scs00

Our prospective stay here in mid-April nearly turned into a catastrophe. Twice before we arrived, I called to confirm our reservation and which cabin we were going to be in. Repeatedly, I was told cabin #6, which is the second closest to the Gulf. This was going to be fine with us, as what we wanted during our trip was a nice, quiet atmosphere with a short walk to the beach.

However, when we arrived the morning of our check-in, we were told that we were going to have to have cabin #2, because the people in #6 “decided to stay an extra night”. The owners were very rude and told us this was our problem, not theirs. Cabin #2 was definitely not ok with us as it is located right on Gulf Drive, and therefore subject to traffic noise….which is just what we wanted to get out of town to avoid! Classic bait-and switch situation.

To make things worse, after we suggested to the woman that the people in #6 should be the ones to move to cabin 2, she started huffing and puffing and rolling her eyes at us. When we rebuffed that sort of behavior to us as CUSTOMERS! she wagged her finger in our face and screamed that we “have to take #2, it’s not your decision anymore!!” Hmm, my bad, I thought the customer was always right and is supposed to be treated with respect. Apparently not here.

Anyway, I eventually convinced her husband (god bless him for putting up with that angry wife of his) to refund our deposit. We went on to find an amazing place nearby to stay for our 3 days in Florida and had a wonderful time! Ironically, we ended up paying $50 less per night and were directly on the beach! Paid less, better view, and NICE management. It doesn’t get any better.

Just make sure you avoid Rolling Waves!

starrsville

Sounds like some folks lost their tempers. What was wrong with staying in Cabin 2 for one night?

BTW, I don't think legally a hotel ANYWHERE can force a customer leave their room - even when they stay past their previously arranged time. As I understand it, as long as the customer in the room (in this case, cabin) is paying the bill, the hotel management can NOT "evict" them.

The customer IS always right - the customer in possession of the room. The management had a room for you until the next day when the cabin you requested was available. Why not work with the management?

janisj

Welcome to Fodors. I just loooove these long detailed rants about "never stay at such and such . . " -- when they are the first and only post ever.

So tell us, are you just cruising over the net looking for travel forums where you can register and slam this place??

Not that this didn't happen - but sheesh, why the screaming meemies because of it??? . . .

furledleader

Agree with janisj!

Welcome to fodors......

if you're still out there.

cd

So what was the name of the place you stayed at that you liked?

granniem

Well I agree with scs00, she agreed to a cabin #6, which is what she wanted and what she was paying for.

I am very glad your vacation turned out so well. Where did you stay

granniem

To be nosey I went to the site and cabin 2 has a bouble and single in the bedroom and 6 has a queen bed. This owuld make a difference to a lot of people

KathyK

I agree with the original poster, that if she was spending 3 nights on Longboat Key, and had reserved a specific cabin, then the people in the cabin should have moved if they wanted an extra night. Starrsville, are you saying that I could have stayed an extra week in my rented condo I just left on Siesta Key, even if management had rented it to someone else for the following week?

GoTravel

The management should have said to the people in cabin #6 that their condo was rented to someone else but I can put you in Cabin #2 for a discount for going to the trouble of having to move.

OO

Starrs is right. The guest already in #6 can not be thrown out. This is one of the reasons specific rooms...whether it be ocean view, double double, king bed, no smoking, whatever, can never be guaranteed.

KathyK

What if the place was totally booked and there was no other cabin to give to the original poster? Does the same hold true, that the people who decided to stay and extra day can't be thrown out? And then the OP would have no place to stay even though they had a reservation? Is this a possession is 9/10ths of the law type thing?

GoTravel

No they cannot be forced out Kathy.

They would be 'walked' to another hotel.

KathyK

Here is another thought. If what Starrsville is saying is true, then if a hotel is totally booked for a weekend and I want to stay there, I can book for Thursday night and then decide to stay an extra two nights (Friday and Saturday) and they can't make me leave because I'm already there on Thursday? And the person who had the reservation for Friday and Saturday is out of luck?

GoTravel

Kathy, in that situation I would tell the guest that I'm sorry but we're sold out for the weekend.

The guest can refuse to leave but I've never had it happen to me.

granniem

Go travel, which guest?

KathyK

Go Travel, you earlier said that they can't be forced out and now you're saying that you would tell them that you're sold out for the weekend. Which is it?

OO

They can't be thrown out. Oh, maybe, if you want to get the law involved. It is extremely difficult to do. What the motel owner should have done (and I suspect did not do) is tell the first guest they can stay, but it will have to be cabin 2 because the other is booked. Most all of us would say fine and we'd move, or not stay. Some guests would not. You sign at registration for a check-out date and technically you can be held to it, but they can't force you out if you refuse to leave, are not causing a problem, and are paying your bills.

KathyK

I'd say that a guest is "causing a problem" in a scenario where the hotel is booked for the extra night that the guest wants to stay and someone coming in with a reservation is left without a room because someone without a reservation can't be forced out.

OO

LOL...we are headed down there in a couple of hours for our annual Refreshen the Brightwork chore. For the next 10 days or so I'll be on my hands and knees, sanding and varnishing. We always take a drive over to Anna Maria for lunch at the SandBar, then down to St Armands...so I'm taking the address of Rolling Waves along with me because I'm curious to see just how bad #2 is.

Something irks me about first time posters posting solely to complain about a place. There are always two sides to every story!

GoTravel

Kathy, sorry if I'm being confusing.

Your question:

<""if a hotel is totally booked for a weekend and I want to stay there, I can book for Thursday night and then decide to stay an extra two nights (Friday and Saturday) and they can't make me leave because I'm already there on Thursday? And the person who had the reservation for Friday and Saturday is out"">

Say you check in on Thursday and when you check in you tell the front desk you want to stay an extra night. The front desk would tell you that they are sold out and have nothing available.

However, if you called the front desk Friday morning and said you were extending your stay two more nights, you would still be told the hotel was sold out and that this isn't possible.

However, technically you could say that you were not leaving until Sunday and there isn't a whole lot the hotel can do to remove you as long as you are paying.

It would look horrible for the hotel if they tried to physically evict you.