Thursday, April 14, 2011

Free Hotel Night in Exchange for a Sternly Worded Email

So, I gets back from the Santa Fe and stays the night at the Ramada by the airport in Spokane. I didn't plan on that but getting back on a delayed flight meant it was nearly 1am when I got in. I was too tired to drive so stumbled across the road and rented a room for MORE than it cost me for a night in the grand suite in Santa Fe. I get up and try to use one of those tiny coffee makers they leave in the rooms of industrial hotels. Well, the water ran out as fast as I poured it in and the coffee maker would not turn on. This was after getting to move the bed around to plug in the lamp upon arrival (it was that or take a toe off trying to find the bed in the dark as no other lights are accessible once one is in the aforementioned "bed"). On checking out, shortly after NOT having coffee and deciding that using the hair-trigger-between-scald-and-freeze shower was not going to happen, I said, "The coffee maker didn't work." or something like that. The response: ......... [insert sounds of crickets]...... Nothing. Not "please get a complimentary cup of coffee to go from the restaurant." Nothing. I stared a bit and got "Sorry." Oh well..."sorry" perked me right the f up...didn't it. (nope). Nice. That covered it. Especially since on the way out to Santa Fe I stayed at the same place (6am flight) and found that the coffee maker was unplugged. I had to move it across the room but at least it worked when I plugged it in. I wish I'd taken a photo of the nest of cords all going into the same outlet using a conglomeration of power strips and extension cords and one of those things that turns 2 outlets into 6 outlets. Very safe. After I get home and HAVE A CUP OF COFFEE, I sit down and compose a sternly worded email to Ramada stating that while 100$ rooms aren't much to some people, given that I just rented a 100$ APARTMENT with breakfast included IN SANTA FE, I thought that for the same price in Spokane I could at least expect a cup of coffee. I went on for 2 paragraphs about how the last 2 stays there have not been worth the money but based instead on my wish to not drive between the hours of 1am and 4am and that in the future I would strongly consider sleeping in chairs in the airport since I knew I could at a minimum get a decent cup of coffee. Today I get a voucher in the mail for a free night's stay at that hotel. We'll see. I only stay there when I'm flying in or out.

1 comment:

Fly Right said...

Yay for you! Sometimes I am too wimpy to write the emails or letters I should. Be sure to read the fine print--you may need to reserve a few years ahead of time for it to be valid. Hey, even if you just use it to get free pool use or internet and stay there for "fun" (which it doesn't sound like it is, really) I'm glad you got it. Good job, Jill!