menachem

Can't you do your own restaurant bookings? I think they're quite justified in refusing to book outside restaurants for you, when they have a restaurant on site. And yes, not very courteous of you to request it of them

rialtogrl

You do not have to have a profile on Facebook to look at a Facebook page.

Melnq8

I wondered the same.

It wouldn't even occur to me to ask a hotel to make dinner reservations on my behalf, but then again, I don't stay at posh hotels. Was this is posh hotel with a concierge?

On the rare occasion I actually make a restaurant reservation, I do it myself, usually online, many weeks before my visit.

But I see you said this..one of these restaurants takes no bookings by e-mail and the others are often a bit tricky to try to book from the US, online.

Tricky how? Have you tried calling?

hetismij2

Yes you do if you want to look at it properly. I have tried with local restaurants and I can't see much if anything before Meta starts telling me to sign up or go away. I choose to go away, and to find a restaurant I can view online. Very often I can't even see when they are open on FB.

janisj

I've only done that when staying at a really posh hotel in London when the concierge contacted me before hand and asked if they could be of assistance for theatre/restaurant bookings/whatever. It would never cross my mind to ask a small masseria-type place to book things for me. And especially not multiple bookings for multiple evenings. Aren't most masseria something like 6-10 rooms -- more like a B&B than a full service hotel with a concierge and large staff??

janisj

Didn't see heti's post -- me neither. . . . If a pub or restaurant only books through FB (or even if just their main on-line presence is via FB) I go elsewhere

Travel_Nerd

I said that US hotels with an on-site restaurant ​​​​likely would not make reservations at other restaurants, not that it was an absolute. Hotels in NYC often have concierge services due to the very nature that is NYC. And while you may find that in upstate NY at some Hampton Inn with a Dennys attached, I'd doubt it would be done on the West Coast or even in the South. But, sure, there are always exceptions to this. Regardless, you're not dealing with a language barrier in the US, either; and can make your own reservations wherever you may be.

I get it, you want the same experience as you had in 2008, and it does sound very nice. But 15 years has gone by and the world has changed. We lost how many people worldwide due to Covid? Like it or not, some of those lives were hotel/restaurant workers, or they moved onto other opportunities. At the height of tourist season in a town where in the last 10 years tourism has exploded, expecting the same experience probably is not realistic anymore. Not trying to sound harsh, but the reality of it sort of is, unfortunately.

starrs

Is this generational? It would never occur to me to ask an inn or small hotel to book my meals offsite. Maybe a big hotel with a concierge service, or even a small hotel with a concierge service. But a masseria?

I would have stopped at the first "no". Not because I'm not determined. Because they have a restaurant on site now and they said "no". What they did 15 years ago, before their onsite restaurant is obviously not what they do today.

natylou

Honestly ekscrunchy I believe that there is some merit to what Bilboburgler said, and also Starrs thinking it could be generational. But thinking back to our experiences in Puglia, and just recently to a month in Turkey and Croatia, I don’t believe there is any one answer to what a person should expect.

We have encountered people in hotels and restaurants who were very accommodating and helpful. Then again, there have been a few who seem not to realize that their attitudes might affect their business. I don’t think there is a collective answer to that, but rather I would tend to think it’s the individual response or the business’s policy.

And in truth, Covid has affected the whole world, sometimes negatively. In many places we felt that there has been a general increase in prices, but a definite decrease in service and quality. Whatever the reason might be for that, I guess we must learn to roll with it.

But I also don’t think it was rude of you to ask. If you don’t ask you’ll never know will you?

Traveler_Nick

There is a difference between a large big city hotel and something like this. Some European hotels only have restaurants or bars so they can qualify for the extra star. The places look like ghost towns with tumbleweed.

But the masseria has just put in a restaurant post covid. They aren't doing it for stars.

HappyTrvlr

We always do what ekscrunchy does, ask the hotels where we will be staying to book dinner reservations for us nearby. The hotel staff have always been gracious about doing it. If a concierge does the bookings, we will tip them when we arrive. Now I check first to see if the restaurants offer online booking and use that if they have it.
We have never stayed in a masseria however and do not know how large they are or whether they would do extra things like making reservations. Some hotels after booking will ask if they can do anything for us.Ekscrunchy did the right thing by booking another hotel.

zebec

Eks, you've posted a really interesting query here. I'm glad that it seems to have been resolved with your chosen alternative.
Have a great time in Puglia.
I am done. the AI Travel Advisor

ekscrunchy

Ok,, jut to clarify a bit..masseria is a term used in Puglia that more or less means "farmhouse" or "hacienda," etc. Many of these older structures have ben converted to lodgings, often by Italians from the North. In this case, however, the owner is from a nearby Puglian town.

The masseria in question is an upscale property where rates are in the 250-plus euro range...

When I first contacted them I had no idea that they now had a restaurant on site.

The owner is younger than I am; I'm just inserting this factoid in response to the poster who suggested a generational gap. Since the area is not one frequented by foreigners as much as other locations to the south in Puglia, he pretty much has the high-end sewn up in that province of the region. He runs an upscale property that has garnered very good reviews and comments, including those from myself after our first stay long before CoviD.

I will repeat that I have taken probably 25 trips to Italy and since my major focus is food, I usually choose the accommodations based on proximity either to good restaurants (NOT fancy, but with a good local reputation). Never has a hotel or any accommodation refused to make a couple of phone calls to book nearby restaurants. I stay everywhere from holes in the wall, what we used to call "hostals," or "pensiones" occupying a floor of a building and very well priced, to upscale hotels at the top range.

There is not much of a language barrier; I am fluent in Spanish and can get along pretty well with written Italian. I did not try to book the 3 restaurants in question myself because I had no idea that the masseria would not do this for me.

The place we eventually booked is a far less "fancy" place and costs about half the price of the original pick. Yet the owner was quick to let me know that he would be happy to book any restaurant I asked about in the area, (even though he has an on-site restaurant).



As for the general increase in prices in the regions we will be visiting, I saw a shocking increase in the city of Matera, where the top hotels are now in the range of what we are used to paying in Rome. Nevertheless. in our stop prior to Matera, in a town far off the tourist trail (Tursi) we have booked a small inn (2 rooms) that looks wonderful and in comparison to the more touristed areas of the south, is priced extraordinarily well. Not only that, but the owner of this property, without my asking, has offered to contact the owner of a nearby azienda to make a date for us to visit and buy our beloved Senise peppers.

We were in Sicily in May and as for prices, they have soared through the roof.....a hotel where I've stayed, in Taormina, twice before, a property probably considered upper mid range, now asks in the area of 800 euro per night with breakfast. Hotels in Taormina in the top tier, such as the GH Timeo, are priced close to 2000 euro and are totally booked in high season this year.

SusanP

ek, guess I won't be going to Sicily any time soon! 😁

My main problem with your exchange was how they treated your request. Having worked in Customer Service at a large corporation, the first rule is that the customer is always right! If they require your having dinner at their restaurant, that should be made clear on their website or when you make the reservation. And they should never call you rude for making the request.

hugo64

Maybe it's a Sicilan thing.
I've been really amused by some of the very aggressive replies to fairly innocuous reviews on booking websites.
I guess covid ramped up the stress levels

rialtogrl

just click the x on the top corner where it asks you to log in or sign up and you will be able to view the imformation, including the website if they have one. Unless your browser is different, I suppose that is possible.

bilboburgler

I think it is not just generational but also things have changed over time, when I was a kid (the 60s) the last place you ever went to eat at was a hotel. They had to serve food but either the conference chicken or some meat and veg. If you wanted to eat well you went to a restaurant. This has stuck with so much that I still struggle to eat more than a breakfast in a hotel despite knowing that hotels can now offer good food.

Masseria is better translated as "fortified farm" hence the multiple courtyards and walls to put animals, local villagers, soldiers etc to fight off slavers.

Prices are moving all over the place as people try to rebuild businesses. Ortigia hotels in high summer are just silly money now, but on the shoulder are far more sensible. Matera has gone from the poorest city in europe to a tourist mecca, good for them.

starrs

Which is why I asked my question about this being generational.

A younger owner is not interested in doing what has been done in the past.

The younger owner evidently considered the repeated requests "rude".

It appears to be generational.

25 visits to the area indicates the possibility that you are older than the owner. Your expectations don't seem to match up to his expectations of service.

Perhaps the reason - or gap - IS generational.

Leely2

eks,

Sounds like the masseria has pivoted to a sort of unofficial half-board-encouraged type place. This isn't what you look for in a hotel, so it's better that you found out now. Also, you made these requests during what is probably their absolute busiest season--perhaps they are near to understaffed and that, plus the new desire/need? for business at their in-house restaurant led to an unnecessarily snappy response from the masseria.

I don't think it's weird to ask a hotel to make one or two reservations for you, but I can't remember the last time I stayed someplace with an in-house restaurant, so I'm not sure what the etiquette is there. On my trip to Basilicata and Puglia in May, I asked my hotel in Matera to make a reservation for me my first night as I arriving in the evening on a weekend after a fairly long day of travel. They did so without issue. In Locorotondo, the proprietor of my inn asked if I'd like her to make a dinner reservation for me and I gladly accepted. For what it's worth on the "it's generational" point, I'd guess she's about 10 years younger than me, so late 30s/early 40s. (Highly recommend this property: 1783 Dimora d'Epoca. The people are truly marvelous and the inn is beautiful and elegant.)

Anyway, this does sound unpleasant and I'm glad you have found a better solution!

HappyTrvlr

Eks, I found your report of your stay at the same masseria several years ago. The owner certainly did an about face! Your treatment on first visit and this recent encounter could not be more different! I am so glad you stayed at a different masseria!