Originally Posted by
KARFA
Yes, I had a feeling there was some condition like that hence my question.
I think that if you book a hotel for the full duration it is sold as a package holiday and you get the usual ability to pay a deposit.
If you book a hotel for a different duration than the trip length, the status then changes and you are in effect buying flights and separately booking a hotel. It is no longer a package holiday and you don't get the ability to pay a deposit
I think the above is correct but I am not 100%.
A car/hotel can still trigger BA Holidsys fares if not for the full stay, but it has to be reasonably close ('reasonably' appears to be defined on a case-wise commercial basis). I would be very surprised if a one-night car hire qualified over a (presumably) one-week stay, however!