Fletcher Hotel-Restaurant De Gelderse Poort

The room key stopped working, and after 9:30pm we couldn’t get back into the building. The front desk person said we were “lucky we caught him before he left to go home,” then spent half an hour saying he couldn’t help and repeatedly mentioning that he was meant to have left, without even trying to call anyone about the key. By then we’d missed our plans and had to order dinner for delivery, against the hotel’s rules. A card says delivery isn’t allowed and to ask staff for other options. Only after that did he say they could put us in another room at their other property. We declined. Repacking and driving across town to their “apart-hotel” after losing half an hour and missing our plans didn’t make sense to us. The next morning the door card was apparently facing the wrong way. The housecleaner knocked, we said “sorry, no thank you” several times in three languages, including Dutch, and she confirmed twice that she understood. Then she angrily came in anyway while my wife and I were naked in bed, held the card up and yelled that it was our fault for putting it in backwards. That woman ought to be working in a mine. Booking dot com couldn’t help. The hotel refused compensation because they’d offered us another place to stay and because the door card was facing the wrong way. The hotel was unbelievably garbage-tier, with terrible service and an elevator that sounds and feels like it’s made of LEGO. There’s another Fletcher hotel in the area that’s much better if you like the brand. If nothing else is available, keep driving. You’d be better off sleeping in the middle of the road.

The room was comfortable and had underfloor heating. The hotel is on the outskirts of Nijmegen. I missed having a refrigerator and kettle, though the rate was very attractive: 61 euros a night for a double room.

On both of our nights, the front-of-house operation seemed to rest on just two staff members, with a cook and a female server. One person covered reception, took restaurant orders, tended the bar, served and cleared dishes, handled payment and cleaned tables, then served breakfast the next morning. On our second evening, we asked for a restaurant table and were told they couldn’t seat us because there was only one cook. This hotel has a serious structural problem, and I think it shouldn’t even be operating. They clearly can’t find workers. We’ve stayed at other Fletcher Hotels, and this Fletcher Gelderse Poort is by far the least up to standard. A kettle, cups, even paper ones, and tea bags are basic things a hotel should provide. The website apparently says they aren’t included, so maybe it’s a budget hotel. We’ve often had them in three-star hotels and weren’t expecting extra amenities, which makes this hard to understand. A bicycle tour company booked us here without telling us about it. Now whenever we want a drink, we have to order it from the restaurant. The hotel needs a complete revamp.

I’ve stayed at plenty of hotels while traveling around the country and don’t usually write reviews, but this was extremely frustrating. We had a reservation for weeks and called several hours ahead to confirm our arrival time. After telling us to call when we checked in, the hotel then said it couldn’t get a key to us and refused to send anyone, even hanging up on us. We ended up sleeping in the car and starting our trip that way. The next day, for the second night of our two-night booking, they said they’d sold our room and we had nowhere to stay again. We were there early and had to pay too much for another hotel. Then, when we came back, they tried to charge us for both days of our stay. I’m perplexed and really upset. Nothing like this has happened to me at another hotel, and I’d think twice before staying here again. I don’t recommend it at all.