Horrible Hotel? Here’s What to Do

The quality of the hotel you stay at can make or break your trip. If your hotel is dirty, you could get sick. If it’s noisy, you may not be able to sleep. Here are some tips on what to do to help prevent booking a reservation at a horrible hotel, what to do if you end up at a horrible hotel, and what to do after if your concerns aren’t dealt with.

This post includes some affiliate ads. That means that if you click on them and make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no cost to you. This helps keeps the lights on. Thanks!

Before booking:

1. Read the reviews.

By read, I mean really read the reviews. You may see a hotel that has 3 stars and think that 3 stars is pretty good. Instead of thinking, “That sounds about right for the price,” you should ask yourself “Why aren’t travelers giving this hotel 5 stars?”

Looking closely at the comments will give you an idea of what you could potentially be getting into. If reviewers are giving lower ratings because they weren’t happy with the continental breakfast or because the wi-fi is slow, that could be something that you could live with. However, if they’re giving lower ratings because of dirty rooms or noise, well, that’s a red flag.

2. Look at the cancellation policy

A good cancellation policy is key, not only in case you do, in fact, need to cancel your trip, but also in case your hotel does indeed turn out to be horrible.

Most hotels and motels have decent cancellation policies. I feel most comfortable with hotels that allow you to cancel the day of your reservation without getting charged. You may need to cancel by a certain time; you’ll see in the cancellation policy something like, “Cancel by 4 p.m. local time the date of the reservation.” A cancellation policy like this makes it easy for you to wake up, go to the front desk, and cancel the rest of your stay. This is very helpful if you need to change hotels.

The second best cancellation policy requires a 24-hour notice. With a policy like this, you may get stuck paying for a night’s stay, but that’s better than having to pay the hotel for the remainder of your reservation.

Stay away from hotels that require you to give a few days’ notice, unless the reviews are mostly good and/or it’s a higher-end establishment. If you end up at a horrible hotel with a policy like this, you may end up having to pay for every night you’ve booked, whether or not you actually stay.

3. Pay with a credit card

For most hotels, you’ll need to have some sort of card, credit or ATM, to make a reservation. If you have a credit card, use it, and keep the ATM card linked to your bank account in your wallet. If you have a bad experience, you’ll be able to dispute the charge with your credit card company.

Theoretically, an ATM card that has one of major credit card logos on it should give you the same level of protection, but I haven’t heard of anyone being able to dispute a payment on an ATM card. Also, it’s much easier if you can call your credit card company about the poor service you’ve received than having to talk to your bank.

During Your Stay:

1. Stay calm

This is easier said than done! When you check into your room, chances are you’ll be very tired. Most likely, you just finished traveling hours to get to your destination, and you won’t look too kindly on unpleasant surprises at your hotel. Before you act, talk to your significant other or traveling companion. Get their opinion; see if this is something worth complaining about, or if you’re just overtired. If you’re alone, take a few deep breaths and call or text a friend if it’s not too late. (Remember to consider time zones!)

Whatever you do, don’t act without thinking things over.

2. Talk to the front desk

Remembering to stay calm, call or go to the front desk and discuss your issue as soon as possible. Don’t wait until checkout to let staff know that there’s a problem. When you talk to the staff, remember to be polite yet firm. Staff are trained to deal with problems, and they will most likely offer a reasonable solution.

Most times (in my experience) they will offer to give you another room. This may or may not solve the problem, but it does show that the hotel is willing to work with you. Keep the communication between you and the hotel open.

The more pleasant and respectful customer you are, the better chance you have at getting your problem resolved. If you come across as too forceful, they may not be as motivated to help you. Think of a client or customer who gave you hard time at your job. Did you really want to help them?

3. Call corporate

If you’re getting nowhere with staff, the next step is to call the corporate headquarters. Look on the main website of the hotel’s chain, and you should be able to find a customer relations line. Remember to stay calm. Explain the situation and your conversations with staff. Calling corporate is not snitching on the hotel; it’s letting the company know that something isn’t right at one of their locations. Hopefully, they will be able to resolve the issue.

4. Document, document, document

If it seems like your conversations with staff are going nowhere, it’s time to start documenting. Every time you call or speak to someone, write down the time, date, and what you spoke about. If your room is dirty or there’s a problem with the plumbing, take a picture or video of the problem. This evidence will be very useful if you need to contact corporate or dispute the charges on your credit card (more about that later).

5. Leave

If your problem isn’t being resolved, and it’s something that you just can’t tolerate, leave. Go down to the lobby and cancel the rest of your stay.

Remember when we talked about having a good cancellation policy? This is why. You don’t want to be charged for nights you’re not staying.

After Your Stay:

1. Express your concerns and frustrations again at checkout

When you check out, remember to stay calm and tell staff why you were frustrated with your stay. It’s best if this isn’t the first time they hear about your complaint.

During one stay at a motel, I had told the front desk that our room was dirty. My wife and I were offered a different room and we moved. However, that room was also filthy. At the time, I was so tired from traveling that I just didn’t have the energy to move again. In the morning at checkout, I told staff that the second room was also dirty. We were completely refunded for our night’s stay.

2. Contact corporate (again, if  necessary)

If you are still frustrated after speaking with the hotel staff, you should call corporate if you haven’t already. The corporate office may have the capability to reimburse you in ways that the hotel by itself can’t, such as offering you free nights at any other location for your trouble.

While you may be frustrated with the hotel and may be asking yourself why you’d want to accept free nights, keep in mind that other locations may be, and probably are, in much better condition. As I mentioned before, with a particular hotel chain, all of their other locations had always been clean and up to our standards. While we’ll never, ever go back to that horrible location, we will go back to their better hotels.

3. Dispute the charge on your credit card

Remember when I suggested that you put the charge on your credit card? This is why. If you had a really horrible experience during your hotel stay, you may be able to dispute the charge on your card. This works best if you document reasons why you were unsatsified with your stay. For example, if the room was dirty, or there was mold in the AC unit and window, send the pictures you took to your credit card company.

 4. Write a review

If you had a horrible experience at the hotel, and neither the hotel staff nor the corporate office was able to rectify the situation, it’s time to warn your fellow travelers about the experience. Be honest and thorough. When someone reads your review, they should be able to understand exactly why they should avoid the hotel.

Remember to use correct grammar and punctuation, so that your review is taken seriously by others. You don’t want to be mistaken as someone who wrote the review in a fit of anger. Have someone look over what you’ve written before posting it.

---

Check out our map of places we’ve been in New England!

Have you had a horrible hotel experience? What did you do?

---