WWYD? Hotel Over booked

[Katie Dawn]

No. If you book a room only reservation you only pay one night deposit. The balance is due at check in. You can cancel up until 5 days before for a full refund. If you book a package the balance is due 30 days beforehand.

Ok good to know. Thanks!

 

[nkereina]

And then when everybody DOES show up, the customer is SOL. I'd rather pay more.

At a hotel, the customer should not be SOL. The customer would be walked to a comparable hotel, transportation included, and still have sufficient lodging for the night. Yes, its super inconvenient for the guest especially if they have to move hotels the next night, but any reputable hotel should provide the customer some kind of compensation or voucher - be it food & beverage, room credit, etc. Similar to people who voluntarily take the next flight for a flight voucher when a flight is oversold, sometimes people are willing to move hotels for whatever the hotel is offering as well.

 

[nkereina]

Hotels shouldn't overbook. It's deceptive business practices. In my mind, if you tell me if I pay for a room you'll reserve it for me and then over reserve rooms, that's really a bait and switch. I am going on a mid week get away in 7 days (not that I'm counting down or anything), and I made my reservations MONTHS ago. If I were to get there and be bumped I would be extremely upset. I spent days online picking out the perfect hotel for our little getaway. I don't want to be bumped to a comparable one. I want what I specifically chose and reserved.

FWIW, you wouldn't be bumped for your entire stay. You're bumped for one night and then moved back the next night. And while its surely an inconvenience, any reputable hotel will offer you something for that. And lastly, this generally happens to people who are very late arrivals - think after 11pm or midnight. And its generally only one or a couple of guests that this happens to, when it happens.

As I mentioned up-thread, if hotels and airlines didn't oversell, operating costs would much higher for them. And then our rates and fares would be much higher as well. And then everyone would be complaining about that. So, your options are pay more every time or run the slight risk that you're one of the ones staying in a comparable hotel for a night when you travel.

 

[FlightlessDuck]

Yes, its super inconvenient for the guest

And while its surely an inconvenience

Customers should not be inconvenienced by business practices.

 

[MamaBelle4]

So, your options are pay more every time or run the slight risk that you're one of the ones staying in a comparable hotel for a night when you travel.

I'd want to pay more. Or, call me crazy, but be guaranteed the room I've paid for.

 

[nkereina]

Customers should not be inconvenienced by business practices.

I don't disagree with you, I'm not saying they should be. But otherwise, it would be too cost prohibitive and have a downstream impact. It is what it is.

I'd want to pay more. Or, call me crazy, but be guaranteed the room I've paid for.

If you read the fine print of any hotel (including Disney), all you're guaranteed is a place to stay for the night when you book. Doesn't even guarantee you a room at that hotel. If this is bothersome, boutique hotels or bed & breakfasts that operate outside of this norm may be better suited. I'm not saying this is right or just, but it is what it is and travelers have other options if they don't like this practice.

 

[msjprincess]

I'd want to pay more. Or, call me crazy, but be guaranteed the room I've paid for.

I'm willing to take the chance. I'm in my mid 50s and I've never been bumped from a hotel yet. I figure the odds are in my favor.

 

[nkereina]

I'm willing to take the chance. I'm in my mid 50s and I've never been bumped from a hotel yet. I figure the odds are in my favor.

Same here. When I worked in hospitality, it was actually rare we had to bump someone. It has to be the perfect storm - a convention/large group at the hotel or a busy weekend in the city, everyone who has a reservation actually shows up (no or few no shows), you arrive late (after 11pm). The chance of these factors combining to make you the unlucky one to be bumped is on the low side. Its a risk many people are willing to take to have lower room rates.

 

[MamaBelle4]

If this is bothersome, boutique hotels or bed & breakfasts that operate outside of this norm may be better suited.

Where we are going is likely considered a boutique hotel. I'm not down with specific classifications, but it is not a part of a chain or anything like that.

 

[nkereina]

Where we are going is likely considered a boutique hotel. I'm not down with specific classifications, but it is not a part of a chain or anything like that.

Boutique hotels have lower operating costs and often operate independently, so their practices vary. They also don't tend to house large groups or convention. So, less likely to be bumped from a boutique hotel.

 

[mjkacmom]

I have no issue with the practice since it keeps costs down. In my 30+ years of booking hotels, I’ve only been walked once, and it was in the same hotel, from a 2 bedroom suite to 2 1 bedroom suites. At first we were told we’d only be paying for the 2 rooms, which actually cost less than the 2 bedroom, we countered with just paying for 1 1 bedroom, which they accepted.

 

[Nancyg56]

The thing is, if someone is getting moved from one WDW resort to another, it's been my impression that WDW will move you to a resort that's at least comparable, if not an upgrade, from where your original booking is. I don't think, for example, that if CSR is overbooked that they'd walk a guest to one of the All Stars, no matter who they booked with. WDW has many resorts on the property, so they have a wide variety of choices available. The OP's situation is quite different.

There are Disney rooms that are offered on 3rd party sites at times. I am speaking of those guests.

 

[Cindy's Mom]

The old Seinfeld classic: “They know how to take the reservation, they just don’t know how to keep the reservation!”

.....and that's the most important part of the reservation.

 

[lovesmurfs]

So....example of what NOT to do.

Have a corporate group (one of 7 groups in their hotel for our company) possibly be walked, and tell our meeting planner at 4:20 p.m. the day of arrival. Corporate travelers don't pay for their meals or their hotel room, so NOTHING the hotel can do will benefit them.

Yes. This is happening now.

 

[Katie Dawn]

So....example of what NOT to do.

Have a corporate group (one of 7 groups in their hotel for our company) possibly be walked, and tell our meeting planner at 4:20 p.m. the day of arrival. Corporate travelers don't pay for their meals or their hotel room, so NOTHING the hotel can do will benefit them.

Yes. This is happening now.

Ugh that stinks. Was this at Disney?

 

[nkereina]

So....example of what NOT to do.

Have a corporate group (one of 7 groups in their hotel for our company) possibly be walked, and tell our meeting planner at 4:20 p.m. the day of arrival. Corporate travelers don't pay for their meals or their hotel room, so NOTHING the hotel can do will benefit them.

Yes. This is happening now.

Well, to be fair, the corporate traveler isn't paying for anything to begin with. I travel for work often and if I was bumped to a comparable hotel in the same area for the night, its not much skin off my nose. If it was leisure travel and I booked the hotel because of amenities on my own dime, that's different and I can empathize with that.

But, I'm surprised to hear a hotel is doing this to a corporate group. Where I worked, corporate groups (especially ones with a corporate rate) often got priority over other guests (leisure travelers, non-loyalty members, etc) because of the relationship.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

Well, to be fair, the corporate traveler isn't paying for anything to begin with. I travel for work often and if I was bumped to a comparable hotel in the same area for the night, its not much skin off my nose.

The business traveller may not be paying for it in terms of seeking compensation but the reasons for selecting the hotel can be just as important.

My husband doesn't always book a hotel right exactly where he needs to be but there are many times he does. If he was bumped to somewhere now inconvenient for that it still would be an issue even if he himself didn't pay for the room. How big of an issue would depend on how far away he would end up being. Just down the street may not be a big issue. But 20-30mins away could be a big issue.

 

[nkereina]

The business traveller may not be paying for it in terms of seeking compensation but the reasons for selecting the hotel can be just as important.

My husband doesn't always book a hotel right exactly where he needs to be but there are many times he does. If he was bumped to somewhere now inconvenient for that it still would be an issue even if he himself didn't pay for the room. How big of an issue would depend on how far away he would end up being. Just down the street may not be a big issue. But 20-30mins away could be a big issue.

In my own experience, the majority of hotel chains will try to set-up the walked guests in a nearby hotel within a couple mile radius, providing transportation to and from if needed. Again, hotels that are walking guests are in an oversold situation, and usually they are oversold because of a large group/convention or event in the city. So, the hotel is often situated in an area that has at least a couple other hotels nearby.

I do agree it would definitely be inconvenient for anyone, business travelers included, but there's not a way to make the business traveler financially whole in this situation, as PP pointed out. I know from the hotel I worked at that if the business traveler were attending a meeting or convention hosted at our hotel, he or she would not be walked at all.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

In my own experience, the majority of hotel chains will try to set-up the walked guests in a nearby hotel within a couple mile radius, providing transportation to and from if needed. Again, hotels that are walking guests are in an oversold situation, and usually they are oversold because of a large group/convention or event in the city. So, the hotel is often situated in an area that has at least a couple other hotels nearby.

I do agree it would definitely be inconvenient for anyone, business travelers included, but there's not a way to make the business traveler financially whole in this situation, as PP pointed out. I know from the hotel I worked at that if the business traveler were attending a meeting or convention hosted at our hotel, he or she would not be walked at all.

Well I think if it was a hotel chain with a loyalty program and the business traveler was part of it they could compensate that way if it was really a big issue.

Like for instance my husband is a Hilton Honors member. All corporate travel is booked through travel software but he inputs his Hilton Honors member information not only to earn points but because sometimes amenities or amenities that would be free are only available for Hilton Honors members. A few thousand points (or whatever just saying an example) thrown his way would be appreciated even if monetary compensation wasn't feasible. I don't think my husband would push for something like that because that's just who he is but I could see that being possible to do that.

All speaking just out loud here. So far my husband hasn't been walked. Truthfully I think if a particular hotel chain was walking the business travellers at my husband's work too often his company would cease to consider that hotel chain preferred and it would take all those people booking out of the equation. But luckily I haven't heard of walking being an issue.

 

[sam_gordon]

Customers should not be inconvenienced by business practices.

But businesses shouldn't be out money by "no shows".

Which option do you prefer (and you have to pick one)...
1) The ability to make a reservation (as a customer), then decide at the last minute to not use the reservation and there's no penalty for doing so.
2) The ability to make a reservation (as a customer), and have to pay a penalty (minimum of one night) if you cancel?

Personally, I'd rather have #1. Many hotels are now giving you a pre-pay option with no refund. IMO, if someone does that, they should not be walked. The hotel should only accept as many pre-pays as they have room for.