Hotel Evernia — Hotel in West Palm Beach

[January 2024 UPDATE : EVERY STATEMENT IN OWNER'S REPLY TO THIS REVIEW IS 100% FALSE.] WARNING! FRAUDULENT OPERATING POLICIES! Booked this room through Priceline, thinking foolishly that it would increase the odds that the hotel was as advertised. Not handicapped friendly, unless you can manage three flights of stairs on your wheelchair. Not pet friendly (no, not even for SERVICE ANIMALS). NO STAFF ON PREMISES! only random ESL dudes IN NYC on a Ring doorbell app who demand extra random fees above the $50 higher room rate than is listed now, only ten days later. These charges all came out of my bank account BEFORE it was acknowledged that there was no key in the self service slot for the room I had paid (and then paid an EXTRA damage deposit) for. No apology, no refund, partial refund, just excuses about how they would get back to me the next day "or so". Three silent days later, my bank indicated that Hotel Evernia told MY BANK that they HAD issued full refund, so now the bank won't reverse the charges FOR THREE WEEKS until they determine that the hotel did in fact lie about issuing a refund. Priceline investigation results - SAME. Here I sit, weeks after having slept in my car after paying more than $200 for what would have been a 14 hour stay, and still no reimbursement from this DISHONEST group that uses every trick in the book to work the rules so they can keep my money as long as possible for having provided no service whatsoever. Note that after reading MANY very similar guests with almost the exact same experience, THE ONLY ACCEPTABLE RESPONSE FROM THE HOTEL IS AN IMMEDIATE FULL REFUND (which I will absolutely update if it happens - not holding my breath!) BEWARE!!!

Three months later this response was received, presumably translated into English from whatever their native language is because it doesn't make sense or respond to my comments.

"Response from the owner 6 hours ago

Hi Cristina, thank you for taking the time to leave a review! We're sorry that you are disappointed in your experience. However, during the booking process our services are clearly stated, even through third party websites. As for the charge, a $75 deposit is made prior to your stay in case of damage in the room. If damage does occur, it will be put toward the repairs. If no damage is caused, then you will receive the $75 back within 5-7 business days depending on your bank. We are sorry for any negative experiences. Please have a nice day, and safe travels."

TO CLARIFY. I AM NOT DISAPPOINTED, I HAVE A CLAIM FOR FRAUD, WHICH HOTEL EVERNIA USED PRICELINE TO COMMIT AGAINST ME AND MY BANK. THE BOOKING PROCESS THROUGH PRICELINE STATED NO SUCH 'EXTRA CHARGE/DEPOSIT' POLICY. THE CHARGE WAS TAKEN IN A NEWLY INITIATED TRANSACTION INSIDE THE HOTEL, SIX HOURS AFTER PRICELINE HAD TAKEN THE NIGHTLY CHARGE OUT OF MY BANK ACCOUNT WHEN I PLACED THE ORIGINAL RESERVATION. THERE WAS NO DAMAGE, AS ACKNOWLEDGED BY HOTEL MANAGER WHEN I CHECKED OUT AND NO ATTEMPT HAS BEEN MADE 90 DAYS LATER TO REFUND ANY PORTION OF THE DOUBLE CHARGE THIS CORPORATION PUT ON MY CREDIT CARD.

To date 7/18/23: NO refunds of ANY charges or deposits have even been attempted by Hotel Evernia. NO RETRACTION OF THE LIES THEY TOLD MY BANK. The $75 "deposit" was not charged until after I checked in and was never returned, even though I was in the room less than 9 hours, didn't touch the television, window air conditioner or even use so much as a towel or tissue. No justification for failing to return my money, no excuse for the substitution to a closet without toilet or shower facilities from the "suite" I had paid for (a room that it took the manager an hour to figure out had been double booked.) BAIT AND SWITCH. Not to mention this room had cockroaches half the size of my cell phone.

Extreme example of how dehumanizing interactions eliminates not only customer service but HONESTY and GOOD BUSINESS PRACTICES.

AVOID...

It’s cheap for a reason, which is okay, but they had horrible customer service.

I called prior to booking to ask about: shared bathrooms (whether it was referencing sharing with a roommate or sharing with other customers), the complaints about the AC units on their online reviews, the light exposure in the rooms, outside noises (there’s light construction near by), and if any of these are effected by which room I was staying in.

I spoke to someone who sounded like a younger man (I didn’t get his name), and he told me, in short, that my concerns were not warranted, and that it didn’t matter which room I booked.

As it turned out, it was not true.

They were willing to attempt to change my room to one with a private bathroom the next day, but the one night I stayed, the neon light completely lit up my room (as seen in my video at 2:30am), I had to share bathrooms with guests (despite expecting to have a private one), the incredibly loud AC unit ran inconsistently all night, and the construction nearby woke me up early in the morning (it was admittedly not horrifically loud though).

The hotel is fine for what it is, but I did not like being misled about what I was getting.

To make matters worse, the manager, Michael Omar Frazier, made accusatory remarks via email whenever I shared my grievances and asked (not demanded) if I could receive a partial refund for the remaining nights given I was misinformed about the hotel.

I was at a physicians conference and didn’t have the time to get into an email spat, so I attempted to call. Michael Omar Frazier was conveniently not around, despite me calling 3-4 times over the span of a few hours and him telling me that he would be in by 11am. I did happen to get the front desk to answer, and she said she would leave a message, but she first tried to tell me it was my fault for booking the wrong room, and that I just don’t understand how window units work. (And no, the manager never called back.)

Overall, just shameful place. It at least gave my colleagues a good laugh when I told them about my...

Arrived 9pm on a Saturday. Scheduled to stay until Monday. Went to my room, got ready for bed and was asleep by 11:30pm. Woke up at 4:30am to a cockroach crawling in my chest. I stripped the bed to see if there were more and I found bedbugs crawling along the perimeter seam of the mattress. I went downstairs to let management know but there was no one there. I called the number provided and no one answered. I called again and left a message a few minutes later asking for them to return my call. I put my belongings in a large plastic bag, tied it, and put it in the trunk of the car, parked in the sun, hope bf that would kill any bedbugs I left there with. Then I went to breakfast waiting for the call but I never received one. I returned to the hotel at 8:30am and still no one there. I called one last time and no one answered. I left a second message at this time. I had work meeting beginning at 10am so I returned the keys and a handwritten message explaining the circumstances. On my way to the meeting, I stopped at a store and purchased bedbug spray. I opened the plastic bag that was in the trunk and sprayed inside it until the can was empty. At the end of the day, I took all of my clothes and anything else that could be washed and took them to the laundromat. Washed everything in Hot water and prayed I wouldn’t take them home with me. I called Hotel.com (I booked the reservation thru that site) and requested a refund. I sent the video of the cockroach and bedbugs. They reportedly reached out to the hotel and they were informed that they have strict cancellation processes and wouldn’t be refunding any portion except for $50 (paid $365 for the 2 nights). It is suspect that Hotel Evernia spoke with Hotels.com because they couldn’t give me a name or copies of anything that was in writing. Possibly Hotel Evernia would have e refunded the money but then again, I left reviews, completed surveys, sent emails, etc and no one ever returned any correspondence. So maybe they did deny refunding the cost...