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Original poster

Posh hotel un-asked for alarm at 6 - compensation?!

696 replies

hellsBells246 · 03/04/2024 05:21

Staying in a v posh hotel. Think 900 Swiss francs per night...

Just got woken up by a bloody alarm. Picked up phone and got a recorded message saying we had asked for a 6am alarm. We hadn't!! It woke us both and now we can't get back to sleep.

Rang reception, who were puzzled about the alarm but not v apologetic.

AIBU to think they could offer a small gesture to apologise?? Eg a free bottle of wine?! Or AIB greedy and mistakes happen?!

OP posts:
Mumof2girls2121 · 04/04/2024 19:41

Get over it

Teledeluxe · 04/04/2024 19:41

FFS! Anyone else would have gone back to sleep, but you were determined to be offended!

Mittleme · 04/04/2024 19:50

Lol

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Holidays
Doodleflips · 04/04/2024 19:51

I‘m going to go against the grain. You were woken up at 6 am! Yes they should give you a nice gift to say sorry, that sucks

Mittleme · 04/04/2024 19:51

This thread is funny . Lol
dont think a bottle of wine will replace a sleep that I lost 😀

Teenagehorrorbag · 04/04/2024 19:53

Late to thread and only read the first page - but Wow! I can't believe the responses. If I paid that much and was woken by an alarm at 6 (I would never get back to sleep either) I'd be seriously pissed off!

I'm not suggesting the hotel should 'compensate' you - you may have got people's backs up by using that word - but an apology and a gesture would surely be normal in any customer service scenario? If I ran the hotel I'd be saying how sorry I was and would a bottle of wine at dinner / complimentary breakfast / picnic lunch etc be an appropriate way of supporting that apology?

It's not about the money is it, it's about the fact that you have paid for a top notch experience which has fallen short of that. And they should acknowledge that and make some sort of gesture to apologise. Even a grovel without a further gesture would probably have been OK - but an unapologetic receptionist is not really acceptable.

DreamTheMoors · 04/04/2024 19:55

My friend and I have a long-running joke:
”But what about meee???”
I can’t wait to tell her about this lol.

Unicornhat · 04/04/2024 19:57

I actually agree with you op. With small kids I haven't slept properly in years, if I were staying in a posh hotel, where the main point is rest and relaxation, I would be very unimpressed by this and would certainly expect some sort of recognition or compensation

Whostolemymojo · 04/04/2024 19:59

As manager I would comp breakfast or offer some drinks vouchers for the hotel bar. But you may need to go to reception and speak to someone in person.
you are there to relax, on a vacation - so an unwanted 6am wake up call is not on.
OK, no one is going to die, but hospitality is all about a good experience and a good hotel would want to counterbalance its mistake.

Mnk711 · 04/04/2024 20:00

Agree with you OP that you expect a certain level of service based on the price point, and if you don't receive it then you should absolutely complain. I probably wouldn't have bothered to complain about the wake-up call but I would have complained about the free drinks - what if you didn't like Swiss wine or beer? I stayed in a hotel this time last year where I got a massage that wasn't great. When I mentioned it on checkout the receptionist called the spa and they arranged a free spa day for me including a massage, usually charged at c.£200. That is good customer service - and consequently I've recommended the hotel to all my friends. Like you say, it's not about getting free stuff, it's about feeling valued and respected as a customer.

takemeawayagain · 04/04/2024 20:05

Wow I would not want to be woken up by a hotel as 6am when on holiday, I'd be really pissed off and there's no way I could get back to sleep at that time.
If you want to complain then it sounds like you'll have to speak to someone higher up than the receptionist who doesn't sound like they're paid enough to care.
If you don't get any joy I'd write a review on tripadvisor/google to say what happened.

beautifuldaytosavelives · 04/04/2024 20:05

Whilst acknowledging it is an error, it’s an error that has inconvenienced you whilst paying a premium for high end service. I would wholly expect a gesture of apology and don’t think you’re being grabby or entitled. Being grateful for a crust and a scratchy blanket when you’ve paid for more as per the usual Mumsnet mentality is one of the reasons customer service is so poor.

Namechangey23 · 04/04/2024 20:09

hellsBells246 · 03/04/2024 05:21

Staying in a v posh hotel. Think 900 Swiss francs per night...

Just got woken up by a bloody alarm. Picked up phone and got a recorded message saying we had asked for a 6am alarm. We hadn't!! It woke us both and now we can't get back to sleep.

Rang reception, who were puzzled about the alarm but not v apologetic.

AIBU to think they could offer a small gesture to apologise?? Eg a free bottle of wine?! Or AIB greedy and mistakes happen?!

Hmmm did you piss off the reception staff @hellsBells246 because I would totally set a 6am wake up alarm as revenge if someone was rude to me in a fancy hotel. Oops! 🤞🫢

melonhead · 04/04/2024 20:13

hellsBells246 · 04/04/2024 19:20

Did you say anything?

We did get free drinks... even if they were a bit limited...

Show quote history

Yes I told them straight away by phoning reception and they were not interested. I said again when we checked out and they couldn’t care less. Better service at a Premier Inn!!

YourFogLightsAreOnTheresNoFog · 04/04/2024 20:17

Everyone panicking about the person who didn't get the alarm, surely the people would also set another on their clock say?

Readmorebooks40 · 04/04/2024 20:18

You're not being greedy. When you're paying those kind of prices the hotel can easily throw in something complimentary to keep their customers happy when they've made a mistake. It's good customer service and a happy customer returns. We went to a 5 star hotel and the shower was cold. We mentioned it when checking out and got £50 off our next visit and a room upgrade. We didn't demand this, this is just what they offered and we were of course more than happy with this and returned spending a small fortune on our stay including food and drink. Being woken at 6am is not ideal when on holiday and a small gesture would definitely take the sting out of it.

Greenshed · 04/04/2024 20:19

Oh for goodness sake. It was an error, not done deliberately. The receptionist apologised, but not in the way you had hoped, ie, a freebie of what - wine, flowers, a reduction of the price of your bill?
I’m afraid YABU, very much so. Just accept that it was a mistake - a mistake which didn’t cause you inconvenience or physical harm, it just woke you up earlier than you would have liked.

Original poster
hellsBells246 · 04/04/2024 20:25

What a stupid comment, @Namechangey23 .

Maybe you're part of the reason why customer service is so bad 🙄

OP posts:
Original poster
hellsBells246 · 04/04/2024 20:27

Greenshed · 04/04/2024 20:19

Oh for goodness sake. It was an error, not done deliberately. The receptionist apologised, but not in the way you had hoped, ie, a freebie of what - wine, flowers, a reduction of the price of your bill?
I’m afraid YABU, very much so. Just accept that it was a mistake - a mistake which didn’t cause you inconvenience or physical harm, it just woke you up earlier than you would have liked.

Of course it caused me inconvenience! That's literally the whole point. I was INCONVENIENCED to be woken up three hours before I'd intended to wake. 3 hours of my night's sleep.

Ffs.

OP posts:
IdaPrentice · 04/04/2024 20:28

Good grief, I've just read the whole thread. What nasty spiteful responses! A bit inevitable to any thread that starts with "Staying in a v posh hotel. Think 900 Swiss francs per night..." - some people really have a chip on their shoulder about money. And I say that as a low-income single parent myself!

I hope you're enjoying the rest of your holiday OP.

Sennelier1 · 04/04/2024 20:32

Mistakes happen, it's only human. You mention them on the right moment to the right person (daytime working hours, the manager) preferably in a civilised way, and you will get some compensation.

sunglassesonthetable · 04/04/2024 20:37

I’m afraid YABU, very much so. Just accept that it was a mistake - a mistake which didn’t cause you inconvenience or physical harm, it just woke you up earlier than you would have liked.

You don't have to be physically harmed for something to unsatisfactory. And yes OP was inconvenienced.

You do get that OP wasn't staying at the hotel for free don't you? She'd paid through the nose for a high end stay. Not a very high end experience to have an alarm going off in your ear at 6 am.

No one died but the hotel should have apologised and made good. Easily done.

YourFogLightsAreOnTheresNoFog · 04/04/2024 20:41

If I'd paid a lot of money and was hoping for a nice longish sleep I would have been pissed off.

Mellowbear · 04/04/2024 20:53

Good grief woman get a grip. It was a mistake get over it.

OldPerson · 04/04/2024 21:16

Sounds like an alarm that guests can set up for themselves on the phone. In which case there was a dozy, discombobulated or evil person inhabiting your room the night before you checked-in. Personally, if you have a kettle in the room, I would not drink out of it.
But you sound like the perpetually offended brigade and think your life should be wrapped in cotton wool candy.
If the phone call caused a serious problem or inconvenience, sit down with the hotel manager and discuss.
But if you can't cope with minor things going wrong, you're not well equipped for life.