Aussie hotelier calls in the media after "malicious" posts on Agoda and Trip Advisor

[madhav]

48 minutes ago, jenny2017 said:

If you've got such signs on the wall that you have to pay for everything that's included in "service" ( and I assume that a hotel, resort, or place that has rooms for rent, should provide such service for free), then you don't have to wonder why such negative comments are made.

 

  If I were you, I'd look at some guys who're running the same business. These are usually the ones who write some bad <deleted> about your place, hoping that they'll get the booking.

 

  I'm sorry to say that, but the world nowadays with all the online opportunities has become to a very difficult one.

 

  You might have a beer with them and they smile in your face, but once they come home they write a new review under a pseudonym. There';s no restriction on how many e-mails someone has and a VPN is easy to use.

 

  

Yes it is all too easy with VPN now. There was this report of a fake non existent restaurant that had many 5 star reviews. It was all done to expose how stupid the whole system is. 

 

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/foodanddrink/10208910/Businessman-sets-up-fake-restaurant-to-expose-failings-of-TripAdvisor-website.html

 

We were so sick of the fake reviews we tried to take down our TripAdvisor listing, we discovered it is actually not possible. We didn’t even put the listing up ourselves either.

 

I also know like any system where people are put in charge, it is possible to pay the staff to get the negative reviews removed. 

[PerkinsCuthbert]

8 hours ago, Get Real said:

Somebody can´t deal with a bad comment. Get off the net then. It´s a place for people that can handle their situations.

In my experience it's the exact opposite, a place for people who neither think before they act nor retain any vestiges of common courtesy.

[madhav]

7 minutes ago, chickenrunCM said:

Yes, we have a restaurant & bar, and we got from 1 person 2 negative reviews within 10 month, and we made also a police report to indentify this person. Because for on Tripadviser you do not have any chance to let delete a clear negative comment. You get only automatic emails response if you claim something. Positive comment will not be published. Even if you not register your bussines on Tripadviser, everybody can register it and post pictures of it.

In any European countr you can go to court and force Tripadviser to delete your busssines or the fake comments, if not they will be punished, but in Thailand this way not work. So we have to go after the person who wrote it. On Tripadviser you can write reviews even you never visit the place. This is not possible on agoda or booking.com, what makes a big different. 

And by the lastest study more than 40% of all reviews online are fake. It´s a big industry and and especially Tripadviser earns a lot, they offer you for 40 USD/month a special customer service and you can be sure no bad comments to be published. 

I would consider the posibility to sue because these people are out there intentionally acting to damage the reputation of a business when they have not even experienced it. There are laws against this and there should be.

 

 

[janclaes47]

That hotelier was a member of this forum before, maybe still is.

[Nemises]

A very friendly response to a paying customer:
 
   

Thank you for your fake review.Seeing as its the only review you ever made and joined 2 days ago also happens to be when you stayed with us...You also failed to mention that you are "friends" with one of the reception girls, i am guessing were hoping to get to know her more intimately, but she was not interested.

Hmmm.... the customer got knocked back by the reception girl and the customer then decides to write his FIRST EVER review. Interesting.

[PremiumLane]

33 minutes ago, chickenrunCM said:

Yes, we have a restaurant & bar, and we got from 1 person 2 negative reviews within 10 month, and we made also a police report to indentify this person. Because for on Tripadviser you do not have any chance to let delete a clear negative comment. You get only automatic emails response if you claim something. Positive comment will not be published. Even if you not register your bussines on Tripadviser, everybody can register it and post pictures of it.

In any European countr you can go to court and force Tripadviser to delete your busssines or the fake comments, if not they will be punished, but in Thailand this way not work. So we have to go after the person who wrote it. On Tripadviser you can write reviews even you never visit the place. This is not possible on agoda or booking.com, what makes a big different. 

And by the lastest study more than 40% of all reviews online are fake. It´s a big industry and and especially Tripadviser earns a lot, they offer you for 40 USD/month a special customer service and you can be sure no bad comments to be published. 

funny, my friend runs a business and has a lot of great reviews on TA - why? They provide great service and people want to go on line and recommend them.

 

They have a few negative ones, that is to be expected, you can't please everyone. But they don't argue with the customer,  they take the feedback and improve. They certainly don't go filing police reports.  

 

If they think it might be a fake one, they ignore it, as they know they have such overwhelming good ones. 

[chickenrunCM]

4 minutes ago, PremiumLane said:

funny, my friend runs a business and has a lot of great reviews on TA - why? They provide great service and people want to go on line and recommend them.

 

They have a few negative ones, that is to be expected, you can't please everyone. But they don't argue with the customer,  they take the feedback and improve. They certainly don't go filing police reports.  

 

If they think it might be a fake one, they ignore it, as they know they have such overwhelming good ones. 

we have a busy place and a lot of customers in 3 years we got 49 reviewa, but we know for sure that TA not published reviews. Its wrong to think that you can use good ones to delete bad ones because you need so many good ones what isn´t possible on a normal way. and as a place what opens you cant go up in the top 20 in a big city anymore only if you pay a lot of money for going up. In CM there are more than 2200 restaurants, no chance to go up to the top 20, and below TA is for nothing, you are looking if you look only for the first page. 

google "fake reviews on tripadviser" 1.200.000 hits

"problem with tripadviser reviews" has unbelievable 56.000.000 hits

how long reviews are anonymous and no prove that the person was realy in the place, it´s mostly a fraud and a chance to damage other places or persons.

or how you would like it if somebody would post on a page that you steal money in your working place, that your degree is false or you have a sexual relation with a family member? And I tell you get people who write how nice you are, how social aso.

For sure you would go and try to find out who the nanomymous person is, who wrote the lies.

[Cerasoli]

Now, every one in the world knows about this hotel !

[bazza73]

All any guest in this price range should need is a clean room, large bed and aircon. Plus plumbing and hot water. The rest is a bonus.

I've only ever written one scathing review of a hotel in Chiang Rai on Agoda. It was thoroughly deserved - a shithole.

[wump]

Sounds like a nice guy. Especially when he is straight out lying in his responses for everyone to see

 

Quote

Thailand does not have 1/10 or 1/5 or 1/3 or 1/2 of 1 baht so amount was rounded to the nearest baht 2156 baht

Guest refused to pay 2156 baht and stated he will only pay 2155.50 (note amount owed is 2155.60) 

To put it in perspective, 1/2 a baht is $0.01

Staff obliged providing guest pays with exact change as there is no 1/2 baht change.

 

No? What's the 50 Satang coins for then? I'm not saying he should use them but to deny they exist is just a lie.

[orchis]

room : 600 thb, trip advisor reviews and replies : priceless.

[Get Real]

1 hour ago, PerkinsCuthbert said:

In my experience it's the exact opposite, a place for people who neither think before they act nor retain any vestiges of common courtesy.

So we should show common courtesy to people that can´t take critic. Oh dear, take a beer!

[jenny2017]

Here's one of the happy guests and i don't think that he's lying:

 

  

datis

iran

1629

Reviewed March 22, 2012

very bad management.no safety,no coustomer care

if i want be a fare judge hotel itself is not bad.but?
from the first day management was very hard to bargin with i thouught maybe it is because of me.but next day at the breakfast wich was included in the price was sousage missing and everyday was something wrong with the breakfast we didnot say anything about that but on the last day my friend wanted one more toast and manager told him to pay 10 baht for one more piece of toast,i complained and he said we can go to other hotel he said 10 baht is more important for him than coustomer satisfaction.and he is from australia it was very strang for me because 10 baht is nothing and i told him but he didnot care.

and this not the worst of it.

the last day i was coming at 2 oclock am to the hotel and i wanted my room key.but office lady told me somebody else have my key and he is staying in my room i wanted to call police but after a while office lady told me it is a mistake and she found the key for me.
but in all that i would never stay at the hotel anyway 

so keep out of this hotel.
if you want follownig in the vacation 
dont go there

 

  The owner's response:

 

 

PattayaHoliday, General Manager at Pattaya Holiday Lodge, responded to this reviewResponded March 27, 2012

Spiteful and dishonest review.

In regards to bargaining, guest received 10% discount on the cheapest room in the hotel plus a FREE breakfast
Breakfast time, we stopped to serve sausages but put double of either ham or bacon to substitute the sausages.

Guests were explained the change and all were satisfied.

This guest was not satisfied and felt he should also get FREE DOUBLE orange juice.(to which staff obliged)

On the last day, guest wanted double OJ plus also triple toast, but was advised it would be extra 10 baht.

PS. Manager, ie myself does not serve breakfast, so i did not ask to pay, nor was i present at 9am(time of breakfast)

In regards to the key comments.,Hotel has 10 CCTV camera's to show that
upon returning, guest asked for his room key, but the wrong number and was advised that there is no key because someone was already in the room. (ie he was in room 201, but asked for key for 301)

5 mins later guest remembered his actual room number and was given his key.

Here at hotel we certainly do not check other people into rooms which are already occupied 

Here at hotel, we always try to provide good service to out guest but within limit., it does not include giving away FREE additional extra's

 

It's hard to believe that a hotel owner is doing that to guests. 

[Doctorbu]

Reviews these days for anything have to be carefully read...and certain people should have their ability to review permanently revoked....when people leave negative reviews because they had to wait a few extra minutes it ruins the purpose. 

Even on Amazon and eBay you can have an awesome product but people will leave negative reviews because it arrived a day late or the color looked different in a picture....

Edited November 6, 2017 by Doctorbu

[wump]

Apart from not drinking beer from 7-11 on your balcony (strictly forbidden) the hotel has another couple of outrageous charges: 

 

Lose key and tag: 2000 Baht

Bloodstain the bed linen: 3500 Baht  

Edited November 6, 2017 by wump

[B4Jazz]

Not sure I would want to stay in a Hotel with those sorts of guests, having read the other reviews.

 

It's true many fake reviews on TA.

 

Hopefully I won't have to visit Pattaya again, my least favourite place in Thailand.

[wump]

It doesn't matter how fake the reviews are in this case. A guy who puts up a website and openly advertises a 60 Baht charge on "how to operate the safe" is clearly either greedy or in the wrong spot by being in the 'hospitality' industry.

 

And to be honest, apart from ONE youth hostel in Australia I have never stayed in anywhere in the world where I couldn't drink my own beer in my own room. This guy is a joke.

[champers]

I read the owners replies to poor reviews and thought they were hilarious. More power to his elbow.

[wump]

You should read this one. Reasonable points made yet rude reply from owner. Beer and coke have no expiry date? I'd challenge him to drink a 5 years old beer from a bottle and we'll see about that.

 

Edit: Is this some kind of comedian? 

Quote

Guests did stay at backpackers before , so the smell of fresh linen and fully renovated hotel may well be unpleasant.

 

Edited November 6, 2017 by wump

[ttrd]

1 hour ago, wump said:

Apart from not drinking beer from 7-11 on your balcony (strictly forbidden) the hotel has another couple of outrageous charges: 

 

Lose key and tag: 2000 Baht

Bloodstain the bed linen: 3500 Baht  

With other words - leave the room and get real drunk,  lose your key in the bar when paying bar fine and take home the  hooker back to your room preferably one that are in the beginning of  her period so she cant pint the bed sheet so I can add up 5500thb on top of the 500thb room fee I actually cant live from...;)

[wump]

And add 300 Baht joiner fee to that if the room was not booked for 2 people :).

[mikiea]

11 hours ago, Peterw42 said:

Interesting to look at trip advisor , a fair share of negative reviews and the manager arguing with (even abusing the reviewers) the reviews. 81 reviews, and 18 say poor or terrible, and the manager arguing the point. Manager is saying the reviews are fake, they are not fake if someone stayed there and its their review.

Basil Fawlty would be proud.

true words spoken by peter .....all the boo hoo's and sad pics will not help . it is a dead dog , kicking it will only focus attention on  those other 18 soso reviews .

[BTB1977]

Only a few on trip adviser would have seen the reviews, now thousands of people know about the negative posts. Way to go cry baby. 

[wump]

The replies of this guy somehow remind me of the owners from the Amy's Baking Company episode of Kitchen Nightmares.

[Scouse123]

3 hours ago, jenny2017 said:

Here at hotel, we always try to provide good service to out guest but within limit., it does not include giving away FREE additional extra's

 

I think we have all gathered you don't like giving any FREE extras like a bar of soap or telling somebody how to open the safe without asking for 20 baht. I am laughing now because I am just dumbfounded how you can expect to charge for showing somebody how to open a safe or how a remote control works in the room without asking for a fee! Just mortified at the cheek!

 

I wonder if this Aussie guy was trained by the European carrier Ryanair!

[balo]

6 hours ago, Cerasoli said:

Now, every one in the world knows about this hotel !

 

The hotel of horror , they should rename it to Fawlty Towers. 

 

[Stargeezr]

I do post my staying at hotels in America and Canada on travel advisor, but I have had very good stays

at all places I have stayed at in all places in Thailand.  I appreciate the great laundrey service at the

many places I have  stayed at  well. As for the postings in Asia I have read some, and figure the negative

people who posted, were the same jerks that wanted service first  when  I was  checking in. ahead of them.

Geezer

[bristolgeoff]

not expensive for a room in pattaya.so maybe good or bad a cheap place to stay

[jacko45k]

16 hours ago, petermik said:

Living close by I pass by often.......not an inviting looking establishment by any stretch of the imagination

He will be after you next!

[Stargeezr]

Having read some more of the comments  I have to say  that  this guy seems to forget that

he is in Pattaya.  A big Fee for stained sheets, well the hooker would wash them if she noticed blood

etc on them after a romp, and the other fees are a bit much as well, as many people forget

stuff when they drink.  Maybe it  is best  to sell and head back to Oz.  I meant Trip Advisor on my

first comment, guess travel was on my mind.

Geezer