Complaint Regarding Unacceptable Treatment by Receptionist

I am writing to formally express my extreme dissatisfaction regarding the shocking and unacceptable treatment my guests and I received at Premier Hotel Midrand during the early hours of Sunday morning.

I was hosting guests from the Kingdom of Eswatini at my home, which is approximately seven minutes away from your hotel. At around 10:00 PM, I called Premier Hotel Midrand to enquire about room availability. My call was answered by a pleasant and helpful lady who confirmed that rooms in the region of R1,500 per night were available. I specifically asked whether I should come through immediately to make payment and secure the booking. I was advised that this would not be necessary, as walk-in bookings were permitted and we could simply arrive when our guests were ready to check in.

Trusting the information provided by your staff member, we arrived at the hotel at approximately 3:00 AM. The security personnel opened the gates and allowed us access to reception. To our surprise, there was no one at the reception desk. We waited, called for assistance, and eventually informed the security guards that no receptionist was present. The guards then went to the back area to locate the staff member on duty. We waited for approximately ten minutes before a gentleman eventually appeared, looking as though he had been woken from sleep.

We informed him that we wished to book three rooms for our guests and explained that we had phoned earlier in the evening to confirm availability. His first response was, "You are late."

I was completely taken aback by this remark. In all my years of travelling and staying at hotels around the world, I have never encountered a hotel that effectively imposes a curfew on paying guests seeking accommodation. Initially, I thought he was joking. However, it quickly became apparent that he was entirely serious.

When I questioned how we could possibly be "late" at a hotel that operates 24 hours a day, he informed us that check-ins for certain rooms could not be processed during the early hours of the morning. We then asked whether rooms were available, to which he arrogantly responded that there were indeed many rooms available within the R1,500 price range, but that he was "not authorised" to allocate them. Strangely, he stated that he could only offer us more expensive rooms in the R2,000-plus range.

This explanation made absolutely no sense and demonstrated either a complete lack of knowledge of hotel operations or an unwillingness to assist guests. At that point, both my guests and I were extremely frustrated and disappointed.

What made the experience even worse was the receptionist's attitude. He was dismissive, rude, arrogant, unhelpful, and showed absolutely no regard for customer service or hospitality. His conduct reflected very poorly on your establishment. Hospitality is fundamentally about welcoming and assisting guests, yet this individual behaved as though he was doing us a favour rather than performing his duties as a representative of a professional hotel.

I can honestly say that this was one of the worst hotel experiences I have ever encountered. It is deeply concerning that an employee with such poor interpersonal skills and such little understanding of customer service is entrusted with representing a respected hotel brand.

After spending approximately thirty minutes attempting to reason with him, we eventually left and proceeded to Protea Hotel. The contrast in service was remarkable. We were welcomed warmly, our booking was handled professionally, and we successfully secured three rooms for our guests without any difficulty. Our guests enjoyed a pleasant stay, and naturally we shared with the Protea Hotel staff the unfortunate experience we had just endured at Premier Hotel Midrand.

I trust that management will treat this complaint with the seriousness it deserves. I strongly believe that the receptionist involved requires urgent retraining in customer service, hospitality standards, and professional conduct. No guest should ever be treated in such a disrespectful and dismissive manner, particularly after having been advised by your own staff that walk-in bookings were welcome.

I would appreciate a formal response regarding this incident and an explanation of how Premier Hotel intends to address this matter to ensure that future guests do not experience similar treatment.