I’m thinking that this is going to become a regular feature here between now and January 20th.
Today, we learn that hotel owners in the D.C. area are trying to get every last dollar they can:
Deirdre Flanagan, a lifelong Democrat, wanted to splurge on the presidential inauguration.
Although she lives in Annapolis, Flanagan decided to book a hotel room closer to Washington so that she and her daughter would have a place to crash after attending the Jan. 20 festivities. On Oct. 27, a week before Sen. Barack Obama won the general election, Flanagan logged on to Priceline.com and reserved one night in a suite at the Bolger Hotel and Conference Center in Potomac for $159.
But on Nov. 18, Flanagan received a letter from the hotel.
“In order to protect your reservation,” the letter informed her, “it is necessary for us to process a non-refundable advance deposit equivalent to a two nights stay. . . . If we do not hear from you, your reservation is subject to cancellation and will be given to another guest on our waiting list.”
Her reaction?
“The top of my head was lifting off my shoulders,” Flanagan said. “My daughter said, ‘Just cancel it.’ But this can’t be allowed. It’s outrageous this is happening.
Apparently, though, it is happening, and not just to Flanagan:
Colm Owens, 38, an American who works in London, can empathize with Flanagan. He wanted to take his mother to the inauguration, so in September he booked two rooms from Jan. 17 through 21 at Yesteryear’s Treasures, which he found through the Alexandria & Arlington Bed and Breakfast Network. The cost was $150 a room each night — a total bill of $1,500.
Owens provided a look at several e-mails between him and Linda Egerton, who handles reservations for the bed-and-breakfast network. In one, Egerton wrote: “I can book the 2 room suite for you at $150/night per room.”
But when Owens got his credit card statement on Nov. 17, he had been charged $2,648.29, he said.
“I was never told the rate would go up and would never agree to an escalating rate. Who would?” Owens said.
Egerton disputed Owens’s version of events, saying she had cited the $150 rate as an estimate but had explained to Owens that the rates might change. When the bed-and-breakfast owners she represents met to set rates a couple of weeks ago, they settled on $300 a night, Egerton said.
So, you know, if you are planning on coming to D.C. for Inauguration Day, be prepared to shell out the big bucks. The good news, if you have any money left, is that the bars will probably be open late:
District bars could be allowed to stay open around the clock as what may be millions descend on the city to celebrate Barack Obama’s inauguration.
A measure put forth today by D.C. Councilman Jim Graham – who represents the party-friendly Adams Morgan neighborhood – would allow bars and restaurants licensed to serve alcohol to keep pouring until 5 a.m., and to keep doors open 24-hours per day between Jan. 17 and Jan. 21.
Charles Allen, chief of staff for Councilman Tommy Wells, said the Council received information about the proposal Monday and will vote on it today. The National Restaurant Association had already notified Council members of its support for the measure.
The move would be similar to, but further-reaching than legislation passed in St. Paul, Minn., when the city hosted the Republican National Convention in early September.
Like D.C., most St. Paul liquor sales end at 2 a.m. But during the convention, eight bars and restaurants were allowed to remain open until 4 a.m. with a special $50 registration.
“Overall, it was very successful,” said Kris Schweinler, the city’s senior license inspector, adding that the only problems came from a handful of non-registered bars that sold overtime anyway.
Or, if you can’t afford a hotel room, maybe you can sleep in the bars.
