The verdict in three sentences
For a boutique hotel in London, the website contract decides who controls your direct booking channel when the relationship ends, so read it as carefully as an OTA agreement. Require the domain, hosting account, code, design and photography to be owned by or licensed to the hotel, payments tied to accepted milestones, and an acceptance test that includes the mobile booking flow and accessibility. Kolonell's terms are simple to compare: a fixed grid price (£2,300, £3,900 or £6,900), delivery in 3 to 4 weeks, 3 months of support and a project manager in your time zone, with every other term written into the quote.
Which clauses belong in a boutique hotel website contract?
Under UK copyright law, the photographer or developer you commission is generally the first owner of what they create unless the contract assigns it to you. That single point explains why ownership clauses deserve more attention than the design brief.
| Clause | What it should say | Why it matters for a London boutique hotel |
|---|---|---|
| Scope and page list | rooms and suites, dining and bar, offers, events, neighbourhood guide, accessibility information, contact | prevents disputes over a missing restaurant or private dining page |
| Domain and DNS | registered to the hotel company, provider only as technical contact | the domain carries years of direct booking traffic |
| Hosting account | in the hotel's name, or transfer within a set number of days | avoids being held to a provider's retainer |
| Code and design | copyright assigned on final payment, third-party licences listed | lets another provider maintain the site later |
| Photography and video | assignment or wide licence: web, OTAs, social, print, model releases | rooms shot for the site often end up on Booking.com and Expedia |
| Payment milestones | linked to deliverables, final payment after acceptance | keeps leverage until the booking flow works |
| Acceptance and revisions | written criteria, test window of 5 to 10 working days, number of revision rounds | defines what done means |
| Support, data processing and exit | bug-fix period, UK GDPR processor terms, handover of credentials and files | covers the day you change provider |
Typical London agency contract vs what to ask for vs Kolonell
Local figures are a 2026 ballpark from typical agency quotes and public rate pages in London, not a survey.
| Topic | Typical London agency contract | What to ask for | Kolonell |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | £12,000 to £45,000 depending on scope | fixed price for a written page list | Starter £2,300, Growth £3,900, Premium £6,900 |
| Timeline | 10 to 16 weeks | dated milestones and a launch window outside your peak | 3 to 4 weeks once content is ready |
| Domain and hosting | sometimes registered by the agency | in the hotel's name from day one | written into the quote |
| Support | 30 days warranty, then a retainer of £150 to £600 a month (market assumption) | defined bug-fix period and response times | 3 months included, then on quote |
| Booking engine integration | priced separately, often £1,000 to £5,000 | named vendor, tested booking path | on quote |
| Languages | £1,500 to £4,000 per extra language | list of languages and who translates | Premium is the multilingual tier, languages set in the quote |
| Contact person | account manager in London | named project manager and reply times | project manager reachable in your time zone |
On the booking engine, check who holds the vendor contract. With SiteMinder, Cloudbeds, Mews or similar tools, the hotel should hold its own account; the website provider only embeds or links the engine, and that integration is on quote. Rate parity with OTAs is a commercial matter between you and the platforms, so keep it out of the website contract.
How should acceptance testing work for a hotel website?
Write the acceptance criteria into the contract as a checklist, then sign off only when each line passes:
- Mobile booking flow: from the home page to the booking engine's payment step on iOS and Android, with dates, room type and rate carried through.
- Payment scope: card data is entered only in the booking engine's hosted pages, never on the website itself. Confirm the PCI DSS position with the booking engine vendor.
- Cookie consent: under PECR, non-essential cookies such as advertising pixels need consent before they load. Test the banner with a fresh browser.
- UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018: privacy notice in place, enquiry and event forms collect only what is needed, and a processor agreement covers any provider handling guest data.
- Accessibility: WCAG 2.2 AA as a measurable criterion, plus a clear page on step-free access, accessible rooms and lifts. UK service providers have duties under the Equality Act 2010, and WCAG is the usual benchmark.
- Marketing content sign-off: the general manager or revenue manager approves offers, prices from, awards and claims before launch, as a named acceptance step.
- Performance: gallery pages load fast on 4G despite high-resolution photography.
This is not legal advice; have your solicitor review the final contract.
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Illustrative example. Hannah is general manager of a 28-room townhouse hotel in Marylebone. A local agency proposes £24,000 in three payments of 40 %, 40 % and 20 %, with the domain registered in the agency's name and a hosting retainer of £180 a month. Over three years, that retainer alone is £180 × 36 = £6,480, and leaving would mean transferring the domain first. She asks Kolonell for the Growth tier at £3,900, with the domain and hosting in the hotel's name written into the quote, and the booking engine integration quoted separately. She also renegotiates her photographer's licence: the shoot costs £3,200 and extending use to OTAs and social adds £600, far cheaper than a second shoot. Her target: shifting 6 bookings a month from OTAs to direct at an average stay value of £560 saves about 6 × £560 × 15 % = £504 a month in commission, assuming a 15 % OTA rate.
FAQ
Who owns the website code if the contract says nothing?
Generally the developer, as first owner of the copyright. Insist on an assignment on final payment; it costs £0 to write and saves a rebuild of £10,000 or more later.
What payment schedule is reasonable?
Local agencies often use 40/40/20 or 50/50. Whatever the split, keep at least 20 % tied to acceptance of the booking flow; Kolonell sets its schedule in the quote.
How long should the acceptance window be?
Five to ten working days is common for a site of 15 to 30 pages. Avoid launching during your peak, for example the summer season or December.
Does the website need to be PCI compliant?
If all card entry happens in the booking engine's hosted pages, the website itself handles no card numbers. Confirm the position with the vendor in writing before launch.
What happens after the 3 months of Kolonell support?
Ongoing maintenance is on quote. Compare it with local retainers of roughly £150 to £600 a month, as a market assumption.
You can compare tiers on the international websites page or send your contract draft with a free quote request.
Let's scope your project. Share your page list, booking engine and preferred launch window, and we will send a fixed scope with ownership terms written in. See the international offer or request a free quote: detailed reply within 48 hours.
Mohamed Bah
Fondateur, Kolonell
Passionate about digital and entrepreneurship in Africa, Mohamed has been helping Sénégalese businesses with their digital transformation since 2020. Founder of Kolonell, he believes every SME deserves a professional and accessible online présence.
