Q: I recently stayed at the Howard Johnson Oceanfront Plaza Hotel in Ocean City, Md. When we arrived at the hotel early Friday morning, the room was not cleaned, the bed was not made from the previous occupants.

I went to the front desk and I was told they were booked solid for my entire stay and the room couldn't be cleaned until the next day. We reluctantly agreed to sleep in the unclean room.

I spoke with the head of housekeeping, the manager on duty the morning we checked in, the manager on duty Saturday morning, and the manager on duty Sunday when we checked out. Every time I tried to get a resolution I was told there was nothing that could be done. My only option was to go to another hotel and forfeit my money for the remainder of the stay. We endured the stay.

A: Ewww. You slept in an unmade bed? Someone should give you an award for the most accommodating hotel guest. Ever.

Obviously -- and I can't believe I have to point this out -- Howard Johnson should have offered you a clean room. If it mistakenly gave you the key to a room with an unmade bed, it should have offered to change your sheets immediately. It doesn't matter when you check in -- clean sheets are the bare minimum.

When I received your letter, my first response was disbelief. I asked you why you didn't protest the conditions in your room more loudly. You say you did, but that the hotel staff was equally insistent that they couldn't clean the room and that your only other option was to leave, but that you'd still be charged for the room. I don't like those choices.

As always, your best bet is to resolve the problem right there and then. It might have been helpful to contact Howard Johnson at the corporate level.

By agreeing to live in an unclean room, you limited your chances of resolving this grievance. Once you check out, a hotel is far less likely to compensate you for a substandard stay. One way to light a fire under it is to rope the corporate office into each complaint and subsequent rebuttal. Many hotels fine a franchisee that ignores a customer complaint.

So don't accept the hand-off to the hotel by the hotel chain. Keep corporate Howard Johnson in the loop, because that keeps pressure on the individual hotel.

I contacted the hotel on your behalf. A representative contacted you, and admitted the hotel had experienced some housekeeping problems while you were a guest. Howard Johnson refunded $131 to your credit card.

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