AITA for snapping at a hotel receptionist after being given the wrong room three times?

A traveler (30s) recently booked a room at a nice hotel, paying extra for a king bed and city view to enjoy a relaxing getaway. However, after being assigned the wrong room three times—including one that was unclean—

they snapped at the receptionist out of frustration. While the issue was eventually resolved with an upgrade, a friend suggested the reaction was unfair since the receptionist wasn’t personally responsible. Read the full story below…

‘ AITA for snapping at a hotel receptionist after being given the wrong room three times?’

I was on a trip recently and booked a room at a fairly nice hotel. I specifically paid extra for a room with a king bed and a city view because it was supposed to be a relaxing getaway. When I checked in, they gave me a room with two twin beds and a view of the parking lot. I went back to the front desk, politely explained the issue, and they apologized, saying there was a mix-up.

They gave me another room key, but when I got to that room, it still wasn’t right—this time it was a queen bed with no view at all. I was annoyed but kept my cool and went back to the desk again. They apologized again and assured me the next room would be correct. Spoiler: it wasn’t. The third room wasn’t even cleaned yet—there were towels on the floor and an unmade bed.

At that point, I was exhausted and frustrated. I went back to the front desk and snapped at the receptionist. I didn’t yell or swear, but I raised my voice and told them it was ridiculous that I couldn’t get the room I paid for after three tries. The receptionist looked flustered and said they were doing their best, but I wasn’t really in the mood to hear it.

They eventually upgraded me to a suite, but when I told a friend about the situation, they said I overreacted and that it wasn’t the receptionist’s fault because they don’t control room assignments. I feel like I was justified in being upset, but now I’m wondering if I crossed a line. AITA?

Take a look at the comments from fellow users:

hannahrlindsay −  As a former hotel receptionist, they’re literally the only ones who control the room assignments. You have every right to be upset. Three times is absurd.

Beneficial_Test_5917 −  Once is an honest mistake, twice is incompetence, thrice, man, they don’t like you. :))) A receptionist assigns rooms, that’s part of their job. NTA

Lost_Needleworker285 −  Receptionists do assign rooms, they probably just over booked that room type and figured you would ether just accept the first room without complaining, or give up after the 2-3 time and accept one of those.

STUNTPENlS −  NTA. The receptionist may not control room assignments, but rooms are coded by their features (e.g. king size city view, king size parking lot view, etc.). Those codes (for example, K101 and K102) are assigned to each room number, so when you book a king with a city view, they know they’re supposed to give you a K101 room.

They don’t know *which* K101 room you’re going to get, necessarily, but it sounds like they were giving you rooms with entirely different room type codes. After the second f**k-up I would have asked to speak to the hotel manager.

BeeYehWoo −  Your anger was understandable and you remained in control of yourself.  that it wasn’t the receptionist’s fault because they don’t control room assignments. Your friend is not very intelligent is he?

The receptionist is at the front desk and is the face of the hotel. She deals with incoming guests. It absolutely is her job an under her control. The same reception that upgraded you to a suite BTW. NTA

Maya3376 −  I didn’t insult or belittle the receptionist, but my tone was definitely harsh, and I could see they were stressed out. Still, after the third room mistake, it felt like I had every right to express my frustration. My friend says I should have stayed calm no matter what, but I don’t think that’s fair.

HansLandasPipe −  They LITERALLY assign rooms…that’s their actual job.

CallingThatBS −  The front desk knows what rooms are what type. It is their job , your friend is incorrect!!! The receptionist could have possibly been new and not have them all down yet but to do it three times in a row without asking for assistance from somebody else is just ridiculous. And giving a guest unclean room is a huge issue!

choconamiel −  I booked a room at a hotel and when I arrived at the room the key card didn’t work. Went back to the front desk and they told me the new guy made a mistake and they reprogramed the key. Still didn’t work. The third time I got to my room the manager met me at the door to make sure it worked. It didn’t.

He let me in and told me he’d deliver a working key card in a few minutes. He did, along with profuse apologies. This manager understood the frustration of trying to get into your room multiple times and made sure I didn’t have to try again.. So no, NTA

P1ckl3R1ck-31 −  NTA. I worked in service related industries for 8 years during HS and college and I would completely expect to be bitched out for something like this.
Mistakes happen, don’t be an a**hole for an honest mistake especially on the 1st go around.

Could have been a programming error that had nothing to do with the staff. But after the 3rd time? Those are the situations that they need to know they are clearly incompetent and need to work on their ability to do simple tasks

Was the reaction justified after three mistakes, or should they have handled the situation with more patience? Share your thoughts below!