Happy holidays<\/p>\n
I and a group of colleagues decided to escape Jakarta and
\nspend the Easter weekend at Pondok Dewata Seaside Cottage (PDSC)
\nin Pelabuhan Ratu, where I had stayed on numerous occasions and
\nhad an enjoyable time.<\/p>\n
Several telephone calls and faxes later I had managed to
\nsecure five bungalows, three of which requiring an extra bed,
\nwith a special weekend rate and a 10 percent discount, bearing in
\nmind I was a regular and reliable customer.<\/p>\n
However, four days prior to departure the PDSC office
\ntelephoned to inform me that an extra amount would be required
\nper extra bed, plus tax, that the 10 percent discount was for one
\nnight only and that should we pay our bill by credit card we
\nwould be charged three percent, instead of two and half percent
\nextra. I stressed that I had already agreed to a rate, which had
\nbeen confirmed by fax. Upon reflection this may have been a sign
\nof things to come but I decided to continue with my \"break\"
\nnevertheless.<\/p>\n
Sure enough that was only the beginning. Upon arrival, there
\nwere no extra beds in the bungalows, as we had to first confirm
\nthat we would pay the extra costs. When booking I had also
\nrequested a cot, as one couple had a ten-month old baby, which I
\nhad been informed was not available, now it apparently was, but
\nat a cost, naturally.<\/p>\n
We then proceeded to order lunch in the restaurant. This not
\nonly took over an hour to serve, but even then, not all of us at
\nthe same time and some even received the wrong order. It was the
\nsame story later that evening when we came to order dinner,
\ndespite the fact that we had decided to make it a little easier
\non the kitchen staff by ordering only Indonesian dishes, even the
\nsate was raw.<\/p>\n
In fact two members of our group, who had waited over one and
\na half hours decided to cancel their order due to loss of
\nappetite. Quite a new advertising angle for PDSC, \"When all else
\nfails, why not try the Pondok Dewata Seaside Cottages diet,
\nguaranteed to work in losing those extra pounds!\"<\/p>\n
While killing time I happened to notice the owner and her
\ngroup, who entered the restaurant 45 minutes after us, had
\nordered, eaten and left within 30 minutes.<\/p>\n
Throughout the weekend we were not given clean towels and
\nthree of the five bungalows were not cleaned. Reception even
\ninquired as to whether we would be extending our stay although we
\nhad clearly stated in our fax how long we would require the
\nbungalows.<\/p>\n
On our last morning we decided to go for a dip in the PDSC
\npool, only to find the filter had not been switched on and as a
\nresult there were some very strange \"things\" floating in the
\nwater. There was no pool attendant and no towels available; and
\ntrying to obtain a drink was almost impossible.<\/p>\n
The final straw came when we checked out. For each night, 10
\npercent tax plus 10 percent services had been added; extra beds
\nUS$ 10 plus plus. Although we had been informed we would not be
\ncharged for the sate, it was on the bill.<\/p>\n
After numerous discussions with reception, including the
\nassistant manager, we did agree to pay the 10 percent tax but not
\nthe 10 percent service charge, for what I believe are obvious
\nreasons. In desperation we asked if the owner could be telephoned
\nin Jakarta, to no avail.<\/p>\n
Finally, PDSC agreed to drop the three percent credit card
\ncharges, although while we were settling the bill the assistant
\nmanager threatened to call security. Were we going to be forcibly
\nremoved for querying the invoice, or forced to pay at gunpoint?<\/p>\n
PIERRE D. HAGENBEEK<\/p>\n
Jakarta<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/happy-holidays-1447899208", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }