They do put ONE night's stay on your credit card. That solves a multitude of problems for them. Like people who cancel at the last minute or want to book a half dozen rooms in case friends might want one, etc. etc. etc. They did not do that before people started being abusive. And it should not be a problem. If the fates decide I should stay home for a whelping, there will be lots of people who will gladly take the room off my hands. If I left the $149 in my checking account for 8 months. I might earn 2 bucks at the current rate. Whoopie!