Don’t get a Pen Club card ever, I’m warning you. I got one last February, planning to use its room coupons this September. But I won’t be able to do so. Why?
Pen has a Makati Tower and an Ayala Tower, so called after the streets where said towers are located.
The coupons that come with the card are for the Ayala tower only, fine. There’s one coupon for a deluxe room that will entitle you to check in overnight with breakfast for just P4000, or P5000 for a superior room. There are two complimentary certificates for room upgrades. Great! At least on paper. Thing is, on September, the Ayala Tower will be under renovation, so I cannot use the said coupons. Instead I’ll have to avail of the privilege coupon that will mean a room in the Makati tower for $160, that’s almost P2000 more. Also, hoping that a privilege card would mean some small courtesies like early check-in and late checkout, I asked Kathlyn or Katherine of Pen Club, who said it wasn’t for her to say because they have no direct hand in the matter. I’ll have to get in touch with the hotel itself, she said! They aren’t allowed to contact the hotel, she stressed. And according to her, the hotel would only be able to tell me if this were possible on the day itself. Heavens.
So why bother getting a card when once you’ve paid for it, to hell with you? You don’t get any help from the once friendly and accommodating personnel who sold the card to you. Sure they’re still sweet and all that but service? Zilch! Zero. I asked who the big boss was and she mentioned this foreigner’s name who welcomed me with his twang when I agreed to get a card. I don’t want to bother talking to him. He’s a foreigner and while I’m no xenophobic, I’m not sure how highly/lowly (?) he regards us Filipinos, though this is our country and we’re supposed to be the first class citizens here.
Now, since I don’t want my blood pressure to go up any longer I won’t bother to argue with the hotel or the Club for a fair deal this September -the use of my Ayala Tower coupons for the Makati Tower rooms because the former is under renovation. I won’t check in at Manila Pen ever, unless they reply to this post and make adjustments. After all, when the card was sold me, I wasn’t told the Ayala Tower rooms wouldn’t be available until November. What a lousy card. It has so many if’s and but’s between the lines. How misleading. But I’m glad I know better.
I know I can still use my card to get discounts in the hotel’s restos, but I’m not sure I should. I’m just so peeved. I’ll just consider the P6500 as a sunk cost, a loss. And no more Manila Pen for me if I can help it.
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Hello. Thanks for dropping by. Thing is, it’s not so much Manila Peninsula but the Pen Club arm(?)/group that stinks. The card I got entitles me to to some privileges in various hotels abroad but if right here in the country one cannot get what one was promised, I wonder if using the card abroad will be any better.
Same here, I bought the Pen Club last January, but the reason why I’m so pissed about this is that we were PROMISED 6 free buffets (for 2) once we purchased the card. That was the come-on of the sales agent (her name was Makay), and the only real reason we bought it in the first place.
Anyway, turns out that the card really doesn’t come with free buffets, that we have to refer 2 more members in order to get 1 free buffet (for 2). I can’t believe we were ripped off by that cheap-o sales lady.
And I totally agree about the lack of service. I called 3 times yesterday to confirm my dinner reservation and they said they’d call me back but they NEVER DID.
I know this isn’t the Manila Peninsula’s fault, but rather Club Hotel, the 3rd party that handles the membership. They make all these empty promises and fake freebies when there really is none.
My lesson from all this is to get everything in writing before paying for anything.
Anyway, I heard that they are no longer accepting new Pen Club members. The waiter at Manila Pen told me they are just servicing the remaining members and then when the memberships all expire next year, Manila Pen and Club Hotel split ways. Thank God.
Hello. thanks for dropping by and for your comment.
Misery loves company and while I commiserate with you, somehow it feels good not to be alone or the lone victim. But you know, you should insist on getting the two free buffets. I was promised the same and I was so persistent they gave me two free merienda buffets (or make that merienda buffet for 2) and lunch buffet for two. They promised to give me another set of merienda and lunch buffets (in other words they promised two merienda buffets good for two each and two lunch buffets good for two each) but I don’t feel too inclined to follow up on the ones they have promised but which I haven’t availed of. (Note I didn’t refer anyone to the Club, still they promised these to appease me).
I think Crowne Galleria’s offer is a much better deal because it covers 4 hotels: Intercon, Holiday Inn Ortigas and Holiday Inn Clark plus Crowne Galleria, and therefore discount coupons for all four. The Group doesn’t block out mother’s day and father’s day either and gives discounts (20%) even during Christmas and New Year, Valentine’s Day and Easter Sunday.
Hi! This same scenario happened to me. The account officer selling me the membership promised me free meals. When I called recently to secure a reservation for the meals, they said that they only give that to people who referred or have renewed memberships. The officer who handled my account, I learned, left the company as this almost all other account officers last May. It’s really irritating that this kind of service, false promises, etc. occured. I just wrote a letter of complaint to the general manager of Club Hotel and I’m hoping this doesn’t happen again to other people.
My, oh my. Did a foreigner also welcome you to the Club? During one of my phone calls, I asked to speak to the boss and they said it was the foreigner. When I found out, I balked and just put down the phone. I wasn’t sure I could handle talking to a non-Filipino because I feared he might just brush my complaints aside. Did you by any chance get a response from the general manager? Do update us, the other victims.
So there was a mass resignation? Funny because the one who handled my account, Analyn Reyes, called me offering the Hotel Intercon card (which I got just last week but not through her). She told me she was also with the said group, but now that you say there were resignations, I wonder. When I reminded her of my remaining free buffets, she said “sige ma’am.” But I’m sure she’ll make herself scarce if I follow up.
Thanks for sharing your experience, GRN.
Thanks all for sharing your experience. The Pen Club called me early this year. Sobrang makulit but when I asked them to email me their offer as I wanted to see freebies in writing (so i could do my math, he he), they never called again. Kaya pala.
Mary An, I hope your experience with Crowne will be a lot better. If not, please let me know. =D
Are you planning to get from Crowne? So far so good. My sister checked in at Holiday Inn Clark for less than P3k per night, and when we had the buffet in Seven something in Crowne, we paid for only 2 heads. And even on their blackout dates, they give discounts, though lower than usual. Not so, Manila Pen.
I totally agree with your comments. Because of their broken promises, I decided to refund my money back to which the program manager of the Pen Club Cristina Linsang agreed to. This was last April 2008. It’s already July and my money has not been refunded. When I called to follow up, I was surprised that everyone has resigned and my case has not been endorsed. The people handling the Pen Club has the worst customer service ever!
Hello Niza. This is the second time a comment has mentioned that the Pen CLub people we dealt with had resigned. Some weeks ago, the one who handled my account (analyn reyes) was trying to sell me insurance. I asked if she’d left the club, she said no. Now I wonder. She also assured me she’d help me with my room reservations if and when. Haven’t taken up her offer because I don’t want to be stressed out which I am when dealing with Pen Club. We’ll see.
If there are any new developments with regard to your refund, please keep us posted. This is so weird- there are so many of us disgruntled with the Pen CLub.