Hotel experiences

[johnh]

A thread to highlight your annoying, amusing, weird and embarrassing experiences when staying at a hotel.

Two to start.

When I was a young lad living in Leeds, my firm sent me to London on a course. They booked me into the St. Ermine's Hotel, a very large hotel in the centre of London. (Check the website). When I got to my room (I once counted how many steps I took between the lift and my room - 180!) I noted that the restaurant opened at 7.30 pm. Being a punctual lad, I entered the restaurant bang on 7.30. It was a huge room with probably 100 or so tables. A very high ceiling with large ornate columns and chandeliers. The other notable thing was that it was completely empty. I was not aware that people in London didn't eat until late evening, after the opera finished etc., A very smart and important looking man approached me (I later found out it was the Maitre de'). He guided me to a table, clicked his fingers and as if by magic, two waiters appeared. From then on, I had instantaneous service from all three. I had soup, main meal and sweet, plus coffee. I thanked them and left, the restaurant was still empty. Never felt so uncomfortable and embarrassed in my short life.

The second is the polar opposite.
I was staying at a hotel/pub in a market town in Lincolnshire. I booked in at the desk and the owner of the hotel, who was there, said he would show me to my room. When we got to the room, there was no door, just an opening on to the passageway. I asked what was going on with the door and he said it had been damaged and was being fixed. I told him I wasn't going to stay in a room with no door and he tried to convince me that it wouldn't be a problem. I picked up my bag and told him I would find somewhere else to stay. He then, reluctantly, managed to find me a room with a door.

Did a lot of hotel staying when I was working, so some more may come to mind.

[yorkfan]

Whenever we go away, my missus insists on taking her turbocharged hairdryer in her luggage, as "those hotel ones are useless", though I've often remarked that it seems a bit over the top.

Years ago, staying in Esbjerg, in Denmark, we're getting set to go out for the evening, when the room is plunged into darkness.

I stuck my head out the door, to find the corridor blacked out too.

Yep, her V6 powered beast had tripped the fuses somewhere.

A wee chap appeared with a torch to reset things, and I just shrugged at him, as if I had no clue as to what had happened.

Back into our room, and I thought it best not to smirk.

[Davycc]

I spent the worst 3 days of my entire life in a hotel room ... sorry I lie, it was 3 days in the toilet. Sunny beach Bulgaria.

[johnh]

Another comes to mind. In 1969 after several months living in the south, we went back up to Leeds to visit relatives. I had the week off so we decided to take the two young lads to Southport for two or three days. I had bought some new casual wear and was feeling a real 'jack the lad'. We hadn't booked anywhere so just drove round having a look. We saw a hotel that looked decent so I pulled into the car park and went inside. I said to the receptionist 'do you have any vacancies?' She looked me up and down and said 'what, for work?'

[kk white]

Hurricane Katrina (the costliest tropical cyclone on record) had us locked into our hotel for 1 day / 2 nights during our honeymoon in 2005.

We were staying in the Loews Hotel, South Beach, Miami. I stood out on the balcony as the storm passed over, but it was all bit underwhelming. Concrete city one side, the ocean on the other, nothing really to gauge the power of the storm.

Hotel enforced the lock-down. After spending a fortune on the room, they gave us a free movie each night... WOW!

[mapperleywhite]

1984 was my first visit behind the Iron Curtain to Czechoslovakia on business.

I had to take the train from Prague to Plzen, a distance of 75 miles. I was given the option of a regular train or the express, so I opted for the latter (but declined the offer of first class and went in comrade class). The journey took the best part of three hours - I expect the regular train is still on its way.......

My hotel was called 'Sloven' - I could easily imagine that here was the origin of the word slovelnly as it was pretty grim with old-fashioned fixtures and fittings along with noisey plumbing.

Nothing much of note happened except I remember one thing. I was reading my newspaper in bed before nodding off and I turned the page to the editorial where there was a viscious attack on the Soviet Union and all of a sudden the reading lamp went off. Was I under surveillence? I've always wondered.......

[NottinghamWhite]

We have a few stories.

Quito we had a full gun battle going on between a local gang & the police outside the hotel
Tulca (Rumania ) I had 2 prostitutes had me pinned against the wall in our hotel bar with the pimp sat watching on cleaning his fingernails with a huge Bowie knife.
Muscat having to buy beer on the black market. Went to The Hilton to eat one night & a bottle of Chablis was over £40
Again in Oman opening the bedroom door to find it was full of mosquitos, they moved our room. In our new room we pulled the bed clothes back & they were minging. The manager arranged for new sheets ( which were still packed ) but this only revealed the mattress which was dreadful. Ever since then we always take a sleeping bag liner just in case.
Cairns through family & friends we were upgraded to a penthouse suite with views over the barrier reef.

I’ll think of some more later

[NottinghamWhite]

Ethiopia we stayed in an old communist Russian Sputnik hotel where all the front of house staff wore old British rail uniforms which in most cases were several sizes too big.
Phoenix we went in our hotel bar where we met a local who was in for happy hour. He took us under our wing & for the next 3 hours visited 3 different bars all with their happy hours on. What a hangover next morning.

[johnh]

I was on business in the States and was staying in a Howard Johnson in Atlanta. I was with two colleagues and when we were booking in at reception, the receptionist said 'who has got the ground floor room?' I said 'me'. She said 'make sure the patio window is locked as we had a policeman shot and killed in the car park last week'.

[Selby White]

Toured Cuba about 5 years back and although the Hotels were all decent standard you could guarantee at least one thing wouldn't be working whether its the Lifts, all the lights in your room, hot water for your shower, etc. You'll get some of them but in the 6 or 7 hotels we stopped at never all of them.
Understandable as its so difficult for them to get spares for anything that breaks.

Must admit I've been lucky that most hotels I've stayed at tick the 2 important boxes, Clean & Safe. Think the likes of TripAdvisor helps when you can research through reviews.

Remember staying at a B & B near Ullapool and they had a Pet sheep. Apparently its mother died and it had been brought up with their dogs and actually behaved like it was a dog.

Once had a Light Fitting fall of the ceiling in the middle of the night for no good reason, was in bed and it swung down hanging on the wire just missing me. It was a 4 star hotel and we had to move rooms at 3am but to be fair they refunded us the stay.