A Completely Unacceptable Experience at Waterford Estate - Waterford Estate (斯泰伦博斯) - Waterford Estate - 859条旅客点评与比价

suzanna l

A Completely Unacceptable Experience at Waterford Estate

Waterford Estate的点评

2026年09月14日发布于: 海外

点评：I am writing to express my profound disappointment with the service my VIP group received at Waterford Estate on 3 September. I had confirmed a Portfolio Tasting at R220 per person, featuring five Waterford Estate wines, for a group of 17 high-net-worth directors from Singapore. This booking had been carefully arranged with Keyanna since June, and I had every reason to expect a polished and memorable experience befitting Waterford Estate’s reputation. Unfortunately, the reality was deeply disappointing from the moment we arrived. There was no proper welcome, no warmth and no sense that the estate was prepared to receive an important group. The gentleman who greeted me appeared unfriendly and responded abruptly when I explained that I had been corresponding with Keyanna. He informed me that Keyanna had left and that I had supposedly been communicating with him instead. If he had taken over the booking, basic professional courtesy required him to introduce himself and clearly communicate the change beforehand. Discovering this only upon arrival was both confusing and unacceptable. Even more concerning, he walked away without welcoming my guests, guiding us to the tasting area or introducing the estate. For a winery that positions itself as a premium destination, this complete absence of hospitality was astonishing. The situation deteriorated further when my group was served the wrong tasting experience. Instead of the confirmed five-wine Portfolio Tasting, we were given the Wine and Chocolate Experience, consisting of only three wines. The sommelier did not introduce himself, explain the experience or confirm the tasting that had been booked. I only discovered the mistake after one of my guests left the tasting and told me he was bored with the three wines being served, commenting that the chocolates were the only saving grace. As the organiser responsible for 17 senior VIP guests, this was deeply embarrassing and placed me in an extremely difficult position. Only after I insisted on speaking with the manager was the mistake addressed. I was then informed that two additional wines would be served and that the chocolates would be complimentary. While the manager eventually attempted to rectify the situation, this was not a gesture of goodwill—it was simply the correction of an error that should never have occurred. By that stage, the damage had already been done. I was so dissatisfied that I wanted to remove my group from the estate immediately. Had it not been raining, we would most likely have left. This experience demonstrated a serious breakdown in communication, reservation management and basic hospitality. A booking made months in advance for a distinguished international group should never have been handled with such indifference. My guests deserved far better, and I should not have been placed in the position of having to identify and resolve Waterford Estate’s mistakes during the programme. The entire experience fell shockingly short of the standards expected from an estate of Waterford’s reputation. It caused me considerable embarrassment in front of my VIP guests and has significantly damaged my confidence in recommending Waterford Estate to future corporate and high-end groups. Fortunately, we had another wine tasting and lunch booked at Lanzerac later that day. The contrast in hospitality and professionalism could not have been more apparent. Our group was warmly welcomed, properly hosted and made to feel valued throughout the experience. Several of my clients commented that they were fortunate not to have purchased any wines at Waterford Estate. They subsequently purchased wines at Lanzerac, where they felt both the wine quality and the overall experience were far superior. This comparison only reinforced how significantly Waterford Estate had fallen short. For a premium winery receiving international VIP guests, excellent wines alone are not enough—the quality of the welcome, communication and service is equally important. Unfortunately, Waterford Estate failed on all three counts and lost not only immediate wine sales from 17 potential customers, but also our confidence in recommending the estate to future VIP and corporate groups. I expect senior management to review this matter seriously and provide a proper explanation of how a confirmed reservation could have been so poorly communicated, incorrectly delivered and inadequately managed.

翻译：我写此信是为了表达我对9月3日我的贵宾团在Waterford Estate所享受服务的强烈不满。我提前为17位来自新加坡的高净值人士预订了品酒活动，费用为每人220兰特。该活动包含五款Waterford Estate葡萄酒的品鉴。从6月起，我就与Keyanna细致地安排了此次行程，因此我本指望能获得一场与Waterford Estate的声誉相匹配的完美且令人难忘的体验。遗憾的是……从我们抵达的那一刻起，现实情况就令人大失所望。没有像样的欢迎仪式，毫无热情可言，也完全感觉不到庄园方面为接待这么重要的团体做了任何准备。接待我的那位男士态度冷淡，当我说明自己一直与Keyanna保持联系时，他回应得十分生硬。他告诉我Keyanna已经离开，还称我其实一直是在和他沟通。如果他接手了预订事宜的话……出于最基本的职业操守，他理应先自我介绍，并提前把变化情况说明清楚。然而我直到到达后才得知此事，这既令人困惑又不可接受。更让人担忧的是，他甚至没有欢迎我的客人、带领我们前往品酒区或介绍酒庄情况就直接走开了。对于一家自诩为高端旅游目的地的酒庄而言，这种完全缺乏待客之道的表现实在令人震惊。情况变得更糟的是，我们一行人得到的品酒体验与预期不符。我们原本预定的是包含五种葡萄酒的“精品葡萄酒品鉴”，但实际提供的却是“葡萄酒与巧克力品鉴”，而且只有三种葡萄酒。那位侍酒师既没有自我介绍，也没有说明此次品酒环节的内容，更没有确认我们预订的套餐。直到其中一位客人品饮完毕后告诉我，他觉得只有三种葡萄酒实在有些乏味，我才意识到出了差错。他评论说，那些巧克力是唯一值得称赞的地方。作为负责接待17位资深贵宾的组织者，这种情况让我极为难堪，也使我陷入了极其棘手的境地。直到我坚持要求与经理面谈后，这个失误才得到纠正。随后我得知，还会再提供两种葡萄酒，而且巧克力也将免费赠送。虽然经理最终试图补救这一状况，这并非善意之举——只不过是纠正了一个本不该发生的错误而已。但那时，损害已然造成。我极其不满，甚至想立刻带我的团队离开该度假村。若不是当时正在下雨，我们很可能早就走了。这次经历充分体现出其在沟通、预订管理以及基本待客之道上的严重缺失。一个为尊贵的国际团体提前数月预订的行程，绝不应被如此漠然对待。我的客人们理应得到更好的待遇，而我也不该被置于不得不在活动期间亲自发现并纠正沃特福德庄园所犯错误的境地。整个体验远远达不到像沃特福德这样享有盛誉的庄园理应达到的标准。这件事让我在贵宾面前极为难堪，也严重打击了我向未来的企业客户及高端团体推荐沃特福德庄园的信心。幸运的是，当天晚些时候我们还在兰泽拉克预订了另一场品酒会及午餐。两处场所的待客之道与专业水准形成了极其鲜明的对比：我们的团队在那里受到了热情欢迎与悉心照料，整个体验过程中都倍感受重视。有几位客户对我说，他们很幸运没有在Waterford Estate购买任何葡萄酒。后来他们又从Lanzerac购酒，他们认为那里的葡萄酒品质以及整体体验都要出色得多。这一对比更凸显出Waterford Estate的种种不足。对于一家需要接待国际贵宾的高端酒庄来说，仅有优质的葡萄酒远远不够；接待水平、沟通质量与服务态度同样至关重要。遗憾的是，Waterford Estate在这三个方面都表现欠佳。它不仅失去了17位潜在客户的即时订单，还让我们失去了向未来的贵宾及企业团体推荐该酒庄的信心。我希望高层管理人员能认真审视此事，并给出合理解释：一个已经确认的预订为何会出现沟通不畅、执行失误以及管理不善的情况。

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