Great hotel - it’s a shame that the staff let it down.
Prior to our arrival, we contacted the hotel to let them know that we would be arriving after check-in had closed (at 10pm). They were very helpful and provided us with instructions to enter the property by ourselves using an app.
When we arrived, we managed to get into the lobby (using the app), but the room key we were given was different than the one we were told on the phone and email. As a result, we were unable to enter our assigned room.
Assuming that our room number had been changed, we tried the key in the door that matched the new number (as there were no staff or guests around, and no one was answering the phone or emails). It opened and revealed a couple, asleep, inside. Obviously, we were mortified that we had disturbed the hotel guests, and also terrified that we would have to sleep in the hotel lobby until check-in opened at 6am.
After about an hour of searching around the lobby for clues about who to contact, we knocked on some private doors. Thankfully, a man came out and used a master key to let us in. It was clear that we had woken him up (by this point it was 2am). Again, we were sorry to have done so, but were left with no choice.
After we had successfully entered our room, I sent an email to the front desk letting them know what had just happened and that we would like them to apologise (on our behalf) to the guests and staff we woke up. They never replied. In fact, every time we mentioned it, the staff member made excuses like “I wasn’t there so I don’t have anything to do with it” and “the guy who organised the late check-in was training so he made a mistake”. There was absolutely nothing in the way of an apology or compensation for the mix-up until we checked out and it was already too late. We would like the hotel to know that mistakes are bound to happen, so it is imperative that they have a back-up (emergency number or night staff) for guests who have been given the wrong room key.
In addition, since we had been travelling for a while, we were running out of clothes and needed to do a load of laundry. We followed the instructions for the housekeeping staff to collect our laundry but found that when we had returned to the hotel, the laundry had not been done and the room had not been made up. When we went downstairs to inform the staff of this, we were told “housekeeping doesn’t go back to rooms to clean them after you took off the do not disturb sign, I’ve worked in lots of hotels and this is always the policy”. This member of staff eventually helped us find an laundromat, but the contempt with which we were spoken to was unacceptable and uncaring of the fact that we, too, have plenty of experience in the hotel industry as customers. An apology would have sufficed.
Overall, it was a great hotel in a fantastic location. Just make sure you’re okay with passive aggressive communication before you book.
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