So I booked the Fairfield Inn Williamsburg VA for an upcoming stay, and unfortunately didn't read enough of the fine print and was wondering why my credit card got charged for the entire stay, as if I booked a pre-paid rate. The reservation says it can be canceled for no penalty until 2 days prior to arrival, however there is also this detail in the cancellation policy:
We will need a credit card prepayment to reserve your room. To ensure that you receive this special rate, we will charge your credit card a prepayment of xxx.00 USD when you make your reservation.
After noticing that I canceled... and its been over a week and still haven't gotten the charge refunded yet. Contacted marriott who forwarded the issue to the hotel a few days ago and still no response. Pretty absurd. This isn't a high end beach resort where you typically see a deposit required... its a fairfield near a town.
Pretty bad business practice for a hotel like this to be requiring full stay deposit at time of booking, and then not promptly refunding upon cancellation.