Manila Hotel
www.manila-hotel.com.ph
We fell in love with Manila Hotel because of its iconic lobby chandelier, historic feel, and nostalgic sunset view. I love how it’s one of the few places which have a trace of what Manila was like in the old days. Just thinking of the historical events that happened inside the wall of Manila Hotel is overwhelming. I love Manila (everything about it) which made me love Manila Hotel.
Manila Hotel is the first supplier we booked (March 2013) and the only supplier which gave us a little bit of stress. Below are the rants and raves for Manila Hotel:
Rants
(1) Total contract price were not properly disclosed. We were only informed that on top of the published rate, additional (roughly) 22% of the published rate will be charged to us for service fees and other charges. According to one of our four account officer, this is really their practice, surprising their clients with charges. We paid additional P60,000 for that.
(2) We got transferred from one account officer to another. For the whole wedding preparation, we had four account officers. Transition was really frustrating and one of the account officers is pushing something on us that we don’t like.
(3) On February 2014, less than four months before the wedding and after almost one year of booking period, they transferred us to another ballroom. This really ticked us off. From the serene Pandanggo ballroom they relocated our event to Centennial Hall B which is near the entrance and the bag scanner. The new location is really crowded and the schedule of events on our wedding day is really tight (only 2hrs of setup time provided the guests of the previous event left on time but they didn’t). According to them, they’re going to do a mandated renovation on the initial ballroom we booked. Good thing that our coordinator, Kredin and her team are really amazing that they were able to manage hectic time frames.
(4) The 2nd account officer doesn’t know how to deliver bad news to the clients. She kept on insisting that the ballroom in which we’re going to be relocated is better than the old one which is not the case. We’re really pissed at her. Good thing that their manager transferred us to another account officer.
Raves
(1) After bargaining so hard, they provided us with freebies such as (a) additional 1 night hotel room accommodation for the groom and (b) The Roma Salon ballroom which served as the waiting area for the guests since the schedule in the ballroom is tight. Did I say that the additional room they provided as compensation is also as big as the bridal suite and has a sunset view.
(2) The last two account officers are accommodating and hospitable (CJ and Karlie). CJ (too bad that she already resigned to work abroad) gave us the freebies to appease us when we got transferred to less attractive ballroom while Karlie is very professional.
Tags: Manila Hotel Reception, Manila Hotel Wedding, Manila Hotel Review
