The Omnipotent Hotel Clerk?

A few weeks ago, I mentioned a guest and a situation that was too frustrating and angering to talk about at that point. Well today is the day.

Before I arrived at work we had a guest check in… early. She arrived before check in and wanted her room now. We had a clean room in the part of the hotel that she had booked so the clerk checked her in. Note that upon checking in she mentions that she wants her room now (no matter that check in time is still 2 hours away) because she booked the room 6 weeks ago. This is a clear sign that this is going to be a problem guest. When the guest is demanding service because they did exactly what most people do.

Let’s fast forward 8 hours later. The guest and her husband show up at the front desk. Let’s call her Pain in the Ass or Pita for short 🙂

Pita: Why did you put me in a room with no air conditioning?

Me: You are having a problem with the air conditioning, ma’am?

Pita: Well, you should know, you put me in the room.

Me: I’m sorry, ma’am but I don’t recall checking you in but I would be happy to help resolve the issue for you.

Pita: I checked in 8 hours ago. It wasn’t working then and it isn’t working now.

Me: I am so sorry about that. I don’t see a record of a call to maintenance. When did you call?

Pita: I haven’t called. I am here now because it isn’t fixed.

Me: Ma’am, I am a little confused here. How would we know that you had a problem with the air conditioner if you didn’t tell us.

Pita: You should know you put me in a room with no air conditioning!

Me: Again, ma’am. I did not check you in and I don’t understand how I or any of my staff would know that your air conditioning wasn’t working.

Pita: This is your hotel, isn’t it?!?!

Me: Well, yes I work at this hotel but we have hundreds of rooms. No one said anything about the room to us so we weren’t aware of the issue.

Pita: Well that is just ridiculous. I want to be moved.

Me: Ma’am, we need to have maintenance check out the situation before moving you. That is protocol.

Pita: Get me your manager!

(ok, so this has not gone well but at least I am done with her… or so I thought. Let’s fast forward to a half hour later. My supervisor comes to me and let’s me know that they are moving the guest to another room. Well, things are slow so I pull up the guest and see the new room number and make her new keys so that I can limit my interaction with her. Oh, look here comes Pita)

Me: Here are the keys to the new room.

Pita: I already have the keys. You aren’t very good at your job are you?

(WTF????)

Me: Ma’am, let me ask you a question. If you are at work and your air conditioning goes out at your home, when do you know there is a problem?

Pita: What does that mean?

Me: Well, you said that we should know about the air conditioning issue in your room because it is our hotel. Would you know what is going on in your house if you weren’t there?

Pita: You check me in to a broken room, you give me keys I already have and now you are saying some nonsense in front of me. You aren’t very professional, are you?

Me: No ma’am, I am not. I have never been able to go professional and will probably always be stuck in the minors. I hope that you get someone that is more professional next time you go to the front desk. Have a fantastic, air conditioning full night.

(Pita storms off to her new room. I was very happy to have the next two days off and never saw her again… little known fact, we may know a lot about the hotel, even a lot about Las Vegas but we don’t know things we can’t know and 99% of the time we don’t do mean things for sport)