Hilton HHonors - Have you ever been refused a room in a Scandic/Hilton despite space being available?

Do Hilton hotels have right to choose it´s customers or are hotels obliged to sell their rooms to anyone who can pay and is behaving orderly? I am especially interested about Scandics and Swedish law in this matter.

What are your thoughts about situation described below?

I was recently staying with friend of mine at Scandic
Anglais hotel in Stockholm, Sweden (10.08.2007 until 11.08.2007). Thanks to my Hilton
Diamond status we were able to get a rather nice room - big balcony,
good view, spacious bathroom etc. A third person, a mutual friend of
ours, was also travelling with us, but he was not staying
at Scandic but at a small private apartment 500 meters away.

We are in our late 20s/early 30s and had few drinks during that night,
but not much. I personally consumed only three beers and we were
definitely not drunk (no yelling, no difficulty with walking nor anything
of that nature). Around 3 AM, when clubs and pubs started to close, we
wanted to invite our friend to our room for a nightcap, but the
hotel's main door was closed and a security worker refused to let us in
(he blocked the door with his body and "What do you want?" was his first
question).

After checking our names from guest's list he decided to allow me
and the other registered guest to the hotel, but not the third . The security
worker told us that visitors are not allowed in after 11 PM. Our friend
was not even allowed into the lobby.

I understand why hotels do not allow visitors to the rooms during
the night (indeed I knew beforehand that many hotels have such a rule, but I
usually do not bring visitors along and until we reached the entrance
door this rule was
just wiped out of my head). At this point, I find it important to
stress, that despite confusion there was no prolonged arguing,
no yelling or anything of that nature at the door (all this can be
confirmed by the security camera recordings). Our friend, whom we wanted to
invite over, did not say a single word and remained at least 1,5
meters away from the hotel main door at all times.

Reception had been so chilly, humiliating and in contradiction to the
very good impression we had received at this hotel during the daytime,
that I went
to the check-in desk and inquired whether it would be possible to buy a
second room for the third person involved. That way, I thought, he would
be a legitimate guest and this situation would be a win-win for all of
us, including
the hotel. There was no desperate NEED for the third person to come over
(he was staying just nearby), but I just wanted to have it my way and
save my friend from the awkward situation.

"There are no rooms. Hotel is sold out," told the check-in rep Jasmine
to me icily.

I apologized outside to my friends and the third person walked to
his apartment, but because the hotel had seemed to be rather empty during
the evening, I decided to verify the words of Jasmine and called to Hilton
HHonors Diamond Special Services from my room. A guy from Diamond
Special Services seemed to be a bit surprised that I would like to
book a room for the night, which was almost over, but indeed there was
availability for 1700 SEK per night. He was totally lost on why a hotel
would say anything in contradiction to the real availability.

I went back to the reception and reminded Jasmine that according to Hilton
HHonors there were rooms available at this hotel. She changed her
story a bit and told me that although rooms might be available, she was not
allowed to make any new reservations during the night time. She was still
rather icy, cut me short and wondered why would I want to discuss this with
her at all. I answered: "Because I hate lies" and went to bed. "I hate
lies" were strongest statement I ever used.

The incident bothered me so much that I managed to sleep only for 4 hours
and went back to reception at 8 AM. New shift had arrived and a check-in
clerk told me that the night shift left her a letter about the incident and
that she was not allowed to discuss this matter with me. She
recommended that I should speak with the hotel manager Sophia instead. Sophia
arrived in the afternoon, told me that she was "sorry" about the incident
and suggested that the night-shift was perhaps afraid that we would start
"a wild party or something" (it is important to mention here that we did
not try to carry alcohol or, in the matter of fact, anything at all,
to the hotel at 3 AM and that hotel). She also insisted that they
have "a rule" at Scandic Anglais
to choose customers during the night time in order to avoid
potential "trouble". I asked whether influence of alcohol is the only
factor they take into account and Sophia replied that other criteria
are used as well. I asked her whether they would have had rented a room
to a nice Swedish couple in their 60ties (even if they were a bit
tipsy) and Sophia avoided direct answer by claiming that the selection is
done at the discretion of the night shift. I asked to see these rules
covering guest selection criteria, but according to Sophia the rules in
question were not meant for customers to view. I told Sophia that
the hotel would definitely have manpower (two security workers) to remove
any customer who would actually inconvenience others, but she insisted
that it is better to avoid such suspicious guests altogether. I
reminded her that I have
stayed at more than 28 Scandics and Hiltons during the last 12 months
without any incidents and this should have built some credibility.
Sophia told again that she was sorry and asked whether I would like to
get anything in compensation. I told her that I am not interested in
compensation at all and accused the hotel in discrimination. Sophia answered
that Scandic is a very open-minded company and that they do not discriminate
against anyone but, if I do not like Scandic Anglais, I can stay at
other Scandics in the future. I paid my bill and left.

Now, I really liked Scandic Anglais (nice design, LCD-TVs, spacious
balcony, great breakfast until 2 PM on weekends), but such door-policy
is unacceptable. This must stop. Hotel is not a private club and can't
choose its customers by
dress/face/nationality/appearance/other preconceptions. The only
criteria, in my opinion, can be behaviour and ability to pay.

But what do you think?

Honest answer. I like their policy. When I go to a hotel, I want to be able to sleep ... not listen to a loud party next doors.

I'm not saying your group would have done that, but the policy in place certainly prevents it.

Your post has made me more likely to stay at this hotel in the future.

I was a night auditor at a hotel during college, and I was told by management I could refuse to rent a room to anyone at anytime based upon my discretion, and I know from talking to ther night auditors at other hotels they were working under the same instructions.

Your post has made me more likely to stay at this hotel in the future.

Fair enough.. I hope you will fit the profile of desired guest. ;)

I was a night auditor at a hotel during college, and I was told by management I could refuse to rent a room to anyone at anytime based upon my discretion, and I know from talking to ther night auditors at other hotels they were working under the same instructions.

Interesting! Was this a Hilton you were working for? Was there a more precise guidance given by management how to detect undesirables (particular race, age, sex, dress or look)? How often you enforced your powers and was there a thrill in doing that?

AFAIK, most, if not all, hotel night desk staff are empowered to refuse service. In many countries, this is tempered by training that they must not refuse exclusively on the basis of protected categories or group characteristics (e.g. gender, race / skin color / culture, etc.) but rather on observable behaviors or other clues that provide reasonable suspicion.

In the end, if they err, they will be held responsible by management to explain why they declined revenue and risked upsetting a potential guest. From the information presented here, perhaps a misunderstanding and a nervous clerk, added to by the sudden (unexplainable to the night clerk) decision to request a room for a person who already was staying at nearby lodging. It certainly would be interesting if we could perceive the incident through the POV of the clerk. :)

but such door-policy
is unacceptable. This must stop. Hotel is not a private club and can't
choose its customers by
dress/face/nationality/appearance/other preconceptions. The only
criteria, in my opinion, can be behaviour and ability to pay.And what is the basis for such a statement?

In most democratic societies, everything that is not prohibited is permitted. Applicable laws may prohibit the hotel from refusing service to someone, based on specific designated criteria, such as ethnicity, race, gender, etc. From what you have described, a member of your party was refused service, based on other members' apparent levels of intoxication (however small), and hotel's concerns for the [potential dis-]comfort of its other guests.

Most forms of discrimination are perfectly legal -- after all, you do get to chose your own friends, don't you? What would you think if someone claimed a right to be your friend, and accused you of "discrimination" if you said no? :D Likewise, most commercial businesses have a right to choose its customers.

What are your thoughts about situation described below?

===================

My thoughts are simple. So what? The hotel chose not to allow your friend in at 3AM in the morning to join two other people in their room. I'd say that the night clerk was looking out for all of their guests that might have been sleeping. Just because you offered to pay for a room doesn't matter - obviously the person would have ended up in your room anyways. At 3am what are people going to do?.....perhaps DRINKING.....which leads to loud voices, loud music, etc, etc for many people. Which would lead to other people waking up and calling the desk clerk and demanding that they be able to get some SLEEP!!!

Now if your friend would have been an attractive young Swedish woman then I'd be incensed!! ;)

That this hotel -- whose management tries so hard for it to be a "cool" party venue with a noisy affiliated bar/lounge -- would refuse a guest on the basis of "making noise" is entertaining.

As long as there is no discrimination on the basis of certain factors -- including nationality, ethnicity, race, religion, creed, disability, gender, sexual orientation, marital status -- there are circumstances where they may refuse service without rubbing Swedish judges the wrong way. [Reminder: ask MSA about age discrimination, particularly vis-a-vis travelling/stranded youth.] That the night audit had already taken place could be excuse enough to deny accomodation of another guest.

In the OP's situation, making a guaranteed reservation over the phone -- if the system still allowed for reservations for that night so late -- would be a workaround for the person coming in or at least create grounds for putting the check-in agent on the spot.

FWIW or not worth, there was a stabbing in the vicinity of the hotel a couple of nights ago. Either some kind of petty gang fight and/or a bar fight got out of hand in Stureplan, around the corner from the hotel. (This is not to say the area is unsafe, as I have no concern with walking around there by myself in the dark hours.)

Lesson: if there is no additional cost, have an additional guest (with a gender ambiguous name) included under the booking or at check-in.

Thanks for all who expressed their thoughts. Just FYI: I am currently staying at Four Points Sheraton Quito (spent two nights at Hilton Quito as well, but Sheraton is bit better) and written policy at Sheraton is: "Visitors to your room or hotel facilities should be persons well know by our guests".
No intention to invite anyone to my room, but I definetely like when hotel trusts their customers.