Surf the Mind

Archive for May, 2009

I have nothing against Hotels.com. Up until last weekend, I thought they served a useful purpose. But I’ve learned my lesson, and from here on, while I may find a hotel at Hotels.com or Expedia, I will be booking directly through the hotel.

Here’s why.

Last weekend I stayed at a hotel I booked through Hotels.com (Hotels.ca actually). During my stay, my laptop and other electronics were stolen from the hotel room. If I had booked my room directly through the hotel, I would not have had to pay for my stay because of the incident, according to the hotel manager.

However, because the room was booked and paid for through Hotels.com, they were not equipped to refund me directly. They could refund the money to Hotels.com, but there would be no reassurance that any of that money would make it back to me. Ever.

I now understand that while booking through a middleman may seem convenient, when things go wrong that extra company in the middle makes things far more inconvenient in the long run.

So from now on, I’ll find my hotel online, but book directly by phone. Odds are, by booking directly I’ll probably save money as well.

This weekend my laptop was stolen from my hotel room while I was on vacation.

It wasn’t an expensive laptop… I travel with a cheap little Acer Netbook … but it was still alarming.

However, I did learn a few things from the experience.

First, if you’re keeping your laptop in your hotel room, keep the cables in the car. Your laptop is less likely to be taken if there are no cables to charge it, since it’s worth less at a pawn shop. Go figger.

Second, it is a very good thing to use Gmail or a web-based service for your email, especially when you travel. If I been using Outlook or Thunderbird, not only would the thieves been able to go back and read my email from the past, which would have included online transactions that included my address and other details, but I would have not had access to the emails saved on that hard drive any longer.

Since I have been using Gmail to access all my mail, all I had to do was change my Gmail password to keep others out, and ensure I still had access to everything. Much less panic that way.

Finally, on a computer you only use for traveling, keep the minimum or no saved FTP passwords in your FTP client. If you explicitly limit your FTP saved logins to those you’ll need on your trip, you won’t have to change every single FTP password you’ve ever used if your laptop is stolen.

Finally, never count on your stuff being safe. This apparently was the first theft in eight years at this particular establishment, which seemed quite secure, but a determined thief, or one in desperate need of some cash for a fix, will find a way to get in just about anywhere.