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Melia Cayo Guillermo 08/17/2005
Reviewers Rating:  Good
I was at the Melia Cayo Guillermo, in Cuba, from July 3st to August 7th 2005, and I wish to make you aware of my experience. This was also communicated by written letter to the director of this hotel on the day of my departure.
My experience at Melia Cayo Guillermo clearly shows that there is a big problem with the management of this hotel.
Before my arrival, I paid a considerable sum of money in order to reserve a room with an ocean view. At my arrival at the hotel, employees at the reception gave me room number 1307 and affirmed that there was an ocean view, as requested, and that there was 2 beds in the room. It was not true.
I came back to the reception desk saying that there was no ocean view and that I wanted to get another room. They requested that I come back the next morning at nine o’clock. When I did so, employees at the reception told to come back at twelve o’clock. When I did so, they told me to come back at 16 o’clock (4 pm). When I did so, people at the reception took the key of my former room (1307), they gave me no courtesy room, no place to put my luggage (while my luggage was still in my former room and I had no key so no access to my luggage anymore). They just told me that my room was still not ready, without any explanation. So I told them I would wait in the lobby until the room was ready.
My son and I stayed in the lobby of this hotel, right in front of the reception desk, for 2.5 hours without being given any explanation about the problem. At 2 or 3 occasions, I came back to the reception desk in order to find out what was going on, and the employee at the reception desk was asking me “What can I do for you?” as if he did not know what I was waiting for.
During these 2.5 hours, employees at the reception were giving rooms to other customers arriving at the hotel, and those rooms were apparently ready, but not mine. Employees at the reception totally ignored me although they new I was waiting right there in front of their desk.
While waiting for my room, I met a man in charge of the mates cleaning rooms at this hotel, and explained to him that I had no room for hours because mine was not clean yet. This man listened to me, said he would solve the problem, and told me to meet him at the reception desk ten minutes later. I came back to the reception and waited for him, but he just never showed up.
During the time I was waiting for my room, I saw that mates were cleaning other rooms, although mine was still not ready.
After 2.5 hours waiting in the lobby, right in front of the reception desk, with my 4 year old son, I came back to the reception desk and started to yell at the employee in order to get at least an explanation. The employees simply ignored me and walked in the opposite direction.
A man from the public relations heard me, he came to me and led me aside to understand what the problem was. I told him I wanted my room, whether it was clean or dirty. He brought us to the room, opened it and we entered in it although it was not clean at all. I waited on the balcony while he brought a maid in order to clean it and he managed to bring my luggage from my former room to the new one. I gave 3 pesos to the maid and 2 pesos to the guy who brought the luggage.
It is so much a shame that a five star hotel, a Melia Hotel, gives so little consideration to customers. I am really sad to have been forced to be rude in public in one of your hotels in order to get a room.
The problem is not simply that I was not given a room with an ocean view although I have paid for it. It is worse really than that. It is a general problem with the management of the rooms. It is a general attitude towards customers with no respect at all, while ignoring them, lying to them, being not polite and unkind, giving no explanation on the current situation, and spoiling the general atmosphere of this hotel.
This occurred on August first.
Shortly after my arrival in the new room (2314), I realized the shower was not working properly. There was no cold water at all, so it was impossible to get a shower (too boiling). It was also impossible to take a bath because there was no adequate lid to keep the water in the bath. My son and I washed ourselves with wet towels (the big ones, because there was no small towels in the room).
The shower problem was reported to 5 different employees of this hotel (the mate, an employee of the maintenance and 3 different employees of the public relations who continually requested us to stay inside the room in order to wait for someone from the maintenance to come and fix the shower.) The fact that I was giving tips to employees in order to get the problem fixed was not changing anything. Employees have put the tips in their pocket put never fixed the shower.
The shower was finally fixed the last evening before our departure.
Martine
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