Things hotel guests say
From too many women, not enough women, resident ghosts and a poolside bird convention, hotel guest reviews can go beyond praising great service and the hotel buffet to reinforce how personal a hotel stay is for all of us.
Wego, the leading travel search site in the Asia Pacific and Middle East, and big data travel review partner TrustYou, gathered some of the more unusual feedback from hotel guests around the world.
“Hotel guests are usually quite candid about what impressed them and what didn’t,” commented Joachim Holte, Chief Marketing Officer at Wego. “Every traveller is different; with unique expectations and views of their experiences, and we can’t help but enjoy some of the more colourful comments which we thought were worth sharing.”
“Guest reviews provide insights to fellow travellers as well as hotel management, but more importantly they highlight the individuality and personality of travellers while also demonstrating that the tiniest details are not overlooked,” added Benjamin Jost, CEO of TrustYou.
One guest, impressed with the hotel overall advised fellow travellers who don’t like bars and restaurants frequented by ‘a lot of women’, to not visit. Conversely, another praised the food and music at a hotel event, apparently having more males than females in attendance was unsatisfactory and advised; ‘in future the hotel can look into this’.
Another appreciated the separate bathroom, bedroom and lounge area but not having a toaster in the room ‘was horrible!’
Speaking of bathrooms, one guest found theirs ‘a bit weird’.
“The door had a gap in it so communication with the room was possible when wanted and not,” said the guest. He went on to complain about the semi-transparent glass wall where the shower was located which meant whoever was in the room ‘got an eye full’ whenever someone had a shower. “This may be lovely if you have a pretty partner, however I was staying with two hairy lads!”
Sometimes feedback was short and sweet with one hotel visitor simply stating in her review that she had returned home ‘a fatter person’, clearly a stamp of approval for the hotel’s cuisine.
Others included:
“Comfortable, clean and mostly quiet. My toilet seat fell off.”
“The gym has no free standing squat racks. Too much cardio!! I am a strength athlete and do back and front squats.”
“The hotel charges extra for children so you are almost guaranteed not to see or hear any!!”
“The evening meeting of crows at poolside was funny! And a lot of pigeons around. If you have a bird phobia, poolside might not be for you.”
Supernatural guests also got a mention with one person saying her friend was touched multiple times on her back and leg in the bathroom. “It was a friendly ghost though as my friend told it to go away and we meant no harm.” No more incidents followed.
Possibly our favourite was the guest who was advised by his staff in Malaysia that the hotel he intended staying at was renowned for its ghostly activity. He was skeptical but then completely disappointed when he experienced no close encounters, in spite of watching three late night horror movies in his room to help ‘psych myself into a highly suggestible state of mind, without so much as a teacup being mysteriously thrown across the room’.
“I was hoping for at least an ectoplasmic explosion from the ceiling or a pair of creepy toddler twins chasing me down the hall,” he said. “To be perfectly honest, the scariest thing I saw during my stay was the bowl of curry laksa I ordered from room service.”
Top Ten Guest Comments
1. No ghost sighting
2. One ghost touching
3. Weird, glass enclosed bathroom in room shared by hairy mates
4. Too much cardio, not enough squats in the gym
5. No toaster = horrible!
6. Pool attracted a bird convention
7. My toilet seat fell off
8. Too many women in the bar
9. Not enough women in the bar
10. Extra charge for children: fabulous!
Email the Travel Weekly team at traveldesk@travelweekly.com.au
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