batboy

I just completed a 2 week California vacation that included a terrible stay at the Four Seasons Santa Barbara. I am in the process of writing a letter detailing my problems with the resort and was wondering who, other than the manager of the resort, I should send it to.

Thoughts?

Babu

Hi Batboy.

Not sure who else to write, but may I rquest you to please post the letter in this thread as well? Thanks.

luxury

batboy I am sorry to hear that you had a sub-par experience at the FS Santa Barbara. As babu has suggested you can always post your experiences here for further reflection and opinions of other FTers as they can offer insights in how best to proceed.

Optimally, it would have been best to broach the subject with the Duty Manager (or highest ranking Manager in the hotel at the time) at, or just before check-out; however, the best person to write to is Mr. Wolf Hengst, President, Worldwide Hotel Operations, at Four Seasons Corporate Head Office in Toronto, Canada, and cc the letter to the Santa Barbara GM. The guest comment cards at all Four Seasons Hotels are addressed to him.

While Four Seasons, or any other hotel for that matter, can be always perfect, I believe one of Four Seasons' strengths lies in handling comments and guest complaints of service failure and doing whatever they can to ensure it doesn't happen again and to make it up to you in some way.

Do keep us informed of how things go. Good luck

mauld

I recently had some problems at the FS Las Vegas (which I did write up on FT)--I filled out the card listing the problem I had and turned it in when checking out. Two or three days later I received a phone call at home from the Manager asking about the problem I had, and he seemed truly concerned. He then apologized for them, and said he was sending me an upgrade certificate for a suite at a future stay. I received the letter/cert about a week later.

batboy

Thanks for your replies.

I wish that I had spoken to a manager about my problems while I was still at the property, but 1) I was feeling non-confrontational at the time, so when the front desk clerk had nothing but smiles and apologies, I let it go, 2) I didn't see a comment card otherwise I would have immediately filled one out, and 3) it wasn't really until after I left the property and stayed at other hotels on the same vacation that I realized how truly 'ripped-off' we got. By way of example, our stay following the FS Santa Barbara was the Beverly Hills Hotel. For $125 less per night, we got: a non-upgraded room that blew away the FS in every way, a bathroom that was 5x as large and infinitely more comfortable and luxurious, and a breakfast allocation that actually didn't cause us to spend additional money just to get 2 traditional egg breakfasts (unlike the FS Bed and Breakfast package). Sometimes it takes a like-comparison to put things in perspective.

I'll post my letter shortly and keep you apprised of any consequences.

francophile

I wrote to Mr. Hengst about my dissapointing stay at their Vancouver property. The room was very comfortable and the service was generally good. However, a fire alarm went off during the middle of the night twice thus disrupting a much needed night's sleep after a long transpacific flight.

Also, upon entering the room right after check-in for my one night's stay, I noticed the room was very warm. So I jacked up the air conditioning. Well, the room was warm throughout my 20 hour stay. Just before checking out, I put my hand on the vent and felt warm air blowing out. I doubled checked to make sure I didn't err in my adjusting the thermostat.

But what made it worse was when upon checking out, the receptionist asked about our stay and we voiced our sleep disruption and malfunctioning cooling system. She simply apologized and then that was it. I expected to her to at least comp my C$30 breakfast (the breakfast was fantastic, they really know their smoked salmon).

My letter to Mr. Hengst was resolved well beyond my expectations and I was exceedingly pleased. It's service like this that keeps me going back to FS wherever I travel (and of course if I could afford it, so no George V for me).

RichardInSF

If FS and RC and so on are so customer oriented, why don't they do what both Starwood and Hyatt do right here on FT: when they see a complaint, have an employee post a reply inviting the complainer to contact them? Just curious....

MANCHEST

I had a few minor issues with a stay at the FS Singapore last year. I sent an email (through the website) to head office. I was contacted within 24 hours & needless to say, my next visit to a FS property was wonderful.

It is certainly worth letting them know if you've had problems with your stay.

luxury

It has been suggested and who knows they may already be monitoring this board quietly.

Blumie

Sometimes it does take a like comparison to put things in perspective, but comparing the cost of hotels in two completely different markets is not a "like comparison." Were there service lapses during your stay, or did you just not care for the property? If the former, you certainly should write a courteous (there is no reason to be confrontational) letter detailing your complaints (I find that pointing out some of the things that went right comes across more credibly than an "everything sucked" letter, unless, of course, everything sucked). If, on the other hand, you were just unhappy with the property, say because it's older and its bathrooms are small, and the fact that it wasn't cheap, I'm not sure what they reasonably can be expected to do for you: the property is what it is, and they set their rates based on market factors.

By the way, as others have pointed out, the Four Seasons organization is great at handling complaints. As hard as it is for some of us to believe, it certainly is possible to offer superior service to customers without monitoring FlyerTalk.

batboy

Here is the letter that I am sending today. I really don't think that I am being nitpicky or overly harsh, we simply did not find our experience to be worthy of the FS. It is very rare that I openly complain about anything.



Mr. Wolf Hengst, President, Worldwide Hotel Operations
Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts
1165 Leslie Street
Toronto, Ontario M3C 2K8
Canada

Dear Mr. Hengst:

I recently completed a two-week vacation down the coast of California that included a two-night stay at the Four Seasons Resort Santa Barbara from July 19-21. I am writing to let you know how displeased both myself and my wife were with our stay.

I should start by saying that my wife and I are seasoned travelers and have had the pleasure of staying at many fine Four Seasons properties, including: New York, Philadelphia, Washington, D.C., Las Vegas, Maui, Hawaii and Istanbul. At the Four Seasons Santa Barbara, we found the room quality to be far below the standards of the Four Seasons.

Our room for both nights, #711, was adequate at best. It had a strange odor which my wife and I realized emanated from the room’s aging furniture. Our shared belief that the room and its furniture were well past their prime was confirmed when two wooden Four Seasons hangers literally fell into pieces when we attempted to hang lightweight shirts on them. In addition, the drawer space was woefully inadequate, offering one full-size drawer and two half-drawers for my wife and I to share. I was thankful that we were only staying two nights as we were forced to leave the majority of our clothes in the suitcases.

Even with the room’s shortcomings, nothing could fully prepare me for the bathroom. This was easily the smallest hotel bathroom that I have ever had the misfortune of booking. There was hardly enough room for one adult and this was the only bathroom in our entire two-week vacation where there wasn’t even enough space to leave our toiletries. I never thought that a Four Seasons resort would have me carrying my toiletries in and out of the bathroom and storing them the only place we could think of other than the floor: on a shelf in the closet. Additionally, like much of the room, the bathroom was badly in need of an upgrade to the fixtures and flooring.

I assume from the fact that there are ongoing renovations at the property that my room, #711, will soon be upgraded, repaired and modernized. For that, I am thankful. What truly distresses me is that you continue to rent this pre-renovated room to unsuspecting guests in its current state. My rate of $500.00 per night (including breakfast which I will discuss below) to stay in this terrible, run-down room is laughable, and it is a truly an affront to guests who are paying for, and expect, a first class Four Seasons experience.

Finally, we found it very unusual that the staff was unable to adequately explain what was included in our ‘Bed and Breakfast’ package. I had to speak to three different people at the Patio restaurant on our first morning in order to get an answer as to how much the package allowed us to freely order off of the menu. When someone finally knew the answer, I was surprised to hear that the package only covered a cold, continental breakfast of pastries and fruit, roughly $15 per person. We were informed that anything over the allotted $15 per person would be charged to us. On our second breakfast, when a wonderful buffet was offered, I was again surprised to hear that the information given to us on our first morning regarding the $15 allocation was wrong, but the package still did not cover the cost of the buffet, and the overage would be charged to us. Unfortunately, neither our server nor the hostess knew exactly how much would be covered by the package. I do want to say that our overage charges for those two breakfasts were ultimately reduced, but even now I have no idea how much we got, how much we should have gotten, or if we were even charged correctly for the amounts over the still-mysterious breakfast allocation amount.

I do not wish to give the impression that I am not capable of giving praise where it is due. I am happy to say that, like every one of my previous Four Seasons stays, the staff at the Four Seasons Santa Barbara could not have been more pleasant or more helpful. Even when I was being denied the room upgrade that I requested after seeing our unsatisfactory lodgings, the staff acted in the friendliest and most agreeable manner. The Four Seasons staff is consistent in their devotion to serve and eagerness to please and they were one of the highlights of our stay in Santa Barbara.

I hope that the above comments from my recent stay do not fall on deaf ears. Although I am fairly certain that the renovation project will cure the room’s faults, I think the fact that the room was rented, at the rate which I paid, while in it’s current state, shows a lack of customer care that I have learned to expect from the Four Seasons. For the first time in my life I can say that I would think twice before staying at the Four Seasons, in particular the Four Seasons Santa Barbara, but also any other property where I can not personally vouch for the quality of experience.



Sincerely Yours,
**Batboy

francophile

Well written, batboy

On their website, it clearly says that their B&B package at FS SB includes a full American breakfast.

http://www.fourseasons.com/santabarb...tail_1044.html

DrivingRain

Batboy,
Your letter is well written, though I think the complaints are a little e underwhelming. FS Santa Barbara is a property I have yet to visit, but I have had similiar experiences with FS in the past and have chalked it up to "Buyer Beware". Your bathroom and furnishings sound similiar to what I have expereinced at a Suite in the Houston FS (1 tiny bathroom). The Canadian FS properties arent much different either. All the luxury chains have some older hotels that are rough around the edges. My experience is that just b/c it is an FS doesnt mean its luxury.

I'm not saying you shouldnt write though. It's well within your rights to do so.

Blumie

I wrote a similar letter after a disappointing stay at the FS NY. I was careful not to be hyperbolic and to be sure to praise the good things, as well as identify the disappointing things. (I also started with an apology for not writing about all of the wonderful FS experiences I've had.) The result was a phone call from the GM and a letter offering me a free weekend at the hotel (which my parents were thrilled to use on their last trip to NY).

JimStraz

You wrote a brilliant letter. Thanks for sharing. I realize now more than ever that you really have to be so careful where you choose to stay and in what room. I am grateful for forums like this as well as epinions.com and trip advisor.
I research and research. I love the Four Seasons, but I am also getting jaded. Sometimes just because we see the name FS, we think it has to be good. Well, as you have witnessed, it is not always true.


Let us know how things turned out. Thanks!