I booked my room on January 5th not knowing that the government shutdown would be lasting this long (over 30 days, longest in history). My sole purpose in coming to DC was to visit the National Gallery of Art before a particular exhibition ended, which is very crucial for my area of work, but the gallery is closed due to the shutdown. -- I called The Line's Guest Services Department and explained that my visit can no longer happen, thus needing to cancel my reservation due to unforeseen circumstances, and they refused to even give me a credit. Sam, who is apparently the guest services manager stated that "the government shutdown and its impact on National Galleries is not a good enough reason to cancel your reservation." Just wow. Considering that The Line hosts creatives across a slew of artistic mediums (and capitalizes off of it), I am in awe. Also, to treat the situation as if the shutdown is not affecting millions of people in so many different ways is extremely bothersome. After being unsatisfied with Sam's response, I spoke with Gabriel (another "manager") who also didn't seem to care to remedy the situation. Gabriel said that he wouldn't be able to credit/refund me and that SnapTravel would have to, but then after speaking to SnapTravel, they stated that they'd have to receive approval from hotel management in order to refund or give a credit. Total case of "He said, she said." Also, Gabriel stated "If you find a cheap rate online for a room with us in the future, we will honor that." .....And that was the extent of what he could do. Laughable, as that statement made no sense, considering that I'd be able to book that rate regardless, even without him "honoring it." What a joke. HERE'S A TIP IN BUSINESS 101: The right thing to do would have been to make an exception, accommodate me, and show that they are actually interested (and invested) in having me return as a future client. But because of Sam, Gabriel, and obviously upper managements poor business acumen (and overall poor policy), I will never book with The Line or SnapTravel ever again. I hope you all take the money you've stolen from me and invest it into better job training. You don't just take from people and then hit them with "We'd gladly have you back in the future." It doesn't work that way. Invest in your clients and they'll invest back into you.
This place is clearly in it for the aesthetics, they unfortunately are not about the people. They make things look pretty to reel people in, and even that falls short. Save your money, people.
Lastly, I am not interested in you all reaching out to me with a generic "We apologize that we did not meet your expectations, let's make things right" follow-up response. If you cared, you would have handled this situation properly to begin with. read more