Working away from home - hotel packing

[HappyHarlot]

Next year I will be doing a course through work where I shall be stopping in a hotel Monday to Friday for about ten weeks.

I shall be travelling by train, so only want to take a small case. What are your must haves to make life easier? I shall be taking laptop, phone and kindle and probably some decent coffee. Any other suggestions welcomed.

Ear plugs
Extension lead
Nice mug

Extension lead is a good idea. I'm not good with ear plugs but might take some for emergencies.

Silicon earplugs are much nicer OP.

I’d take my own minibar snacks / drinks.

Nice bubble bath etc. Possibly some breakfast things as I wouldn’t want the same hotel breakfast every day.

Would the hotel let you leave a small bag there? It would drive me mad having to take my hairdryer / wash bag / dressing gown back and forth.

I wouldn’t bother with food unless this hotel is massively out in the sticks. I’d rather grab a packet of biscuits at my convenience than lug some about on the train.

Depends what you normally do of an evening really. I take my personal laptop so I can play games if I’m away for longer than a single night. Other than that, kindle, charging cables and extension, hairdryer, and the normal clothes and cosmetics.

Buy some pots to decant any cosmetics into. You can get them from Superdrug for pots but amazon is best for silicone squeezy bottles. But easier than taking a massive thing of shampoo or whatever every week.

Antibacterial wipes.

Painkillers.

Pillowcase.

Check with the hotel about iron, hairdryer etc.

Dettol - wipe phone, door handles and remote control. Clean bath.
Own mug
Pillowcase
Slippers
Earplugs
Milk (if you have a mini bar)
Teabags
Chocolate

What kind of hotel is it?

Most have everything that you need, even the more basic brands.

Why would you need an extension? Hotels have loads of plugs and usually by the bed, on the desk etc

You can usually leave a bag. I had a printer and stuff left at a London hotel for at least a year. I spend 200 nights a year in hotels.

A plastic bowl, knife/fork/spoon, reusable cup so you can buy food and eat in your room. I used to spend a lot of time away for work by myself and being able to pick up something to eat real food was great as eating restaurant food all the time is very boring . Also having a decent sized drink - I pick up a pint of milk on the way back to have as much tea as I want.
Def take a multi charger and an extension lead - some hotel rooms are really badly laid out with no plug near the bed.
Download things to watch when you are there. The wifi is almost always painfully slow
When I have a lot of alone time I pack a pair of comfy leggings and a top to sit around in as it can be a bit depressing spending from 5.30 onwards on your own in your pjs somehow. I also do try and get out for a walk if its safe. Hotel staff are always v helpful on guidance on this

When I did this I bought duplicates of all my toiletries and just kept them in a wash bag so that I didn’t have to pack and unpack them every week. When you have to pack every week anything that helps to minimise it is worth doing.

You can get amazon and ocado (or tesco etc) orders direct the hotel as well.

A plastic bowl, knife/fork/spoon, reusable cup so you can buy food and eat in your room.

Even a travelodge gives you these items if you ask. No need to take your own.

I have a duplicate set of everything ready to go. Toiletries (fly and non fly bags). Chargers (bagged by UK, EU USA other). Pjs and underwear. laptop cable. Hair straighteners.

You need a good recce of the hotel to know what the rooms have.

I do take a sanitary towel to one hotel to stick over the flashing light above the bed from the detector (I dont block the sensor just cover the light)

Films and workout videos on a memory stick.

I went through a phase of taking a small keyboard with me - was learning to play and had lots of spare hours to fill

I've taken a small plastic (lightweight) chopping board and sharp knife, as well as a tall plastic beaker and a decent mug. The mug because the cups are way too small and the beaker to put fhowers in (cheers up the room!). It gets very samey eating out all the time. Sounds good, but in reality not so much, so I'd pick up all sorts of bits and bobs for an evening meal and have a main meal at the client's site (usually works out cheaper because not only does the eating out get samey it gets expensive).

Disposable slippers if the hotel doesn't provide them. Hotel floors even in good hotels are dirty.

If it's a cheap/ less than 5 star hotel and its not too inconvenient, I'd think about taking your own pillow for 10 days. That's a long time with a lumpy piece of cheap fibre filled pillow. Good hotels have nice pillows so you don't need to worry about this if its upmarket.

Anti-bac wipes to clean the remote control, phone and light switches.

Some brilliant suggestions guys, thank you!

It helps as it needs a bit more thought than bikinis and flipflops (likely to be Manchester so no need for either of those).

Which hotel in Manchester?

DH and I have probably done most of them between us in the past year!

Phone charger

I travel for work a lot. Hotels will normally let you borrow a knife, fork, plate, if you don’t want to eat out every night. M&S salads can be a life savour. I always take a cork screw and a wine bottle stopper too.

Has the hotel been chosen for you/allocated to you? If not consider looking for one that has a room fridge. An apart hotel with a studio room and kitchenette is even better.

And for me, a small bullet vibey is a must ! Relaxation time is important.

What works best for me (I work away on long contracts most of the year) is to find a hotel that will keep a bag over the weekend (not Premier Inn☹️). Saves having to transport spare clothes and all of the things that PPs have suggested to make things easier to and fro each week. Over the months the bag does tend to get bigger though as I accumulate more stuff.

Slippers. Hotel floors never get cleaned properly

Also - a stock of cold remedies, pain killers, etc. Nothing worse than waking up in a hotel and not feeling too well.

When I did this I bought duplicates of all my toiletries and just kept them in a wash bag so that I didn’t have to pack and unpack them every week.

Came here to say this. I also did the same with chargers (phone, laptop, toothbrush etc) and a small first aid bag with plasters and painkillers etc.

All three bags just get out into the suitcase with whatever clothes you need for the week.

Why would you need an extension?

Literally hundreds of premier inn rooms only have 3 sockets and they are all beside the tv, nothing on the opposite wall where you actually need your charger for phone etc. The hotels marked 'new rooms' have better facilities and the hotels that have been taken over from previous owners will be different, but standard older style rooms do not have enough plugs in the right place. So yes, an extension is a very very good call.

If it's a cheap/ less than 5 star hotel

You'll only need the trousers/skirts you travel in, plus one.
Yes to charger, slippers and bag with toiletries just for travel.
Roll up or Kondo fold your clothes to pack.

What are you going to do in the evenings? I stay away occasionally but always get very claustrophobic just sitting in my room so try to pack a pair of trainers so I can at least go for a brisk walk and get some air.