A welcome amenity is typically offered to guests of a hotel or resort property for that specific purpose: to welcome them — especially when they have earned a certain elite status level in a frequent guest loyalty program. The welcome amenity can be presented in many ways and forms — and one common type of welcome amenity is a plate of fresh fruit…
When a Welcome Amenity Goes Bad
…but imagine my initially pleasant surprise of being offered a welcome amenity of a fresh plate of a peach, apple and banana on a table when I arrived at my room at a hotel property recently turn into bewilderment and astonishment upon closer inspection of the fruit.
The peach had at least three spots on it which resembled craters on the moon — and resembling the configuration of holes in a bowling ball — as well as mushy spots on it. The apple had several punctures in it.
The banana looked questionable on its exterior; but I figured it was the only one of the fruits which could be potentially salvageable…
…but upon peeling it, I realized that I was wrong. Much of it was rotting as well, with brown and mushy spots all around it.
Needless to say, I did not eat the fruit — but I did drink the large bottle of water which was presented with the plate; and for a guest who was rather thirsty upon arrival, I must say that that was quite appreciated.
Summary
If I was a member of the team of employees at a hotel or resort property, I could not even imagine having the conscience to place in a guest room a plate of fruit which was well beyond its prime, to be euphemistic — but I suppose that is considered a “first world” issue. I appreciated the gesture — but does that gesture become negated when the offering itself is unpleasant?
I did mention this welcome amenity failure to the employee behind the counter when checking out of the hotel property — I even showed her the photograph which you see above — but all she gave was a brief look of embarrassment. I was not seeking compensation of any kind — a welcome amenity is generally a gesture and usually not a requirement — but if it is going to be offered to a customer, at least use decent fruit or other products for it to properly serve its intended purpose.
All photographs ©2018 by Brian Cohen.
