Wedding in Ennistymon

oppiuy

Hi,

Last year we book the falls hotel and Spa in Ennistymon as we fell in love with the setting and the view of the cascades as it was the hotels unique selling point. We have visited a couple of times since and we were shocked to see that the hotel had embarked on serious water works on the falls but management assured us this would be finished and restore to its former glory by the end of August.

We visited at the weekend to and were shocked to see what could only be described as a building site. I was fuming and my over half was in tears. Really do not know what to do now. We have sent a email of complaint in the strongest possible terms and im going to call and few hotels near by to see if they have availability but at such a late stage i think this may be impossible.

Any suggestions on what steps i should take to ensure the hotel have the falls restored to them former glory for the weekend of the wedding. What should i be asking or demanding from the hotel and should i with hold a portion of the payment if in dispute?

So angry, disappointed that we allowed this to happen and so embarrassed that we have told are guests about the wonderful setting and to now think the topic of conversation will centre around this joke of a situation

oppiuy

Any Advice, Greatly appreciated

MarkR

It does look fairly rough right now. When is the wedding? Do as your doing, contract the hotel by phone today, level head and see if you can get some facts about completion dates, and if groundworks are going to be done to sort the landscape.

baby and crumble

When is your wedding?

I don't really see what you can do if I'm honest. There's never any guarantees when you book anything- and the only way you could realistically have a chance would be if something was written in your contract about the falls. Pulling out of your contract with the hotel would realistically mean having to pay them a portion of what they are owed/ losing your deposit.

Hotels have to do maintenance and building works.

stampydmonkey

Is it the hotels works or drainage / wastewater works by the opw/IW? Looks to me like opw/Irish water work in which case I doubt the hotel could do anything about it.

oppiuy

Wedding is on the 30th and the work is actually by the hotel building a hydro electric turbine. We were never informed at all until we called up late spring. We were shocked then but assured that it would be finished by end of August at the latest and that the grounds would be near perfect as they could be. Its a disaster now, there no way it will look anyway decent and its going to be really embarrassing when the guest arrive. Really all over the place yesterday and today. Hard to think what the Mrs to be is going through.

Really appreciate the responses. Thanks

oppiuy

Just an update, the hotel haven't even responded to the email despite us highlighting the urgency. I have called reception in cae the managers on off and the have advised they in in or busy when ever i call. despite asking them to pass on a message to contact us back either by email or phone, hours later we are still waiting.

I've started to email and few places regarding availability so fingers crossed. Don't mind losing the deposit as the cost of an unhappy day and no fond memories is far worse

MarkR

If it's any conciliation, the scenery outside won't have a lot to do with your wedding. Sure, you paid for that, and I'd be pissed as well, but at the end of the day, it's you, your spouse, and whatever friends and family you have with you will make the day.

Photos would be the main issue, but you can always go somewhere else for that.

I've been to a wedding there actually, and bar a few minutes before I went in, I didn't see the falls again.

Atomic Pineapple

Is the hotel local to you? If so then call in and explain your concerns, if the works are not going to be finished before your wedding date as promised I would be demanding a large discount and/or alternative arrangements be made and covered by the hotel. Since the hotel won't be as you expected you should be getting your deposit back if you decide to move your wedding to somewhere else yourself.

As MarkR states though it is probably not going to be as big a deal on the day as you are imagining, if the rest of the hotel suits your needs and you got a discount for the works not being finished I think that would be a good outcome.

oppiuy

Good Morning. One of the general managers made contact with me yesterday and apologised and tried to dress it up. I explained that these works were no advised when we met with them last year and that they most have know as something of this scale requires planning permission, contract orders etc and that had we been advised that works would take place we would not have taken a chance with it and booked another venue. I have asked for written guarantees that the work will be completed and some sort of normality restored to the area in time for our wedding. I have advised that as things stand we cannot proceed.

I also informed them that we are meeting 2 other hotels today to discuss options and the viability of switching venues at such a late stage and if they could accommodate the large number of Guests. I would imagine hotel managers are familiar with each other and gave permission for them to verify these claims if they wished. I again, highlighted that the most important thing to us is the setting and that we need to have this restored. We have mentioned financial compensation at all as, at this stage, its of no meaning to us.

I do believe that they were chancing there arm and that they may have already taken a financial hit from other couples who have been as unhappy as us, as they have not received any feedback on there Facebook page etc for the last couple of weeks and my other half knows a few people that have been married there recently and haven't mentioned the hotel at all.

Its such a shame as its a lovely hotel, with fantastic and the guys have been a pleasure to deal and i hate any confrontation or to seem to be demanding, but i just think its very under handed as they knew the work would have to take place at the times we booked and didn't advise anyone because they knew they would lose a lot of business. Hopefully they can move the rubble, machinery etc and take away the sand bags to allow the falls to flow freely. I know it wont look like we had imagined but as long as it doesn't look like a building site and the view and access is somewhat restored. If they can provide some form of guarantees then, hopefully we have an alternative.

Ill post updates in case anyone is interested or any other couples are getting married there soon, are as worried and panicked as we are and come across this thread

Dublin0813

I stayed in the Falls Hotel Hotel with my family at the end of August (last month) and I noticed the major works on the Casecade alright.

It might not be much much comfort but I reckon you'll you may able to take photos with the Cascade in the background and cutting out the works. I tried it myself with a few pictures and it worked. Something to consider that is all.

Mollyb60

I'm fairly sure that there was something in the contract with the hotel we held our wedding at that stated that they were free to make any changes necessary to the hotel without any penalty. So if you've signed a contract with them it might be worthwhile checking the wording to see if it mentioned anything about that. It could hinder you if you're trying to pull out now.

Whilst it seems like a massive thing to you both right now, I honestly don't think its the huge thing you're making it in your head. If the weather is ****e on the day itself you're not gonna be outside much anyway and I really wouldn't get yourself in a tizzy about what your guests will think of the hotel. You don't need to be embarrassed about something which you had no control over.

oppiuy

Hi, Nothing in the term and conditions or contract about hotel works in general which is strange. If it was down to the weather there would be no issue at all, in fact we discussed it before hand and said that if its great weather the falls wouldn't be running but that if it rained hard it would be beautiful and laughed at the trade off being kind of a win win situation with the manager. What bugs me is that they knew the work would be taking place and did not inform us at all. Then when we noticed the work starting in the spring and continually question them, they said not to worry and it would be finished and restored by the end of August and when august past by they emailed to say work is going great and nearly complete etc. The place is now in a worst state than at any other time we viewed it and only on the off chance that we passed by and called in at the weekend we would have turned up to that and been devastated.

I totally understand people saying its not that big a deal, and if i was getting married and reading it id prob say the same. We have talked about this day with friends and family for time and sang the praises of the ground and view. It was there unique selling point and is pretty much the only focal point on the ground, and now we are getting married at a building site. Hopefully management can sort this as much as possible for us and others with weddings there soon

MarkR

I suppose it is called "The Falls" hotel for a reason, certainly one of it's selling points! Let us know how you get on. :-)

dee_mc

In your update you've only mentioned what you said to the manager. Any update on what the manager said? Did he/she give any indication of whether they hope to have the work finished by the time your wedding takes place?
The Falls is a great hotel for weddings, I'd be hesitant to pull out 10 days before your wedding just because the waterfall mightn't look good. The Falls has a lot more going for it weddingwise than the actual waterfall!

baby and crumble

oppiuy wrote: »

What bugs me is that they knew the work would be taking place and did not inform us at all.

TBH I still don't see why they should have to inform you of works that by all accounts were scheduled to be well finished by your wedding date. Ok now they seem to be a little bit "head in the sand" about it, but in reality it's not the end of the world.

oppiuy

If booking something as important as a wedding or something as small as a weekend break, i'm pretty certain its would be really important that a hotel informs you that the advertised and unique selling point wont be there for your stay/event. Even if they have over run it should have been advised when we were making our decision.

oppiuy

The manager we have been dealing with is off til Wednesday. The other operational manager called and tried to window dress the situation and blame a part missing for the delay. He only guarantee first class service while we were there, which is nothing short of what we expected anyway. He didn't give any guarantees or assurances until i informed him we were speaking with a new hotel. He stopped short of guarantees until the manager we were dealing with returns tomorrow.

We have made great strides with a new hotel and just trying to work out the logistics of it all now to see if its viable as we have gusts that may have booked and paid for BNBs in the area etc.

The waterfalls and that general area was the main reason we booked as for our budget it was a spectacular setting. We have now lost that and its just another hotel but on a shabby building site

oppiuy

Good Morning, We went to meet with the hotel yesterday evening. We were greeted by the operational manager and not the manager/owner who we had been dealing with and who sold the venue to us. The ops manager, tried to reassure us on the quality of food and service that would be on offer but we did advise that we would expect nothing less from any establishment regardless of the situation we now find ourselves in. I asked why we were not informed of the works at point of sale as they obvious knew as planning permission would need to be sought for the pump house and works on the river. He could answer but sincerely apologised for this and acknowledged that it was a serious error and that we should have been informed.

Only when i advised that we were in talks with another hotel, the possibility of cancelling the reception all together and that it is highly unlikely that we could proceed,did he try to offer some sort of discount and add on's but we quickly advised him that we were not looking for any discounts or seeking anything other than restoration on the venue we were sold and were happy to pay as agreed if this was at all possible. He couldn't offer any guarantees and as can be seen from the pictures, it would be impossible. I would imagine that the work will not be completed until next year at some point.

We have asked for the manager/owner we were originally dealing with the make contact and meet us as we have serious questions for him. Its really disappointing and i think realistically is to ask the falls how the feel they can make this situation right now and give them an opportunity to go some way to redeeming themselves. Logistically it would be a nightmare to have to move things at such a late stage.

baby and crumble

I still don't see what you think you're going to get.

oppiuy wrote: »

i think realistically is to ask the falls how the feel they can make this situation right now and give them an opportunity to go some way to redeeming themselves.

They already have tried to "redeem" themselves as much as possible...

oppiuy wrote: »

...sincerely apologised for this and acknowledged that it was a serious error and that we should have been informed.

oppiuy wrote: »

he [did] try to offer some sort of discount and add on's but we quickly advised him that we were not looking for any discounts or seeking anything other than restoration on the venue we were sold and were happy to pay as agreed if this was at all possible.

The fact of the matter is they can't wave a magic wand and make the works go away. They possibly should have informed you in hindsight but they've apologise and offered a lower price and extras. What else do you thin you're actually going to get?

oppiuy

Fair enough, i suppose its hard to put down how we are feeling right now.. And that we are not looking for anything magical, just the venue and seetting we were sold. When he started down the path of free stuff, we didnt wnt to entertain this during our meeting as it wasnt and still isnt our end goal and is not something that will magically make everything ok. Maybe sharing this on boards isn't the right place for this.

Cheers

baby and crumble wrote: »

I still don't see what you think you're going to get.



They already have tried to "redeem" themselves as much as possible...





The fact of the matter is they can't wave a magic wand and make the works go away. They possibly should have informed you in hindsight but they've apologise and offered a lower price and extras. What else do you thin you're actually going to get?

Faith

When is your wedding, oppiuy?

oppiuy

Its the end of Sept, Friday week

Cathmandooo

I know the Falls Hotel and I'd imagine 100% of bride and grooms get their photos taken at the Falls, it's the major selling point of having your wedding there so I can totally understand your disappointment.

You say your wedding is the 30th, do you mean it's in 9 days time?

You need to decide with your bride / groom what you want now. The falls won't be reinstated in time, you'll just have to accept that at this stage, there's no point asking for promises from the hotel, they can't deliver them, even if the works are finished in time the landscaping won't be. It sucks, they were wrong not to inform you, but it's done now.

Decide whether to bite the bullet and change your venue, there will be huge costs to you and your guests if you do change. No doubt your guests will have their accommodation booked and could have paid up front.

Personally, I'd stick with the Falls, it's far less hassle and stress. Accept any discounts and ask them to arrange somewhere utterly spectacular for your photos. They seriously need to pull out all the stops. The venue itself is very lovely and you'll have an amazing day no doubt about it!

Edit: oops, cross posted, your wedding is Friday week, stick with the Falls, it would be huge stress to change it now, it won't be worth it, you should be enjoying the build up.

exaisle

I attended a wedding there a few weeks ago. The photographer framed all of the wedding photos on the lawn overlooking the falls using the guests to effectively hide any trace of the ongoing work. All that's required is a little imagination on that score.
In fairness, the room in which the reception took place is not overlooking the falls.
Also, I'd have to say that the meal we received was excellent....and that the guests were looked after exceptionally well.

I'd be inclined to seek a discount off the price rather than cancel at this late stage....

Stealthfins

Have you thought of trying Spanish Point ?
There's two nice hotels there .

oppiuy

Cheers,

Spanish point and most other hotels in the area are booked out. As a poster said above i don't think we would be able to pull it off at this stage and uprooting guests could cause headaches that nobody attending deserves.

I think we will let the dust settle for today and maybe tomorrow and then see how we can move forward. I much rather we can add somethings to the day and night then seek a discount but we will have to see what or if the hotel propose to make this someway right

MarkR

Best of luck, I'm sure ye will laugh, or at least groan about it in years to come. Get your discount or extras, and have fun on the day.😀

Idea for photo. Hard hat and boots for bride. 😂 Will look great!

Can your photographer get out there in advance, scope out some shots? Perhaps they'd have an alternate place for photos.

I think you're right to stay where you are. Changing venue at this late stage could kill you!

makeandcreate

According to other threads on here all people remember is the food and maybe the entertainment - huge threads about them!
At the end of the day, people are coming to share the day with you both and if they are disappointed by something out of your control, tis pity on them. Understand your frustration but negotiate a discount or extras and just enjoy yourselves - it is about you not your guests.

MarkR

Miaireland

At this stage you will probably have to accept the discount as add on may be hard to arrange givens the limited amount of time left.

I must say the one thing that your thread has thought me is to check the planning application department to see if the hotel has applied for Planning before booking any big event.

Hope you both have a wonderful wedding day despite the works.

pooch90

Way too late to move venue now.
But I would make sure your photographer knows in advance that some creativity may be in order.

Things don't go according to plan.

We had planned a beautiful outdoor ceremony in the grounds of our hotel (basically forest like) spent months making bunting and other things to make it beautiful, all the music to sit well with forest theme etc. It p***ed rain, got married in the function room! It didn't matter, I married the love of my life in front of my friends and family. Ended up getting an amazing and unexpected picture in the rain, people still comment on it. It will be something you will realise didn't matter all that much in the grand scheme of things.

pwurple

Oh OP, i know ennistymon is gorgeous with the falls.

The hotel is being punished for something way out of their control. They didn't book those works, they were told it would be over already. Think of all those staff and the pressure it is putting that business under.

I say take your discount, and work it into the speeches in a funny way.

Not everything goes to plan in a wedding, mine had a few mishaps on the day, and yes, we were pretty cross, but it didn't really matter in the end.

oppiuy

pwurple wrote: »

Oh OP, i know ennistymon is gorgeous with the falls.

The hotel is being punished for something way out of their control. They didn't book those works, they were told it would be over already. Think of all those staff and the pressure it is putting that business under.

I say take your discount, and work it into the speeches in a funny way.

Not everything goes to plan in a wedding, mine had a few mishaps on the day, and yes, we were pretty cross, but it didn't really matter in the end.

Thanks for th Reply, The work is actually by the falls to provide Hydro electric for the hotel. By all accounts its a huge investment on their part and they have know about it for some time. I understand these things can over run but they should have told us.

We are going ahead in the falls. The manager/owner we were dealing with has not returned emails and it seems he has washed his hands of it. Im sure he doesn't want to have to face an answer some of the difficult questions that have come his way. We are dealing with the Operations manager now and he seems very nice.

Thanks for all the comments and opinions.

LynnGrace

OP, I don't blame you for being upset. The hotel definitely should have let you know, rather than having you find out at this late stage. I agree with pp who mentioned letting the photographer know.

As regards other guests I would be taking the line of 'yes, we were annoyed, but hey, it's not going to take anything from our day'. People will take their cue from your reaction.

Have a think about what the hotel is offering in terms of discounts, and accept them. Hopefully they will pull out all the stops on the day to ensure that everything runs smoothly.

Above all, have an absolutely fantastic day, and every good wish to both of you for a very happy future together.

anewme

Usually I see these threads and think, ah no, here is another weddingzilla couple me me me complaining over nothing.

However, this time, I totally get your point OP, those works look terrible.

Ok, so you are where you are. You can only change things which are within your control and this definitely is not.

I understand that you are not looking for a discount and thats not what its about but you are where you are.

Why dont you have a think about what would acceptable to you but dont tell the Hotel as yet. Let them come up with their own proposals.

I often find the best way to deal with situations like this is to remain calm but put it back on the Hotel - ie, ask the Operations Manager what he thinks is best to redeem the situation and open discussions from there.

You are right to state that first class service is not good enough, that is what you would expect as part of the deal anyway.

Whoever said guests take their cue from you are right - at the end of the day, you are right to be annoyed but dont let it ruin your day as theres nothing you can change about it now.

I would also put a letter, not an email, to the owner/manager expressing your disappointment - more so about the hiding out. Be firm, fair and not over dramatic and over emotional. Its unprofessional of him not to face down his clients. The fact he is avoiding you indicates that he knows he is in the wrong.

I don't believe the Hotel have tried to "redeem" themselves as much as they can. The Manager hiding out is most unprofessional and I can understand why OP does not really know what they want, when they really just want this to go away.

But it wont and to be fair OP I think you've dealt with it so far very well. Dont take it out on other staff OP, they are just employees doing their job and work with them to get the best result for you.

Support your bride, make the most of what you have and dont let this ruin your day. Brave face on Glass half full attitude needed here, in fact, glass overflowing is the best way to deal with it.

Have a great day.

MarkR

Hoping you have a great day today. :-)