Authors: Blake & Hyrax
Welcome back to Touristican! Just when you thought hotel work was all about room service and fresh towels, think again! Get ready for some laugh-out-loud moments as myself and Hyrax spill the beans on the top 10 weirdest and craziest encounters we’ve had so far. You won’t want to miss these hilarious tales! Let the storytelling extravaganza begin!
Blake’s Stories:
Man Vs Bush – Who Will Win?
This honestly was a first for me, even as I tell this story today, I still can’t wrap my head around what happened. So a gentleman comes up to the desk and tells me there is a gentleman outside the building, by himself just screaming at a bush. So of course hearing this, I have to go and check it out! So I peek outside and sure enough there is a gentleman outside just having it out with the bush. Legit screaming and yelling at a bush! At this point, the man wasn’t causing any harm or doing anything dangerous so, I ended up just going back to the front desk.
Wallet? Check! Suitcase? Check! Gun? Uh-oh!
Okay buckle up now, because this one gets interesting. So I had an off duty law enforcement officer call up on the phone and state he left his off duty side arm. He flat out said he thought it wasn’t loaded. I couldn’t help but say to myself “YOU THINK IT’S NOT LOADED?!?!?!?” So now I had a potential situation where I had a possible loaded gun in a room. Luckily there was no one in the room and the firearm was not loaded. (Thank god!). So my manager and I went up to check and sure enough the gun was there in its holster sitting in the nightstand. I then proceed to call the guy back, he shows up, collects his firearm and then leaves.
Suspicious Bag or Just Simply Garbage?
To be honest… I don’t even know how to even explain this one since it’s just so hilarious. A lady dressed in her pajamas comes down to the desk and states there was a “suspicious looking tied up plastic bag” next to her room. As soon as I heard this, I already knew it was just a garbage bag outside the door. Late at night, people will tie up the trash bags and leave them outside so housekeeping can go pick them up in the morning while they are sleeping. So, I politely told her this but she insisted it was something dangerous. “Oh, well wait if it is something dangerous? For all you know it could be a bomb.” At this point I just sent security up to “go check” even though we knew it was garbage. Sure enough, security came down with the plastic bag and it was a garbage bag full of Popeyes and fast food packages. I couldn’t help but laugh.
Legally Breaking & Entering.
Ever had to break and enter a hotel room before? Well, I have! Now before you go calling me a criminal, please allow me to explain. This couple had two rooms that adjoined. They locked the hotel door in the other room since they had the adjoining doors open. So what’s the problem, you might ask? The adjoining doors for some reason didn’t stay open and closed causing them to be locked out of their other room. In one room was all the family watching television and in the other was a sleeping infant by themselves. The infant was alone in the room that was locked. The couple couldn’t get in from the adjoining door nor the normal room door from the hall. Since it was later at night, it was just me at the desk and one other employee in the building. I had to grab the tool bag and tools and race upstairs as panic was starting to set in with the mom of the kid. I calmed her down and told it would be okay and the door would open. I took the master key and was only to open the door a crack since the top latch was locked. In an opening less than a couple inches, I had to reach my hand in with a screwdriver, and unscrew the latch. So I got the screws all undone but the latch was still on the wall (there was one tiny middle screw I couldn’t get to) so I had to take the screw diver and use it as a hammer to pry and break it off the wall. Finally, I got the door open with no damage done to the lock, door or wall. And that’s the story of how I broke into a room and saved an infant.
Soap Police
I think this story might take the cake for the most ridiculous story ever! So, I was at the Ramada property we own to train with the GM for the day. So, the GM was showing me some stuff in her office when she got a call from the front desk. There was a guest there who claimed the houseman cursed him out when he asked for free laundry soap for the washer. The man wanted to call the police and file a report over soap! Did any of this really happen? No! Here’s what actually happened: the housemen, whose English is not the greatest, politely said to the man he could either buy soap from the machine or he could go to the grocery store across the street to buy soap. The housemen even suggested that he could try asking the front desk if there was any spare soap he could have. So yea, everything the guest said never happened and was all a big story. At the time I was an Intern so I found it very strange, odd and funny.
Hyrax’s Stories:
Parking Lot Mayhem
This event happened after I went home for the night to the Night Auditor. She was by herself when a woman staying in town came stumbling in our parking lot screaming at the top of her lungs. I understand that my town of Alpine Helen is themed to Germany and drinking is quite big … but there has to be a limit. Don’t go running around like this maniac and disturbing guests.
New Years Party Gone Wrong
When one thinks of New Years, they tend to think of parties, a fresh start and the famous ball drop across the world. Typically, around Holidays in major towns, cities or tourist areas usually see a peak in business during this time. During our New Years week, we had guests that decided to take partying to a whole new level. In the span of one week guests decided to smash a mirror, punch holes in the walls, and smash the sinks in the bathrooms. While it’s okay to have a good time with friends and celebrate the New Year, it is not okay to damage property. Treat your hotel room like your own home. It makes it easier on Housekeepers and hotel staff. I don’t understand why our guests decide to break a mirror, a sink, and punch a hole in our walls. Do you understand that it costs money for us to repair this? We will charge you for the damages you do, the amount depends but can be $250 or more.
The Great Water Balloon Fight
If you had a business during 2019/2020 it is no doubt you struggled and did all you could to stay afloat. As cities and towns reopened, they where in desperate need of tourism to help recover. This was especially for the hotel industry which was one of the hardest hit industries during the time of shut downs and restrictions. The city in which I work was so in need of tourism, that they begged the Shriners to come back and stay in town this year. What I did not realize at the time, was the events that where about to happen in the parking lot and around town would be some of the most unforgettable events of all time for me. Imagine if you will a crowed parking lot full of Shriners riding on golf carts having a water balloon and water gun battle. I think after the tough times we had this year, this was nice to see for a change honestly. I’d say the only issue our hotel had during the celebrations was the number of noise complaints from other guests that night. We discussed possibly booking out to only Shriners next year so others are not complaining.
Dog On The Loose!
So, I don’t understand why this happened or how. A guest checked in with their emotional support dog, which was a big dog to begin with. Our rules stated we had to accept any service or emotional support animal, no questions asked. However, the family leaves to eat dinner and doesn’t close their door all the way. Using its nose, the dog pulls the door open enough to run out and escape. The guest goes on to blame my staff and housekeeping for letting their emotional support dog escape. I’m sorry but front desk staff are not pet sitters, nor is it the task of our housekeepers. You aren’t supposed to leave your animal in a room if it’s a support dog anyway, that is considered a pet… So what does the man try to do? He tried calling the cops over it and blaming us for it.
Firepit Harassment
A group of sorority girls were staying in the cabins of our state park. We also had a house full of seniors from a private high school staying with us as well. At our property, we have a community fire pit where you can make your own fire and use it. The leader of the girls asks for the firepit to be reserved for them to use. Since it is a community space, others are allowed to use it like I mentioned. So the group of male seniors from the private school start to harass the college girls. Not a good situation to be in honestly. Both groups came to complain about the situation, so I had to ask my MOD (Manager on Duty) what I should do with the situation. All of this drama over a fire pit? Seriously??
That concludes our our top 10 weirdest & craziest stories of all time so far. We really enjoyed creating this post and with so many more crazy stories to tell, we plan on posting another top 10 in the future. If you enjoyed today’s post, be sure to subscribe to the blog to never miss a single post and follow us on social media!
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