As promised, I have a feel good story for you (a little delayed, but it's here) from the week of Sandy:
As you know, we had no power in our hotel during Hurricane Sandy. We had a backup generator that powered the exit signs, stairwell lights, and the elevators, but that's it. This left us with no power in the lobby, guest rooms, hallways or offices. As you can imagine, a lot of the guests were not happy with this. Mostly about the shower, or lack there of.
Along with everything mentioned, there was also no power going to the hot water tank, so showering in the hotel was an unpleasant experience, to say the least. The temperature was in the high 30's/low 40's at night that week, so the water was at an almost unbearable temperature.
Luckily, we have some fantastic regular guests in our hotel. There was one in particular that stays with us multiple nights a week, every other week. She's basically part of our family and we give her whatever she needs when she comes in. She was here working on a big project for two weeks already when Sandy hit, and she continued to stay through the week (and another two weeks after that). On Wednesday night (day three of the power outage), she came to the front desk and handed me a room key. I looked at it and saw that it wasn't for our hotel, so I was pretty confused.
After asking me what it's for, she told me that her company wanted her to stay in a hotel with power so they booked a room at a nearby hotel a few blocks North. Unfortunately for her, she has two pugs that are handicapped that she travels with all the time and the new hotel isn't pet friendly. The company paid for the room anyways so she can have a warm room with lights so she can do her work. She told me that since we were stuck in the hotel and couldn't go home and take a proper shower, we can use her spare key when she's not there. We can feel free to shower, sit and watch tv, thaw out. You know, normal life things that we didn't have for a few days.
It was really such a small gesture, but at the same time, it might have been the most satisfying shower I've ever taken. In a time when most guests were getting antsy and frustrated, she was helpful and considerate and we appreciated it more than she knows.
I don't think she'll ever see this, but if she does, thank you!!
Showing posts with label Shout Out. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Shout Out. Show all posts
Tuesday, December 11, 2012
Wednesday, September 5, 2012
(Partially) Renewed Faith in Humanity
This story just happened and I'm amazed. In fact, it's still happening because the guests haven't come back yet. Let me explain...
Three guests arrived from New Zealand about twenty minutes ago after a long flight. I checked on their reservation to confirm that we have them here, but it was too early to check in. I started tagging their luggage to keep in storage for the day, when one of the guys yelled "OH BUGGER!" We all looked at him, confused as to why he was yelling out. He explained that he had another small satchel that he left in the taxi from the airport.
The guest frantically ran outside to see if the taxi was still here, but it was long gone. They don't sit for very long on rainy days. He came back in looking utterly baffled and broken. He went on to explain that he had his passport, itinerary, and about $3,000 in cash in that bag and that he was part of a tour that was leaving in 2 days to go to Canada (not to mention, he also needed the passport to get home...). "OH! I also have my mobile phone in the bag! Maybe we can try to call it?" He got the number out of his wallet and proceeded to call the cell phone. Unfortunately, there was no answer, which was good and bad. Good because the phone was on and working. Bad because no one found it yet.We proceeded to store the luggage and sent the guests on their way to explore Manhattan.
A few seconds after leaving, the guest ran back in to hand me two $50 bills. "If the taxi driver or anyone comes in with my bag, please make sure to give this to them as a thank you." They went off for some breakfast and I went back to my work.Just a moment ago, the taxi driver showed up. HE ACTUALLY CAME TO RETURN IT! I couldn't believe it. We couldn't believe it. I handed him the money from the guest and thanked him so much for returning the bag and he told me it was interesting. He had two other passengers since our guest, and the first one didn't see it (or didn't say anything about it). The second passenger started digging through the bag when the taxi driver noticed. He took the bag away from the passenger because he remembered our guest with the bag. He came right back here to return it.
He was also smart about the return. He wouldn't just give me the bag because of how valuable the contents are, but he also didn't want to sit and wait for the guests to come back. Finally, he took my business card, gave me his business card, and left the bag on condition that I have the guest call him when he gets the bag. Medallion #4F54 driver, if you read this, you're a good man. Thank you.
Now we're just waiting on the guest to come back so we can tell him the good news.
Have you had a story or situation like this? Did you lose something in a taxi? Were you able to recover it, or is it lost forever? Share your story in the comments, and check back to see what happens with the guest!
UPDATED
Sorry, yesterday got busy and I didn't have time to update the post. The guest came back in a few hours after the bag was dropped off. He was elated to hear that we had it and he was on the verge of tears. He was not expecting to get the bag returned to him and thought he would have to go to the consulate and get a new passport (not to mention, he would have been out a few thousand dollars). He gave me $20 and a big hug, and went on his way to share the good news with his friends.
Three guests arrived from New Zealand about twenty minutes ago after a long flight. I checked on their reservation to confirm that we have them here, but it was too early to check in. I started tagging their luggage to keep in storage for the day, when one of the guys yelled "OH BUGGER!" We all looked at him, confused as to why he was yelling out. He explained that he had another small satchel that he left in the taxi from the airport.
The guest frantically ran outside to see if the taxi was still here, but it was long gone. They don't sit for very long on rainy days. He came back in looking utterly baffled and broken. He went on to explain that he had his passport, itinerary, and about $3,000 in cash in that bag and that he was part of a tour that was leaving in 2 days to go to Canada (not to mention, he also needed the passport to get home...). "OH! I also have my mobile phone in the bag! Maybe we can try to call it?" He got the number out of his wallet and proceeded to call the cell phone. Unfortunately, there was no answer, which was good and bad. Good because the phone was on and working. Bad because no one found it yet.We proceeded to store the luggage and sent the guests on their way to explore Manhattan.
A few seconds after leaving, the guest ran back in to hand me two $50 bills. "If the taxi driver or anyone comes in with my bag, please make sure to give this to them as a thank you." They went off for some breakfast and I went back to my work.Just a moment ago, the taxi driver showed up. HE ACTUALLY CAME TO RETURN IT! I couldn't believe it. We couldn't believe it. I handed him the money from the guest and thanked him so much for returning the bag and he told me it was interesting. He had two other passengers since our guest, and the first one didn't see it (or didn't say anything about it). The second passenger started digging through the bag when the taxi driver noticed. He took the bag away from the passenger because he remembered our guest with the bag. He came right back here to return it.
He was also smart about the return. He wouldn't just give me the bag because of how valuable the contents are, but he also didn't want to sit and wait for the guests to come back. Finally, he took my business card, gave me his business card, and left the bag on condition that I have the guest call him when he gets the bag. Medallion #4F54 driver, if you read this, you're a good man. Thank you.
Now we're just waiting on the guest to come back so we can tell him the good news.
Have you had a story or situation like this? Did you lose something in a taxi? Were you able to recover it, or is it lost forever? Share your story in the comments, and check back to see what happens with the guest!
UPDATED
Sorry, yesterday got busy and I didn't have time to update the post. The guest came back in a few hours after the bag was dropped off. He was elated to hear that we had it and he was on the verge of tears. He was not expecting to get the bag returned to him and thought he would have to go to the consulate and get a new passport (not to mention, he would have been out a few thousand dollars). He gave me $20 and a big hug, and went on his way to share the good news with his friends.
Wednesday, July 27, 2011
No Soap Radio
Two elephants were in a bathtub and one asked "can you pass the bar of soap?" The other elephant replied "no, we donated it to Africa."
Sorry. That was pretty awful. I just needed something to lead into this story.
About three months ago, I learned that our hotel entered a program to help Clean The World. The way the program works is when cleaning guest rooms everyday, the housekeepers swap out the "old" bars of soap that were used once or twice and replenish it with brand new ones. While most people think this is a waste of perfectly good soap, it's actually not going to waste at all.
After collecting all the used soap, the housekeepers put them in a giant bin, and when filled, it get's shipped out to be sanitized and then distributed to "save the millions of lives lost each year to acute lower-respiratory infection and diarreal illness with the appropriate educational materials to sustain good personal hygiene practices."
I don't really have a story that this is leading into. It's just a post to pass on the news that we're helping out. It made me happy to learn about and it makes the guests happy, or at least content, when they hear what happens with the soap and shampoo after they're removed from the room.
If you're going to a hotel, feel free to ask an employee if their hotel participates in the Clean The World program. It's a great cause and should definitely be looked into by everyone.
UPDATE: The housekeeping manager saw this post and asked me to update this. He just got an email this week with a tally of everything we've donated. to date, we have donated just under 500 each of bars of soap and bottles of shampoo/conditioner. Go team go!
Sorry. That was pretty awful. I just needed something to lead into this story.
About three months ago, I learned that our hotel entered a program to help Clean The World. The way the program works is when cleaning guest rooms everyday, the housekeepers swap out the "old" bars of soap that were used once or twice and replenish it with brand new ones. While most people think this is a waste of perfectly good soap, it's actually not going to waste at all.
After collecting all the used soap, the housekeepers put them in a giant bin, and when filled, it get's shipped out to be sanitized and then distributed to "save the millions of lives lost each year to acute lower-respiratory infection and diarreal illness with the appropriate educational materials to sustain good personal hygiene practices."
I don't really have a story that this is leading into. It's just a post to pass on the news that we're helping out. It made me happy to learn about and it makes the guests happy, or at least content, when they hear what happens with the soap and shampoo after they're removed from the room.
If you're going to a hotel, feel free to ask an employee if their hotel participates in the Clean The World program. It's a great cause and should definitely be looked into by everyone.
UPDATE: The housekeeping manager saw this post and asked me to update this. He just got an email this week with a tally of everything we've donated. to date, we have donated just under 500 each of bars of soap and bottles of shampoo/conditioner. Go team go!
Sunday, April 10, 2011
Renovations
We just finished going through renovations in the hotel, and it sure was an interesting experience, to say the least. Renovations started at the end of January and just finished last week. We completely renovated the lobby, breakfast area, and the guest rooms. Two and a half months of complaining guests (even more so than usual), renovation questions, jackhammering, drills, saws, dust, and everything else you can imagine that goes along with renovations.
It started in October when the GM put a note on our website saying "The hotel will be under renovations from January through March 2011". Little did we know that we were in for 6 months of hell. I understand getting questions about how the renovations will affect the guest rooms and breakfast and things like that. Then we started getting crazy questions. Here are a few of my favorite conversations:
Caller: Will your swimming pool be available?
Me: Sorry ma'am, we don't have a swimming pool.
Caller: You're closing down your swimming pool? That's the best part of the hotel!
Me: Ma'am, we've never had a swimming pool on our property.
Caller: Oh.
Guest Checking In: So I saw you're under renovations. What time do I need to be out of my room so they can do the work in the room?
Me: Excuse me?
GCI: Well I certainly won't want to be sleeping when they come in, so I want to get out early enough.
Me: Sir, we're not doing any work in the rooms that are occupied with guests. That's a health and safety hazard.
GCI: Oh good. That's good to hear.
Luckily for us, we have a lot of repeat guests that come in every week, or often enough that we know them by name. When they come in, it's always nice to see them and catch up. You know they're here often enough when you can ask about their family and how things are at home. Having these guests coming in during renovations was quite helpful with our morale.
Despite all the questions and complaints from the other guests, these regulars would come in with a smile (assuming they didn't have a crappy day) and lift our spirits a bit. They know that when we aren't bogged down with renovation stuff, we're a (mostly) great staff, the breakfast is good, and the rooms are comfortable. They're understanding and despite the minor disturbances and inconveniences, they still show up week after week.
So this post goes out to Mrs. Levy, Mr. Fox, Mr. Fennema, and all the other regulars that I can't think of offhand at 2:00am. Thanks for the help with the annoying guests and for keeping us sane when we're at the desk!
I'll be starting a new game. At the end of every post, there will be a name of the day. Each name I pick will be an actual name of a guest in the hotel. I am NOT making these up, no matter how ridiculous they look. Enjoy!
Name of the Day: Christine Farondegoerdeherve
It started in October when the GM put a note on our website saying "The hotel will be under renovations from January through March 2011". Little did we know that we were in for 6 months of hell. I understand getting questions about how the renovations will affect the guest rooms and breakfast and things like that. Then we started getting crazy questions. Here are a few of my favorite conversations:
Caller: Will your swimming pool be available?
Me: Sorry ma'am, we don't have a swimming pool.
Caller: You're closing down your swimming pool? That's the best part of the hotel!
Me: Ma'am, we've never had a swimming pool on our property.
Caller: Oh.
Guest Checking In: So I saw you're under renovations. What time do I need to be out of my room so they can do the work in the room?
Me: Excuse me?
GCI: Well I certainly won't want to be sleeping when they come in, so I want to get out early enough.
Me: Sir, we're not doing any work in the rooms that are occupied with guests. That's a health and safety hazard.
GCI: Oh good. That's good to hear.
Luckily for us, we have a lot of repeat guests that come in every week, or often enough that we know them by name. When they come in, it's always nice to see them and catch up. You know they're here often enough when you can ask about their family and how things are at home. Having these guests coming in during renovations was quite helpful with our morale.
Despite all the questions and complaints from the other guests, these regulars would come in with a smile (assuming they didn't have a crappy day) and lift our spirits a bit. They know that when we aren't bogged down with renovation stuff, we're a (mostly) great staff, the breakfast is good, and the rooms are comfortable. They're understanding and despite the minor disturbances and inconveniences, they still show up week after week.
So this post goes out to Mrs. Levy, Mr. Fox, Mr. Fennema, and all the other regulars that I can't think of offhand at 2:00am. Thanks for the help with the annoying guests and for keeping us sane when we're at the desk!
I'll be starting a new game. At the end of every post, there will be a name of the day. Each name I pick will be an actual name of a guest in the hotel. I am NOT making these up, no matter how ridiculous they look. Enjoy!
Name of the Day: Christine Farondegoerdeherve
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
AWESOME!
As I mentioned in the Introduction, I have been following a bunch of blogs for a while now. One of the blogs I have followed consistently is 1000 Awesome Things. It's an amazing site that brings a smile to your face pretty much every time you visit. Neil Pasricha, the author of the site, has done an incredible job with it, and recently came out with a book titled "The Book of Awesome".
I just bought the book yesterday and I keep picking it up and opening to a random page and loving what I see. To sum it up without giving too much away, it's a 400 page book of things that just about everyone loves. Unless you're not human. But even then you should love them. The examples that Pasricha put on the book jacket are "Snow Days, Bakery Air, Finding Money in Your Pocket, and Other Simple, Brilliant things." And that's exactly what it is. Other simple, brilliant things.
I showed it to a few of my friends last night and they all loved it. As someone said so brilliantly, "it's the perfect coffee table book for the new table we just got in our apartment!"
Now, I didn't want this to sound like a book review, or me telling you to go buy it (although I am saying that. It's awesome!), but I just wanted to give a shout out to Pasricha because his site and book had a lot to do with me starting this blog. So thank you Neil. Thank you for your entertainment, reminders of the good times that passed by and were forgotten, and for the inspiration.
I just bought the book yesterday and I keep picking it up and opening to a random page and loving what I see. To sum it up without giving too much away, it's a 400 page book of things that just about everyone loves. Unless you're not human. But even then you should love them. The examples that Pasricha put on the book jacket are "Snow Days, Bakery Air, Finding Money in Your Pocket, and Other Simple, Brilliant things." And that's exactly what it is. Other simple, brilliant things.
I showed it to a few of my friends last night and they all loved it. As someone said so brilliantly, "it's the perfect coffee table book for the new table we just got in our apartment!"
Now, I didn't want this to sound like a book review, or me telling you to go buy it (although I am saying that. It's awesome!), but I just wanted to give a shout out to Pasricha because his site and book had a lot to do with me starting this blog. So thank you Neil. Thank you for your entertainment, reminders of the good times that passed by and were forgotten, and for the inspiration.
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