We arrived at the Rixos Hotel in Dubrovnik, Croatia on Tuesday, October 8, 2019. The bellmen were very welcoming and helpful. Our room was not ready when we arrived, so they explained they would hold our bags until our room is ready and then bring them to our room. We made our way to the Lobby Bar for food and drinks. The wait staff that day were very nice and accommodating. Once the 2:00pm time had come, when our room was to be ready, we returned to the front desk for a proper check-in. We were given our room key to Room 1914 and went up to our room with the bellman and luggage. Upon arriving into the room, the view was outstanding. But no snacks were provided in the room, as mentioned on numerous advertisements. We ate that night at the hotel buffet restaurant, which was the only restaurant opened due to a conference. We had seen multiple times the advertisement for Asian Night, featuring sushi in the photo. Upon arrival to the restaurant, we noticed there was no Asian food, only Dalmatian food. We had prepared ourselves and our stomachs for sushi and was a bit disappointed not to have that offered. We only ordered water with dinner, as we were very tired from our trip, deciding to pass on the wine. As we finished a plate of food from the buffet and decided to return for additional food, the wait staff seemed to be focused on tables that had ordered additional items. Dirty, empty plates sat on our table through numerous courses. The dirty plates began to stack up in the center or our table, which we ate around, until finally they were taken away. This was a minor nuisance, as I know the importance of taking care of tables, as I spent 5 years in the service industry waiting tables in a large tourist city. No turn-down service was provided, as mentioned in advertisements. Also, we planned to have an early day the following day, so we completed the Breakfast Room Service card by 7:30pm and hung it on the outside of our door, so that we could have breakfast in our room before leaving early. The card was still on the door when we woke up and nothing was delivered. We told the front desk and verified we followed procedures correctly and the front desk clerk said she would tell them. The following day, we had a full day, including two tours in the Old Town of Dubrovnik. We left the room early and returned after dark. When we returned to the room, a chocolate bar that I had bought previous and ate a couple bites of, was now more than half gone. I found this really strange and since the only other person with access to my room was the housekeeping staff, I assumed they helped themselves, so I discarded the candy in the trash. Again, a minor nuisance, but it violates the trust between a patron and staff. Turn down service was provided with two chocolates given, which was nice. The following day was Thursday, October 10, 2019, we scheduled an appointment with the Spa at the hotel for a couple scrub, massage & facial. The staff was exceptional, and we truly enjoyed the experience. We left the spa and headed to the Lobby bar for a snack. I ordered the cheeseburgers and my husband wanted to order the Seabass, but as a sandwich and fries. The main waiter on duty was busy, so I went inside to ask Dario (I think that was his name) to place our order. I explained the exception for the seabass to him and he said, “No”. I then asked if they could just include a bun on the side and instead of the Swiss chard, to have French fries. He then rolled his eyes, picked up the nearby phone and spoke to someone saying, “One cheeseburger, one seabass” and hung up the phone, not explaining anything I just nicely asked him. I then tried to confirm, will it come out with French fries and a bun?, to which he replied yes. It did not. The main waiter brought our items and I informed him the order was wrong. This was a bigger nuisance to me, as Dario seemed to think he didn’t have to listen to anything I asked for. He seemed smug and arrogant. No turn-down service was provided this evening. The following day was Friday, October 11, 2019, we had yet another long day and was out of the hotel all day. When we returned, our bed was made and multiple cigarettes were missing from my husband’s pack, which was stored in the bedside table drawer. This means, housekeeping had to go through the drawers, as if looking for something to take. This really crossed a line with me. To have someone in your room, with your property and not be present, and to find things missing, eliminates all trust in the staff. I was very grateful that we decided to lock our luggage each time we left the room. Who knows what would be missing. The next day was Saturday, October 12, 2019. We’d seen advertisements throughout the hotel for a raw bar out by the pool, so we ventured out there for lunch to find there was no raw bar and only pizza is offered. No table side service was provided, just walk up bar service. The pizza was good. This night, there was an event planned on the pool deck. I’m sure you are aware of this, as MANY guests were VERY mad. There was a DJ and it was like a night club outside the rooms until past 12:00am. Turn-down service was provided, but when my husband asked for more chocolates, an expired chocolate bar was given to him. EXPIRED! While the music was extremely loud, it was a noise that wasn’t so bothersome, as much as the constant scraping of dining room chairs on the wood floor of the only dining room open during our entire stay. From 6:00am to 12:30pm and from 7:00pm-12:30am, that is ALL we heard. EVERY…SINGLE…DAY…AND…NIGHT!!! Every 10 seconds, scratching of chairs being scooted around the wood floor. One night, a staff person was moving chairs around at 2:00am! My husband went upstairs to tell him to stop because he had woken us up after we’d only been asleep since 1:00am from the dinner service. Each night, we would get between 3 to 5 hours of sleep. This is the BIGGEST problem for us!! THIS was UNACCEPTABLE. We had spent over $1,400, not including any food or services, just in room costs. And it was the worst experience I’ve ever had. We’ve travelled to over 15 countries and I’ve never had things taken from my room, or had such a horrible sleeping situation. For what you are charging for rooms in your hotel, I expected way higher standards for service. Most of the wait staff need serious training in the art of customer service, as it completely lacks. The 9th floor should NOT be used as guest rooms at all. Carpet should be installed in the dining room to stop the noise. I suggest you have a Manager stay the night in Room 1914 and see what it’s like. It’s impossible to sleep during food service hours! And sometimes just random times in the middle of the night when staff decides to rearrange the furniture. I did share my concerns at check-out and the staff said he would make a note, but since he was the one who gave us expired food, I assume nothing was written down, anywhere. The biggest disappointment to me was that we arrived in Croatia 2.5 weeks prior and had extremely enjoyed the country. The people were welcoming and nice and the views were beautiful. It’s a shame our time in Croatia ended in Dubrovnik at your hotel and it left such a bad taste in my mouth that it began to spoil all of Croatia for us. The rest of the country was wonderful, but I have no desire to return to Dubrovnik and will share my experience with my friends and family that travel abroad. And definitely share my experience with Rixos Hotel with Hotels.com and suggest to find an alternate place to stay while in Dubrovnik.
