Let me say that we have always loved the Equinox until our last stay, but I am afraid we will never stay here again! The reason for this is that we paid in advance for our two-night stay from June 27 to June 29, 2019, using hotels.com, yet when we received the billing for incidentals, such as restaurant meals and resort fees, via email I found that we were double-charged for our accommodations. This can be no simple error on the part of the Equinox, as on the folio itself, it clearly was annotated that this was an ADVANCE PURCHASE against the daily hotel rate charged.
When I called the registration desk to get this corrected the next day and over the course of several months, I was shunted from department to department, but not once was there a person to answer my calls—I left messages on both the Accounts Manager's VoiceMail and the General Manager's VoiceMail, but not once did I get a call back!
On Thursday, August 16, 2019, since I was back in Manchester, VT, for the Dorset Festival Theater, I decided to stop by the Equinox to find out why we had not received a reimbursement. At the registration desk, I asked to see the General Manager, and a woman on duty there said that she was the manager and how could she help? I explained the double-billing, and after a lengthy checking of their records online, as well as the records of hotels.com, she admitted that I was correct and that she would issue a credit immediately. However, there was no apology—so much for guest relations!
We waited patiently for that refund, but by mid-September 2019 when there was still no sign of a credit issued on our Bank of America Visa card, I had no choice but to file a complaint with the Better Business Bureau and to Marriott BonVoy. It pained me to do so, as I have been a loyal fan of the Equinox for more than 40 years, either staying there or dining at the Marsh Tavern.
Update: On October 5, 2019, at long last, we were sent a revised folio from the Equinox and received a reimbursement for the double-billing for our stay back in June of 2019—so much for the General Manager stating that we would see a credit within 3-5 days on August 16, 2019. But, even then, we were short-changed by $7.80. Bank of America, however, notified us that they would make up the difference, because of the long delay in reimbursement to our credit card—they were also anxious to close the dispute after all these months!
Adding insult to injury, I might add that the Equinox Accounts Department could not even get our address correct on the revised folio. This time they gave us someone else’s address in Oregon, instead of our New Hampshire address. The incompetence of the current Accounts Department is unbelievable!
The Equinox never did respond to our complaint with the Better Business Bureau, neither did Marriott BonVoy.
