Please check the rate!!!

[figgyx]

This is not too terribly sucky but rather annoying.


When you check into the hotel I work at you are presented with a registration card and asked to initial in two places and sign. This is your chance to check the rate and ask any questions at that time.

I get people who walk in without a reservation, never ask what the rate is (it is not my job to tell you - if you don't ask - you get checked in at the full rate) and then when they checkout these people will say something like:

I get a business discount. Why am I paying this rate?

Yeah, now I have to go back into the checked out folio and adjust the rate and credit the card for the difference. Why is it so hard for you to ask first or check the rate while you are signing?

[corwin02]

Because that would require effort and planning and thinking ahead while it is soo much easier to have somebody else do all the work.

Oh wait this was a rhetorical question For a moment there I forgot which site I was on

[RealUnimportant]

People who qualify for discounts expect you to just know. Why, I've never understood, but it seems to be universal that anyone who is going to get bitchy about not getting their discount probably hasn't even thought to dig through their 10-gallon bag to find the small oblong of paper/plastic/card/unobtainium that they're required to present.

[MoonCat]

I have never checked into a hotel without confirming what rate I'm paying. I've never had the luxury of having enough of a cushion that it wouldn't make any difference, so I always double and triple checked.

[Jester]

People who qualify for discounts expect you to just know.

It even happens at bars here in Key West. And presumably elsewhere as well.

But down here, if you are a local resident, and have an ID to prove it, most businesses will offer some kind of discount, from a flat rate off everything, to discounts in certain items, to special prices on certain items. It's generically called the Local Discount, even though it varies widely.

I often have customers who, once they've gotten their bill, exclaim, "You forgot my local discount!"

Okay, let's run through the checklist.

1. Do I know you? Sometimes I do forget to put the discount on the bill of people I know, but it's an honest mistake. And these are never the people who are rude about it. If the answer to this question is no....

2. Are you a regular who often sits at my bar? "I'm here all the time!" Yes, but during my shift? If no....

3. Did you at any point tell me you are a local or ask for the local discount? If no....

Then no, you raging fuckwad, I did not "forget" your local discount. I had no idea you were a local, you gave me no indication that you were a local, and so the only person who forgot shit was YOU! I am not a mind reader, nor have I ever claimed to be, so if you are not in some way known to me at the bar, it usually helps if you actually fucking SAY something, rather than assume that the fault is with me.

Asshole.

[Lovecats]

Were you sick the day they had the mind reading course at Bartender School? I've worked as a cashier and I really think customers think we read minds all the time. Nope, I missed that part in the cashier manual.

[Catwoman2965]

I generally make my hotel reservations online. So i always print out my confirm. and bring it with me. And check the rate I've been charged when checking in. Never had an issue, but if I did, I'd bring it up right then and there. People are just stupid.

[Insomnia]

I have to admit, on business trips I rarely check the rate since I usually check in after midnight and I'm too tired to give a @#$% what the company I work for is paying for the room. I do look at it when I check out when I'm fully awake and out of curiosity but it never bothers me what the rate was so long as the hotel didn't try to charge me for a luxury suit when I didn't stay in one. I had that happen once. I missed my flight but saved my bosses $2500. So it pays to check.

[Seshat]

Were you sick the day they had the mind reading course at Bartender School?

They wouldn't let me take telepathy. They said they were afraid of how I think.

[Moirae]

My husband and I run a hotel.

figgyx, I'm curious why you feel it's not your job to tell them the rate. You are the front desk clerk, the rate should be the very first thing you tell them after you ask them how many adults, how many children, and whether they would like a queen, king, or two beds. Don't tell them the discounts without them asking, of course.

I'm not sure you realize that every time you charge a guest, and every time you refund a guest, the merchant fee is applied. This costs the hotel money. Yes, it's about a $1 or $1.50 but it adds up. Even if the charge doesn't go through, the hotel is still assessed a merchant fee. It's taken me a long time to get my agents to understand that they can't charge third party bookers until the day of checkin because the credit cards won't go through until that time so we aren't losing money to needless merchant fees.

Just tell the guests the rate. It will save you and the guests some headache in the long run and it only takes a second. The only time you shouldn't tell the guests the rate is if it's a third party booking, and then you need to tell them to go to the OTA they booked it through and that you can't discount it because they booked through another party and their contract is with them, not you. Expedia, Travelocity, etc will all refuse to cancel a reservation the day after the stay (and sometimes before that depending on the cancellation policy of the hotel). If you don't know who the guest is, then you quote the rack rate and let them tell you whether they qualify for a discount (they normally do). If you are at one of those hotels where you can't say the rate out loud, then you need to point to it and say "This is the rate, please let me know if it's wrong".

If you were working in my hotel and not telling people the rates just once, you'd be in trouble. If you did it multiple times resulting in many angry guests, we'd let you go.

[bhskittykatt]

figgyx, I'm curious why you feel it's not your job to tell them the rate. You are the front desk clerk, the rate should be the very first thing you tell them after you ask them how many adults, how many children, and whether they would like a queen, king, or two beds. Don't tell them the discounts without them asking, of course.

I can't speak specifically for figgyx, but I can tell you why The Resort specifically tells us not to speak the rate aloud to the guest.

Guest A comes up and has a special coupon or voucher for a $100 rate for a basic waterview room. Guest B is behind them and is paying for a $500 package rate for a suite. Guest B overhears how much cheaper Guest A is getting a room. Guest B is now very upset he's not getting the same deal as Guest A and begins arguing with the GSR.

In short, the rate is confidential information and isn't supposed to be announced at the desk, just like the room number or the guest's personal information.

How we get around is is that write the nightly rate on the guest's key card envelope, and as we point out information to the guest we also point out the proper rate so we're making sure they have the info but we're not saying it aloud.

(At the Motel, we never really had the same worry about saying the rates, because they didn't vary that much between guests.)

[Moirae]

I can't speak specifically for figgyx, but I can tell you why The Resort specifically tells us not to speak the rate aloud to the guest.

Guest A comes up and has a special coupon or voucher for a $100 rate for a basic waterview room. Guest B is behind them and is paying for a $500 package rate for a suite. Guest B overhears how much cheaper Guest A is getting a room. Guest B is now very upset he's not getting the same deal as Guest A and begins arguing with the GSR.

In short, the rate is confidential information and isn't supposed to be announced at the desk, just like the room number or the guest's personal information.

How we get around is is that write the nightly rate on the guest's key card envelope, and as we point out information to the guest we also point out the proper rate so we're making sure they have the info but we're not saying it aloud.

(At the Motel, we never really had the same worry about saying the rates, because they didn't vary that much between guests.)

Yes, I realize that, but that's why I said "Point to it and tell them it's the rate, then let you know if it's wrong".

You can't not tell the guest the rate and expect that they will be bright and read what they're supposed to. It's best to always err on the "the guest is stupid and lazy" side.

[figgyx]

My husband and I run a hotel.

figgyx, I'm curious why you feel it's not your job to tell them the rate. You are the front desk clerk, the rate should be the very first thing you tell them after you ask them how many adults, how many children, and whether they would like a queen, king, or two beds. Don't tell them the discounts without them asking, of course.

I'm not sure you realize that every time you charge a guest, and every time you refund a guest, the merchant fee is applied. This costs the hotel money. Yes, it's about a $1 or $1.50 but it adds up. Even if the charge doesn't go through, the hotel is still assessed a merchant fee. It's taken me a long time to get my agents to understand that they can't charge third party bookers until the day of checkin because the credit cards won't go through until that time so we aren't losing money to needless merchant fees.

Just tell the guests the rate. It will save you and the guests some headache in the long run and it only takes a second. The only time you shouldn't tell the guests the rate is if it's a third party booking, and then you need to tell them to go to the OTA they booked it through and that you can't discount it because they booked through another party and their contract is with them, not you. Expedia, Travelocity, etc will all refuse to cancel a reservation the day after the stay (and sometimes before that depending on the cancellation policy of the hotel). If you don't know who the guest is, then you quote the rack rate and let them tell you whether they qualify for a discount (they normally do). If you are at one of those hotels where you can't say the rate out loud, then you need to point to it and say "This is the rate, please let me know if it's wrong".

If you were working in my hotel and not telling people the rates just once, you'd be in trouble. If you did it multiple times resulting in many angry guests, we'd let you go.

As a rule if a potential guest comes in and asks what the rate is for the evening I will always quote them a rate. What I don't get are the people who come in and ask for a room and never once ask what the rate it. It is not my job to tell these people the rate. It is right there in black and white on the registration card. I have no sympathy for people who sign a reg card without looking at what they are signing. They are presented the card and asked to initial about not smoking in the rooms, initial about the use of debit cards and then sign at the bottom. Only a small handful of these people read what they are signing. Nobody looks at the rate. I disagree with you in this regard. I am authorized to change rates as I see fit but if a loser just signs in and does not look at what he is signing where is it a rule that I have to baby them? You would not sign a contract without reading it first?

[Skittles88]

My company had now made the rule we must quote rates before and after tax. Because people can never work out tax, or they are f****** stupid and figure the rate we quote first is exactly what they'll be paying.
Tho I have to say I do like the new rule, since now guests can't whine and complain in the morning they didn't know what the taxes were, even though its clearly printed on their registration cards they sign.