Case of the Lost Night

Peter Greenberg’s article on overbooked hotel rooms (July 17) really hit home. Last November we booked a TWA Getaway Tour to Hawaii and prepaid the tour. The plane was more than 1 1/2 hours late leaving LAX and so we did not arrive at the Aston Island Colony in Honolulu until 3:30 a.m.

On arrival we were told that they did not have a reservation for us and did not have a room. This was most upsetting. After about an hour we were sent to an Outrigger hotel--without our luggage, by the way--for a couple of hours sleep before the 9 a.m. orientation meeting. The TWA staff at the meeting wasn’t any help either.

After many phone calls and letters, TWA denied us compensation for the lost night, even though the tour was guaranteed. Aston Hotels & Resorts did compensate us for the first night and apologized.

All in all, this was not a pleasant experience for two weary travelers on our first trip to Hawaii.

MRS. JAMES PASCO

West Hills