HotelChatter - Tag: Chris Elliott

Have You Been Charged For Drinking the Coffee In Your Hotel Room?

Jenna — 2009-05-27T09:34:30-05:00

<![CDATA[<img src="http://www.hotelchatter.com/files/6929/lemeridiencoffee.jpg" class="top"> In this turbulent, unpredictable world, there are a few constants that we've always known to be dependable and unchangeable: the sun will always rise. And when it does, we'll want coffee and if we don't get it, we get surly. These have and will always be the case, no matter what happens. One thing we also thought to be a constant that is apparently maybe not so much anymore? That the coffee we need so desperately in the A.M. will be free in our hotel rooms. Yeah: maybe not. On his blog, travel expert <a href="http://www.elliott.org/blog/a-fee-for-drinking-coffee-in-your-room-whatll-they-think-of-next/">Chris Elliott heard from</a> a disgruntled hotel guest who stayed at the <A href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/hotel-reviews/Intercontinental+The+Barclay+New+York/local/798">Barclay InterContinental </a>in NYC. She was disgruntled not

What to Do When a Hotel Valet Earns You a Parking Ticket

Jenna — 2009-02-17T16:16:07-05:00

<![CDATA[<img src="http://www.hotelchatter.com/files/6929/failparking.jpg" class="top"> So: you left your rental car in the hands of your hotel's valet parking people. A few weeks later, that car rental company contacts you to ask you to pay for a parking ticket that was issued while the valet was in possession of the car. Aw, hell naw. You ain't payin' for that. So what now? A disgruntled individual <a href="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/29236089/">wrote in</a> to ask travel columnist <a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/tag/Chris%20Elliott">Chris Elliott</a> for advice when she found herself in a similar sitch. After staying at the <a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/hotel-reviews/Mandarin+Oriental+San+Francisco/ian/108742">Mandarin Oriental San Francisco</a>, the car rental company had called the guest to hit her up for $85 to pay for a parking violation incurred by the hotel's valet. After the guest

Pleasanton: Sheraton Can't Be Bothered With Your Erroneous Bill Or Your Silly MSNBC Friend

AndrewC — 2008-09-25T14:30:29-05:00

<![CDATA[ <img src="http://www.hotelchatter.com/files/8580/FourPointsLogo.gif" class="imgborder" align=right> Our buddy Chris Elliott is a <a href="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/20000666/">columnist at MSNBC</a> and also has his own site at <a href="http://www.elliott.org">Elliott.org</a>. Most of the time he acts as a mediator for travel disputes between customers who have been wronged one way or another by airlines, car rental companies, airlines, hotels, airlines, online booking sites, oh yeah, and the occasional complaint about an airline. We travel a lot too - so naturally we keep an eye on his site, but we have to say -- most things he writes about doesn't really surprise us, since people do dumb things and some companies are even dumber. Particularly airlines. Until this week's <a href="http://www.elliott.org/blog/four-points-hotel-snubs-guest-forces-him-to-pay-for-canceled-room/">post</a> about a customer

MSNBC Says You Should Fight Hidden Hotel Fees with Aggression, Obnoxiousness

Jenna — 2008-08-12T10:40:54-05:00

A disgruntled hotel guest wrote in to MSNBC Travel Columnist Christopher Elliott, complaining about a $50.00 hidden hotel fee (oy - typical) and asked him for advice on how to get said fee refunded.

His answer? Don't take it lying down.

He advises the traveler to simply refuse to take no for an answer -- which is kind of obnoxious, really, but good advice.

Eager Housekeeping Staff to Get More Eager?

juliana — 2008-06-30T10:33:46-05:00

<![CDATA[<img align="right" src="http://www.hotelchatter.com/files/1425/tidyupbgata.jpg" class="imgborder"> We know it's childish but every time housekeeping knocks on our hotel room door, we can't help but think of that scene is Tommy Boy where Chris Farley keeps incessantly knocking on the door pretending to be housekeeping while David Spade is trying to sleep.Granted most housekeepers don't have such dirty suggestions as Chris Farley did but the knock of housekeeping is always inherently annoying. It always happens either when you're still sleeping, or when you're walking around with no pants on (tip: keep the robe handy!) or worse, when you're in the bathroom.Then there's the whole exchange of what time housekeeping can come back later and clean and if you want new towels in the