AOPA credit card --- WARNING.

The only real idiots when it comes to credit are the ones who apply for
every card offer they get and max them all out while paying minimum
payments, if that. I work with a guy who did that. He was filing
bankruptcy and getting everything reposessed in a year or 2.

This is frighteningly common.

In the early 90s I served as a volunteer on the board of directors of an
employee credit union at a small newspaper. As a director, I had a direct
say on whether people -- my co-workers and friends -- received loans of all
kinds.

We were VERY free and easy with our policies and procedures, but there were
people -- some very prominent people -- who literally were one paycheck away
from utter disaster. They were literally spending EVERYTHING they made on
minimum loan payments, yet they were applying for another loan from us.

In one notable case, we had to turn down a loan to a VERY important person
in the organization -- for a snowmobile! This woman could not muster
enough credit to borrow the pittance required to buy a snowmobile -- yet,
from the outside, she looked like a pillar of the community.

We saw this same predicament many times, much to my amazement and dismay.
In each case, they were incredulous that we wouldn't loan them the money.

Credit cards are like booze. For some, used sparingly, they are healthy.
For others, they are addictive and deadly.
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

We'll never know -- I threw BOTH of them out right after we opened, after
they tried to charge us 5% for each transaction. (The other cards --
Visa, Mastercard & Discover -- charge us "only" 4% for the privilege of
"working" with them.)

Given this, why don't people like yourself offer discounts for cash any
longer? Seems like less use of credit cards would be to your advantage.
Are there other reasons that make credit cards convenient from the vendor
viewpoint?

Mostly it's a personnel problem. Our rate structure (with 9 different kinds
of suites, and a myriad of discounts) is so complex, I'd be afraid to throw
a "cash discount" into the mix.

However, I've been known to work out "side deals" for my Usenet friends...

;-)
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

has American Express or Diners Club done the same to you?
(just curious)

We'll never know -- I threw BOTH of them out right after we opened, after
they tried to charge us 5% for each transaction. (The other cards --
Visa,
Mastercard & Discover -- charge us "only" 4% for the privilege of
"working"
with them.)

um, does making a reservation at your place require a credit card?

If you want a "guaranteed" reservation, yep.

If you want a "contingency" reservation -- where anyone who walks in the
door with cash can bump you -- nope.
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

Well in my case I don't have a 'real' credit card. I have a debit visa
(work just the same). I keep most of my spendable money in checking then
use the Visa the same as cash. If I can't afford something then I don't
buy it.

It does NOT work the same.

a) Don't try renting a car.

And don't try using to reserve a hotel suite. Most debit cards (unless it's
a "dual" debit/credit card) will not work with a preauthorization -- which
is what is required to make a guaranteed reservation.
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

Jay Honeck wrote:

Did you tell them that if they didn't show they would be responsible for
one night's payment.


Yes. Over and over, abundantly. With a guaranteed reservation, we'll hold
the suite all night.

I've twice been on the reverse side of this situation where a hotel
gave me a guaranteed reservation and then failed to hold a room
available. Once the room had been reserved with either Visa or
Mastercard and the hotel basically told us that we were on our own
but could use the pay phone in the lobby to search for another place
to stay. Complaining later to the credit card company got us
nowhere. The other time an AMEX card had been used to hold the
reservation and the treatment was quite different. They
apologized for having overbooked, arranged transportation to
another hotel and paid for my first night's stay there plus a few
free phone calls so I could let others know where I was staying.
I heard similar stories from others and apparently AMEX had a
much stricter policy of making both the hotels and customers
adhere to the guaranteed reservation policies.

In article Ctcqd.474453$D%.367363@attbi_s51,
"Jay Honeck" wrote:

And don't try using to reserve a hotel suite. Most debit cards (unless it's
a "dual" debit/credit card) will not work with a preauthorization -- which
is what is required to make a guaranteed reservation.

:-( Then I won't be able to make a reservation for business travel at
your hotel.

--
Bob Noel

:-( Then I won't be able to make a reservation for business travel at
your hotel.

Or anywhere else, for that matter.

I don't know of a single hotel (or even small B&B in our market) that
doesn't pre-authorize guaranteed reservations on a credit card. It's the
only way a hotel has of protecting itself against bogus reservations and
no-shows.

We can always do a "contingency" reservation without a card, but it's not
guaranteed.
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

I've twice been on the reverse side of this situation where a hotel
gave me a guaranteed reservation and then failed to hold a room
available. Once the room had been reserved with either Visa or
Mastercard and the hotel basically told us that we were on our own
but could use the pay phone in the lobby to search for another place
to stay. Complaining later to the credit card company got us
nowhere. The other time an AMEX card had been used to hold the
reservation and the treatment was quite different. They
apologized for having overbooked, arranged transportation to
another hotel and paid for my first night's stay there plus a few
free phone calls so I could let others know where I was staying.
I heard similar stories from others and apparently AMEX had a
much stricter policy of making both the hotels and customers
adhere to the guaranteed reservation policies.

Amex had nothing to do with it. You just found a hotel that unscrupulously
overbooks, but still has a conscience about doing so.

Unscrupulous hotels that over-book are trying to fight the no-show/bogus
reservation problem by playing the odds, rather than getting guaranteed
reservations and following through with charging no-shows. When everyone
actually shows up, someone gets screwed. You were "it" that night.

We NEVER over-book. Since each suite is unique, represents a different era
of aviation history, and is often specifically requested, it's pretty tough
to substitute one suite for another. Thus, with a guaranteed reservation,
that suite is yours -- no matter when you show up.

But, on the flipside, in exchange for this kind of service we will charge
you if you don't show up -- period.

One exception that ONLY pilots receive: If you are flying in, and
conditions drop to below VFR minimums anywhere along your route of flight,
you may cancel up to 6 PM without penalty. This "IFR Cancellation Policy"
has proven to be VERY popular with our private pilot guests, as you can
imagine! (We instituted it after running into hotel issues ourselves over
the years. Face it, flying a light plane isn't the most reliable form of
transportation, and thus we ended up never making hotel reservations in
advance, for fear of being charged for no-showing. This resulted in some
nasty sleeping experiences, on occasion, when we couldn't find a decent
hotel room.)
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

That ain't right. I can see the guarantee thing during a known busy weekend,
but if I make a reservation (contingency) and show up at or ahead of the
reservation time just to find out you don't have a room because somebody
else showed up before me with cash, I'm hauling somebody into court.

mike regish

"Jay Honeck" wrote in message
news:Srcqd.164139$R05.153882@attbi_s53...

If you want a "contingency" reservation -- where anyone who walks in the
door with cash can bump you -- nope.
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

I should add that if I make the contingency reservation and am late then you
are free to rent the room out, but not before-guaranteed reservation or not.

mike regish

"mike regish" wrote in message
news:XFdqd.108569$5K2.15879@attbi_s03...
That ain't right. I can see the guarantee thing during a known busy
weekend, but if I make a reservation (contingency) and show up at or ahead
of the reservation time just to find out you don't have a room because
somebody else showed up before me with cash, I'm hauling somebody into
court.

mike regish

"Jay Honeck" wrote in message
news:Srcqd.164139$R05.153882@attbi_s53...

If you want a "contingency" reservation -- where anyone who walks in the
door with cash can bump you -- nope.
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"