Conference hotline to complain, but all those weasels would say was there was nothing they could do about it, or in the case of the hotel, it was their standard policy.

While I agree in principle to your statement, you are flogging a dead horse. Since all the hotels in Vegas have adopted this policy, you are caught between a rock and a hard place. It's kinda the same as when one gas station raises its prices, the rest follow suit. I think that you will raise awareness of the situation, and other cities will follow suit. Yes, it is a 10 month interest free loan. Yes, it it unfair. But, they have the hotel rooms and have a Greater Las Vegas Hotel Association who sets the policies. It is pretty much the same as price fixing and collusion, but if you want to stay there...

I travel alot on business, and more and more this deposit in advance is cropping up. Once hotels realize that the customer has no choice and they can get away with it, it will become even more universal. You will find soon that that 25% will become 50%, then 75% and so on.

This is because as we become more transient, and plans change, more airlines and hotels are getting stuck with empty rooms and plane seats, etc. (at least this is their claim) and they will not foot the bill for it any longer. Reality is that most of these seats and rooms are re-rented. The airlines have come up with an alternate solution. Its called overbooking. They reserve the right to book a plane to 200% capacity. (usually about 130%) You could theoretically show up and be denied boarding because they sold the same seat to 2 people. In practice this happens less frequently than you'd think. How would you feel if the hotel charged no deposit and then when you arrived, 2000 miles from home and said "Sorry you're screwed, we have no rooms left, we overbooked try another hotel." or "We have oversold our rooms, but we will have one for you tomorrow." This has happened twice to me and I have no deposit and no recourse but to try and find accomodation elsewhere at 10:00 PM. Yes they created ill will, but they have a captive audience when everyone does the same. (My reserved $115 a night room cost me $425 that night)

There are no easy answers. I prefer to pay a deposit (refundable or non-refundable) to arriving to no accomodation. It is easy to say you'd prefer overbooking until it has happened to you.

This is just my opinion.