Url: http://www.crownplaza.com

I have a problem.  When I (or my customers) are being taken advantage of it makes me so very angry…probably angrier that it should.  I am in Hartford, CT this week to teach a course for a corporate client. One of the recommended hotels is a Crown Plaza Hotel at $199/night.  It was the cheapest of the three hotels they selected.  While I find expensive hotel rooms ostentacious, usually I can figure out why they are so expensive: excelent service, nice rooms, etc. The room I am in right now is actually about 1/2 the size of the $75/night hotel I stayed in a couple of weeks ago.  Not just the size, but its a bit shabby actually.

When I checked in I was shocked that they charged extra for Internet access in the rooms. Ok, $9.95 a night.  Big whoop.  I find it offensive to be nickle and dimed, but its their hotel.  Fine.  But then when it didn’t work, they wanted me to call a 800 number to get it working.  Final straw was when the guy on the phone (a 3rd party company I am sure) said he didn’t have time to fix it and got me working but told me that tomorrow I’d have to call again to get it actually fixed.

Maybe I am from the wrong side of the tracks and I shouldn’t be as offended by bad service, bad hotel room and lack of features for $199/night.  Am I overreacting?