Ramada Sucks!

In preparations for my cruise next year, I booked a hotel room in Ft. Lauderdale. Yeah, so I booked it almost a year in advance, but the cruise also happens to set sail on Superbowl weekend, which will also be in the area. This is important because I always fly in a day early so I don't miss the boat. The fact that is it also Superbowl weekend is important because all hotels and other businesses see big, fat dollar signs and hike up their rates to obscene figures. I secured a room (along with most everyone else cruising in my group), at a decent, pre-Superbowl rate at a Ramada in Ft. Lauderdale. Just a bare bones, no frills hotel.

Then, the big-wig bastards at the hotel pulled our reserved bookings. Out of the 40 rooms we booked, our agent was able to scramble and re-secure 13 of those rooms at a slightly more inflated rate than I originally booked. I don't know if there is some sort of legal loophole that enables them to do this, but we have people looking into it now. For the time being, we are told that if we still want the 13 rooms, perhaps we can bunk up with other people in our group so we can camp out for an even cheaper rate. $155 between 4 people is, what, roughly $40 a person?

Even so, I am still hacked. I've got a separate travel agent looking into finding alternative hotel arrangements, preferably NOT at any Ramada. I'd much prefer staying at a Marriott-based hotel because I always get good service there, but I doubt I can find anything less than $150 a night.

However, I am open to any suggestions to help out in this matter. Does anyone have any frequent hotel points they care to donate??? A guest house on the beach I could stay at for the night???

Anyone??