My Stay At Taj Fisherman's Cove

Tripoto

Had huge expectations before our stay at this resort - and why not to have expectations when you stay at Taj (One of the most premium brands of Indian Hotels).

Reservation: I had done my booking through a online portal. For hotel confirmation i mailed them numerous times - but no response, finally i had to call the hotel and seek confirmation for my reservation. I spoke to gaurav and he assured me best of services. Further i requested him a sea view room - he assured to give me one if available.

Check In: We checked in early and were well received by Rajesh. We requested rajesh for a sea view room - as they hotel was packed he gave us an garden view room in the new wing. Disappointed by the view i called the front desk and spoke to rajeev on the front desk. He assured me a sea view room post 3 pm checkouts. At 3 pm we were shifted to another room - again with no sea view. I called rajeev again - he reassured me a sea view room at 4pm. At 430pm we were again shifted to a room in the same wing with sea approximately a thousands meters off sight - could spot some patches of water in-between palm trees. Tired - i didnt call back the front desk. 'The point i want to make is - Dont make commitments if you cannot fulfill them.'

Day 2: Most of the sea view rooms were empty but no one bothered to shift us.

Service: The service was totally UNLIKE TAJ. There was no coordination in the resort. They almost ruined our special evening when our reserved table at upper deck restaurant was given to other guest. The buggy used to take ages to arrive - There was no coordination between the front desk to the restaurants, room service etc. Obviously when a property is so miss-managed you cannot expect something special for yourself or your special day. The most ridiculous part was they charge for the cycles - Hahaha havent come across such resorts. They were far more concerned in entertaining bigger groups rather than smaller families or couples. I must recommend down-the-line staff (House Keeping) were far more cooperative and hard working than the rest.

Beach : The property is blessed with a beautiful patch of sand but again the beach cleaners are lazy bums. We spent most of our time on the beach and we saw a staff of 20+ beach cleaners chit chatting, Result - Wasted Potential.

Restaurants : We found that the main restaurant Seagull had the best food and service to offer. We also tried the bay view restaurant - okayish food and service. For our special day we were asked to reserve our table at their 3rd restaurant Upper Deck. We did so a day prior. When we arrived at the restaurant there was no table was reserved for us. This is after 3 confirmations calls to rajeev and prasanna each. Our mood was totally ruined. Manager Pavan - tried his best - even offered us a free dinner as an apology, but money doesnt count when your special evenings are ruined, right?

I WOULD NOT RECOMMEND THIS PROPERTY TO CELEBRATE ANY OF YOUR SPECIAL OCCASIONS.

Rooms: The rooms were average - again not of 5star standards. There are newer resorts around with better rooms at better price.

Check Out: Finally met gaurav & rajesh at the front desk, they prepared my invoice - but no one cared to ask for my experience our did bid my a safe journey.

Why 2 stars then? : I was impressed by Mr. Pavan the way he handled my stay post my disappointing dinner at Upper Deck. He tried his best to give me some positives.

My Suggestions: Need to train staff, hire younger people who can gel with the beach atmosphere, keep dedicated buggy for each wing, improve internal coordination, keep away sluggish employees, Few quality staff is better than many many lazy bums, hire a beach cleaning agency, make beach side restaurants more vibrant, lastly have responsible people at the front desk

Final Words, "only eat as much as you can chew" dont expand or overcrowd the hotel/resort more than you can manage it. We as customers expect value for our hard earned money from a brand like Taj.

I am deeply saddened by the way this brilliantly located property functions - I now believe what Mr. Cyrus Mistry said about TATA's unprofessionalism - you can experience it at Vinvanta by Taj - Fisherman's Cove.

I have stayed many other Taj properties - but Fisherman's Cove is completely unlike a Taj Experience.

Photo of Vivanta by Taj - Fishermans Cove, Kovalam, Tamil Nadu, India by SAMsTRAVELOGY