dstyler

TLDR: After rudely lecturing us about his cancellation policy and refusing to refund, the owner finally promised to let us use our 50% deposit for a later booking if he was able to rebook the original room. The owner did rebook the room but did not honor our agreement. *** This so-called resort is definitely a situation where you need to pay attention to the fine print -- specifically, their cancellation policy and the owner's lack of hospitality. Six weeks prior to my partner's and my August trip to Palm Springs, I booked two weekend nights at INNdulge. Two days after booking, they charged 50% of our stay, which came out to $300. I don't travel all too often, but when I do stay at a hotel, they usually don't charge for your stay until you check out. They might put a hold beforehand, but they don't charge before you visit. INNdulge charges half of your booking a month and a half before your visit. And you can't get any of it back at that point. Three weeks after booking (and still 3 weeks before our check-in), work and family circumstances required us to change our travel plans. This is not the first time I've called a hotel to change and move a reservation to a later date. It's never been an issue. So I contact INNdulge, anticipating a similar outcome. Instead, the owner, Jon Jackson, told me that since the reservation was less than 42 days away, our 50% deposit was forfeit if I canceled. You read that right, they have a 42-day cancellation policy. Other hotels have cancellation policies of 3 days, 2 days, 24 hours, or sometimes the day of. To explain why his policy is so unforgiving, Jon played the victim card. He bemoaned over the phone that he's a small business and that's why he has to have such an extended cancellation window. That if he didn't, people would book but then cancel weeks before their trip. He wouldn't be able to rebook the room in time, and he would "lose too much money." He went so far as to compare his business with airlines because they won't let you rebook unless you pay extra (but even then, you're not forfeiting what you've already paid). Nevertheless, I wasn't trying to cancel. I just wanted to use our deposit for a later date. Specifically, in October. But since October is their "busiest month," they require a minimum of 4-days and jack up their rates. While I wasn't happy about it, that's business. Can't argue with that. Though it was not really in our budget, my partner and I decided to go ahead and book for October. We thought that we would at least be able to use the already charged $300 toward the new booking. We were very wrong. It is not the owner's policy to allow such accommodation. Why? Jon rudely informed me over the phone that he didn't want to "take the risk" with me because I was already canceling 3 weeks before our original booking. That he was losing money if he is unable to rebook the original. But he was very comfortable, after already taking $300, to tell us to just rebook for October and pay the full amount, which was going to be at least an additional $1200. Finally, he consented that he would be the "nice guy" (though he made sure to tell me that he didn't have to be) and promised to give us the $300 credit for the October booking IF he was able to rebook the room for the original dates with another guest. I didn't hear from the owner again. Out of curiosity, a few days before the original weekend we were supposed to stay at INNdulge, I checked to see if I could book a room for those dates on their website. They were fully booked. I even had a friend call, and the front desk said they had no rooms available for the weekend. So that's that, folks. That's how Jon Jackson, the owner of INNdulge, chooses to run his business. Hospitality is not on the menu. And he was totally comfortable with losing a returning customer. He said to me that there are plenty of other customers who want to stay at INNdulge, and yet he also told me on the same phone call how unlikely he would be able to rebook the room in 3 weeks. So which is it, Jon? There ARE plenty of other clothing-optional resorts in Palm Springs, with better accommodations. Don't give your money to a miser who is this stingy. Who views their returning customers as utterly expendable and nothing more than monetary transactions.