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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

To think hotel designers should at least have once slept in a room before being allowed to design a room.

291 replies

FucksakeLavender · 22/09/2026 21:28

I travel a lot for work and for pleasure.

I know I'm a particular sort of person buy Yegods some of the room I've stayed in at complete abs utter shite designed by people who I don't think have ever slept I. A room ever on their whole life ever, not once.

A bathroom light that comes on by sensor as you open the door. Nay, not A bathroom light, four lights. 3am snoozy wee completely brightened like the sun. No chance of just meandering back in my slightly soporific stupor.

And more poor DH who didn't even need to be awake now has frazzled corneas.

Light switches that you can't reach from prone in bed. What the warrant feck.

A kettle that yiu can't boil at the same time as watching tv because of the situation of sockets.

A 12foot by 8 foot plate glass window opposite my bed looking out into a communal outdoor space. Felt like investing in a red bulb for that hotel.

Lights choice? 13 spotlights and 2 side lights. Or nothing. No in between.

A very very stylish en suite in an historic building which was just a stone wall 2/3 of the height of the room. No ceiling to it. All ablution noise audible throughout the room. Married 35 years but, nope I'd rather not hear That tyfvfm.

A door that only locks from a single key from outside the room. So if one of use goes out for a bit, the other has to remain locked in. Or unlocked, compromising safety.

No handheld shower, and no shower cap provided. Nope I don't want my hair washed every time I shower thank you.

Had held showers with no parking location so it's a one handed shower for me, generally resulting in a soaked bathroom ffffs.

No socket near the bed.

No food on a Sunday evening.

No physical chain or bolt in the inside of the door.

A chair in the route from my side of the bed to the en suite. I'm sure I've broken toes in this scenario.

Every hotel employee should be forced to spend a nice in each room to check for smooth sailing.

OP posts:
GellerYeller · 23/09/2026 07:52

Hangers! Turning a one second job into an act of contortion to get the pin back in the slot 😡😡😡

BuffysBigSister · 23/09/2026 07:48

The huge plate glass window onto a communal space wasn't in Basel was it? I stayed in a (lovely) hotel there but there was a giant window right onto the cafe seating area!

ChocolateCinderToffee · 23/09/2026 07:47

Frenemies · 23/09/2026 07:31

I only ever use fixed shower heads and have never had to get into contortions to wash my bum! Wash with soap and then the water runs down your back and does the job, surely? I have hand showers in my house but only ever used to wash the dog!

Well you’re the only person on this thread that thinks that.

WearyLady · 23/09/2026 07:44

Fridges that aren’t actually cold.

PussyGaylore · 23/09/2026 07:44

The glass bathroom - who wants to see their partner using the facilities. I couldn’t believe what I was seeing the first time I saw this but it’s happened a few times - it’s a thing- why??

TheodoreisntBeth · 23/09/2026 07:44

Everyone hates see through bathrooms so much, there's a website so you can rule them out when looking for a hotel:

https://bringbackdoors.com/

Bring Back Doors

Bring Bathroom Doors Back to Hotels

https://bringbackdoors.com

Lentilcakes · 23/09/2026 07:38

Also duvets that are 100 tog(!) in a Mediterranean climate - wtf - I just want a sheet over me!

Newusername2026 · 23/09/2026 07:37

Agree with most of these. Also lack of shelves / drawers for non hanging clothes. And those annoying hangers attached to the rail

Lentilcakes · 23/09/2026 07:36

Air con that doesn’t work so room is roasting by the morning and/or windows that open 1 cm so no air gets in.

Totally with you on the shower thing. I was in an Airbnb before DC graduation with a shower like that after I’d spent £100 getting my hair cut/coloured so basically had to have a flannel wash!!

RampantIvy · 23/09/2026 07:34

TroysMammy · 23/09/2026 07:19

I've only recently used a few UK Travelodges and I haven't found any problems mentioned above. Perhaps I need to get out more.

We tend to stay in Premier Inns. They always provide mugs, not tiny cups. The beds are very comfortable, the rooms are a decent size, there is always a counter in the bathroom to put your toilet bag on, they don't have glass walled bathrooms (who on earth thought it was a good idea? Literally no-one likes them) and hooks to hang up coats.

Luxury it isn't and I don't like their lukewarm buffet breakfasts, but they seem to have fewer negatives than other places.

I always take my own soap, shower cap, shampoo and conditioner whenever I stay away anywhere. I also take a washing up sponge because Premier Inns don't do the rooms while you are staying there, but I don't have a problem with that.

Iamnotalemming · 23/09/2026 07:34

May I add:

100 different lights, all on when you arrive, all with different switches, so it takea 30 mins to work out how to turn them all off.

TV with large red light when turned OFF, in line of sight from bed, with switch hidden in panelling SO YOU CAN'T TURN IT OFF.

In one particularly weird place I stayed once the drawer with the hairdryer in couldn't be fully opened because it butted up against another bit of furniture so you couldn't get it out. So they put the hair dryer in first and then moved the furniture into place to stop it being opened!

Whalespotting · 23/09/2026 07:34

I’d like to add:
A full length mirror as you step out of the shower. It could have at least steamed up!
a room where the only mirrors are in the bathroom so I can’t get ready in the evening whilst dh showers.

Frenemies · 23/09/2026 07:31

ChocolateCinderToffee · 23/09/2026 07:08

No hook in the bathroom and nowhere to leave your toiletry bag. A double whammy.

FIXED SHOWER HEADS ARE FROM HELL. I’m 64 and don’t want to have to do downward-facing dog in the shower to wash my bum - even if there’s space which there won’t be.

Shower cubicles so small you can’t bend to wash your feet.

Rooms where you can’t adequately open the window.

First prize goes to the hotel where the central heating was jammed on full during an August heatwave and the owner implied that I was being unreasonable to complain about it.

I only ever use fixed shower heads and have never had to get into contortions to wash my bum! Wash with soap and then the water runs down your back and does the job, surely? I have hand showers in my house but only ever used to wash the dog!

PetiteParakeet · 23/09/2026 07:30

Tripadvisor is useful for weeding out hotel rooms with see-through bathroom walls or no bathroom door (the horror!).

PetiteParakeet · 23/09/2026 07:28

KindlySurfiingPlatypus · 23/09/2026 06:42

If you travel a lot surely your travel kit contains the various gadgets you need to combat many of these common issues though?

I always take -
A very low wattage nightlight (USB rechargable) so that I can switch off the sensor-activated bathroom electronics (if its not glaring lights its a noisy fan) usually with an isolator switch at ceiling height and just use my nightlight.

A multiplug in case there are insufficient sockets

A 5m long usb wire in case a aocket isn't near the bed

A hotel door security gadget set (similar to https://www.amazon.co.uk/Portable-3-Piece-Security-Compact-Stopper/dp/B0F2Y9QNZL/ though this isn't the exact set I have

I haven't found a gadget that combats the annoyance of fixed-head showers. I think thats a misogyny thing - male bathroom designers have never had to pay attention to how to wash the underside of ones boobs and don't need as much of a wash between the legs so it simply doesn't occur to them that other people have different needs.

The other thing I hate is insufficient towelling. I admit it's on me that I do have a larger than average circumference but too many places (airbnbs more than hotels tbh) have their "large" towels sized so that you'd have to be a size 10 or less to get one fully wrapped around you. Depending on where I'm staying I either bring my own decent-sized towel or rely on being able to beg extras at reception.

I agree only having fixed overhead showers is a male designer thing, especially because it doesn’t occur to them that many women have hair longer than an inch or so and might want to keep it dry in the shower

jeaux90 · 23/09/2026 07:28

Travel for work and leisure alot too I thought it was just me!!

My biggest bug is lighting and sockets near a mirror. Or when they actually do have one of those small light up mirrors for makeup it’s too high and you can’t tilt it. I take my own now.

Also when you walk in and it has your name on the TV. Just weird.

Yes to being driven nuts by tucked in duvet, anyone who likes that is a sociopath.

Frenemies · 23/09/2026 07:25

This reminds me of a cheap hotel I stayed at many years ago - sharing room with a friend. The ensuit was walled off with that ‘one way’ glazing where you can only see through it in one direction. Except it had been installed the wrong way around … ie you couldn’t see out of the bathroom while in it, but anyone could see into the whole bathroom from the room. Brilliant 😂

Sausagenbacon · 23/09/2026 07:23

Great thread.
I'll also add that designers don't seem to read in bed. So often the side lights are much too dim to read by.
And, when I'm queen of the world, I'll rule that ALL showers have the same controls.

GellerYeller · 23/09/2026 07:22

Bjorkdidit · 23/09/2026 03:45

DP and I both travel for work and have a shared hatred of the inadequacy of those toasters where not one is set at the correct speed to turn bread into toast so you get either stale bread or sheets of carbon if you try a second pass through.

One hotel I use regularly for work actually has a sign telling people that it is set to the correct speed and to not mess with the settings (hotel is just down the road from a science park so they probably get lots of guests who are engineers who feel duty bound to correct the problem).

Of course it isn't set to the correct speed so I may have WhatsApped DP a picture captioned Lies! All LIES! as per the scene from Austin Powers.

Love this! You’re so right. Have you ever seen someone put a croissant through one?!

badkitty · 23/09/2026 07:22

Open plan bathrooms with no door - just why WHY!!

countrylifeorcitylife · 23/09/2026 07:19

SleeplessRoads · 23/09/2026 07:04

This might derail, but it’s bad for your skin to shower every day too ;)

Is it!? Never knew that. I stink if I don’t shower so I’ll take it 🤪

TroysMammy · 23/09/2026 07:19

I've only recently used a few UK Travelodges and I haven't found any problems mentioned above. Perhaps I need to get out more.

MagnusSkipton · 23/09/2026 07:18

The worst bit of design I came across was a windowless bathroom with lights that were movement sensitive which in itself isn’t great for a drowsy midnight pee but that wasn’t the big problem. The big problem was that the sensors didn’t cover the shower cubicle so I was plunged into darkness with my hair full of shampoo. Nearly broke my neck trying to exit the shower cubicle 🤦🏻‍♀️.

MadellineBellPictureMeGoneNS · 23/09/2026 07:16

Multiple cushions on the bed pita.

BirdsongSunshine · 23/09/2026 07:12

Every day hair washer here (fine, straight, greasy as fuck hair) and I’m not weird! After 56 years of trying all different kinds of combinations, products, not washing it etc, it’s far easier to wash it. Takes no time to dry, dries straight. Basically wash and ‘almost’ go.

I also don’t think people are weird if they shower and don’t wash their hair.

My bugbear used to be only having two secondary pillows when there’s three people in a room! We all are two pillow people! It was pot luck managing to obtain a third pillow!

Also the later checking in times (since Covid) but now with an option to pay extra for early check in!