worst hospitality experience everPosted: Sun, Jul 06 2008Location:
3Rooms:
1Service:
1Value:
1I booked into La Stampa for 1 night last friday. I booked some months in advance and specified that i wanted a quiet room, giving a hotel 3 months notice i thought would be enough but evidently not, the check in was smooth and painless and i though the room would be quiet as their was no view from the window , just 2 feet and then a wall.
We went out as it was my girlfriends birthday and she was going back to America early the next morning so i suprised here with tickets to go and see Billy Connolly. we normally stay down in the Dylan when we are both in ireland but unfortunately they were booked.
When we came back we were starving and decided to order room service.....big mistake. We had the chicken Korma from one of the restaurants and some drinks. not only did it take 3 goes by the non english speaking porter to get the order up to the room but the food was less than average. my girlfriend took one bite and stuck with the fruit in the room and a half eaten sandwich we had.
She went off to sleep and as i watched a bit of tv i could feel the head rest on the bed vibrating. i switched off the tv and immediately i heard the low solid thud of music. i though it was comming from the bathroom and when i went in their i realised the pipes were conducting the vibration of the music. the bar has got no sound proofing or else it is broken. ive been a venue and club manager for 10 years all over the world and dont let these people tell you their is no sound issue. i know first hand how sound travels and how sound proofing works.the dj did play a good version of Grove is in the Heart at 1.50 AM. i phoned down to reception to put in a request for the dj but nobody answered the phone any of the 3 times i phoned. Guess he was off having a boggie.
i eventually got to sleep only to wake up at 5 am with severe stomach cramps. that was the end of that night sleep. i was physically sick for the folowing few hours. i had the pleasure of waving my girlfriend off to the airport at 7am from the bathroom.
luckely a friend was working in St James hospital that day so i made phone calls and with reluctance i left the safety of the bathroom at 11.30 am. When i arrived at reception holding my stomach and looking as what was described as a nice shade of green by my docotor friend the receptionist asked 'what room'. i said 402 she said 'card or cash' i handed her my card and with one hand holding me up on the desk and the other putting my pin in she asked me how my stay was as she turned here back to me. i said it was ' less than average'. the phone rang and she decided to chat to some one looking to book rather than deal with me. at ?350 for the night i was deeply upset when she hung up and handed me my receipts and and said have a good day, and WALKED AWAY from me i could have swung for her. as i nervously looked around for the public toilets i though better and got a taxi to the hospital instead.
im not saying it was the room service but i dont drink alcohol because of my job and all i had to eat prior to that was 2 apples and a cheese sandwich all day.
thankfully private healthcare and a friend in the right place gets you seen to quickly and im much better today if not a little lighter on the wallet and the belly.
i could go on and on about the floor to ceiling cracks in the bedroom walls, or the missing shower nozzle holder or the dirty towels in the room, or the bed being long enough for a 8 year old and no one else but i think ive made my point about this place..
do yourself a favour and GO ELSEWHERE.