[Closed] Crap hotel - worth complaining?

Rate them on trip advisor they're soon get the message!

Write and complain. I did once, and got a sizable discount straight away. Which maybe wasn't quite enough for a near sleepless night, but it was enough to make me shut up and move on.
They put up no fight at all, and I wonder if they'd budgeted that it was cheaper to throw some money at anyone who complains than to fix the problem.

Where was it ?

I'll give them a chance to respond before naming and shaming. 🙂

Re, naming and shaming, My guess would be the Macdonalds hotel in Kinloch Rannoch, whatever that's called.

Same experience almost. I couldn't be arsed complaining but did tweet them and got a response.

Best way to deal with shoddy service is not to use again.

Last night's hotel in Bytow, Poland had no curtains and 4 sheets of loo roll. Judging by the overpowering smell of bleach I guess I can be thankful that it was clean.

You had a loo! On a recent trip to San Francisco I was surprised to find out there was no loo or shower. Still nigh-on £70pn!

Quorn Country House Hotel was where we went last September, where the Staff were absolutely useless. and the public rooms were filthy
It was a family wedding, so we couldnt ruin the day by complaining too much.

We put a honest review on Tripadvisor, giving them one star. The next week, there were five star reviews after ours, saying how good the place is. The Manager/owners/staff obviously sit there writing their own reviews.

We couldnt get any refund. I started a thread here in October about an hotel charging me twice, but without me actually staying there (they refused me entry when I had booked, as they said I hadnt booked it, yet had taken my money). I threatened them with Court action, but still only got one nights refund.
Bad hotels seem to get away with it - probably on the assumption that people cannot be bothered going to Court for £100 or so.

The best time to complain is there and then.

As in, when you walked in the room and you weren't happy. Then they can deal with it, ie new room.

After you've left is pointless IMO.

I've no qualms about leaving an honest review on tripadvisor on hotels or restaurants. Tough- it helps prospective customers avoid your own experience. This swings both ways- a campsite in Brugge. A fair few complaints about pitch-size, Surprisingly from brit visitors. They'd been booking the tiny pitches meant for 2man tents but expecting to put up 6man tents along with their car instead of paying the 7euros a night more and getting the appropriate pitch on the online booking form. Instead of realising their mistake they put up neg reviews. Thats wrong. So I detailed this in my own review. Tripadvisor surprisingly put it up 😀

I book all my hotel bookings through lastminute/secret deals etc etc and I'm not paying £2.50- more like £100 so as such expect the exact same basic room standards that a hotel or B&B should have; cleanliness and good service. Why didn't you go straight down when you booked in and complain? I've done this a few times and once was on the verge of leaving/asking for a refund so I could look at other places when magically a clean/better room appeared.

I'd definitely give them a poor tripadvisor review- make it detailed. The bad and average reviews have helped me in the past as you can discount the odd nutball review but if you see a pattern in the reviews, namely poor fittings, dirty pool area it puts off potential customers.

If you had paid £20 for the room when its normally £200 then you could expect a hostel. However you booked on the pictures/want as described regardless of how much you paid.

OP - why did you stay a second night?! This goes back to a STW thread on tipping in restaurants. Why do brits suck it up and complain after?!!!!

saxabar - Member
You had a loo! On a recent trip to San Francisco I was surprised to find out there was no loo or shower. Still nigh-on £70pn!

Surprisingly common in some hotels in San Fran as I've found out a few times.

If you're not bothered about money back, tripadvisor. A mate works in hospitality and he reckons tripadvisor reviews are king if you're a hotel/restaurant etc owner.

Hotels are run on such tight budgets that they will save any refurbished rooms and hope to get away with selling the old rooms for as long as possible. Complaining is the best way to start as a better room might suddenly become available, as others suggest above.

It depends on area and expectations I stayed in a lovely hotel just up from fort william complaints on TripAdvisor were size of bebrooms and windows it was a 17 the century building thats how they were made . TV reception its in a valley surrounded by f...off big hills and London prices for food it's in the middle of mamobo there is a logistical expense and the food was very high quality.

Having said that your hotel sounded rubbish complain direct now and in future pay the booking by card complain at the venue as soon as you notice and make it clear you are ready to walk and cancelled payment.

You don't have to be rude when you come straight back downstairs either. Just upfront, polite and honest.

I've stayed at a few Hiltons and cheekily gotten talking to the person on the desk and managed to get some really really nice rooms on a miserly booking 😀

As for grotty rooms- the rooms are only as good as the cleaners. A few months ago I stayed in a 600year old B&B in Warwick - yes the building was tired, the room was characterful but it was... CLEAN.

I'll give them a chance to respond before naming and shaming.

Don't see why.

Unless their response is to use a time machine to go back and train all the staff better so their hotel never got so shit in the first place.

An honest negative review is fine.

hora - Member

I book all my hotel bookings through lastminute/secret deals etc etc

You can often get cheaper booking direct.

I've only stayed at 2 truly shit hotels, I was going to flame them on trip advisor and send them a scathing e-mail, but they were both the cheapest offering on last-minute. I guess you get what you pay for.

Quorn Country House Hotel was where we went last September, where the Staff were absolutely useless. and the public rooms were filthy
It was a family wedding, so we couldnt ruin the day by complaining too much.

They provide a good car park though for when I can't get a space outside my house 😆

I stayed in an ace hotel at the port in Athens once..

It was very cheap, but even the clerk at the check in desk recommended I try to find somewhere a bit nicer.. it was a tiny filthy room with a sticky little bed and no glass in the window, just one ripped and ancient grime encrusted curtain hanging at a jaunty angle from the two remaining curtain hooks, and the constant 24hr noise of general mayhem (and possibly murder) all around was invigorating..
The best thing about it though was the smell which made my stinking trainers seem almost pleasantly fragrant by comparison..

I left my trainers under the bed as a kind of air freshener

one of our historic cities which is almost, but not quite as nice as York.

Chester?

I've only stayed at 2 truly shit hotels, I was going to flame them on trip advisor and send them a scathing e-mail, but they were both the cheapest offering on last-minute. I guess you get what you pay for.

That's true, but surely the minimum you should expect from any hotel is that it's clean.

Cheap doesn't mean unclean if their normal prices are higher.

Do they add dirt?

Its either a shithole milking low costs, bad management or going broke.

You aren't staying away for charity on your day off worth regardless.

Bad service is unforgivable. Staff are paid a wage.

Service IS their job. It isn't a tiny part and script writing hotel plays the main.

I gave fantastic service working for peanuts at Woolworths.

I stayed in an ace hotel at the port in Athens once..

From the description you gave, I've almost certainly stayed in the same hotel 🙂

We stayed in an "inn" in Cardiff a few years ago. Attic room, shared bathroom, very smelly. The wife wasn't happy. On the plus side, the previous occupant of my bed had left their Razzle! Didn't seem to cheer my wife up though 🙄

I always tell hotels when I'm leaving whether I have had a good or bad experience with them. If no-one ever tells them that they're sh*t, how can you I hope for them to improve?

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B&B's can be by far the worse. A few years ago we stayed in a B&B in Brighton- 4 storeys and we were on the top floor. The fire escape opened up to ...nothing.

Downstairs in the entrance/ground floor- the owner had piles of old newspapers and smoked abit. After a serious amount of alcohol we got back and collapsed in bed. In the middle of the night I heard what sounded like a female being slapped around downstairs but I was cream-crackered and passed out.

In another Brighton B&B the owner tried charging mrsH £50 for leaving abit of glitter on the carpet post-visit. My response was 'dont you have a bloody vacuum cleaner'?

Because of these experiences I only stay in big chains now. you dont get the eccentric muppet running out of money/sticking their nose in or other crap.

llyn dwr is rossett???

this could be an amazing guess....

We once stayed in a B&B above a pub in Beaumaris.

After closing time they let two guard dogs roam free on the premises to deter burglars, or to kill and eat burglars that weren’t deterred. We couldn’t get out of our room in the morning until they had been locked away. Also, the configuration of the bedroom/bathroom was such that the bedroom didn’t have a window or any natural light.

None of this was mentioned on the website when we booked.

The darkness, the attack dogs and the sound of police sirens chasing off Anglesey’s pissed-up youth made the experience similar to spending a long weekend in a Super Max.