September 18, 2010 I traveled to Baltimore Maryland from North Carolina to attend a baseball game. When I arrived at my hotel, they did not have my reservation (which I had made through Expedia three week prior). Other people who had booked through Expedia had the same problem. We were told by the hotel employees that Expedia had made no confirmation on reservations because this hotel only allowed a minimum of 2 night reservations for weekends. So needless to say, our hotel had not made the reservations and Expedia did not contact anyone regarding the problem.

I was seven hours away from home, in a city that had BOOKED hotels for that night - with no where to stay.

When I called Expedia, I was put on hold several times before speaking to someone who booked me at another hotel (further away from where I had originally planned to stay).

Yes, I was given a $24.99 credit back to my credit card and given a $100 coupon to use on the website another time. So you might ask, Why am I complaining if I received this refund?... Well the point of the matter, people, is that - at that particular time, I was in a state of panic and coupons didn't exactly make me a happy woman. I will say that I am glad Expedia did reward me money back and a coupon; that was the least they could do. Had Expedia followed through with reservations and had correct protocol about the hotel I was staying at (2-night reservation minimum), I would not have had a problem. There were other hotels that I searched that clearly stated from Expedia that there was a 2-night minimum, but when I booked my hotel, DoubleTree at the Colonade, there was no mention of a 2 night stay minimum. Several people had this problem also.

I had never had a problem with Expedia in the past, and this incident discourages me from using the travel agency in the future. When people make reservations and receive confirmation, they expect everything is taken care of on the other end of the line.

Lesson learned: Do not trust online booking - Double check with the hotel after the reservation has been made.