I work at a motel along a stream with all rooms having a balcony. At 11:05 PM, I get a call from a guest:

Guest: “When do you turn off the water? That noise is aggravating.”

Customer: “I want a room on [date].”

Me: “I’m afraid we’re fully booked for that date.”

Customer: *Gobsmacked.* “What? Why?”

Me: “That’s the same day as [Big Event].”

Customer: “Yes, I want to go to that, but why are you sold out?”

Me: “We’re sold out because everyone had the same idea as you but sooner.”

I am starting my shift as a night auditor at my hotel in downtown Chicago. About half an hour into my shift, I get a call from a panicked-sounding woman.

Caller: “Hi! I know this isn’t your usual request, but my son and his friend have finished attending an event downtown, and their ride has let them down last minute! Home is [Town too far away to walk], and I’m not in a position where I can come and get them. They just missed the last train out!”

Me: “Okay, ma’am. I think I understand. But please try to talk slower and take a breath so I can follow along.”

Caller: “Yes! Sorry! I’ve checked every hotel website I can think of, but every room is booked due to [Event], even yours!”

Me: “Yes, that is the case, I’m afraid.”

Caller: “Please, please, please, can they sit in your lobby? Just until the first buses run? I can’t stand the thought of them wandering the streets in the dark and cold all night!”

Morally, I can’t let a child be sat outside in the cold in an unfamiliar city; it’s dangerous, and if anything happened, I’d never forgive myself. So, against all of my hotel rules:

Me: “Send them over, ma’am. They’re welcome to sit in the lobby in the warm.”

Caller: “Oh, my God! Thank you! Thank you so much! They’re just around the corner! There are two of them, and his name is [Son]. Thank you! You’re a lifesaver!”

I let the teens sit in the lobby, and they were the nicest and politest guests I had had all day! They even insisted on helping me clean and set up the morning coffee. We had great conversations until 5:00 am when the first buses ran. 

I’m now friends with [Son] on Facebook, and he just started college this year!

I just bought a hotel room and was informed that the room came with free breakfast for two. I came downstairs in the morning, and as soon as I entered the breakfast area, the server gave me a dirty look and literally yelled:

Server: “What do you want?!”

I told him about the free breakfast, and he said I had to leave without explaining that I needed a coupon that came with the key card for the room. After I found this out from the front desk, I went back and gave the server the coupon.

He then said he wouldn’t serve me because there needed to be two people. Again, I had to leave, get my brother, and come back. He then proceeded to take our order: one breakfast for me and one breakfast to go so my brother could go back to sleep. My brother left.

The server then proceeded to not even offer me water or check on me at all while attending to the only other people in the breakfast area sitting right in front of me.

Finally, someone else brought out my food. I ate.

When it came time to leave a tip, I wrote a big fat zero on the check. Then, I walked over to the food runner who had brought me my food and handed him a twenty-dollar bill.

The look on the rude server’s face was priceless.

I worked in a hotel that was at the budget end of the market. It was within easy travelling distance of a popular theme park, and we sold packages that included tickets to the park. A lot of these were through agents or third-party websites, pre-paid to the agent.

A guest on one such package came to reception one morning with a minor but legitimate complaint about her room, looking like she was geared up for a fight. I apologised and told her what I’d do to put it right. This seemed to take the wind out of her sails a bit, so she paused, and then she seemed to think of something else to complain about.

Guest: “We’re not happy about the bus to [Theme Park]! The website said it ran from outside the hotel, and we thought it was included.”

Me: “I’m sorry, but the bus isn’t affiliated with us in any way. It does run from the stop opposite the hotel, but it’s just a regular bus service. You booked and paid through [Agent Website]; if you feel their website is misleading, you do need to raise it with them.”

Having failed to get the response she apparently wanted, she started to walk away. Then, she suddenly turned and shouted:

Guest: “And nobody told me it was Easter!”

I must have looked confused as she followed it with:

Guest: “I’ve probably paid more!”

Luckily, she stormed off before I had to explain to her again that we’d had no part in her booking process, that she’d selected her own chosen dates online through an agent, and that she’d booked a room including her school-aged children… who would have been on Easter break at the time.