W Hollywood hotel won't let you in the pool? How to get what you paid for from hotels and airlines

During a recent stay at Starwood's W Hollywood hotel in Los Angeles, despite the fact I was paying $230 a night for my stay, I was denied access to the pool. It was listed among the amenities I was getting for my top dollar, but because the W makes money by contracting with a Vegas-style promoter that devotes the pool deck to hipsters from the outside world, I was stopped at the door.

I wrote in detail about the W Hollywood insult on our sister site devoted to smart travel, Gadling.com. That post captured a fair bit of media attention from the likes ofThe Economistand Consumerist.com.

I call this getting "ripped off." And there are ways you can protect yourself from it when other hotels and airlines try it.