This one was a first for me. As I mentioned earlier, I was originally booked at the Crowne Plaza SFO for this past weekend, but decided to change to the Sofitel. Since I had booked a “flexible rate” at the Crowne Plaza, I could cancel up until the day before arrival at 6PM, but I cancelled over 30 hours before that deadline. I received the cancellation confirmation as I usually do, but was surprised to look at my credit card’s online account statement yesterday and see that I got charged for my stay anyway!
I called up the “Ambassador Desk” yesterday morning, and they called the hotel and promised they’d get back to me. Well, this morning at 7AM (I realize it was late afternoon where the “Ambassador Desk” is located), I get a call from the same agent informing me that my stay was never cancelled, but as a “one time exception” they will refund the room rate because of my status.
So in my case I was lucky since I had the cancellation confirmation, but sometimes it goes straight in the trash since I assume it’s something the hotel can’t screw up. So lesson learned. And don’t worry, I won’t even start my “one time exception” rant.
Membership is free and takes no more information than commenting as a guest. Earn status points for good contributions, and see fewer ads as your status grows.