So pleasant when it first opened, the Moxy CDG is falling further and further behind, this time with service that’s not just bad but totally careless.
The Moxy Roissy CDG was once one of my favorite spots at the airport. Unfortunately, for a little over a year now, the service has been a little worse every time than during the previous stay. After a recent disappointing experience, I thought I’d give it one last chance… in vain.
You’ll find all the articles about this Bordeaux getaway at the bottom of the page.
Booking
Three weeks before my stay, I booked a standard room at the rate of 106 euros per night on the Marriott Bonvoy app.
Location of the hotel
The hotel is located in the airport area, between Terminals 1 and 2, a 5-minute walk from the Parking PR station of the CDGVal automatic shuttle, which takes you to either terminal in 10 minutes.
Welcome and check-in
I arrive at the hotel at around 9pm and head for reception, where I’m taken care of quickly. I had checked the hotel inventory on my way in, it was full so there was no expectation of any upgrade.
The receptionist greeted me very kindly. Having checked in online, there’s not much paperwork to do. He rummages through his files, makes me sign a sheet and “here’s your key, good evening sir”. He turns his eyes and goes off to do something else.
No mention of my membership of the loyalty program, no form of recognition. Note that this has been a near-constant feature of my recent stays here. I’ve already seen hotels that were light on the application of the loyalty program and its protocol, but this isn’t even bad, it’s non-existent.
Yet given the sleeve my key was in, he couldn’t not know.
In my opinion, it’s more a problem of training than of the person’s attitude or professionalism.
Never mind, I’m heading for my room.
The room
No surprise there: once you’ve seen a Moxy, you’ve seen almost all of them.
It’s simple, pretty, no-frills, exactly what you’d expect.
The bedding is quite comfortable, obviously not up to the standard of a superior hotel, but quite adequate. The only complaint I always have about Moxy is that the small desk area is very uncomfortable for working for more than an hour with a tablet on which a computer barely fits. But that wasn’t what I needed that night.
The bathroom is small but pretty, pleasant and functional.
But on closer inspection, the housekeeping has been neglected…
Not very attractive, is it?
As usual, I’ll have a good night’s sleep before my morning flight, because if in the end I went to bed rather upset, it wasn’t so much because of the room or the dirty bathroom sink, but because of what was to come.
Food options
It’s 9:30 pm, so I decide to grab a quick bite to eat.
The hotel offers a range of snacks that I’ve enjoyed in the past: dishes, admittedly prepared and reheated, but quite good and appetizing. It’s always better to have good freshly reheated food than bad food made to order.
At Moxy, the lobby is a large living space where you’ll find the reception, the bar (where you order your food) and plenty of space to eat, chat or work…
Always nice and pleasant…
There’s a bit of a crowd, but one can’t say it’s crowded either!
To the side is the self-service area, with snacks and drinks available 24 hours a day.
But tonight I’m in the mood for something warm and a little more hearty.
During my previous stay here, I arrived shortly after 11pm, the restaurant’s closing time, and if I was disappointed not to be able to eat, I found that quite normal.
This is clearly indicated on the hotel’s app and website.
But now it’s 9:40pm, so I’ve got plenty of time.
So I take a seat at the bar. There’s a waiter who doesn’t even look at me and a waitress who turns his back on me, will take forever to serve a customer two glasses of water before turning around and coming towards me. It took all of 5 minutes before someone even looked at me.
I tell her I want to have dinner.
“Sir, we close at 10 p.m.”
Uh, but 3 months ago it was 11 p.m. and on the site it says 11 p.m.! But it doesn’t matter, it’s not even 10 p.m.
“Ah so there’s no problem, since it’s 9:40 p.m.”
“We’ve had a lot of people, that’s enough, we’re tired, we’re stopping our service“.
I look at her with a look that must be a mixture of surprise, disbelief and irritation.
“So you’re supposed to serve until 11pm, you close at 10pm and you don’t take an order at 9:40pm.”
“Yes“
“So I can’t eat?”
“That’s it”.
At a time of contestation over pension reform, I served her a diatribe on the value of work and the fact that I hoped that, with such an attitude, her career would be more likely to end at 25 than at 64.
Anyway, she’d already turned around and must hardly have heard me. But one thing’s for sure: she really gave the impression of not giving a f**k about anything…….
The worst part of the story is that not only did they continue to serve drinks, but, as I said, nothing is cooked on the premises. Serving a hot dish means putting a prepared dish in an oven for 5 minutes, removing the lid, and bringing it to the customer.
I could have taken a snack to go or just had a beer, but I wasn’t in the mood to give them a penny anymore.
Facilities
The hotel has a small, rather minimalist (but pretty) gym that I won’t be using this time.
The service
What can I say…you may have noticed that it wasn’t the highlight of this stay.
Let me make two distinctions.
First of all, the welcome. Zero recognition, quick check-in, but in my opinion it’s more a matter of training than ill will.
Then the bar. There’s not only a training problem here, but above all a problem of attitude and “I don’t give a f**k”! I’ve rarely felt like slapping someone in the face, but I think life will teach her the meaning of the word professionalism.
Coming back to Moxy, it’s the concept of the chain to have young, dynamic, friendly staff, and I like it a lot in general. But young people with insufficient training, no supervision and no one to provide guidance can go awry and end up off course.
I blame the staff less than the hotel management and its operator, namely….. Hotel51.co.
Check-out
I’ll check out on the mobile app so I don’t have to go through reception again and put up with another staff member.
Bottom line
We are generally very satisfied with our stays at Moxy hotels, but you won’t be surprised to learn that this was my last stay at the Moxy Roissy. Just 5 minutes away is the excellent Courtyard Roissy Central, which has never disappointed us and is only slightly more expensive.
Review # | Type | Post |
#1 | Diary | Preparing a getaway in Bordeaux |
#2 | Hotel | Moxy Roissy |
#3 | Flight | Paris-Bordeaux – Air France – Economy |
#4 | Hotel | Sheraton Bordeaux Airport |
#5 | Hotel | Moxy Bordeaux |
#6 | Restaurant | Tentazioni Bordeaux |
#7 | Restaurant | L’entrecôte Bordeaux |
#8 | Restaurant | La Tupina Bordeaux |
#9 | Restaurant | L’Embarcadère Bordeaux |
#10 | Restaurant | Cromagnon Bordeaux |
#11 | Restaurant | Un Soir à Shibuya Bordeaux |
#12 | Restaurant | Maison Nouvelle Bordeaux |
#13 | Diary | Bordeaux travel guide |
#14 | Flight | Bordeaux-Paris – Air France – Economy |
#15 | Diary | Debriefing this stay in Bordeaux |