I was at the Comfort Suites RDU Airport/RTP earlier tonight (May 13) sometime between 11:00pm and 11:40pm. I was met with the night-time personnel at the front desk, Ms. Melanie M. She provided the most awful hotel service for very specific reasons.
I made reservations for my parents who came all the way from the Philippines. I made reservation at the suites because of the spacious and comfortable rooms and most importantly, the hotel staff member who I previously called said that they would provide free shuttle service to my alma mater in the Triangle Area. I specifically made reservations to Comfort Suites because I was told that the shuttle service would be provided in order to save on transportation costs. My parents do not have a car nor could they rent a car because they only carry the Filipino license. I would, could, and should have booked at a better hotel closer to my university, which provides shuttle service to it, but I preferred Comfort Suites because of the better rooms in addition to the shuttle service they said they were going to provide. The fact that I could have reserved at other places should already indicate that I chose Comfort Suites over other places, which provided shuttle service granted that other places provided the service too.
Ms. Melanie M. Checked us in a very friendly manner. After my parents moved in we waited for about 15 minutes waiting for a response on the shuttle service issue (which was understandable as she was busy). She then rudely waved her hand from behind the desk and called my girlfriend, father, and myself to the front desk as if we were schoolchildren getting told to come get lunch (that is the manner in which she called us and did not use the words “excuse me” or anything polite). We were at the lobby watching the end of the Memphis-OKC game. This is where the story gets interesting. Not only did she tell me that the shuttle service is not available to the university, she stated with absolute confidence that “no one” had told me that there was a free shuttle service for graduation week (yes, she said “no one”). She was basically accusing me of lying.
The fact that she “knows” that “no one” had told me is accusatory, rude, and simply put, a complete lie. I then explained to her that I specifically chose Comfort Suites because it provided shuttle service. She then explained that the shuttle service they provided only went on a 4mile radius of the location and once again told me specifically that no one had told me that the shuttle service was provided.
This boggles my mind because the fact that I could have booked at a different hotel at similar prices (I started looking for hotels since Aug) should already tell her that I chose this hotel because of the shuttle service (and large rooms) which other hotels also provided (not the large rooms at that price).in fact, I initially booked at Millennium Hotel closer to university at a more expensive price and cancelled my reservation to go with Comfort Suites because both places (or so I was told) provided shuttle service but Comfort Suites were cheaper and had better rooms.
What frustrates me most is the way she handled the situation. I am not mad at her for false advertisement (it’s not her fault, it’s the fault of the management in general and no, I did not call Expedia about the shuttle service I called 919-314-1200 prior to making my reservation to check if the shuttle was being provided). It could have well been that whichever Comfort Suite staff member at the RTP location misinformed me or was misinformed his or her self. The issue is how she handled the situation.
First, In her attempt to basically get rid of me as soon as possible (there was a mother-daughter pair who were beside me when most of this happened inquiring about a shuttle service to a nearby university), she interrupted me to tell me that the problem that my parents were facing (not getting to the university the next morning), “still needs to be solved” rudely interrupting the conversation I was having with my girlfriend about the situation. She tells calls someone and gives me a quote of $35 to the university. This part may not be her fault as Comfort Suites may only refer certain cab companies but I’ve been living in NC for the last four years and there are much cheaper options than that. Once again, this part may not be her fault, although she made no attempt to give me any other cab options even though my girlfriend, father, and I were the only ones standing at the front desk (by this time the mother-daughter pair had left).
Second, not once (literally not once) throughout the ten or fifteen minute conversation we had, did she apologize even for the potential that Comfort Suites could have made a mistake. Apparently, she was completely sure that “no one” had told me this information. She did not offer to connect me to the manager at all either. How in the world does she know that “no one” from Comfort Suites told me about the shuttle service? Does she monitor or listens to the recordings of every single phone conversation (mine took place sometime in March) that goes on between the staff and customers? I hope she does because that is the only way she can back up her statement.
Third, as I left I asked for her name. It was obvious she was a little nervous and hesitant as she spelt her name out-loud ridiculously quickly, almost testing me if I could write it all down. She put on a fake sarcastic smile as I left and asked, “What are you going to say? ” And I responded, “I don’t know.” She then had the pompous attitude (at a customer who just paid $300) to smirk and grunt, “Yeah you do” as I moved to the parking lot absolutely infuriated.
Had she said something along the lines of, “I am sorry but you have been misinformed and apologize for the confusion” etc., I would not have had a problem since I know that she is powerless to address the problem i.E., provide the service. I completely understand that. But the first words out of her mouth were that “no one” had told you about the shuttle service.
To summarize the service of the Comfort Suites (especially that of Ms. Melanie M.), she was accusatory, pompous, arrogant, rude, slow, and a terrible problem solver. The fact that I am writing this at 1am on the weekend of my graduation should already tell you how terrible the service was at Comfort Suites, in particular, that provided by Ms. Melanie M. Ms. Melanie M. Desperately needs a course on etiquette, customer service, semantics, and public relations to say the least. I hope that she does not serve another customer at Comfort Suites (or Millennium Hotel, where she also apparently works or worked).
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