Our experience at Hera Hotel was not good from the beginning. My husband and I booked a 'special rate/non-refundable' rate, because from the reviews we read and the hotel's website, it appeared to be nice and a good deal...we were sadly mistaken.
I'll begin with the good. First, it's pretty centrally located in the Plaka neighborhood of Athens which is full of tourist shops, restaurants, little cafes, and steps from the Acropolis and Syntagna Square. Second, it has great access to the subway system (which is very easy to understand and use). Last, the food at the hotel was actually halfway decent. One night we ordered late night appetizers for room service and the food was hot and fresh.
Now for the not-so-great aspects. Like I said, we booked a 'special rate/non-refundable room.' We check into the hotel and the first room they gave us was very small, the carpet was filthy (honestly brown and stained) and the ethernet cord outlet had been broken! I know you're suppose to escape from email on vacation, but we both like to check it from time to time, plus, we enjoy watching NFL games while we're out of the country, so for us Internet is kind of a necessity. So we called down to the front desk and requested another room. Second room was small, filthy carpet and hot!! It's not super cold yet in Greece, but many of the boutique hotels have switched off their A/C, so the rooms are unbearably hot. You have to sleep with the windows open, but then that's not the best because of security reasons and we faced an alley way. To top it off, we were given a room with two twin beds...I felt like we were on a 1950s sitcom.
We weren't too happy with our arrangements and to make matters worse, we had already booked the hotel for our return leg of our trip (two separate bookings). We told them we were not happy and that we didn't need our second booking which was scheduled for the following week. Instead of trying to accommodate us, they charged our credit card for the future stay that hadn't taken place yet!! We were furious. We tell you we won't be staying a week in advance and instead of canceling our reservation, you charge our credit card?! Then they wanted to make amends and they offered us 20% off our second booking (this is after they've charged the card the first time). Guess what happen? They charged the card a second time for a rate 20% less than the first!! So now we've paid twice for a stay that never took place!! I'm not even sure it's a fight worth having with the hotel and credit card company. We've just learned that you get what you pay for.
I can't even tell you how excited we were to leave that hotel. I'm not one for complaining, but I wanted to share our experience and tell you to just 'think twice'.
This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC
30 November 2011
Dear Mme,
Thank you for taking the time to share your feedback with us.
I am disappointed to learn of the details of your experience. Please accept my apologies for the inconvenience that we caused you and your husband.
As checked your case, your reservations were for a Standard double room with a non refundable rate. As, it is clearly stated, you cannot modify or cancel your reservation at any time. We understand that your schedule might change, as you had claimed, thus we offered you , as a courtesy, a 20% discount . We never charged your card twice. Its a usual policy to pre-authorize the credit cards, for security purposes. As you can see, at your balance statement the card is only charged, the discounted rate.
Regarding your comments on the rooms, we apologize for the luck of Internet. However, as you mentioned we moved you to a different room. Some rooms, do have stains in the carpet, from previous guests. We have thoroughly cleaned every room, however there are some stains ( ex. wine) that cannot be removed. Please rest assure, that we are very diligent with all cleaning and hygiene issues. As most hotels, offer, twin and double beds. As per your request, we had offered you , on your 1st room, a double bed. However, as you requested to change, the only available room , at that point, was with twin beds.
I look forward to speaking personally with you, you can reach me at info@herahotel.gr . I hope that you will give me the opportunity to restore your confidence. Once again, thank you for taking the time to share your experience with us.
Sincerely,
Iro Chatzilia
Hotel Director
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This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of TripAdvisor LLC
