Paid extra for suite with dormer windows and wood flooring on 6th level which has been the room I always stay in, room 604. My family called front desk beforehand to confirm its availability and was told that we would get the room that I booked online, that the pictures on the website confirmed the dormer king room with canopy curtains and wood floor.
However, Hotel Vosges BW changed our room to one downstairs, room 504, and gave another couple our booked room. What we got instead was a smaller room that is missing a television facing the sofa, and only one tv that is placed on a side wall not facing the bed nor the tv as if this room only has one, not two tvs as seen in the photos on the web site and my confirmed booking receipt.
Also, there is no space for luggage rack, the closet is too small, the safe cannot hold anything but a wallet so no place to secure laptops, and even worse, the room is absolutely dirty, filthy, replete with a stain ridden sofa, and every mug and drinking glass was previously used was NOT washed but set atop a tray sticky with jelly residue.
The sofa looks urinated on by a child who wet the bed in sleep, making a one meter length giant puddle, and god awful stains for crime investigators to find their scanning devices to light up with seminal dangers.
Having seen the embarrassing state of uncleanliness which includes soap residue in tub that was not washed nor sanitized, streaked by nail polishes from former guests, chipped sinks and glassware smeared by toothpaste residue at the bottom caked by toothpaste and saliva. After seeing how horrendous the housekeeping makes the room uninviting, possibly dangerous with poor hygiene.
I appealed to the front desk reception to please restore the original booking to room 604 but she said she is alone and can't do anything, not even provide sheet nor blankets to cover up the stained sofa because she can't leave the front desk for any reason since alone, and at best all I could expect was maybe a chance to speak with management the next day.
Upon hearing the bad news, I said to reception, "you're comping breakfast, a sauna, and reimbursing, and adding points for this deception and failure of good hospitality standards," and she nervously laughed and said that nothing would be done.
Frustrated, my partner and I took a long walk, hopeful that someone from downstairs would clean up the tub which we couldn't use since it was dirty upon arrival, while I asked for cleaning sprays and offered to be maid and clean up the bathroom and cover up the sofa so it could be used, the reception said nothing could be provided.
Yet, at 11PM, we were finally provided a blanket by a difference reception clerk so we could cover the stained sofa. And I had to use all my antibacterial travel bottle and lose the use of handtowel to act as cleaning rag to scrub the filth off the tub myself at midnight. And this is how a diamond member guest is treated.
It's unfair and illegal to bait and switch promised room, and a disappointment that hurts what was intended to be a romantic anniversary splurge 6,000 miles from home, producing distress and unhappiness, regret.
When people travel long distances for a specific room, and arrive jet lagged, they should not be cheated what their good money booked and paid.
And when the staff is overwhelmed, rather than be aloof and avoiding a problem to immediately resolve, a sincere apology would be nice instead of "can't do anything, that's the way it is" because that's really an insult, adding salt to wound of being cheated and inconvenienced.
Hospitality matters. read more