Noisy festival….. guests not happy!

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Cas & Irene
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Noisy festival….. guests not happy!

Post by Cas & Irene »

Between end of May and end of July we have several music festivals on the beach and Parc Forum. We are always very keen on those periods, and check the Festival Agenda regularly.
In those periods we only accepts guests or groups who are visiting the festival.
In August there are some South American day festivals but they don’t produce loud music. Because it´s holiday time they never organize big festivals in August.

Suddenly they have organized, probably a few months ago, a small but very noisy 2 day festival with (in my opinion, because I´m from the Pink Floyd age!) ugly music.

Guests had booked a year ago the boat as Self Catering and are absolutely not happy now.
One of their sons is well known in Barcelona, and he confirmed indee that is was very strange to have a festival in mid-August.

But despite his knowledge about this, the family is not happy. We never had such a problem on board, any suggestion how to satisfy the guests more and less??
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Mouse
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Post by Mouse »

My opinion? Its just one of those things. It is nothing you can control. All you can do is empathise...but not apologise.

They have just been extremely unlucky.....but, you can not go to a city for a holiday and expect peace and quiet.

Fingers crossed it won't be as noisy as they or you think. (Thanks Andrew! ;) )

Mousie
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Last edited by Mouse on Sat Aug 13, 2016 3:00 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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salmoncottage
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Post by salmoncottage »

Provided you have indicated on your website, other listings and communications with these guests that your accommodation is 'not noisy' for instance, and you have indicated that these types of events are common in the area then you have not deceived your guests re the noise. However if you knew there was forthcoming noisy or similar disruption you would have a duty to do so, wouldnt you? Maybe a tweek to your T&C's or prior communications with future guests stating inpromptu festivals and gatherings may occur at any time and you cant be responsible for noise from other vessles moored in the harbour or surrounding proximity.
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AndrewH
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Post by AndrewH »

Mouse wrote:My opinion? Its just one of those things. It is nothing you can control. All you can do is empathise...but not apologise.

They have just been extremely unlucky.....but, you can not go to a city for a holiday and expect peace and quiet.

Fingers crossed it won't be as Isy (noisy? :lol: ) as they or you think.

Mousie
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+1
e-richard
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Post by e-richard »

salmoncottage wrote:Maybe a tweek to your T&C's or prior communications with future guests stating inpromptu festivals and gatherings may occur at any time and you cant be responsible for noise from other vessles moored in the harbour or surrounding proximity.
Where the heck does one stop?
Do you also need to add into your T&C that a plane may go overhead, a neighbour might fly a kite nearby, a wasp could get into the property, an acorn could fall from a tree, a black cat could cross your path, etc etc etc.

Common sense please. All I would put into the T&C is:

"This is real life. Stuff happens" (or the legal equivalent)

You cannot predict every possible eventuality that guests in their infinite variety may object to.
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Cas & Irene
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Post by Cas & Irene »

Thanks all.

I visit the guests this morning because they ordered a Captains Breakfast, (I would visit them anyway after a complain!), and the night was not "too bad".
Sounds good for us Dutch, but unfortunately I know (in the meantime) that this is a polite statement in the English language. So difficult to trace what´s behind this. It would probably be "terrible".

Anyway, I went to town and bought for all a set high quality ear plugs. Hope they sleep well tonight! :wink:
Sail with the wind from today and count your blessings!
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Marks
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Post by Marks »

e-richard wrote:Where the heck does one stop?
Do you also need to add into your T&C that a plane may go overhead, a neighbour might fly a kite nearby, a wasp could get into the property, an acorn could fall from a tree, a black cat could cross your path, etc etc etc.

Common sense please. All I would put into the T&C is:

"This is real life. Stuff happens" (or the legal equivalent)

You cannot predict every possible eventuality that guests in their infinite variety may object to.
+1 Sh!t happens.
Some guests just need a sympathetic pat. On the head. With a hammer.
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French Cricket
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Post by French Cricket »

Wot Richard and Marks said.
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Cas & Irene
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Post by Cas & Irene »

Unfortunately the ear plugs didn´t help enough to make the guests happy the next morning.

During the check- out she ask me a discount on the final balance.
To be honest I was very surprised by such a direct question, I said “OK, can I make you happy with € 50,-?”. She confirmed this with an “Yes”, and so I did.

Done this with keeping in mind a bad TA review (She´s running about 10 rental properties in the UK, so would expect that she knows how things are (not) works).
It took us about 3,5 year, 135 excellent and 20 very good reviews (and a lot of hard work) to work us up to the 3rd place of the 326 B&B´s in Barcelona.

After 2 average and 1 terrible reviews (1st one grrr) we dropped back to the 9th place and looks now that they glued us there.
After about 20 excellent reviews, we still on the 9th place, not bad but 3rd place was much better and we got much more enquiries trough TA!

No idea how they do this rating, maybe we need to enable online booking for a better result (grrrrr!)?
Sail with the wind from today and count your blessings!
http://www.Bed-and-Breakfast-Barcelona.com
St. Katharine B&B-Hotel Boat in Barcelona!
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salmoncottage
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Post by salmoncottage »

And did you also take the above advice by telling them shit happens?
'Oh, I do like to be beside the seaside'
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Cas & Irene
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Post by Cas & Irene »

No, not to be honest.

I think, this was not a case of "shit happens". At the end of the day this festival was published on the online calendar of Parc Forum. A little bit late but .... it was online. If we had checked the calendar more often, we had could warned the guests and give them a choice to cancel or change the dates of their booking. Then we were fully covered against any complains.

I would be agree, if it´s starts raining cauliflowers or something like that. :lol:
Sail with the wind from today and count your blessings!
http://www.Bed-and-Breakfast-Barcelona.com
St. Katharine B&B-Hotel Boat in Barcelona!
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salmoncottage
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Post by salmoncottage »

haaaaa haaaa you could tell them to put the cauliflowers in there ears perhaps lol :lol:
'Oh, I do like to be beside the seaside'
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