Just a little criticism about the Hard Rock Hotel

champdds

DIS Veteran wanna-be
Joined
Jan 22, 2002
Messages
227
Pasted an exerpt from my trip report....


I had some issues with the HRH, nothing on a grand scale, but it was the little details I would expect an almost $300/night hotel to handle with no problem. I had requested a specific room on the 6th floor 5 days ahead of time by calling the hotel, and was told the request could not be guaranteed,(which was understandable ) but would be put on the reservation..I asked to at least be on the 6th floor, if that room was not available. Upon our arrival, I was told the room was to be #4101, I asked about the request...NO SUCH REQUEST WAS ON THE RESERVATION AS I HAD BEEN TOLD...Uggghhh, plus the room was not ready yet anyway..(3:30pm) I told them we would be willing to wait for the 6th floor, nope, only room was #4101

Room #4101 is not for the light sleeper, it is DIRECTLY across from the ice machine...and since HRH uses stainless steel ice buckets, the noise can be quite startling at 2a.m., and even without someone actually getting ice, every now and then, a stray cube fall down the shoot and bangs into the drain hole...

Our pullout sofa was actually broken, with a noticable lean down in the corner.Too late that night when we noticed it, but I went to the front desk at 8a.m. the next day to tell them....8 hours later when we returned from the park, it still had not been addressed (again, remember, it is these little details that irked me)...I called and the manager of Housekeeping did take care of it, and as an apology, he ordered extra 'cushioning' for the sofa bed, and also turndown service for us...I was there when he made the call...guess what...that night when we returned from dinner (almost 10pm), no turndown service, and no extras for the sofa bed ( small details gone undone !)...We did eventually get the turndown service the remaining nights, but did not get the promised extras for the sofabed until our last night...

Last little issue was the fact we had a change of plan that allowed us to leave Saturday, instead of the original Friday..I stopped by the front desk on WEDNESDAY NIGHT just to ask about extending our stay...and was told they were booked for the weekend..no problem, and asked if they could put us on a waiting list if something opened up ...they did call Thursday and said to not plan on it, so I went online and started hotel searching...funny, but HRH came up as available..I called the front desk, they said the website must be wrong, and there was nothing available...I told them we did not need the same room, or even the same type room, and would take what was available...again, a no...I called central reservation, and was asking about Portafino Bay...while talking to the agent, she told me there WERE rooms at HRH, and in fact, they had a deluxe queen !!! In fact, she booked ot right then for me...I called the front desk, they were puzzled, but I gave them the reservation number, and they kept us in the same room ! for the extra night...AGAIN, IT IS THESE SMALL IRRITATIONS THAT I FEEL ARE NOT REASONABLE AT A HIGH LEVEL HOTEL...criticize me if you will, but the burden
of proper follow up, etc. should not be left up to the customer.

The hotel itself is quite elegant, but I did notice that the blue paint job in our hallway, was poorly done, as there was paint on the room signs, which should have been removed or better prep would have avoided it...(again, small details, and would not have been a point if this was a Motel 6 )

We really did enjoy the atmosphere of the HRH, and the walk to the parks is a huge benefit...I would also never do the parks without the FOTL priviledges from staying onsite, even during this slow season..there were still some long lines at times..We loved the pool, and the waiter "Will" became a good friend with his great service from the bar.

Also, per advice from this board..My wife and I bought the refillable PILSNERS on Monday, and brought them to the parks every day, so we got that extra 4oz. every time when we got a beer....Maybe not a huge savings, but EXTRA BEER !!!

Fire away with any questions....I could have written much more, but have to plan for our cruise in May now...

David:cool1:
 
dave, i would not call what happened to you minor issues.
it is a 4 star hotel, you would expect better than what you encountered.

i read your post a couple of times and said to myself, WoW........i know you are speaking the truth as i was there near the period you were and know exactly what you are talking about.


i have stayed at this hotel 19 times now.

Staff communications at that hotel this month missed their mark when it came to me.

Some people have careers while others just have a job.
It makes a big difference on how they carry out their work assignments.

i'm looking forward to read your trip report.
sorry i missed you in the lobby on Monday.
 
Boy someone did miss the ball game there and as Mac said to some people its just and job and the ones that truely enjoy there job goes out of thier way for you and sounds like the ones you encountered just didn't care but at least you still had a good time didn't ya ??
I hope so :thumbsup2
 
i usually poo poo these kinds of threads. but i feel you did have real issues. something you whouldnt have to put up with at a hotel of this caliber.
 

I had similar critisisms when I was there, some days our turndown servce didn't happen and the times they didn't deliver the correct paper - that drove me up the wall...

Still love the place though..
 
Macraven,

Yep, Sorry we didn't get a chance to see each other...again..Overall, I was happy with the Hard Rock...just needed to vent a little...

David
 
Boy someone did miss the ball game there and as Mac said to some people its just and job and the ones that truely enjoy there job goes out of thier way for you and sounds like the ones you encountered just didn't care but at least you still had a good time didn't ya ??
I hope so :thumbsup2

One thing for sure, was that TOM, the Housekeeping Manager, did his best to make things right, unfortunately, he was off two days when we were having issues, and he was able to address things when he returned (after I emailed him, since his voicemail did not work)...I really think they were having some staffing issues in that department, based on what he told me...

David
 
The last 2 times we have stayed at HRH we were very disappointed for similar issues. Simple things that could be taken care of and several people dropped the ball. We will be staying at Portofino next summer. Hopefully we will have better luck.
 
I can totally believe what you say. HRH has always been terribly inconsistent in their service levels, and in our experience doesn't come close to their 4* rating.

Turndown service was always a crapshoot for us. We'd take bets upon returning to the room as to whether or not we'd received turndown. If we received turndown one night, they'd forget the paper in the morning. And vice versa.

Don't get me started on the attitude I'd get when I wanted a late check out as platinum and paying a qualifying rate. Don't act like you're doing me a favor by giving me a late check out.

And, don't get me started on how housekeeping not once, but twice, knocked on our door with the DND sign clearly hanging on the door. We were startled once by the loud knock, thinking that it must be important if they're going to knock while we've got the sign up. We answered the door to housekeeping insisting that it was our 4th day and she needed to change the sheets. I thought that perhaps someone had played a joke and stolen our DND sign, but nope, it was right there. She just ignored it.
 
Turndown service was always a crapshoot for us. We'd take bets upon returning to the room as to whether or not we'd received turndown. If we received turndown one night, they'd forget the paper in the morning. And vice versa.

Here's one that will make you laugh....

For the week before I had received the USA today, on a Saturday I received no alternate paper- I had previously asked for the Sentinal, I phoned down to ask for my alternate paper and they bought me up the previous days USA today instead, when I asked why, they said that because I had had the USA today all week they thought that would be the best choice for me - didn't even cross there mind that I had had the paper the day before....
 
I hope you write a letter to complain about your problems. It's the only way they'll know what they need to do.

Oh and the Hard Rock is my least favorite out of the three hotels when it comes to service. Strangely enough, it's the other two hotels that make me feel like I really am a rock star with their awesome service.
 
Here's one that will make you laugh....

For the week before I had received the USA today, on a Saturday I received no alternate paper- I had previously asked for the Sentinal, I phoned down to ask for my alternate paper and they bought me up the previous days USA today instead, when I asked why, they said that because I had had the USA today all week they thought that would be the best choice for me - didn't even cross there mind that I had had the paper the day before....

Why does that not surprise me?
 
To be fair though, they went out their way to help us with our ill son, search for my posts. Pity this let them down a little.
 
I hope you write a letter to complain about your problems. It's the only way they'll know what they need to do.

Oh and the Hard Rock is my least favorite out of the three hotels when it comes to service. Strangely enough, it's the other two hotels that make me feel like I really am a rock star with their awesome service.


I was planning on an email to the email address we were given regarding our stay when we checked out, but I misplaced the paperwork that had it on there..does anyone have an email regarding customer service issues ?

Thanks

David:cool1:
 
I hope you get better response than we did. With the crappy service we received, along with a disappointing breakfast in The Kitchen, I wrote to management and got a form letter thanking me for making them aware of my concerns and hoping I would give them another try. Ummm...no thanks. That WAS their other try.
 
Sorry to hear. We had a major issue with the Royal Pacific last Nov
We did Disney first and then were to check in to RP for the last part of our vacation.
We have done this numerous times before. We arrived, my kids were out cold from a big day at the Disney parks. I go to check in and they have no info
on us!:eek: ANd the kicker is, they kept asking "When did you make this
reservation?" It was all paid in full. We were not happy in the least.
So they finally find us, after 40 miuntes and my kids are sleeping on my
hubby in the lobby. And the next morning, the screwed up our Express Passes:mad:

My husband went and complained (nicely) to the manager and we
got a free dinner and breakfast out of it
I would never say thay I wouldn't go back to US/IOA, especially on site
it's one of our favorite places
But just experiences like that really get to you.
 












Receive up to $1,000 in Onboard Credit and a Gift Basket!
That’s right — when you book your Disney Cruise with Dreams Unlimited Travel, you’ll receive incredible shipboard credits to spend during your vacation!
CLICK HERE













DIS Facebook DIS youtube DIS Instagram DIS Pinterest DIS Tiktok DIS Twitter DIS Bluesky

Back
Top