Super 8 Motel - Bozeman, Bozeman

I made an online reservation (guaranteed with credit card) to stay at the super 8. My husband and I arrived at 11pm, tired and ready for bed. The front desk staff checked us into a room, then at the last minute realized they had given that room away. They spent over an hour looking through their records to try to find an empty room. Apparently their computer and paper records did not correspond, so they had no idea which room -- if any -- was still available. During this time, the front desk staff was unable to make telephone contact with any manager who might be able to assist them. In the meantime, my husband and I tried to get a room elsewhere in town, but all were booked. We tried to contact the manager (whose card was on the front desk), but there was no answer. We also used that time to search for a new hotel. The front desk staff made only one call on our behalf - to the other super 8 in town - and that call was unsuccessful. My husband and I wound up driving until 2am to find another hotel, which was more expensive. When we requested a refund of the difference in price, the hotel was nonresponsive. We finally contacted corporate headquarters, and they agreed to refund us -- although we still haven't seen any money. In the meantime, the local manager sent us a letter indicating that we were not entitled to a refund, since their records showed that our reservation automatically cancelled when we did not check in before midnight. Of course, we have a receipt indicating that they charged us for our nonexistant room at 11:08pm before realizing they had given it away. This letter prompted me to write my first ever review of a hotel experience. I can understand that mistakes may be made, but it is inexcusable to treat us as if we were at fault after giving away our room and making us search on our own for 3 hours for another place to stay during a busy weekend!