BLV

I'm a bit conflicted about how to feel, so please let me know if the hotel handled it properly.

Emailed the property for a reservation on certain dates in May. They've responded in 24 hours with their availability. I emailed back with some questions regarding my stay and received a reply in another 24 hours. Again, I've emailed back with some more questions (if they will be able to make reservations specific to their property & staff) and reply came in within the same timeframe. Final email from me was asking to add an extra night to my stay (from 4 to 5) and the response came back with "Sorry, we're full".

Now, of course I realize that my fault lies in the fact that I didn't immediately secure the dates with a credit card and the hotel had no way of knowing the seriousness of my intentions (although should have been obvious from the specific questions I've been emailing them with) but, and here's the big but - I would have been a returning guest for a third year in a row. Should they have warned me that if I don't secure the dates with a credit card the availability will disappear? Also, this is the first time that the communication has been so poor, keeping the time difference in mind. In previous years, all of my communication with the property didn't leave me waiting for a reply for 24 hours.

I've relayed my thoughts to the hotel GM but it's been over two weeks and I still haven't heard back.

I've had to change my plans and I'm now staying elsewhere (a different country, actually lol) but I would love to hear the collective wisdom of FT

LM225

Probably, though agree with Distilled below: that would be above and beyond.

This, to me, is the bigger issue. For the GM to not respond to an email from a repeat guest for that long (provided it wasn't lost in a spam folder or some contact form black hole) isn't okay.

The staff take their cues from the top, and if that sort of thing is okay with the GM, well...it's not too surprising you had poor communication from the staff.

RichardInSF

What hotel? When, is it over a high demand period? What type of room? What is your detailed history with this hotel, did you get to know management, etc? We can't help you much if you don't give us specifics.

Distilled

I would have to disagree about the need to warn you that availability might disappear. Whenever one asks about availability, I think it is understood that the answer you get will be only valid for that moment in time. It sounds like it took several days of you emailing them back and forth without committing to anything. If someone else comes by with a valid method of payment and says "I'll take it," that's just the way it goes. I don't think you can fault them for that. Availability can disappear at any time, and I wouldn't think that any property would hold anything for me while I go back and forth thinking about, no matter how serious my questions were.

You being a repeat guest, on the other hand, perhaps it would have been nice for them to help you make the decision more quickly, but that would have been above and beyond.

BLV

Property is in South of France It wouldn't have been a suite but not the cheapest room either. My detailed history? I've stayed total of 10 nights during summer of 2013 & 2014. Had the hotel arrange many things for me, that's where I'm also a bit annoyed that communication this time around was once every 24 hours. However, my "getting to know management" or the GM to be exact, stems from an unfortunate incident during initial stay in 2013 (theft of a high end item). But even that didn't stop me from coming back following year. Up to this point I've had nothing but great things to say about them and while I'm almost on their side with this one, the fact that I am a returning guest and haven't heard from the GM who's also been extremely responsive in the past is not sitting too well with me. And just to make it clear - me thinking that I should have been warned regarding availability has absolutely nothing to do with the incident in 2013.

It's a wonderful property and the chance of me returning is still very high.

RichardInSF

OK, a bit more officially now: Since you're apparently averse to naming the hotel, we have no way of knowing if it's a luxury hotel or not. Therefore, I'll give the thread a little more time here and then move it to the FT dedicated forum on France for further comment.

RichardInSF, moderator, luxury hotels

BLV

Richard, I'd prefer not to give the hotel name because it's not a post where I'm bashing the hotel in light of the information that was revealed about it but rest assured, it is a luxury property. See PM.

pricesquire

Maybe it's because I deal with hotels every. single. day....but losing availability over the course of multiple emails is the rule, not the exception - especially with popular, lux hotels..or those over popular periods of time..etc.

The attorney in me says you COULD make an argument: hotel has a duty to warn you "as of this time we are not holding any rooms blah blah blah"....but that's a stretch, and is kind of common knowledge these days (or is it?).

The bigger issue to me, albeit it doesn't help you with getting a reservation, is the lack of a response for 2+ weeks.

That said.....an email like that, to me at least, belongs with a reservation manager or a non-GM player. GMs are really damn busy, and I can totally see a GM writing this off as "common knowledge, too busy to deal with you, etc"...not excusing it, but I can't imagine a GM getting involved with an almost-reservation that never happened.

My .02 cents..

ABG

I still drill into my team that you don't always have to email and sit and wait for a reply...while there people are confirming bookings and taking that suite you really wanted. The costs are basically zero today for live telephone calls and you can often clear up anything that is not clear in a email or discuss various room types a lot faster. I think that is part of the lesson here.

pricesquire

Couldn't agree more. As trustworthy as email is, it takes time, and you never know whose on the other end of that email. Emails to reservation departments are often staffed with multiple people. 3 staffers may respond to one email, none of them communicating with each other. Just call and talk to one person.

BLV

Yes & yes to calling but I'm not dealing with a huge corporate property that has "staffers" & "departments". This property should have, imho, recognized me as a returning guest, especially since I was also emailing about the new reservation as a reply to prior correspondence with them. Scrolling down is all that had to be done.

NYBanker

You do this but then not lock that Orlando spam?

BLV

Having given it more thought and especially after reading everyone's responses, I do think that the property is of the caliber (i.e., not corporate, not a chain and exclusive enough) where I would have expected an "above & beyond" approach and was a bit disappointed when they didn't come through on this one.

Thanks again. If anyone needs to know what the property is and doubts whether it belongs in this forum, feel free to browse my posts with photos. Shouldn't be THAT hard to figure out but once again, my opinion of the hotel as a whole remains unchanged. Almost

RichardInSF

OK, asked and answered to the OP's satisfaction, so closing the thread.

RichardInSF, moderator, luxury hotels