Traveler's Aide: With package deals, the devil is in the details
— -- Question:My husband and I booked a package deal at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas based on an e-mail promotion from the hotel. The $699 package included a three-night stay in April, a $200 room credit, and two tickets to see the George Strait Academy of Country Music (ACM) Artist of the Decade All Star Concert at the MGM Grand Garden Arena. The package was a huge disappointment and not what was advertised.
When we checked in, we were assigned a room that was unacceptable, smelled like smoke, and had a view of a brick wall. We complained, and the hotel moved us to a nicer room in a different area.
The George Strait concert was the main reason for our trip. The promotional e-mail stated that we would receive advanced VIP seating for the concert, and that our tickets were valued at $150 each. However, there was no advanced seating and we were herded in like cattle. The seats were in the nosebleed section and we had to rent binoculars to see the show, since the video screens weren't set up to allow up so high to see them properly. I couldn't believe the tickets were worth $150.
Finally, it took two different clerks to get us checked out because of the way the hotel credit is done. I asked for a printout of our bill so I could see the $200 in credits, but I couldn't tell how it was done, so I went to a second clerk. He stated that the amounts had been deducted, but agreed that it did not add up to $200, and adjusted the bill manually.
I filled out a survey card asking the hotel to contact me, and also wrote a letter when I got home. No one from the hotel ever called me. Don't hotels respond to complaints? Can you help me?
— Patti Abschneider, Texas City, Tex.
Answer:Abschneider did a good job of advocating for herself when she wasn't happy with her package. First, she promptly asked for a different room when the first one proved unacceptable, and then she tried to sort out the billing snafu when checking out of the hotel. She followed up with the right kind of complaint letter: Polite and detailed, yet concise. However, she mailed the letter to the hotel's corporate office, and it took a while for it to be routed to the property itself and eventually land on the manager's desk.
