A woman who booked a stay at a BC hotel only found out it was closed when she tried phoning to ask about air conditioning. She says the third-party travel company she booked through never alerted her.
Andrea Hudson booked her stay at the historic Salmo Hotel through Expedia last year as soon as she knew the dates for this summer’s Shambhala Music Festival. She got two rooms for five friends so they’d have time to rest after their long drive before entering the festival.
She tried contacting the hotel recently to confirm it was air-conditioned and learned something surprising: the hotel has been closed since September because of a devastating fire.
“I couldn’t get an answer at the hotel so I Googled them to make sure I had the right number. That’s when I came across the ‘temporarily closed’ notice and the articles about the fire,” she said. “I’m glad I checked before we pulled up to a burned-out shell of a building.”
The reservation still shows up on her end from Expedia, prompting her to check in soon.
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She told Expedia about the situation, and the last she heard, the travel company was trying to contact the hotel. Expedia has not replied to Daily Hive’s request for comment.
The Salmo Hotel told Daily Hive it moved all existing reservations to other area motels or cancelled them and notified guests. It said its process was complete by November 2023 and it has no outstanding reservations in its system.
In the meantime, Hudson rushed to book alternate accommodation. Luckily, she found something, but it was more expensive and 50 kilometres away.
“For a little while, I was afraid I wouldn’t be able to find anything else. The festival draws so many people I was amazed that there was anything anywhere in the area,” she said.
She’s frustrated she didn’t get a notification from Expedia about the closure earlier. The hotel has now been closed for 10 months.
She’s sharing her story to warn others going to the music festival to double-check and to remind all travellers to look up their accommodation directly.
“I just wanted to make sure any other over planners didn’t have an unpleasant surprise.”