I stayed at this hotel from July 30, 2024 until August 8, 2024, and I WILL NOT return! Here's why:
1) At check-in, I was informed by the desk clerk that the suite which I had reserved over a month prior would not be available at that moment but would be available within one to two days. I was then asked would I be willing to be put on a wait list for a suite. I promptly declined to be on a wait list for two days when I'm only at the hotel for nine days. When a guest travels across the country as I did, you simply want to unpack your bags, shower, and get on with the purpose of your trip. One wants to be able to do this especially when you're traveling with a child, as was my case.
2) During check-in, I was told by the desk clerk that there would be a $50 per day 'incidentals fee' (not publicized anywhere) that would be refunded to me within 3 to 5 days after check-out. That did not happen. I sent a request to the general manager of this hotel (Mr. Frank Rivera), and he has as of yet to reply to my inquiry. Mr. Rivera's response tells me everything I need to know about whether or not a general manager cares about the guest.
3) I washed one small load of clothes in the laundry room at this hotel, and it was problematic to say the least. The machines are all three dollars per load, yet when I scanned my credit card, I was charged $12. Charging discrepancies occurred on both the washing machine and the dryer. I went to the front desk when this issue occurred, and the young lady explained to me that the hotel was aware of discrepancies with the laundry room machines, and that I would be reimbursed upon checkout. Well, the reimbursement I received was a bit problematic. I aired this issue also via email with the general manager. Again, I have not received a reply from Mr. Rivera.
4) I went through a three-day straight run-around of having to rekey my room entry card at least three times per day. I was told that my cell phone or keys were probably causing the issue. I made the corrections, kept the key card away from both, but still had the problem for three days straight. I had never before had such an issue with a hotel key card.
5) I witnessed and recorded the most outrageous interaction between a hotel front desk clerk and a client of the hotel. One of the reasons why I wanted to speak with Mr. Rivera was to keep my observations at the lowest level, and hope that he would be open to an outsider's unbiased observation. I had never before seen a front desk attendant refer to a hotel guest as 'Bro' and loosely use the word 'Shit' while angry. The guest was upset over a credit card issue, specifically wanting to know why the desk clerk needed to have his VISA card again. The desk clerk did a very poor job of explaining why he needed that guest's credit card again, in my opinion. The guest kept replying that he was concerned about credit card fraud. Had the clerk listened to the guest as opposed to allowing the verbal altercation to escalate, he would have eventually understood that guest's security concern. As the professional who is providing the service, there should have been more discernment of 'why is this guest so aggitated'. Again, this is what I would have liked to have discussed with Mr. Rivera.
Having said all of this, I have to say that my overall stay was a quiet and clean one. The housekeeping staff were some of the most professional that I have run into. The one maintenance gentleman Patrick was all over the place, and always in action taken care of things. However, I don't see myself returning to the Courtyard Yonkers Westchester County. This will be my second problematic stay at a so-called 'by Marriott' hotel within a two-year period. The Marriott sister hotel to this one (which is located right across the walkway) is where I had a seriously problematic stay back in 2022. Both hotels are managed by the same general manager, though the general manager in 2022 was a different individual. Trying to aire my concerns within Marriott was a waste of my time. It seems to me that the Marriott system of handling customer concerns is designed to frustrate the customer. One now has to use email to communicate your concerns with Marriott, and that system appears to be handled by AI. I refuse to be put on a communications hamster wheel to be heard, thus my reason for having to post this review. Corporate America does not seem to understand that people don't want to sit down and have to write negative reviews. They simply want their concerns to be addressed by that particular business entity. It seems that this will be the future of handling problematic business interactions between the customer and the business.
RECOMMENDATION: Record all interactions that involve the use of your credit card at this hotel from check-in to check-out. When video recording is not suitable, use your voice recorder. Doing so will assist with any follow-on actions that you might have to take, such as filing a complaint with read more