Post #43552 by thejab on Fri, Jul 18, 2003 11:29 AM

*On 2003-07-17 21:19, SugarCaddyDaddy wrote:*Any thoughts?

I'm against the trend of prepaying for a hotel stay that's becoming the only way you can find low rates on sites like Expedia and others. I live paycheck to paycheck and I don't have tons of credit cards (I got into trouble that way before) so I usually save up for a vacation these days. Also, it just seems unsavory for large hotel chains to do it when you know they could get by without doing it. Smaller places like dude ranches or houses for rent I can understand the need to recieve a larger amount up front. For example, I'll be staying at a private home in Mexico this Fall and they asked for a 50% deposit in advance.

I've found that going on the hotel's web site is a good way to find low fares that don't require more than one night's deposit.

I'm not necessarily saying Casey at Caliente Tropics shouldn't charge up front. It is a special event that will be sold out way in advance anyway. I just think many folks who earn less money or who try to limit their credit card spending may be left out and that's unfortunate.