ReservatiCharged $3,700 Despite Cancelling Within 24 Hours – No Stay, No Flexibilityon cancelled within 24 hours…
Reservation cancelled within 24 hours (three months before stay) – $3,700 charged and no rooms provided despite repeated attempts to resolve
I am writing this review simply to document my experience with the Golden Gate Hotel in San Francisco.
In October 2025 I began planning a family gathering in San Francisco to celebrate my mother’s 90th birthday. I contacted the hotel by phone to inquire about reserving six rooms for the celebration. The hotel confirmed preliminary availability for the requested dates and advised that reservations should be completed online. In subsequent communications they recommended booking directly through the Golden Gate website and noted that doing so would provide approximately a 15% direct-booking discount.
On October 25, 2025, after confirming availability again by phone when the dates initially appeared blocked online, I attempted to complete the reservation through the hotel’s website as instructed. Unbeknownst to me, the booking process redirected to a third-party booking platform. Later that day I received notice from a completely different party (HotelsOne/Expedia) that my booking went through them.
The following morning, October 26, after realizing the reservation had not been made directly through the hotel, I immediately cancelled the booking, believing the reservation had been made incorrectly and that I would also forfeit the discounted rate. This cancellation occurred approximately 24 hours after booking and more than three months before the intended stay in January.
I acknowledge that I missed the “non-refundable” fine print in the third-party booking terms. However, the cancellation was made promptly, and the hotel later confirmed that it received the cancellation request at 4:05 a.m. that same morning.
Over the following weeks I made repeated attempts to resolve the matter, still intending for my family to stay at the hotel (and pay) for the celebration. I sent emails and made follow-up calls on several occasions (including October 27, October 29, November 7, and November 12), and I also visited the hotel in person while in San Francisco. I have kept all documented correspondence. Unfortunately, none of these efforts resulted in any meaningful response or engagement.
The result was that approximately $3,700 was charged for a reservation that was cancelled within 24 hours, more than three months before the stay, and for which no rooms were ultimately used by my family. The room itself was released and could be booked again for the same dates.
What was meant to be a special celebration for my mother’s 90th birthday instead became a long and very frustrating experience involving months of correspondence and formal complaints.
I am posting this simply so other travelers understand what occurred and can make their own informed decisions