I wanted to treat my daughter to an overnight stay for her 13th birthday. She was born very prematurely and it was a miracle she survived so I wanted to make it as special as possible for her.
I live just a few miles away from the Village Hotel in Cardiff so a few days before check in I went to the hotel in person to see what could be done to make my daughter’s birthday special and to pay any outstanding balances.
Firstly I was told they would be able to provide some treats in our room such as balloons, chocolates, Starbucks treats etc and they would make the room look amazing as a surprise for my daughter. I was really excited about this and the staff seemed very enthusiastic. I was also told our room included the passes so I didn’t need to pay for those and also parking is free on weekends and as we were staying on the Sunday parking would be free. I walked out feeling very positive and excited.
However when we arrived I got told to enter my reg number and a parking charge will be added to my account. Only to be told it’s only free until 3pm on a Sunday. When I was told it would be free as we were staying on a Sunday. So I was misinformed. Then when I asked about how I go about getting the passes they then tried to charge me for that too. I told them I was told they were included with the room and that I was ready to pay for them a few days before but was told I didn’t need to. A manager came over and begrudgingly honoured free passes but I was very annoyed to have been misled on another thing. Then we went up to the room only to find not one single treat in the room for my daughter. Just a bare room. I went back down and then got told they hadn’t read the notes for the room. Which is unacceptable. I was gutted for my daughter as she would have loved to have walked into a room made up for her birthday. Eventually a member of staff turned up with a disposable Starbucks cup and a chocolate coin and Starbucks bear and smarties. So much for the special surprise which I had organised a few days before.
Then the next morning, the day of my daughter’s 13th I wanted to treat her to breakfast. It was an absolute shambles. We got down to the restaurant at 9am and was kept waiting for 10 minutes. Then had to wait another 10 minutes for plates to be put out. There was no juice available either as the containers were empty. We could only get what food was left. By the time we finished everything had been cleared away. I got charged for an all you can eat breakfast and there was hardly anything available. The staff were flustered and stressed as it all seemed so badly organised.
We left the hotel feeling deflated. I was stressed and upset that my daughter’s special day got ruined. I won’t get the chance to give her another 13th birthday. They ignored the customer survey I completed and they also ignored my email wishing to make a complaint. The staff didn’t seem at all bothered our special occasion got ruined. Devastated. Will never return and have told family and friends who would have gone to stay at the hotel if we’d had a good experience but they will now avoid it, especially for a special occasion.
Claimed loss: The cost of the room and breakfast and parking. All of it was a complete waste of money
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You went all out to make your daughter's birthday special, and Village Hotels really dropped the ball. It's frustrating when you plan everything in advance, only to have them miss the mark on so many fronts. Hopefully, your detailed feedback wakes them up, but it’s clear they’ve lost your trust — and likely that of others too. They won’t get a second chance to fix this one!