The Fern Residency, Gandhinagar, Series by Marriott

Extremely Disappointed with Front Office Service – A Letdown from My Previous Stays I had previously stayed at The Fern Residency, Gandhinagar, and had a fantastic experience, especially with in-room dining and overall hospitality. Based on that, I chose this hotel again for my recent trip to Gujarat. Unfortunately, this time, my experience was extremely disappointing, specifically due to the front office staff’s rude and unprofessional behavior. Checkout Experience On my scheduled checkout day, at 12:07 PM, I received a call from the front desk inquiring about my checkout time. Since I was almost done packing, I informed them that "I would check out within 30 minutes." To my shock, the front desk representative, Rahul Chandel, abruptly responded, “No, you cannot check out in 30 minutes. Our checkout time is 12 noon.” I asked how much time they could allow, considering I was just seven minutes past checkout and was already wrapping up. Instead of handling this professionally, the same individual rudely stated, “I cannot give you a single minute. I want you to vacate the room within 5 minutes. (in his Hindi language: पांच मिनट में आपको नीचे आना पड़ेगा)” This is totally Unacceptable Behavior Having spent over 20 years in the hospitality industry, I have never encountered such a rude, arrogant, and unprofessional response from a front desk team. Most hotels offer a 30-minute buffer and handle such situations with courtesy and respect. Questions for Hotel Management: 1️⃣ If high occupancy was a concern (which wasn’t the case here), why wasn’t a reminder call made at 10:00 AM rather than abruptly demanding immediate checkout at 12:07 PM? 2️⃣ If a guest is just finishing their packing and requests 30 minutes, can’t the front office staff trust them? A polite reminder after 30 minutes would have been the professional way to handle it. This single incident completely changed my impression of the hotel.

Extremely Disappointed with Front Office Service – A Letdown from My Previous Stays I had previously stayed at The Fern Residency, Gandhinagar, and had a fantastic experience, especially with in-room dining and overall hospitality. Based on that, I chose this hotel again for my recent trip to Gujarat. Unfortunately, this time, my experience was extremely disappointing, specifically due to the front office staff’s rude and unprofessional behavior. Checkout Experience On my scheduled checkout day, at 12:07 PM, I received a call from the front desk inquiring about my checkout time. Since I was almost done packing, I informed them that "I would check out within 30 minutes." To my shock, the front desk representative, Rahul Chandel, abruptly responded, “No, you cannot check out in 30 minutes. Our checkout time is 12 noon.” I asked how much time they could allow, considering I was just seven minutes past checkout and was already wrapping up. Instead of handling this professionally, the same individual rudely stated, “I cannot give you a single minute. I want you to vacate the room within 5 minutes. (in his Hindi language: पांच मिनट में आपको नीचे आना पड़ेगा)” This is totally Unacceptable Behavior Having spent over 20 years in the hospitality industry, I have never encountered such a rude, arrogant, and unprofessional response from a front desk team. Most hotels offer a 30-minute buffer and handle such situations with courtesy and respect. Questions for Hotel Management: 1️⃣ If high occupancy was a concern (which wasn’t the case here), why wasn’t a reminder call made at 10:00 AM rather than abruptly demanding immediate checkout at 12:07 PM? 2️⃣ If a guest is just finishing their packing and requests 30 minutes, can’t the front office staff trust them? A polite reminder after 30 minutes would have been the professional way to handle it. This single incident completely changed my impression of the hotel.

Good

Room space

I recently had the pleasure of staying at The Fern Residency, Gandhinagar, and while my experience was mostly positive, there were a few aspects worth mentioning for both the hotel's improvement and future guests to be aware of. Check-in/Out Process The hotel’s automated booking system and digital check-in feature are fantastic ideas in theory. I was excited to receive the pre-check-in email (referred to as the Digital Check-in) and complete the check-in process online to save time. However, when I arrived at the hotel, I was disappointed to find that my details had not been transferred to the front desk, despite submitting my National Identity card during the pre-check-in process. This meant I still had to physically show my ID at check-in, rendering the e-check-in feature ineffective. If the hotel is going to offer digital check-in, the system should ensure that all guest details are seamlessly transferred to the front desk. It would be great if this could be improved to enhance the guest experience. That being said, once I completed this process, both my check-in and check-out were smooth, without any further issues. Room The room itself was very impressive. It was spacious and well-designed, offering a view of the main highway. The luggage area was large and well-organized, providing ample space for all my belongings. The closet was also generous in size, complete with a locker facility for valuables, which is always a great addition. The washroom was another highlight: clean, modern, and well-equipped with high-quality toiletries. I particularly liked the in-built mirror lighting in the bathroom, which provided perfect lighting for getting ready. The shower area was large and well-maintained, and I appreciated the non-perfumed shower gel and shampoo, which were very refreshing. There was also plenty of hot water at all times, which is always a big plus.

Check-in/Out Process The hotel’s automated booking system and digital check-in feature are fantastic ideas in theory. I was excited to receive the pre-check-in email (referred to as the Digital Check-in) and complete the check-in process online to save time. However, when I arrived at the hotel, I was disappointed to find that my details had not been transferred to the front desk, despite submitting my National Identity card during the pre-check-in process. This meant I still had to physically show my ID at check-in, rendering the e-check-in feature ineffective. If the hotel is going to offer digital check-in, the system should ensure that all guest details are seamlessly transferred to the front desk. It would be great if this could be improved to enhance the guest experience. That being said, once I completed this process, both my check-in and check-out were smooth, without any further issues.