With having a daughter living in the area we had received mixed opinions on the MercureWhite Hart Hotel in Salisbury. Anyway, we decided one Sunday morning when in the area to go in and see what it was like.
We had coffee and toasted teacakes in the Lounge area and we were pleased with the service we received so decided we would use this as our base for our holiday in early July.
Unfortunately, our week at the Mercure White Hart did not reach the standards or expectations of a large city-centre three-star hotel
I am writing on our observations of the week, 4 July to 11 July, when we stayed at the Mercure White Hart Hotel in Salisbury.
Reception
We arrived at the White Hart at approximately 4 pm on a Friday with our daughter. We were booked in for the whole week, while our daughter was booked in for three nights. We went to Reception to discover there was no one there. We stood chatting for some time when a member of staff arrived and called over the counter, whereupon a member of the Reception Team came out of the back office. From her attitude our arrival at this time was an obvious inconvenience and having said who we were we were given room keys and paperwork. We noticed that they had the wrong address for us and we pointed this out. With great reluctance, this member of staff then decided to reprint the room card without an address on it.
We asked about a copy of the Salisbury Journal but were told that there may be one in the newspaper basket 'over there' but 'she didn't know'
We were advised that our rooms were on the second floor and when we asked if there was a lift the
reply was 'no' and then the Receptionist turned her back on us as 'her job had been done.' While we were discussing how to get three cases to the second floor another member of staff, who was on duty for afternoon teas, offered to assist and this was very much appreciated.
Later that evening another member of staff on Reception was totally different and provided us with a map to help us find Bemerton Heath.
We also found that another of the team, who was on Reception Monday morning, was most pleasant and had 'her finger on the pulse'
We feel it is essential that whoever is on Reception provide a welcome and a smile when guests arrive at the White Hart. This was certainly not the case with some reception staff and this attitude sets a bad example. There is an urgent need to staff training in this area.
As part of the welcome, whoever is on Reception needs to advise those of us with cars that there is a daily code for raising the barrier and we should get this before we leave the hotel and go to our cars. (It would save walking back to Reception in the rain!)
Rooms 220 and 230
In general the rooms were satisfactory with a reasonable standard of housekeeping but our daughter was in Room 230 and there were a number of matters which needed attending to: • the Fire Notice had fallen off and was on the floor propped up against the wall. This is against Fire Safety Regulations • the ceiling vent in the bathroom was disgusting with dirt and fluff. We had to ask Reception to get it cleaned and this was done • there was no hook on the back of the bathroom door, although there were holes where one had been previously • the shower did not always work - this is probably due to a lack of water pressure
We feel there needs to be a tighter control of the housekeeping service with checks being carried out in rooms to make certain that shower heads are clean, ceiling vents are clean, hooks and notices are as required.
In fact, we would go as far as to say that the hotel needs a 'general maintenance person' to deal with a catalogue of jobs around the building such as the 'water feature' in the lounge area, because, when it rains they have to put buckets out to catch the water pouring through the skylight. The windows in the stairwells didn't seem to be closable (Fire Safety Regulations?)
Restaurant, Meals and Bar
In general we found the standard of food offered by the hotel good but we were very disappointed with the menu when we decided to have dinner on the Sunday evening. When we arrived in the restaurant we were provided with the exactly same menu that was available in the bar area. This was quite unexpected since the Guest Information Folder in each room gave us examples of sample 'table d'hôte' menus we could expect in the restaurant.
To be truthful we did not expect to be eating 'ham, egg and chips' in a three star hotel restaurant on a Sunday evening.
When we booked our evening meal at Reception we were delighted to receive a voucher for a free drink with our meal but, on reflection, one must ask (i) is this a desperate attempt to get people to eat in the restaurant because of the uninspirational menu if offers, or (ii) is it the only way guests will have a drink with their meals because the wine list prices are to the point of being ridiculous?
Then, to add salt to the wounds, while we were dining, there was a German coach party who were partaking of soup/starter, roast chicken and roast potatoes and gateau for sweet. When I raised this with the duty manager that the same meal could have been offered as a 'special' to residents who were dining he admitted that this had not been thought of!
There was also an incident on the same evening with the German coach party that reminded me of 'Fawlty Towers.' While we were having coffee in the lounge a member of this party went to Reception requesting that he paid for the beer he had had at the table. At first the Receptionist said that the drink would be put onto the room account but the guest was quite insistent that he paid there and then. The member of staff did not know the cost of the beer. He phoned through to the bar, no response. He then got in a fluster but after some time to matter was resolved with the guest paying for his beer.
It also appears that the prices being charged at the bar are quite extortionate with a 75cl bottle of water costing £4.35! I would be interested to know what your mark up is on this, especially when you equate this against a pot of coffee and chocolates for £2.50 or even the charge for afternoon tea. And, while we are on the subject of afternoon tea I think it needs to be noted that staff were reluctant to clear away so there was dirty crockery from the afternoon still in the lounge area at 9.30 pm.
I feel that if I am resident in a hotel then I expect the opportunity to have a 'proper meal' for dinner. If the hotel feels it must offer 'burgers in buns' then they might as well close their kitchen because we could get the same from a Macdonalds up the road for a fraction of the cost.
In the Restaurant there also needs to be a higher level of management. This is particularly evident at breakfast time when tables need to be cleared and reset. There did not appear to be any plan for this and staff on duty was each doing a little bit in setting up a table. Consequently, items such as butter or sugar would be missing and guests would take it from other tables that had been set.
Overall
We are regular hotel guests to a number of chains and to privately owned hotels, but this is the first time we have stayed at the White Hart in Salisbury. We feel that there is a great deal that needs to be done, both in the way of refurbishment, but more importantly in staff management and staff/guest relations.
From the above experiences, and from our own expertise gathered over many years, there would appear to be a lack of directed management at the White Hart because many staff are wanting to please but they often lack the guidance and knowledge to provide a good service to guests. I say 'wanting to please' because when something is requested or something that is wrong is brought to their attention then they seem keen to deal with it.
It does, though, appear that the White Hart is 'drifting' and, in the present economic climate and in a less popular tourist area, I would not have been surprised to learn that the hotel would be closing and we were some of the last guests to fill its rooms.
A Final Thought
Mercure seem to be keen on inviting their guests to provide feedback. Unfortunately our feedback was never acknowledged by the White Hart or their Customer Relations Department in London. Does this prove that they just couldn't care less?
Sep 2nd, 2008
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