Remember the “America-only” provision in Expedia’s Best Price Guarantee? Earlier this week, I wrote about reader Craig Simpson’s efforts to persuade the online agency to adjust his rate at a hotel in Antigua after he found a lower rate on the property’s Web site.
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Oh, the things hotels will do for a good review. It’s not enough to ask guests for a write-up on a popular site such as TripAdvisor or Yelp after they’ve checked out. Lately, some innkeepers have been pressuring their customers to say positive things online — in extreme cases, even before they’ve checked in.
Resort fees. Mandatory tips. Concierge surcharges. If you’ve stayed at a hotel in the last few years, you’ve become accustomed — if not anesthetized — to these annoying extras. You expect them. You’re indifferent to them when they appear on your bill. You shouldn’t be.
When Ed Boston books a two-star hotel in Flint, Mich., he expects a reliable property with minimal amenities — not the dump he ends up in. He asks his online travel agency if he can change hotels, and it says “no.” What now?
Elaine Farkas cancels her hotel room in Sedona, Ariz., but her credit card is charged for the night. Now her online travel agency claims she was a “no show” and refuses to refund any of the money. Is Farkas out of luck?
Here’s a deeply troubling trend: Hotels, eager to lift their historically low earnings, are introducing more “nonrefundable” rates. Guests often have no choice but to pay them.
Vanessa Thompson checks into what she thinks is an all-inclusive hotel before her cruise. Then she discovers she doesn’t have a reservation. When she’s allowed in, she discovers there’s nothing all-inclusive about her room. Is she entitled to a refund?
I’m not sure how a fully inflated beach ball got in my hotel room.
The ornamental blue vase next to the flat-screen TV? Not entirely certain about that, either.
But shortly after we checked in for the weekend, the two met. My four-year-old son couldn’t wait to get to the beach so he could play with his [...]
Go on, ask your airline for a favor — maybe an upgrade to business class or a waiver on a ticket change fee. While you’re at it, see whether your hotel will offer you a suite for the price of a standard room.
The foreclosure crisis isn’t just affecting homeowners. It’s also hitting hotel guests.
Next time you book a hotel room online, consider what happens to the taxes you’ve paid.
Should wireless Internet access be free at hotels? A vast majority of guests think so, and now a UK-based blogger is ratcheting up the pressure on hotels to free their Wi-Fi signals once and for all.
When Erin Hott checks into her hotel, she’s shown to a room with an unmade bed. When she asks for clean sheets, an employee tells her they can’t change her linen until the next day. And if she doesn’t like it, she can find another hotel, but she’ll still have to pay for her room. Whatever happened to customer service?
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