Hotel Front Desk
Los Angeles, CA
Male, 27
For the past two years I've worked the front desk at a boutique luxury beachfront hotel in Southern California. My job can range from simply checking guests in & out to many other duties, including: pretending I work in different departments so that behind-the-scenes chaos is never seen by a guest, shielding guests from stalkers that come looking for them, and picking up used drug paraphernalia from a trashed room. Ask me anything.
I think hands down the most ridiculous thing to ask the front desk to do is wipe a bill clean, ESPECIALLY after the guest actually stayed the night and used the hotel's facilities, food and beverage outlets, and services. I've had people demand that they pay nothing, but they've been staying for one, maybe two or more nights, and haven't complained until they check out. If I was never given the opportunity to fix a problem, then how is it my fault that it didn't get fixed? I understand the small complaint at checkout which warrants me adjusting off the wifi charge if that didn't work, or the valet parking service was terrible, room service arrived late *or never*, but to ask not to pay ANYTHING? C'mon, now! Second to the above would be people who broke a personal item due to their own clumsiness, say like dropping their iPad, then saying I should have the hotel pay for the damage because they couldn't see the stairs leading into the bar. Really?
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I would think it's not necessarily your husband's fault, and nothing suspicious may be going on. What probably happened is that when each hotel's property management system (the program the clerks are using to check him in and out) loads the room type he is staying in (I'm presuming he's on business), their system likely reflects double-occupancy (2), which is probably the smallest guest count that most hotel systems allow in a room, think: most hotel rooms allow at least 2 guests at minimum. This default may just be a matter of course for most systems and properties, and the clerks aren't intending to get people in hot water when they are checking them in and out. Now, if for some reason there's an area on the bill that states an additional guest was added, say a second different name, or an extra charge for an amenity (food for two/beverage/movie charge) that doesn't make sense, then your husband should have some explaining to do!
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I agree it could be a real special request gone answered. I love that kind of humor coming from a prospective guest, and if the room is booked out enough in advance it becomes a personal challenge and team-building activity among the front desk to out-do one another in how close we come to meeting that guest's request. Of course if it's a ridiculous or snobby request, that is just asserting a guest's power prior to check-in, that person will get a stiff official-sounding answer as to why we can't fulfill it. Whimsical and creative and honest wins, in this case.
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There are times when the hotel has many of its lowest-priced rooms to sell, and suites that often are more likely to stay vacant at the end of the night due to price. In order to allow more of the suites to be filled, so there are more lower-priced rooms available, which are easier to sell, a revenue or general manager may instruct the front desk to push "up selling," which is offering a suite for an additional small cost per night. At some hotels (rental car companies are always offering this), the agents receive a commission on every up sell, so beware if the agent pushes too hard, because if they are, it's not because the room is right for you, it's because they get a commission on it. All complimentary upgrades fall into the same process as to how to give them to a guest. Like most perks, the closer to sold out the hotel is, the harder it is to offer anything extra to a guest that hasn't arranged it in advance. When a hotel has many rooms to sell, often it's easier to sell the lower-priced rooms, so placing the person who has a special occasion, OR, who happened to have slipped you a $20 ostensibly to be nice (or was the solitary nice person that day - I've stuck my neck out to give someone an awesome room because they were super nice and we were super slow), in an upgraded room, benefits you the guest, but also leaves the hotel with lower-priced rooms open which sell faster and help fill up the hotel.
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Only a guess, but I'd have to say at most 40%, and it's even harder to ascertain because so few people order movies, it seems. The percent of couples that order porn? Got to be less than 10%.
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You could be a super-sleuth and actually ask each nearby hotel what type of key system they use, but you could also be stone-walled because these post 9/11 days most hotels are not going to give that information out to a stranger without a valid reason. However, you could also hang in the lobby acting like you're going to check in and see what the keys look like that are given to guests. Creepy, but it would probably tell you which hotel the key came from.
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Sure, it's their job, but what they are paid as a base wage is typically factoring in that they are going to offset that wage by receiving gratuity. Room service attendants, door and bellmen (and women) can make a decent amount in gratuity if their hotel is busy and/or consistently frequented by affluent guests. However, just as many people on average do NOT tip as do, it's very hard to predict. My thought process is, if you tip, you will often see a return the NEXT time you call. Remember, if you are super-cheap AND a jerk, the staff will talk amongst themselves and you likely will not get speedy service the next time you ask for it. If you just so happen to not have cash on you, no problem, it's just $2-ish, we understand, just offset THAT by being nice and thanking for good service instead.
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