i haven't, but sure some probably have. Personally I would NEVER give direct access to my checking account. Credit cards provide protection in case of unapproved charges.
Agree with bamoore above. I've never used one, nor would I. But my understanding is with debit cards money is taken immediately from your account and then (hopefully) refunded later. It's not a hold as it would be with a credit card. A hold means the funds are never taken, just that a portion of your credit limit is set aside in case there are charges at some future point. The hold is then removed when you check out. Nothing has been taken, so nothing to be given back.
I have thought about getting a card with a limit of $500 for this type of need. That way they just can't build up a lot of charges. Couple years ago a TV stopped working in a friend's room at TTR. He ended up with an $1,100 charge on his card. (He disputed and TTR didn't fight it). We have heard other stories of excessive and unknown "accidental" charges but have never experienced it. Anyway, I think we have only had to give a card on check-in once or twice at TTR. Most times they don't ask for one.
I used a debit card on our last trip as I forgot my credit card! And coming from the UK my Amex adds extra charges for transactions in different currencies so ended up better for us anyway. If I remember correctly, the charge was pending in my account the whole time we were there and the transaction showed up on my statement as £0.01. I didn’t have any issues afterwards but I have seen others have had unexpected or fraudulent charges on cards they have used which I realise is where you may have less protection if using a debit card over a credit card.
I could be wrong here, but if I remember, TTR desk will request the same card you used to pay for the trip.
They always seem to have one problem or another every time we go. This time was a personal best for them. We were double billed for the balance that totaled almost 4k and then had 400.00 holds on our credit card twice. If that was on a debit card, I could see it causing a real problem. Every time it has gotten straightened out but they need to figure out what the problem is. It kind of makes them look shady.
