An Indian YouTuber had recently expressed his disappointment with the lack of hospitality in American hotels. Ishan Sharma, aged 22, stated that he was shocked when he was charged a staggering $14.99 (Rs 1,258) for a bottle of water at 2 am at Las Vegas's iconic Caesars Palace Hotel. He said that he was "spoilt with Taj hotels in India." His post quickly went viral online and started a debate about the different hospitality standards between the two nations. The hotel took note of the incident and offered him a free upgrade.
The Bengaluru-based creator took to X (formerly Twitter) and said, "Thank you Caesar's Palace for the upgrade. I'm glad you heard me. Really excited for the next few days!... Staff was really helpful this time." He also shared a few pictures from his new room alongside a picture from the hotel lobby where the staff members were seen helping him with his bags.
Responding to the post, the five-star hotel said, "We're excited to have you at our resort! We appreciate you taking the time to reach out. Feel free to message us if anything else is needed. We hope you have a great rest of your time in Las Vegas."
Earlier, Mr Sharma had said that the hotel staff had a complete lack of empathy and that American hotels were his biggest cultural shock. "'My biggest culture shock - American Hotels. They just don't get hospitality. Funny how they ask for tips but won't even give complimentary water. I stayed at 3 star, 4 star AND today 5 star hotel (Caesar's Palace) Maybe I'm spoilt with Taj hotels in India. But basic things like helping with luggage, being accomodating were missing. I checked in at 2 am tired from the flight and asked for a glass of water, they said "It's $14.99 for a 200ml bottle you can buy it". And this is a $200 per night hotel! Complete lack of empathy. Unbelievable! Never expected this,'' Ishan Sharma wrote on August 12.
Since being shared, his post has amassed a lot of reactions on the microblogging platform.
"A social media post can have biggest institutions do a little introspection haha," said a user.
Another added, "This is a great gesture by the hotel!"
"Nice one Ishan , hope they also gave you plenty of water, Influencer power works every time," said a third.
"Indian hospitality standards are by far the highest, indian brands must take this lead...we can be a global leader in this sector...." said a person.
Another added, "Ishan, America understands hospitality differently !! Whether it be planes, hotels, Restaraunt's, ships etc It's been so for decades. Their concept is just to provide the basic facilities, unlike in Asia / India where we are spoilt by Airlines hotels and the like with extras."
A sixth said, "Indian hotels are 1000 times better than European and American hotels. We get extra complimentary services, plus it's true that outside hotels don't even provide water bottles daily."
"Hospitality standards across most developed places in Asia are much better than the US," remarked another person.
