Travel Troubleshooter:An extra night,an upgraded price

by Christopher Elliott

(Tribune Media Services) -- The rate at the Hilton Imperial Dubrovnik is 181 euros a night, which a phone agent confirms with Sheri Siegel. But when she tacks an extra night on to her reservation at the same rate, something goes wrong. Now her bill is more than $260 higher than she expected -- and Hilton won't help her. Can this hotel stay be saved?

Q: I'm having a problem with a hotel honoring a room price. I tried to book three nights at the Hilton Imperial Dubrovnik in Croatia, but for some reason the site wouldn't accept my dates. So I phoned Hilton's toll-free number, and was offered a rate of 181 euros a night. They never asked me how many people were staying in the room.

Hilton e-mailed me a confirmation and I prepaid the entire three-night stay for the room by credit card. Then I realized that I needed to add another night to my stay for the night before our return flight, so I called back. I was told that I could get an extra night at the same rate. They didn't send an e-mail confirmation this time.

When my credit card statement arrived, I was surprised to see that the charges from Hilton were more than $260 higher than what they had originally quoted. I tried to call and e-mail Hilton, but the best explanation they could offer was that there was a "different rate" for two people in the room. That didn't make any sense, because I had always known and planned to travel with my husband. There had been no mention of a "double" rate, and my reservation indicates nothing about number of people in the room.