hi well today has been interesting to say the least, all started with a phone call from my mum, who had just searched my wedding venue on line (glendorgal hotel) and came across reviews from hotel guests on a popular site,which were really bad now I'm thinking if i should change the venue we've paid a non-refundable deposit of £400, and cant decide if i should or not its not a cheap venue and i would hate to pay loads only to find out latter that the reviews are true and have the worst wedding ever. What does everyone think?
CommentAuthorMrsSaraParry!
i personally think you have to take reviews with a pinch of salt! People very rarely write if they have had a good experience, unless the staff really did something above and beyond. Normally people only write if they've had a bad experience and for every 100 people that visit the hotel, there may only be a couple who have a not so great experience and write about it. So i wouldnt worry too much! We've been to numerous hotels that have had bad reviews and have had a lovely time whilst there so dont panic :o)
CommentAuthorGem1102
I agree with Sara. I read some bad reviews of the hotel me and h2b stayed in when we went to Tunisia a couple of years ago and it worried me a little. I had no need to be though. It was a great place and a brill holiday. I think you need to experience a place for yourself. Maybe you could have an overnight stay to see for yourself what its like? We did with our venue but only cos they had a good deal on! :-) xxx
CommentAuthormadison_uk
just worried cos they all seem to be picking on the same problems maybe i should speak to the wedding planner at the hotel about it?
CommentAuthorGem1102
definitely. if it will help put your mind at ease then do it. you don't want to be stressing about it for the next 22 months. xxx
I wouldnt believe the reviews, its like booking a holiday and hotels, i have booked them and then looked at reviews and they have been terrible, i have been worrying about it and everything then once i have got there it has been fine, nothing wrong with it. If its the site i think your talking about take no notice, people go out of their way on there to try and find fault. Also there will always be someone going with the intention to 'expose' the place when in reality it is fine
CommentAuthormadison_uk
i spoke to the wedding planner bloke today as i wanted to hear his side he said" that other hotels are going on the site and leaving them bad reviews" which is a load of **** as how would they now about all the bad bits, and also spoke to a brides parents who had a wedding there they both said that the venue was lovely, but the food and accommodation the worst they've had, and that two vodkas in tonic were £14 at the bar so this is making me even more concerned would be cheaper to get a bottle yourself and pay the £10 corkage! that and the breakfast costs £12 dosent matter what you have even if its just for a cup of tea and toast So Ive think Ive decided on changing venue to another one only problem is I'm going to loose the £400 deposit as it says non-refundable even though its just under two years away, or do you think i can get it back?
CommentAuthorKaya
I doubt you'd be able to get the deposit back unfortunately x
Now Mrs Cobb!!!!!! :-D
CommentAuthormadison_uk
will go and see the other venue and haggle and see if i can save the £400 off them lol
CommentAuthorbarbie86
Reviews are useful, but you need to know how to read between the lines, and what to look for. Yes, people are more likely to review somewhere if they have a bad experience, but that doesn't negate the negative reviews, as the fact is that if they are telling the truth, those things probably did happen, and if the same issues have cropped up in other reviews, then that indicates that they are real issues.
My tips would be:
Look at how long the review is: if it's 2 sentences I tend to discount it.
Look at how detailed it is: is it specific, or very vague and generic? If it's very vague, it could be fake, so look for details.
How does the review start? I discount anything that starts with 'We had a horrendous journey/the train was late/the weather was awful', as this can colour the person's whole experience and make them more negative
Ignore anything outside the hotel's control: if the weather was bad, it's not their fault; if they're serving mouldy bread, that IS their fault
Look for common factors: if 80% of reviewers, inc those that are fairly positive, are saying cleanliness is an issue, it probably is.
I find review sites very useful, and while I agree to an extent that you should take them with a pinch of salt, if you do the above you can usually get a fair picture of what to expect. I personally will never book anywhere with an average rating of less then 3.5/5.
Also, be observant when you book somewhere: at each venue we visited, we asked to go to the toilet when we arrived; IMO you can tell a fair bit from how these areas are kept; if somewhere was out of soap or loo roll, or the handtowels were dirty, it would concern me. Similarly I always ask to inspect a few bedrooms, and will again assess them on cleanliness etc. I also dropped in on most of our venues at very short notice to test how they cope. I know that sounds a bit OTT but I'm very fussy, and when you're parting with thousands of pounds it's important to get it right IMO
CommentAuthormadison_uk
when we went there i checked two rooms one had towels left in a bag dumped on the bed to the wedding planners shock, there was a huge dusty foot mark on a dinning chair as someone had changed the light bulb above and on the table were we discussed the wedding there was left over butter on the bottom of the table that the wedding planner cleaned up and they had 3 hrs notice that we were coming, also i used the toilet they had the light switch was on the outside on the opposite wall maybe i should of thought a bit longer about the venue but despite all that we liked it
CommentAuthorXLittleMissMe!X
I have to admit that I use the review sites but use them with care. You never know how genuine they are. After all its very easy for someone to make things up, exaggerate something or to use them to get revenge if something wasn't to their liking and they didn't get a freebie or something else. I tend to do it as a percentage. How many bad reviews are there for every good one? If it is just one or two people moaning then ignore them. If its one after another then give it some more thought and do your own investigations into the hotel.
Its very easy for brides to get upset if something isn't perfect on their big day but that doesn't mean that the hotel are bad.
CommentAuthormadison_uk
yea know what you mean there seems to be allot of bad reviews in a row if it was one or two id just think fussy buggers but then they're all singing from the same song sheet
CommentAuthor*Kat B*
i noticed that people only write bad news if they have high standards HOWEVER one person's disappointment is someone else's dream. Each and everyone of us likes different things that's what makes us unique.
Live for today
This cat is not in pain.....it's meowing noooo not UKB again
Met 08 Jul 2003, Engaged 20 May 2010
Married 19 April 2012
CommentAuthorbarbie86
I agree to an extent Kate, different horses for different courses and all that. But IMO it depends on what the complaint is, eg if people complain that a resort in say, Mexico, is too large, I don't mind as when we go AI we like large resorts. But if a lot of people were saying that the buffet food was covered in flies and not kept hot/cold enough, then that isn't a matter of opinion; likewise if people are complaining about cleanliness, that is a real issue for me.
I'm the first to admit I'm fussy and have standards, but I wouldn't say I go OTT, and I have reasonable expectations eg at a 3* I don't expect amazing decor or 5* food and drinks, but I do expect the hotel to be spotlessly clean, and, if I have food, for it to be stored and cooked properly
