You stated that "on the last night.." you had no hot water, so I assume you were there for at least two days.

I work p/t at a chain hotel that has a 100% satisfaction guarantee. But part of the guarantee is that the guest must inform us of the problem and give us an opportunity to correct it. Not calling was a major blunder, I think. Even if others said they had already called you should have contacted them yourself.

I think the 30% refund too little. I think a 100$ refund too much; after all you did use the facilities for 1 day with minimal problems. And even without hot water, you still enjoyed a private room in NYC.

Tell the operator you want a 50% refund or you will fight all charges. And add "owner-occupied" to your list of requirements should you stay again at a B&B.

I'd go to VISA... the biggest reason, it's generally up to the seller (the B&B in this case) to prove that you did get what you paid for and not the other way around.

Make your complaint in detail and let VISA deal with it. In half the cases, the seller won't even dispute it.

I would go to Visa !!! You did not receive in total what you paid for. If you bought a set of dishes and some were missing would you still pay the full price ?

You can try VISA, but why didn't you complain loudly about misrepresentation from the first day, and start the threat then. I'd have left the next day. Better grounds for a refund.

Hey gang,

Thanks for all the responses. I feel awkward going to Visa for a refund of our 4th night's stay for something intangible like a hotel stay, but then there are tangible expectations one has when checking into any kind of hotel-like establishment: a bed and a hot shower. We paid for four nights to have these two minimal traits.

In my generally very flexible view, the hassle checking in and the under-construction deck were just small details, but having to skip an evening shower and thus staying in that night rather than living it up in NYC, then to have to go without a shower our last day in NYC just "stunk" :(

We chose this place because we're 26 years old, and don't have a lot of money. I work in non-profit and we just don't have the budget to stay in typical NYC $400- $500 night accommodations. This place was $165 + taxes a night. We've stayed in B&B's before and have only had positive experiences.

I will call Visa tomorrow for a full refund of the 4th night. I just wanted to see if I was crazy for requesting a refund or not.

Maybe to some people you get what you pay for, and that's generally true, most especially true in a city like NY, but when paying for a hotel, you're always guaranteed a bed and a shower, right? :) I'll let you all know Visa's response.

If it was NYC you could bid on Priceline and paid less than you did. You won't be able to register a complaint with VISA by calling--you need to do it in writing.
And we don't pay $4-500/night for a hotel either.
Plus, I don't think I would have been deterred from going out to dinner by not having a shower unless I had been working in the yard all day. NOr would my children who are your age. Just my opinion.

I'd post my experience on travel boards as you are doing but in your case I think you need to name names. The purpose of this board is for others to benefit from your experiences, good or bad. We can't benefit if you don't disclose information such as the name of the place.

Having stayed in places without hot water, I'd have just taken a shower anyway, if I felt I was really 'smelly'.

I think you do need to call Visa to file a complaint. They'll give you a reference number to put on the form/letter you write.

What is a B&B minus the breakfast and, it seems, no one on property? Did you rent an apartment?

Visa refund successful. They're issuing a credit to my account, I just have to fill out the paperwork they send me and return it. What will happen, is they will send a copy of my dispute to the owner of the place and if Visa determines that he tried to satisfactorily rectify the situation, then I won't get the credit officially. However, considering I have email proof that I'll attach with the paper work that he didn't even apologize for any of the problems, I've no doubt that I've "won" the case.

Luckily, I know my rights with Visa. I would recommend those of you who have similar situations in the future file a dispute with your card company (when honestly warranted).

We'd run in Central Park before dinner and wanted to clean up before going out that night. Runners in the forum will know what I mean about needing a shower! ;)

Grechen,

Thanks for the input. It was marathon weekend in NYC. Trust me, being frugal, I did lengthy research before booking, weighing lots of options, and no hotel was to be found cheaper for the time frame we were there.

Glad your daughter is a trooper! I have no tolerance for ice cold showers. Just can't do it, and not to the tune of $191 (including taxes and fees) per night!

Good for you! And, thanks for reporting back.

thanks! i WILL post all the positives about the trip soon.

wish i could recommend this place!! it was beautiful and in a beautiful location. darn it!

OK, now I'll name names, it is www.staythenight.com.

not a good omen from the get-go, but the guest book in the foyer had multiple pages torn out, so I suspect we weren't the only ones with "issues" there.

Good luck. I wouldn't spend the refund yet, though.

You didn't really mean that you are going to attach an e-mail to the paperwork as proof that he didn't apologize, did you? If that is what you meant then don't bother attaching the e-mail.

If you have an e-mail from him that offers the 30% refund, send that. If he sent you an e-mail admitting the problem, then definitely send that.

Visa asked that I attach the email correspondance.

i guess there is no way of knowing what the outcome would be. and i do think that you were not treated properly by this business. however, i would be surprised if visa were willing to get involved in this sort of dispute. as others have pointed out, you did not complain at the time or make reasonable attempts to get it remedied (i'm not saying i would have acted any differently - i understand not wanting to spend all day fighting with the owner).

so in the end it's kind of like having a meal that was not satisfactory (cold, not exactly as described on the menu, poor quality, etc)...then getting visa to refund the cost. in general it seems strange that visa would be willing to arbitrate customer satisfaction (there are always two sides to the story). i can see their involvement cases of clear fraud but satisfaction issues?