Please read this if you have booked a room at the Tulip Inn hotel or plan to do it.

There is a problem with the hotel booking, and your urgent action is needed, see below.

WHAT HAPPENED: There was a misunderstanding between us and the hotel as to how you should book your rooms. The hotel expected that you would call them or send email, while I understood that you should enter to the webpage (which is the most natural thing to do, isn't it?).

WHAT'S THE PROBLEM: I've just found out that this hotel has two ways of booking rooms. One way is directly with the personnel of the hotel, via phone or email. Another way is through the webpage and the automatic system. However, it turned out that the webpage and the system is not managed by the hotel but belongs to an agency unrelated to the hotel. The discounted price was agreed with the hotel, but not with that agency. If one books through this webpage, the agency does not give the discount agreed with the hotel, but just charges the public price, which is almost twice higher. Unfortunately, the hotel has no control over this agency and cannot prevent them to charge your card.

WHAT IS THE RISK: If you book your room through the webpage, you may end up paying the public price without discount. As far as I understand, this should only apply to one night that the agency charges you; the hotel has no way to cancel the charge or recover this cost. The difference is some $50 for one night.

WHAT TO DO: If you have booked a room through the webpage, please immediately cancel this -- there should be a way of canceling through the same webpage. There seems to be a limited time for cancellation; otherwise they will charge your card for one night.

HOW TO BOOK: I am not saying you should cancel your stay at this hotel. The hotel is excellent and gives excellent price. I only say that you should book it in a different way. To book it well, please send an email to Beatriz Salamanca or call her to landline +52 55 5130 0160 ext 112 or cell +52 1 55 9189 4188, and give her all the details, including the very important data that you come to CICLing. She can ask for your credit card number and this is OK, though we also agreed with her that if you find sending her the number insecure, you can give it when arrive here. In fact if you have filled in the registration form on http://www.cicling.org/2009/registration.htm then this should be enough, but it is better if you contact Beatriz anyway.

IS THAT WEBPAGE FRAUDULENT? No, this is a webpage of an agency that really sells rooms in this hotel; the only difference is that our deal about discount for CICLing was not with this agency but with the hotel itself (and we did not realize the difference).

CAN THE HOTEL HELP IF YOUR CARD HAS BEEN CHARGED? No, they has no control over that agency.

WILL WE REALLY ALL STAY AT THIS HOTEL? Yes, there are more than 30 reservations made by now, and all tours and transportation will be from this hotel.

WHAT IS THE CORRECT PRICE? 500 pesos (some 35 dollars), not including breakfast (see Announcements on http://www.cicling.org/2009/ for a discussion).

I apologize for the problem.