September 16, 2010
Hyatt Regency Atlanta
265 Peachtree Street NE,
Atlanta, Georgia, USA 30303
To whom it may concern:
Greetings! I am writing today for two reasons. First and most importantly to thank you for being a wonderful host institution for Dragon*Con. Those of us who are perennial attendees at this signature event appreciate the effort you undertake to make us feel welcome. I realize it must be trying to have a hotel packed with Wookies, Klingons, Slave Leias (well, maybe not the Leias), and all the shenanigans surrounding Dragon*Con, so thank you for being a wonderful host.
This year was my first staying in your property. I enjoyed the experience, except for the four or five times I had to climb to the eleventh floor (which is a known issue with the Dragon*Con weekend). The rooms I stayed in was pleasant with plenty of space and I appreciated the city views outside on the balcony. If I had one criticism of the room it was the lack of counter space in the bathroom, but that’s something we managed to deal with.
Also, I found the hotel staff to be courteous, professional and prompt once I got their attention. This brings me to crux of the matter that I’m writing about.
On Monday when I was checking out, I decided to use the Bell Hop service to transport my numerous bags to the car I had parked in your facility. I called up the bell service desk at 11:10 or so and was informed I had a 45 minute wait. I could deal with that so I sat back and watched Dragon*Con TV on the hotel television. At 12:30 I rang the bell service desk to make sure I hadn’t been misplaced or forgotten. At that time I was informed of a 10 minute wait. At 1:15 I called again and demanded an honest, accurate assessment of my wait time before a Bell Hop would arrive. I was again informed 10 minutes and I’m happy to say that a bell hop arrived in nine. Total wait time was approximately two hours and ten minutes.
This is a problem for two reasons: Inaccurate reporting of wait time and time that I could have been spending with the eight people I brought in from out of town to spend money in your hotel and Atlanta generally. I was highly resentful of the wasted time I could have been spending with my friends as opposed to waiting for a Bell Hop. I have two suggested solutions for you
- Accurately report what the wait times are going to be. I would have had no problem if you’d told me “two hours” when I made my initial call. I could have gathered some people to help me cart luggage to the garage.
- Add staff for the known huge outflux of patrons on days such as Dragon*Con checkout
The first solution is the one I’d prefer. If you are honest with your patrons who are farther down the Bell Hop list, we’ll respect you for it and be able to plan our days accordingly. Otherwise our very last experience with your establishment will be a negative one, which will color our perceptions of the visit.
Thank you again for being an excellent host hotel for Dragon*Con. I look forward to patronizing your establishment next year
Bill Ruhsam
Marietta, GA
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