Caribbean Vacation: Beware of Online Booking
Part 2: The Big Shocker
I felt smug in my adoration for the Internet and online booking and went about my business. After all, I managed to save so much money on accommodation. I could use this money to book another trip later on.
Fast forward to the day of my arrival. I reached the hotel and a smiling but polite receptionist greeted me. She processed my reservation and then it was time to pay. The receptionist explained what the basic charges would be, and then came the shocker. She asked to see my identification. “ID,” I thought, feeling like a vacationer delayed at a border crossing. She then explained that I booked my room using the rate for airline employees - flight attendants, and she needed to verify that I did work for an airline.
OK. “Me, no airline steward,” I thought, so I had to come clean and confess: I overlooked the fact I don’t qualify for the advertised rate. I then had a sense of what was to come as the clerk contnued to process my reservation. She appeared calm but had to tell me the bad news. Perhaps having received similar confessions many times, the petite hotel clerk took pity on me and reduced my room rate by 10%.
Well, 10% did not quite make me happy, but it compensated for the bad feeling I had when I found out I had to pay the full rate. Of course, I then thought that I should have booked at the hotel where the seminar will be held. I mean, why pay top rate for a joint that is not rated four star. I had my reservations about the hotel but I had no choice except to go find another hotel. Even that would have costed me more money because I did not have a reservation.
Be wary! While I don’t blame the booking agency, you need to be careful about the wording on these online booking web sites. Somethings don’t always appear as they are. Remember we plan our vacations based on emotions. These same emotions blind us to the real value that we eventually get.