Unhappy with WKORV OF unit - smell and damp carpet

[CalGalTraveler]

Is there a difference between a mid-week tidy and mid-week clean? AFAIK the Hiltons clean the entire unit (bathroom, kitchen, floors, garbage), but they don't change the sheets or unused towels hanging on the rack unless requested. Is a tidy different? or the same?

(its been 3 years since we had a mid-week tidy at Vistana - so cannot remember)

 

[daviator]

I also am peeved at some of the disappeared amenities that still are not re-appearing (hotels and timeshares).

Yes, especially since we figured out at least 18 months ago that Covid was not being transmitted via objects and surfaces; it's almost 100% through airborne transmission. So the excuse to get rid of napkins, placemats, pens and paper, etc. is not a valid excuse and hasn't been for a long time.

I call every time and ask for napkins and placemats; they will bring you new rubbery placemats (the former cloth ones that you could wash seem to be gone) but they never bring napkins, even when you ask. Sometimes you get an extra roll of paper towels. Am I the only one that prefers a real napkin? A paper towel makes me feel like I'm in a dorm room....

First world problems, to be sure, but my gripe is that these are amenities we pay for and the initial reasons for their removal have long since vanished.

 

[daviator]

Is there a difference between a mid-week tidy and mid-week clean? AFAIK the Hiltons clean the entire unit (bathroom, kitchen, floors, garbage), but they don't change the sheets or unused towels hanging on the rack unless requested. Is a tidy different? or the same?

I think it's basically the same. The now-absent mid-week tidy was basically emptying the trashes, making the beds, and maybe a quick vacuum. And replacing the towels that needed replacing, replacing used toilet paper rolls, etc. I'm not sure if they mop floors. We are pretty clean and tidy so it's sometimes hard to know what they've done. It was always akin to the normal maid service you might get in a hotel room during a stay.

 

[DavidnRobin]

Considering that Covid transmission is known to be airborne (in normal environments) - it is about time items that were removed because of potential transmission due to surface contamination be resupplied.
[not intended to discuss covid here - certainly have had my fill with that pathetic thread]

We never use mid-week tidy - if we need something - we seek out housekeeping.
But… getting charged for a service not rendered is BS.


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[zentraveler]

Yes, especially since we figured out at least 18 months ago that Covid was not being transmitted via objects and surfaces; it's almost 100% through airborne transmission. So the excuse to get rid of napkins, placemats, pens and paper, etc. is not a valid excuse and hasn't been for a long time.

I call every time and ask for napkins and placemats; they will bring you new rubbery placemats (the former cloth ones that you could wash seem to be gone) but they never bring napkins, even when you ask. Sometimes you get an extra roll of paper towels. Am I the only one that prefers a real napkin? A paper towel makes me feel like I'm in a dorm room....

First world problems, to be sure, but my gripe is that these are amenities we pay for and the initial reasons for their removal have long since vanished.

I am with you @daviator; we bring our own napkins when we travel. Even when resorts have them they are usually really cheap polyester ones that feel like waxed paper. Very small item for the luggage and I have been known to put them bring them to restaurants since they all mostly have flimsy paper ones now as well.

Covid is being used as a [nonsense] reason for resorts to remove items and hope people don't notice, don't care or forget they ever cared about having these things.

[And apologies for just realizing I am doing my part to veer this thread way off topic ]

 

[sherakay]

So sad to hear that it took 2 days out of your vacation to deal with this. This sounds like a nightmare.

We had a similar situation at Ko Olina with cockroaches in our unit. This was after we waited until 7:30 PM to check in even though we arrived early at 1:00. The the carpet in our room was damp. However I suspect someone got sick and they had to clean the carpets and let it dry before we could occupy. The carpets were damp.

Marriott management was polite but "meh" and when we finally got them to pay attention 2 days later, they couldn't place us in any other units. (it was peak summer and the only unit was a bottom floor unit darkened by the kids waterslide). We were on a promotional stay so didn't pay much for the room. If this was my EOY owner's stay, I would be livid.

Have you considered asking for compensation to offset this disaster?

Wait, are you saying the Marriot Ko'olina has roaches?!?!

 

[CalGalTraveler]

Wait, are you saying the Marriot Ko'olina has roaches?!?!

Yes, when we were at Ko Olina pre-covid. We were on the ground floor of the Naia building. They sprayed our room one day, but then they had to evacuate the entire floor the next day because the bugs were apparently spotted in other rooms as well. So not only ruining our vacation plans but we were exposed to pesticides.

The compensation was to get us a cabana for a day so we would have someplace to go while they sprayed, (about $100 applied to this).

Nasty critters. Big too.

 

[daviator]

Wait, are you saying the Marriot Ko'olina has roaches?!?!

It's Hawaii. It's pretty much impossible to completely keep roaches out of any property there. The roaches they have there can fly. I imagine all the properties there have a regular pest control program to try to keep them at bay.

When I lived there I called them "kamikaze roaches" because they will fly right at you (they are not smart, I think they are attracted to movement and light.)

 

[sherakay]

Yes, when we were at Ko Olina pre-covid. We were on the ground floor of the Naia building. They sprayed our room one day, but then they had to evacuate the entire floor the next day because the bugs were apparently spotted in other rooms as well. So not only ruining our vacation plans but we were exposed to pesticides.

The compensation was to get us a cabana for a day so we would have someplace to go while they sprayed.

Nasty critters. Big too.

Thank you for that info! I was considering renting or buying there. Now it's a definite no. We owned DVC (just sold it last month) and stayed at Aulani in 2017 and loved it! Never saw a roach anywhere. As a flight attendant they put us at the Hyatt Place Waikiki Beach so I've been there many times and never saw bugs there either. Roaches are unacceptable!

 

[CalGalTraveler]

Perhaps if the staff had an attitude of empathy, or compensated us properly by offering us a future stay to make up for our lost vacation, or putting us up at another hotel, I wouldn't still be sharing this story. We almost laughed during the presentation when the rep tried to convince us to buy, and we just told him there were cockroaches in our room and the staff did very little to make our stay better.

In addition, there was always a long line to speak to the front desk at Ko Olina. A long line to check in. A line to talk to someone about the problem because calling did no good. The front desk woman just typed into her computer - stone faced. Is it always like this? I haven't experience long lines of more than 1 - 3 people at Hilton TS, or Vistana.

 

[sherakay]

It's Hawaii. It's pretty much impossible to completely keep roaches out of any property there. The roaches they have there can fly. I imagine all the properties there have a regular pest control program to try to keep them at bay.

When I lived there I called them "kamikaze roaches" because they will fly right at you (they are not smart, I think they are attracted to movement and light.)

Sorry, but nope, not accepting that. Places like Hawaii and Florida may have them as common to the area but it is unacceptable for a hospitality resort to not ensure they are kept out of dwelling units, that means their pest control isn't working. I have stayed at Aulani and have stayed at Hyatt Place Waikiki Beach as a flight attendant and never saw a single roach.

I have traveled to Hawaii more times than I can count staying at various hotels as a flight attendant from Sheraton Kauai in Lihue, to Maui Coast and Royal Lahaina and Outrigger Kona Resort & Spa and NEVER saw roaches at any of these places! No way I'm paying thousands of dollars for an annual vacation and it comes infested!

 

[CalGalTraveler]

FWIW...We also visited Hawaii every year staying at many different resorts for almost the past 30 years and never saw cockroaches in our room.

The Ko Olina Resort is beautiful. The rooms were well appointed and bigger than many Hilton and Vistana TS 2 bdrms. I really wanted to like Ko Olina. I wish they had offered us another opportunity for a future stay on a higher floor because it may have changed my perception. Now all I can think of is the sound of a cockroach landing on my bed while sleeping or stepping on one in the dark on the way to the bathroom in the middle of the night.

 

[amycurl]

That is why I am so appreciative of having our TUG contact at Interval (Mark Delcampo). If you get in a pickle, he does his best to help you out and for me, it is the #1 reason that I feel loyal to II. It doesn't take much to do the right thing, or at least be sympathetic about an issue, and the benefit in customer loyalty and positive word-of-mouth recommendations is worth every penny.

Can I just second this? I copied Mark in on all of my back-and-forth emails with II yesterday (see my thread about needing to throw back an OGS that matched at 2 am on a Sunday morning.) Even though I resolved it through an II rep on the phone this morning, he called me within 30 mins of that call (I called first thing, so I was definitely one of his first-thing calls, too,) and double-checked everything again on II to make sure that 1) my OGS was still in place with the right priority, 2) that my request was noted to be for a Sunday check-in only and 3) that I would always have until Monday to throw something back if it matched on a Sunday.

Mark is great. Kudos to II for figuring out they needed to dedicate someone to TUGgers. Best part? Unlike other II reps, he never tries to "upsell" us on anything. He knows that we know enough to ask for what we want, LOL!

 

[daviator]

Sorry, but nope, not accepting that. Places like Hawaii and Florida may have them as common to the area but it is unacceptable for a hospitality resort to not ensure they are kept out of dwelling units, that means their pest control isn't working. I have stayed at Aulani and have stayed at Hyatt Place Waikiki Beach as a flight attendant and never saw a single roach.

I have traveled to Hawaii more times than I can count staying at various hotels as a flight attendant from Sheraton Kauai in Lihue, to Maui Coast and Royal Lahaina and Outrigger Kona Resort & Spa and NEVER saw roaches at any of these places! No way I'm paying thousands of dollars for an annual vacation and it comes infested!

I agree that hotels, etc. should not be infested with any kind of bugs, especially cockroaches. And I think if you see them running around, that's evidence that their pest control isn't working, as you say. I just meant that they are endemic to the islands and that 100% control probably isn't possible. They can fly in from the lanai or whatever, or you may find a dead one (evidence, perhaps, that the pest control IS working.) But they should not be living in the units, or the walls, etc. And if they get a foothold they can be tough to eradicate, so prevention is important.

My original reply was meant to convey the idea that it's probably impossible to guarantee that you will never see a cockroach in Hawaii, not that infestation was acceptable. Sorry I didn't do a good job of making that clear. There's a difference between "a cockroach came in from outside" and "my room is infested."

There are plenty of people who will decide "I'm outta here" after seeing one bug, and any resort operator who doesn't understand that is going to lose a significant number of customers. But it's a constant challenge.

(I once spent the night in my rental car in Florida after checking into a hotel where cockroaches scattered when I turned on the light in the room. Who could sleep there?)

 

[rickandcindy23]

I have been rather disappointed that Marriott doesn't do a tidy mid-week for exchangers, which is what we usually are. They stopped years ago, unless you pay a fee to get a mid-week tidy/clean. It's been so long now, I don't even remember how much they did to tidy the place. I just missed it when it stopped.

The Westins continued to do that until Covid.

Covid is being used as an excuse for a lot, if you ask me. No more pens and pads in the unit is one of the first things they stopped supplying. Kind of strange, a little thing like that. Give me more supplies, if you are going to stop providing mid-week tidies. I don't want to ask for things.

Something Marriott provides that Westins do not is coffee filters for a week. That is helpful.

 

[amycurl]

I would love if the Marriotts provided cloth napkins. We tend to appropriate extra washcloths and hand towels and use them instead of the paper towels, LOL. In Aruba last month, that's what we did, and ended up washing them ourselves mid-week, because, of course, no mid-week tidy to get fresh ones.

I did find the placemats, however. So that's a win, I guess? (We ate pretty much exclusively on our lanai, so they were nice to have out there.)

 

[CalGalTraveler]

One small but thoughtful amenity I really liked about MVC's are those mini salt and pepper shakers. I liked them so much I took a few for our TS cooking kit. Do they still provide those?

 

[daviator]

One small but thoughtful amenity I really liked about MVC's are those mini salt and pepper shakers. I liked them so much I took a few for our TS cooking kit. Do they still provide those?

I don't know about MVC but Vistana started providing those, at least at some properties, a couple of years ago, and it is SO appreciated. Now I have a "timeshare bag" we always bring which contains key stuff that we've learned that we will need, but in our early years of ownership, I can't tell you how many times I was down at the restaurant trying to find some of those single-use salt and pepper packets because we had steaks (or whatever) to grill but hadn't thought about seasoning! The tiny salt and pepper shakers probably cost them 50¢ or less but are one of the most appreciated amenities.

 

[amycurl]

We went from a small, cardboard "timeshare box" to a full-sized plastic bin "timeshare box," LOL. We like to cook, explore local farmer's markets, etc....and we've learned that there are some things we can't live without (esp. if we're driving!)

 

[SmithOp]

I had this hitchhiker in my rental car last week in Kona, they have tribal tattoos now!

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[klpca]

FWIW...We also visited Hawaii every year staying at many different resorts for almost the past 30 years and never saw cockroaches in our room.

The Ko Olina Resort is beautiful. The rooms were well appointed and bigger than many Hilton and Vistana TS 2 bdrms. I really wanted to like Ko Olina. I wish they had offered us another opportunity for a future stay on a higher floor because it may have changed my perception. Now all I can think of is the sound of a cockroach landing on my bed while sleeping or stepping on one in the dark on the way to the bathroom in the middle of the night.

Other than a dodgy place in Waikiki that we stayed at in 1983, I had never seen a roach in a hotel or timeshare until Kingsland in 2017. The roach fell from the ceiling directly on to my arm while I was reading in bed. The front desk did not care one bit and all they offered was to have the unit sprayed the next day. Zero compensation. Same with Cabo when we had Tarantula Hawks in our room on two consecutive nights. I figure that they deal with these bugs on a regular basis so to them it's no big deal. Luckily I am not super squeamish when it comes to bugs. We don't have them in our house, but we go camping so I tend to move them on their way and keep going. In the tropics I figure that it is amazing that we don't see them more often.

 

[klpca]

I had this hitchhiker in my rental car last week in Kona, they have tribal tattoos now!

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When picking up our rental car on Kauai in 2020, we opened the door and found a large colony of ants on the inside of the passenger door near the floorboards. So we didn't take *that* car, lol. Welcome to the islands!

 

[alwysonvac]

No one is ever happy to see a bug of any kind in their room.
But any sort of infestation is a clear indication that management has ignored their pest control issue. Just keep in mind, if you’ve seen lots of bugs, then previous guests and housekeeping have seen them as well and the issue still persists.

Sadly you can find roach reports by searching on TUG and TripAdvisor including the resorts mentioned in this thread. Here are some examples:
HGVC KingsLand (link)
Sheraton Kauai Resort (link)
Hyatt Place Waikiki Beach (link)
Disney Aulani (link)
Disney Saratoga Springs (link)
HGVC Grand Waikikian (link)
Westin Ka'anapali Ocean Resort Villas (link)
Marriott Ko Olina (link)
Sheraton Broadway Plantation (link)

 

[slip]

For my job in Hawaii, I worked closely with our pest management company. We had locations on all 4 main islands and they all worked with many large hotels and resorts. They all said that each of them have roaches. They were clear that it didn't mean they had infestations.

No matter where you stay it is possible that you can come across a cockroach or two. This will not mean that they don't have a proper pest management program.

My point is you shouldn't let seeing a cockroach or two spoil your vacation. Now seeing many or a bunch of them scatter when you turn on a light, that's a different story.

 

[CalGalTraveler]

The problem at Ko Olina was that was it wasn't just a cockroach or two. It was about 15 - 20 (and one climbed into the sofabed. Thank goodness no one was sleeping there. eew!) and we weren't the only unit because they had to evacuate the floor for a day to spray.