What to do about the vlogger asking for a free hotel stay

The Man Who Pays His Way: Elle Darby didn't get the response she expected when she asked hotelier Paul Stenson for a free four-night stay

Simon Calder
Travel Correspondent
Friday 19 January 2018 15:05 GMT
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Room for confusion? 'Please be advised that Charleville Lodge is not Buckingham Palace'
Room for confusion? 'Please be advised that Charleville Lodge is not Buckingham Palace'

Travel is, or should be, the industry of human happiness: bringing people together and delivering great experiences. If the heavy lifting of providing transport and accommodation can be leavened with humour, so much the better.

“Our service is by no means excellent, which is reflected in the amount of money you’re paying us,” writes a Dublin hotelier on his property’s website. Paul Stenson continues: “One TripAdvisor reviewer once called us the: ‘Worst Hotel Experience’ of their lives.

“While it is entirely possible that you will think the same, some of the people who actually enjoyed their stay mentioned the following as reasons why: free WiFi, car park on site…

“Please be advised that Charleville Lodge is not Buckingham Palace.” The address helps avoid any confusion: 268 North Circular Road. But Mr Stenson says: “While the area sometimes resembles a scene from the night of the living dead, you’ve nothing really to worry about.” And he makes it clear he has little time for online intermediaries, calling them “third party thieving bastard websites”.

The pitch from the Charleville Lodge evidently worked for one prospective guest, who wrote: “My partner and I are planning to come to Dublin for an early Valentine’s Day weekend from Feb 8th to 12th to explore the area.

“As I was searching for places to stay, I came across your stunning hotel.”

The request was from Elle Darby, a social media influencer from Bath, who said she “would love to feature you in my YouTube videos/dedicated Instagram stories/posts to bring traffic to your hotel and recommend others to book up”.

All good so far. But the next five words triggered a social-media spiral of fury: “ … in return for free accommodation.”

Mr Stenson declined Ms Darby’s request for four free hotel nights: “The answer is no.” But that was just the last line in a Facebook post that included the original request and presented an alternative perspective on the proposition.

“If I let you stay here in return for a feature in your video, who is going to pay the staff who look after you? Who is going to pay the housekeepers who clean your room? The waiters who serve you breakfast? The receptionist who checks you in? Who is going to pay for the light and heat you use during your stay? The laundering of your bed sheets? The water rates? Maybe I should tell my staff they will be featured in your video in lieu of receiving payment for work carried out while you’re in residence?

“In future, I’d advise you to offer to pay your way like everyone else, and if the hotel in question believes your coverage will help them, maybe they’ll give you a complimentary upgrade to a suite.”

Ms Darby responded in a 17-minute film, in which she said “I was embarrassed, I felt humiliated” and called Mr Stenson a “sad, pathetic little man”.

Since their row became more public, he has been called far worse, while she has received such vilification that, she says, “I cried my eyes out in my car”.

Hardly the stuff of human happiness.

I have sympathy for each side trying to make a living in their very different ways. So let me help. I will pay Ms Darby’s way for a stay, with her partner, at the Charleville Lodge. But for only one night, not for four.

For the remainder of her long weekend, Ms Darby can source one or more alternatives by her usual means. Then she can usefully compare Charleville Lodge against one or two of its excellent competitors in the Irish capital, on everything from the bed linen to the proprietor’s sense of humour. I recognise my giving advice on social media influencing is about as helpful as my tips on How To Get Freebies, but “Rating the Rivals” might just attract as many clicks as Ms Darby’s recent vlog, "£25 Primark Challenge”.

At least I know now where I will stay next time I am in Dublin. “Dear Mr Stenson…”

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