel plans had already been finalised.

The incident sparked a debate on social media about hotel booking policies, hidden charges and customer rights.