VietNamNet Bridge – Despite the current strict rules on hotel room rate setting, hoteliers still can play tricks to raise the hotel room rates in the last moment.

VN offers apology to overcharged foreign tourists, and what’s next?

Foreign travelers in Hanoi apprehensive of theft

Nha Trang beach.

Nguyen Quynh Loan in Cau Giay district in Hanoi recalled the trip to Cua Lo beach in 2011, which was a nightmare for her and her family.

Loan and her family members took a train to Cua Lo. After a traveling a long distance, they wished to relax in their hotel rooms which they booked before the departure.

However, when Loan checked in at the hotel, she was told that her name was not found in the list of guests who reserved rooms before. After long arguments, the hotel’s manager admitted that the receptionist might forget taking her name into the reservation list.

Offering an apology to Loan, the manager said no more room with the rate of VND500,000 was left unoccupied, and only VND1.2 million per night rooms were available.

It was too late at 10 pm, and she had to accept the VND1.2 million rooms. “We were told that this was the mistake of the receptionist. But I know they (the hotel) played trick to raise the hotel room rates,” she said.

“I tried to reserve hotel rooms soon, many days in advance, in order to avoid the room rate increases. However, hoteliers still can find many other ways to overcharge tourists,” she continued.

Since then, Loan vows not to go traveling on holidays or in high season to avoid the overcharging, though she prefers joining together with family members on holiday, when all of the family members don’t have to go to school or office.

Nguyen Duy Hoang, an office worker, also said that hoteliers always raise the hotel room rates immoderately on holidays, their high business reason.

Hoang and his friends once had to stay outdoors at night and stooped in the chilly wind during a trip to Sa Pa last year, because there was no hotel room.

The hotelier simply said that there was no more room in the high season (Christmas holiday), and the hotel should reserve rooms for early guests. Finally, Hoang and his friends had to stay at a local resident’s house.

“We had to stay at a local resident’s house after we came to all the guest houses and hotels in the locality and could not find any unoccupied room,” he said.

“They (the hoteliers) always raised the hotel room rates spontaneously in high season, try to overcharge tourists any time they can, while they don’t think of long term development strategy,” he continued. “Tourists won’t return to be overcharged the next time.”

Nguyen Hai Yen in Nam Dinh City said she arranged the trip for a long time and reserved hotel rooms one month in advance. However, just some days before the departure, she received a call from the hotel saying that the two sides should re-negotiate the hotel room rates.

“They told me that there were numerous guests wanting the rooms, therefore, we had to re-discuss the room rates,” she said.

Finally, Yen agreed to pay VND300,000 per night. However, even when accepting to pay higher, Yen still didn’t have a room when she arrived. The hotel then reserved the rooms she booked in advance for other guests who accepted to pay higher than Yen.

Duy Anh