Innkeepers' reviews

Hello everyone and Happy 2018!
My SO & I took some very necessary time off and spent 2 weeks in Argentina. We stayed in hotels, apartments, and a B&B. We dined at various styles of restaurants, too. At the end of our experience, we always discuss how we would rate our lodging or dining. Now that I'm highly cognizant of how even a 4-star review impacts one's online reputation, I hesitate to leave anything but a 5-star review, especially if the provider is a small mom & pop operation. Example: we stayed at a B&B where the walls were so thin, we could clearly hear the conversation in the next room. I wanted to shout, "bless you!" when I heard them sneeze! However, the staff was fantastic and the room was impeccably clean and relatively comfortable. So I left a 5-star review but noted that the walls were very thin and guests should bring ear plugs.
On the other hand, we had an experience that was so bad it definitely warranted a 1-star review. The place was a dump, our reservation was mishandled, and we ended up leaving 15 minutes after we walked in (a first for me!). My SO insisted that I should not leave a review since our card wasn't charged. Somehow, this place has a perfect google *and* Trip Advisor rating, which blows my mind. I feel the need to warn folks, but is it worth the duress it will cause the innkeeper?

Did you feel like it was a misunderstanding? Or did you feel like it was bad management? I'd probably leave a review but with details. Just saying 'the place is a dump' doesn't explain why your impression differs from everyone else who has reviewed the place.

Given your experience was so much different than what has been reported, it's quite possible a lot of the reviews are fake. Why do I say this? Because it wasn't the only place you stayed, you've never walked out on a place before, and I bet you actually give other small properties a little grace before you react.
A property does not go from 5 star reviews to 'what a dump' overnight. Even a 'bad day' does not look like 'what a dump' to an experienced innkeeper.
It will appear like you have some sort of grudge, tho, given all the other good reviews so I would preface and with, 'this is completely contrary to what everyone else has experienced, but this is what happened to us.'
It doesn't matter if all you did was call them on the phone. You can write a review. We all hate that, but those are the rules of engagement. But, you need to decide what is gained.

I've had a very similar experience to this and I left an appropriate review, in a situation where I felt the traveler was being ripped off by an owner who really didn't care and was simply taking advantage of their situation in a very touristy location. I think that's perfectly reasonable.
However I would warn against leaving a review under the TA account that is attached to your business as you leave yourself open to retaliatory reviews.

BTW, know that your lone bad review won't mean anything to the hosts or the future guests. I looked at reviews for a place we wanted to stay and they had absolutely glowing, fulsome reviews. The hosts were caring, wonderful people, the property was gorgeous and well-maintained, etc.
There was one bad review. Well, those are the ones I read closely. Didn't sound like a nutter or someone with a grudge. I figured the problem had been solved.
Nope. We had almost the exact same experience - terrible breakfast, dirty rooms, an awful musty smell everywhere. And the 4 other couples staying at the same time had the same experience.
I think how the owners got around the myriad problems with many guests was the sob story they told on check in.

TheBeachHouse said:

Did you feel like it was a misunderstanding? Or did you feel like it was bad management? I'd probably leave a review but with details. Just saying 'the place is a dump' doesn't explain why your impression differs from everyone else who has reviewed the place..

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It was bad management to the extreme. The place didn't have an online res system and the online inquiry form had a broken CAPTCHA so I couldn't submit it. Emailed the innkeeper directly and specified exactly which 2 rooms I was interested in bc they had king beds. Innkeeper replied and said room A & B are available, but not C. I replied that C was my first choice, but B is my second. Never said I was interested in A. We get there and are greeted by a note on the door telling us a combination for the keyless entry & directing us to our room; which is room A. There aren't any lights on to welcome us, and the place is dark and a bit dingy. The furniture is very tired-looking, but ok I can deal with that for a 1-night stay. However, the entire place reeks of smoke so badly my eyes water, and there are full ashtrays and trash on the back deck. I call the # on the "welcome" note. It's the housekeeper & I tell her there's a mistake with our room. She says she'll call the owner. Calls back and says that room B was reserved weeks ago. I reply, "Yes, by me!" Meanwhile, I look over my email correspondence. I was very clear on my room choice. The housekeeper calls the owner again & calls back. She says the owner has been trying to reach me on my cell to talk about all of this. I told her I'm standing on their front porch and don't understand why he'd have trouble reaching me. The housekeeper says she can have room B ready if I give her 2 hours. The room switched from "reserved" to just "dirty", so now it's apparent that they're lying to me!
At this point, I tell the housekeeper not to bother. I forward the innkeeper the email in which I specified my room choice, which includes the innkeeper's reply acknowledging my reservation. I stated, "It was clear that I wanted room B." He replied via email the next day to say that he is in New Orleans on business and "this has never happened before". The next day, the inn receives a 5-star google review from people stating that the innkeeper is so wonderful and friendly. The review is submitted as having stayed the same month as us. Our reservation was for the 2nd of the month. So the innkeeper teleported from New Orleans for this other set of guests?
Btw Room A had queen bed and the tiny shower was located *in the room* next to the nightstand. I could turn off the alarm clock whilst standing in the shower! The toilet was also located in the room, separated by 3 partial walls (not 4!) I could lay on the bed and wave to my SO if he used the toilet. Of course, this was cropped out in their online photos. NONE of this is mentioned in a single online review. I cannot believe this place is rated a 5-star accommodation!!

Highlands John said:

I've had a very similar experience to this and I left an appropriate review, in a situation where I felt the traveler was being ripped off by an owner who really didn't care and was simply taking advantage of their situation in a very touristy location. I think that's perfectly reasonable.
However I would warn against leaving a review under the TA account that is attached to your business as you leave yourself open to retaliatory reviews..

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I never leave reviews under my business TA account. However, if I leave a review specifying everything that went wrong, it will be obvious which guest left the review. And this innkeeper inadvertently discovered which B&B I owned bc he called my personal cell to confirm my reservation. I state in my vm message, "Hi, this is ___ owner of ___" for when I have my land line forwarded whilst I'm away from the B&B.
This is the biggest reason why I'm reluctant to leave a review.

notAgrandma said:

Highlands John said:

I've had a very similar experience to this and I left an appropriate review, in a situation where I felt the traveler was being ripped off by an owner who really didn't care and was simply taking advantage of their situation in a very touristy location. I think that's perfectly reasonable.
However I would warn against leaving a review under the TA account that is attached to your business as you leave yourself open to retaliatory reviews..

Click to expand...

I never leave reviews under my business TA account. However, if I leave a review specifying everything that went wrong, it will be obvious which guest left the review. And this innkeeper inadvertently discovered which B&B I owned bc he called my personal cell to confirm my reservation. I state in my vm message, "Hi, this is ___ owner of ___" for when I have my land line forwarded whilst I'm away from the B&B.
This is the biggest reason why I'm reluctant to leave a review.
.

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notAgrandma said:

This is the biggest reason why I'm reluctant to leave a review.

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Yes, I think I would probably not leave one in that circumstance.

I know this thread is about us leaving reviews - BUT while I was in Maryland for a 3-night stay at a Conference (my City job), I had an e-mail from Goo+ telling me I had a review. Took me a couple minutes to remember who it was. Here is the review:
I should have done this review years ago. We stayed here off and on for nearly two months when we first moved to WV. We love B & B's and this one is up there with one of the best we have stayed. The rooms are nice, and clean and comfortable. The breakfast is incredible. For as long as we stayed there I felt like there was something new and special about it every morning. There is also an enormous selection of tea and she roasts green coffee, allowing the guests to choose which bean to roast for that week. Plus, Shinnston is a little gem. They have an outdoor pavilion, that, if you are lucky, and stay when they have something going on, you must attend. Just ask the owner, she is a wealth of information about the area. If I could give this place five stars and two thumbs up, I would.
Yep, I was pleased even if it did take a few years to get it.

We stayed at a place this past weekend that was pretty awful. We read the reviews ahead of time and they were mediocre, so we knew what we were getting into, but the location was perfect for what we needed, so we booked. The reviews didn't lie; terrible housekeeping, no alarm clock, no tissues, not enough towels, worn out carpeting, etc. Ok. I could handle all of that. But, and here's the big one, there was no mattress pad! Nothing. Just a very thin, worn sheet on top of an unprotected mattress. The mattress was not covered in plastic or anything else. That means that EVERY bodily fluid that seeped through the thin sheet went right into that mattress. I was beyond grossed out. I thought it must have been an oversight so when I saw the housekeeping person (the owner was nowhere to be found) I asked her if she had a mattress pad she could put on the bed. She spoke very little English and seemed a bit confused, but she said yes. Off we went to dinner. When we returned, of course there was no mattress pad. We tried to find another place to stay but everything else was booked. So, here is my dilemma. Do I email the owner and give her a chance to explain, or write a review and add my two cents to everyone else's? Nowhere in any of the reviews that we read did anyone mention that there was no mattress protection. Had I read that, there's not a chance in the world I would've stayed there. Oh, and no cover for the comforter either. 99% sure that doesn't get washed between guests.

Country Girl said:

We stayed at a place this past weekend that was pretty awful. We read the reviews ahead of time and they were mediocre, so we knew what we were getting into, but the location was perfect for what we needed, so we booked. The reviews didn't lie; terrible housekeeping, no alarm clock, no tissues, not enough towels, worn out carpeting, etc. Ok. I could handle all of that. But, and here's the big one, there was no mattress pad! Nothing. Just a very thin, worn sheet on top of an unprotected mattress. The mattress was not covered in plastic or anything else. That means that EVERY bodily fluid that seeped through the thin sheet went right into that mattress. I was beyond grossed out. I thought it must have been an oversight so when I saw the housekeeping person (the owner was nowhere to be found) I asked her if she had a mattress pad she could put on the bed. She spoke very little English and seemed a bit confused, but she said yes. Off we went to dinner. When we returned, of course there was no mattress pad. We tried to find another place to stay but everything else was booked. So, here is my dilemma. Do I email the owner and give her a chance to explain, or write a review and add my two cents to everyone else's? Nowhere in any of the reviews that we read did anyone mention that there was no mattress protection. Had I read that, there's not a chance in the world I would've stayed there. Oh, and no cover for the comforter either. 99% sure that doesn't get washed between guests..

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I am not trying to be snide but I must say that if the reviews were mediocre the place lived up to its reputation. If the rate was low you should know that you get what you paid for...barely.
When a place is pricey and has a great reputation on the web you can expect that they live up to their reputation. But if their reputation is in the mud...location or not...I would never book with them. Clearly the owner doesn't care since there are already a pile of complaints. Go ahead and throw yours onto the pile.