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| *Travel Tips>>>Sydney Travel Tips |
What is the deal with pre-authorizations with hotels? |
Travel Info Im travelling to Sydney and planning to stay at either the Radisson or Crowne Plaza. Having never really stayed in a hotel (backpacker most of my life) I was told that with the more upper class hotels you need to usually have some money taken off your card or put on 'hold' as a security deposit. Can anyone explain what this mean exactly? Does this mean I need to make sure I have at least another $500 credit limit on my card to cover this or what is the deal? Also does anyone know off hand if they do put a hold on a set amount of money on your card, what this would likely be forthe Radisson or Crowne Plaza. Cheers! Travel Tips Ive just returned from holidays interstate (Queensland & Victoria). I stayed at both the Vibe Savoy & Vibe Gold Coast. I stayed in upmarket hotels & was required to provide a credit card/debit card for pre-authorisation for the "entire stay". This money is "held" until you check out of the room, it is then activated and your card is debited plus any other room/hotel charges (phonecalls, food, beverages, laundry, room service & bar). You can pay for your room upon checking in, that way your credit card is not maxed out upon arrival. Also if you decide to pay on a nightly basis you will probably pay the "rack rate" which is, in most cases more expensive than a pre-booked rate. Not only that, there is no guarantee your room will be available for your whole stay because pre-booked blocks are sold for preference over single nighters. Either way, you will have to pay for your room regardless if it was with cash or by credit/debit card. If your credit card is partnered with an affiliate program you will earn points for rewards. A tip about hotels... look at the Vibe hotel in either Rushcutters Bay or Sydney city, both recently renovated & very hip (excellent public transport nearby), its part of the Virgin Velocity program & I highly recommend this chain of hotels. Hope you enjoy visiting Sydney, I love it & Im sure you will too :-))) Source(s): http://www.vibehotels.com.au Live in Inner Sydney Travel often & pay by credit card, cash or debit. Other Travel Tips Hotels will often put through an authorisation on your credit card as a type of security deposit. This is to help them recover any costs that may be incurred if, for example, you don't end up checking in, damage the room, etc. The amount put through as an authorisation will vary, though in my experience this usually is around the $50.00 to $100.00 mark. You won't be able to access the funds at all while they are sitting as an authorisation, so its a good idea to ensure that you have sufficient funds to cover both the authorisation and your normal spending. It will usually automatically drop off after ten days or so, but you may be able to request that the hotel fax your bank after you've checked out to have the amount released sooner. I've found that some hotels will accept a cash deposit instead, too, which might be an idea if you're not keen to give out your credit card number. It is a misconception to think that the hotel draws money from your card at the beginning of your stay - this simply does not happen. What they do is authorise the forecast cost of your stay against the credit limit on your card, to ensure you have funds to pay on leaving. No money is taken at all. How this is handled when you try to make other purchases depends on your card provider. Some treat it as a reduction in your credit limit, some are more relaxed. If you are planning to pay by card it makes absolutely no difference - your limit will need to be sufficient to cover your expenses anyway. If you plan to pay cash you can talk to them about how much they need to authorise - for instance, by paying for the room up front. Take care that they only authorise once though. I had a colleague with me at one hotel and they screwed up putting the authorisation through three or four times, and ended up totally blowing her credit limit which was very inconvenient to sort out. |
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