Entitled hotel customer books room for the wrong day, expects front desk employee to book a new room despite the hotel being sold out: ‘She is not budging. She just stands there’

Author image for Lana DeGaetano
Lana DeGaetano • "Show me to me please."
May 20, 2025 10:00 AM EDT

Overnight shifts as a front desk agent might seem more calming than a regular-degular day shift, but that's not always the case. At night, you're probably one of the only staff members in the building, and it's up to you to deal with whatever stragglers might be coming in from a long journey,y aggravated, tired, and entitled in their ways. Of course, you can deny anyone service if they pose a threat to you as an employee, but sometimes, these customers who wander in at 1 AM are simply looking for an argument and to take advantage of a tired employee. The employee in this next story, however, refuses to succumb to an entitled customer's rather persistent entitlement. 

Picture this: It's 1 AM, you thought tonight was one of those nights you can catch up on some reading while listening to the pitter-patter of the early morning rain outside beat against the windows. Think again! A woman, who claims she meant to book a room for a day prior but could not do so, insists that she be allowed a room at this instant. Every room is sold out. What do you do? Scroll below to read the full story.

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  • There's a special place on Fail Blog for customers who expect royal treatment after running their mouths for minutes on end—those folks who think they're better than everyone else—and that place is right here…

  • "I am not kicking another guest out because you booked the wrong date." RECEPTION
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  • "I am not kicking another guest out because you booked the wrong date"

    Guest comes to the door at 1 am saying they have a reservation. She gives me her last name. I know the remaining arrivals
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  • because we are sold out, except for one GENR room because of a cancelation and inventory is closed. I don't recognize the name.
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  • Initially I thought maybe she is at the wrong hotel, there are 3 in a row on my street and we constantly get each other's
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  • guests. I typed in the name and it comes up with a reservation for the 18th. I haven't had to have this conversation in awhile.
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  • "Yes ma'am I do see your reservation but it is for the 18th, for check in at 3 pm." She looks at me blankly. I repeat the check in time and tell her that
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  • technically while the calendar date is the 18th, we are still on the 17th. She asks why that matters. We are sold out tonight (the RSV was for a QNQN).
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  • She then says the app has been having issues all day (not something we control or have any control over) and she booked for the 17th but it just finalized now.
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  • This is impossible as the Inventory has been closed since before I came in and we've been sold out, even negative in QNQNs for the 17th all week.
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  • I tell her we are sold out. I have no rooms (at least not that match her reservation and it was booked on the employee rate so I shouldn't be changing the room
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  • type and obviously the rate is not available for the 17th). I apologize and suggest other hotels. She is not budging. She just stands there.
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  • Finally, she turns to walk away but pauses, "I stay at your hotels all the time and I'm an "insert high tier" level here (which actually she was off by one
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  • level)." I don't know why she thought this would gain her any traction. I apologize again and tell her again that we're sold out, the best I can do is cancel without penalty.
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  • She has stopped again and I can think of no other way to get through to her. "Ma'am to accommodate you I would have
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  • to kick another guest that is already staying here out of their room, which I can't do." She finally accepts the cancelation without penalty and leaves.
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  • ARGWY
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  • I have to wonder how such a high level member doesn't understand how the hotel days work or that sold out is sold out. I can't walk
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  • her because it's not for the correct date, we didn't oversell, she came in essentially a day early expecting to be accommodated.
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  • Kybran777 I have had them straight up ask me, "Can't you kick someone out?" And actually be serious about it. The entitlement!
    via Kybran777
  • pakrat1967 "The app has been having issues all day". Translation - the app told her that the hotel was full for the day she really wanted. So she settled for the next day, thinking she could get. in anyway.
    via pakrat1967
  • RangeMoney2012 How do you get this employee rate, and not know hotels work?
    via RangeMoney2012

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customer service workplace-stories toxic-workplace karen-customer work customers askreddit tales from the front desk reddit story entitled customers workplace reddit thread karen entitled people toxic-work-environment
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