On our honeymoon from Ireland, we decided to splash out on a 3 night stay at Casa Tropicana. We were expecting a luxurious stay for the price we paid. But we had a number of issues which dissappointed us:
1. Our "ocean view". While the view from our room was fab, the fact that anyone staying on our floor, the floor above us or any of the staff could pass our window (as in directly in front of our window) or sit on the shared decking (again directly in front of our window), meant that we did not at any stage open the blinds (as shown in the website photos). So our "ocean view" that we were so looking forward to was redundant.
2. The train - we were told on arrival that there is a train and had to sign a sheet saying we had read that there was a train passing - highly unusual!! Anyway the train is loud - super loud, meaning the windows had to be closed at night. Even with the windows closed, we were woken every time the train passed and did not have a good nights sleep for the 3 nights. On top of that, the fact that there was no air conditioning, meant that leaving the windows closed (to try to block a little of the noise) made the room even warmer, again making it difficult and uncomfortable to sleep.
3. Our booking.com invoice had said there was a private balcony. I understand, now looking at the casa tropicana website that it is stated that it is stated that there is a "common ocean view deck", however our booking invoice had said we had a private deck - this may have been a booking.com problem, but we were very disappointed that we had lost both our ocean view and private deck, which was where we had been really looking forward to on the rest of our trip. I understand that if we had read the detail on the website we would have noticed this, but the photos do suggest that we would have a private balcony.
4. In each of the other hotels we stayed in in California, we were congratulated on our honeymoon and usually upgraded or given a fruit platter or some champagne, which was lovely. While we did not expect this, I had put on the booking form that it was our honeymoon and any special arrangements would be appreciated. It was never mentioned to us that it was our honeymoon by anyone in Casa Tropicana.
5. We were charged the balance of our charge when we arrived at Casa Tropicana. I had an incling that it did not add up correctly and when I checked our invoice (which I luckily had on my phone), I calculated that they had overcharged us by nearly $40
On the other hand, the staff were lovely, the room was comfortable and it was nice to have a supply of water, juice and snacks. If we had paid $200 a night, it would have been lovely, but for any more than that I would expect more.
This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC.
October 8, 2012
Congratulations on your wedding and honeymoon.
I am glad you decided to come to San Clemente to celebrate it. But I’m very sorry you felt we disappointed you. After reading your review, I questioned my staff about your stay. From my general manager to our housekeeper, they said you both seemed to love it here. They said your comments were all positive and they had no clue you were unhappy. At checkout time my manager said you very much enjoyed your stay. You have given me quite a list of grievances so I’ll try to address each one for you. At least I can try to give you an explanation.
1. I just had the same comment regarding our ocean view decks in the review before yours. I explained that our ocean view decks are unbeatable. They are common decks for rooms on the second & third floor. Again this is very much a part of the character of our inn. Our guests love being able to meet and make new friends on their decks. Many times over the last 22 years neighbors have met each other for the first time right here on these decks. For more privacy, I’d recommend the third floor with only 2 rooms on it. Or the Casa Del Rey Penthouse with its completely private deck.
2. Trains. First, that’s not fair! Our registration form does state trains run along the tracks and are required by law to sound their horns at the crossings. This is California, land of the lawyers. It also discloses, you agree to pay for your room, smoking in the rooms is $125, no pets, missing key and parking remote charges, check-out times, and so on. It’s not unusual, its litigation land. It is true there is a train track between the beach and us. This is no secret. The train tracks are highly visible when you check in. We have it on our website and many guests have commented on it right here on trip advisor. The large majority are not negative about it, and say it adds to their southern California experience. They do run mostly during the commuter hours of the day. And we do get a freight or two sometimes at night. Sue and I live on the property and we honestly don’t hear them at night. We’ve become used to them. I also wished you would have let us know about you desire for air conditioning. We have several rooms with AC. Generally here at the beach it’s cool at nights, so our ocean front rooms don’t generally need AC.
3. Booking .com does list our common decks, and our private Casa Del Rey Penthouse private deck. As you noted our website accurately describes our decks as common, and private. With all of these booking engines out there we have experienced several miss representations. We have not been successful in correcting some of them. We have decided to no longer use booking.com. I apologize if our website photos were miss interpreted by you. But as you again pointed out, if you read the website you would have noticed that.
4. Your room was decorated with rose pedals on the bed, and in the bathroom. There was a full bottle of champagne and fully stocked mini fridge free of charge filled each and every day of your stay at no charge. From anyone visiting us from Ireland, or anywhere in the world this should seem very special. I know this because we do this for every guest who arrives to stay with us. I would have hoped that would be considered special for your honeymoon. We however had no knowledge this was your honeymoon. I checked your reservation and there were no notes regarding this special occasion. Booking.com’s notes didn’t translate to our reservation system. I just wished you would have appreciated the free bottle of Champaign and rose pedals you seem to have overlooked. Although you say it’s not expected, your suggestion we overlooked it seems to imply it was required.
5. This brings us to our final point regarding booking.com and booking center tribulations. The total they sold you the room for was discounted by them to you. We did make the mistake of charging you our regular rate. My manager corrected this upon your check out and refunded the difference to you right there before you left the property.
Finally, you are one tough reviewer, but thank you for your comments. We have made some changes with your valued input. We will continue to try to relay correctly and accurately what we do have to offer our guests through our website, and on the phone. Thank you for taking quite a bit of time to let us know your thoughts.
Rick Anderson
Owner
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This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of TripAdvisor LLC.
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