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Waldorf Astoria Doha West Bay deliberately locked a customer in the lift
I was a member of the health club at Waldorf Astoria West Bay Doha. It’s important to stress “I was” because a deeply unsettling incident led me to cancel my membership—an incident one would never expect to encounter in a Waldorf Astoria property. The issue arose when the hotel changed its health club access policy, moving the entrance from the 39th floor to the 40th floor, without notifying me. One day, as usual, I pressed the button for the 39th floor. To my shock, the elevator deliberately stopped at the 17th floor, preventing me from reaching my destination. Through the intercom, I was instructed to either proceed to the 40th floor or return to the ground floor. When I insisted on continuing to the 39th floor, the elevator lights were briefly turned off, seemingly as a way to pressure me into compliance. This action left me feeling extremely stressed, anxious, and most importantly, unsafe. I raised this issue with hotel management, but the responses have been unsatisfactory. The General Manager initially claimed that the 39th-floor button had been deactivated but later contradicted this by denying the elevator was deliberately stopped. Moreover, my attempts to escalate the matter were ignored. Neither Mr. Guy Hutchinson, the regional leader, nor Mr. Simon Vincent, Hilton’s Senior Vice President for Europe, Africa, and the Middle East, have responded to my emails. This silence demonstrates a disturbing disregard for customer satisfaction and wellbeing. Waldorf Astoria West Bay Doha left a paying customer in the dark—literally—in an elevator. The lack of accountability and empathy from both the property and Hilton’s senior leadership is unacceptable. This incident has permanently shattered my trust in Hilton, and I will never visit a Hilton property again.