We live 8 hours from NYC and flew in sat 6/3/06 at 7 am and left the following day at 5 pm. (short trip) We checked in early and the Super 8 hotel saved our luggage until we were finished shopping and were able to officially check into the room. We didn't return until 9 pm the evening and collapsed after a very hectic and tiring day.
There were 4 people in our room and by 11pm only 2 of us had taken showers. A friend took a shower at 2 am, stepped out, grabbed a towel from the "clean", folded linen pile on the shelf in the bathroom and had the most unexpected, repulsive experience of her life. She wiped her face with fresh feces, and that infected towel was folded neatly as if it was newly washed. We have no idea where it came from. We are unsure if our room was really cleaned, (even though it appeared to be) or a maid was seeking revenge on her employer.
We went down to talk with a manager Sunday morning and were told there was nobody in charge, no security guard, and nobody available to speak with. We explained the situation and were brushed aside. The staff did not seem alarmed or apologetic, with the exception of the head-maid who seemed beside herself with embarrasment (although she as well had no clue how it happened.) The man behind the desk even passed us over to help other patrons in the middle of our conversation.
We called the police to file a report and Super 8 was rude to them as well. One female cop punded her hand on their counter in frustration, demanding they take this seriously. The police asked that my friend go to the hospital to have some blood work done and an overall evaluation for documentation, (we are all nurses.) This process took over 4 hours away from our quick getaway weekend.
We assumed that the charge for the room, ($280) was going to be waived, as we requested it many times during the initial complaint. Later that afternoon we returned to make sure we had already been checked out from the morning fiasco and found out we weren't. We stood in line for 40 minutes (nobody ever apologized or gave a reason, even though there were only 2 people ahead of us.)
We finally got up to the desk and they had not made any notation in our file about the incident and the man had (or pretended to have) no clue about what had happened. We told him we would deal with it later when we returned home and to please continue checking us out. He said his computer was down and he could not proceed. He then started talking with someone over the phone to get help with their system. He never apologized or acknowledged us and didn't explain what was happening until 20 minutes went by and I interrupted him saying we had to go in order to catch our flight. He ignored us.
I asked 2 more times to let me sign something so we could leave, (he said we would be charged another night if we didn't comply) and it took another 10 minutes for him to make a copy of my credit card, (which should have been on file anyway.)
They had no official letterhead, so I signed a generic slip of paper with a copy of my credit card on it (which I was not happy about) and we dashed to the airport.
We were 10 minutes too late for our flight and had to wait 3 hours to catch the next one. The weekend was a disaster and there is no way we should be responsible for the $280 charge. I disputed this with my credit card company and gave every last detail. They said if we stayed in the room after the incident, we were responsible to pay. I asked her what else we should have done at 2 am being in NYC, living 8 hrs away without a car. The credit card rep said that hotels don't have to be clean, or even supply a bed! Their only responsibility is to offer the "space" and that forces us to pay this bill.
This hotel is a health hazard, (my friend still has the towel double bagged as evidence to prove it!)
As of now I filed a complaint with Super 8 and it is pending review.
Amber
buffalo, New York
U.S.A.
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