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Bumping (But No Grinding) In Brooklyn

A poor soul at the Times UK paper landed in the New York area during a "shoe convention" and the only affordable place was a Radisson near the JFK airport. But despite booking and checking-in online, when he arrived at the hotel, the reporter was bumped from his room to a dirty motel somewhere in Brooklyn.

Here's his take on it:

Then, the bombshell.
"Sir, we're overbooked. We're moving you to another hotel just around the corner. Go in that minibus."....The other hotel was not just around the corner. It was in a whole different part of Brooklyn, although it's hard to know which part because it was dark and the driver did in excess of 75mph on a potholed parkway with a speed limit of 55mph. Twenty white-knuckle minutes beyond the last airport hotel, we arrived at a junction where a sign read Motel Comm Rates Free HBO Meeting Rooms. Not a promising list of attributes....

This was the Golden Gate Motor Inn, the place Radisson had deemed a suitable alternative for its guests. Inside, the receptionist was positioned defensively behind thick bank-teller glass that had a gap at the bottom small enough to slide a credit card but not to point a gun....Room 222, denoted by a Post-it Note on the door, overlooked the Belt Parkway. I knew it was a smoking room not just because of the smell but also because of the holes in my blanket. The remote control for the decrepit TV was moist. It was, quite simply, the worst place I have ever stayed.

Naturally being a reporter, he asked Radisson's PR woman for a comment on the bumping situation and she told him that four days before that Radisson was no longer a part of hotel chain. She also offered him a free stay at any Radisson in the future. Which is nice but the scars from the Golden Gate Motor Inn experience probably run deeper than a free room.

Related Stories:
· Things that go bump in the night [Times Online]
· Golden Gate Motor Inn reviews [TripAdvisor]