Subject: An unhappy innovation in IETF hotel policy

From: "Matt Crawford" <[email-masked]>
Date: Wed, 20 Jan 1999 11:17:47 -0600

I just made a reservation for the Minneapolis meeting.  Near the
conclusion of the protocol, the Hilton reservation person said my
credit card would be charged for one night on *January 30*.

I said that was absurd and I'd never heard of such a thing before.
She said it was the hotel's policy.  I objected again and was
planning to take it up quietly with the secretariat's hotel liaison,
but after consultation with her supervisor she changed the story.
She said it wasn't the hotel's policy -- it was the sponsoring
organization's requirement!

Since the charge will be made six weeks before the meeting, I'll have
to pay it long before being reimbursed, and I suppose that will be
true for many of us.

I recall the statement that one or more previous meetings had room
blocks that filled up with reservations that were later cancelled.
That's a problem that calls for some response, but I'm not very happy
about this proposed solution.

In general, the secretariat is to be applauded for innovating.  In
this instance, I'm sitting on my hands.

				Matt Crawford