Wow. For those of you who have watched my postings ove the years, you know that I am not one to be negative. I try to be bend-over-backwards balanced and give the benefit of the doubt to everyone.
HOWEVER, this (my first stay at the Sheraton Springfield MA) is really one that I need to share with you all.
I am in the club lounge now typing on the free internet computer. (I waited for 10 minutes for a Sheraton maintenance guy who was checking his ebay orders to finish up. Is that unbelievable or what? And, yes, they knew I was waiting...)
When I checked in, the front desk advised that there were no suites available and that I had been assigned to a "great room." I marched up to my room and was amazed to find a dark and drab double bed room. Yuk. I had clearly requested a King. No effort to read that on my reservation prior to my arrival for the preassigned room.
So, they moved me to a jr suite. Of the three phones in that room, only one worked. no kidding. The front desk called me three times to make sure I loved my new room; the first two calls I picked up the dead receiver and none of us could figure out what was going on. Also, the furniture was truly truly the pits. Ragged on all edges and heavily stained with dark blotches. This is unacceptable. Uh, by the way, this was an upgradeable suite that I was told at check-in did not exist.
Neither of these rooms had new beds and had the old polyester bedspreads that we all got used to in the 1970s.
The jr suite oddly had a work desk with neither a lamp (nor light of any sort) nor a phone ( never mind a working one). No phone jack within 20 feet of the work desk -- so much for the laptop!! This is nuts.
Moved again to a real suite. Much nicer room with lots of light. Getting plenty of work done now. Disappointed to find a card in my closet telling me NOT to steal the robe, but guess what....no robe anyway! Also, there is a nice new coffee maker, but housekeeping failed to give me any coffee packets. Good Lord.
Came up to the Club Lounge for a soda and interrupted the lounge attendant who was both on her cell phone and applying makeup while sitting on a couch. She is now talking at great length about male-pattern baldness with the maintenance guy I kicked off this computer that is here exclusively for the use of Sheraton guests. They are the only ones in this room besides me and seem to care less about their volume or the inattentiveness to me.
I don't know who's running the show here, but it is truly in a sad state of affairs. In my many years of travel, I have not had an experience quite like this one. *wood would be wise to sneak a stealth visitor or two into this place and see how even Plats are (mis)treated.
I did invoke (for the first time!) the Sheraton Promise and that's why I was moved two times. The highest manager on duty was the restaurant manager, who was nice enough.
I cannot recommend this hotel to you. It feels very much like I have stepped into a Holiday Inn from 1985. Very disappointing.
(Lounge attendant is now filing her nails. I'm outta here.)