If a property is a bit rundown but the staff responds as quickly as humanly possible is it easier to overlook things. Last week end, a friend of mine and her husband vacationed at The St. Regis Monarch Beach in Dana Point, California.
When they opened the door to the oceanfront suite the first thing that caught my friend’s eye was a small hole in the fabric of the sofa.
Just then the suite’s doorbell rang. The butler was inquiring if she could make them reservations for any upcoming meals. My friend and her husband decided to checkout the facilities before they unpacked. They returned to fresh flowers in the room, a bowl of fruit and bottled water, which made the hole in the couch virtually unnoticeable.
Hearing this I wondered if the hole in the couch was there in October 2008 when AIG sponsored their retreat at this property after accepting the federal bailout money.
Anyway, late in the evening, day two of my friend’s weekend trip, the cable connection in their suite failed. The television screen just went blank. My friend phoned the front desk who sent up engineering in less than 10 minutes.
After analyzing the issue, the engineer explained that fixing the connection was no small task. He offered to work on it immediately, or he return in the morning at a time convenient for them.
They decided to give up television that night and schedule the service call the next morning. Unlike many appointments made in this fashion, the same engineer showed up and the service call was an unobtrusive as possible.
Now if I was the guest, I would have been on the phone with the hotel’s general manager. I would have demanded a discount on my bill. If I was paying $750 a nigh for a suite, no matter how unobtrusive the service, I would expect everything working in the room 100% of the time.
No matter how small a hole, holes in couches are not okay for me a $750 a night.
Though the St. Regis Monarch Beach Resorts future is uncertain due to financial woes what is certain is that they can still get $750 a night for a suite with imperfections, that is, if I am not the guest staying there.