To think that if you can't control your children, you shouldn't come to hotels?

[HomeIsWhereTheGinIs]

DH and I are currently staying at a very nice boutique hotel in the countryside. It's been a hell of a busy year and so the idea was to treat ourselves to a couple of days somewhere luxurious and to do lots of reading and sleeping. However, we're staying at a place that's converted old outbuildings into suites, two suites to a building. And the family next door have the two noisiest children on the face of the planet.

Yesterday morning we were working up by the children shrieking to one another and then for their mother (it appeared she'd pushed them out into the communal stairwell to play). A phone complaint later to reception and the noise ceased (and they glared at us every time they passed us in the hotel). But damage done, we were already awake (and given that I am exhausted all the time from this pregnancy, it was awful not being able to go back to sleep). Yesterday evening, exactly the same thing. Screaming children sent to "play" on the stairs and landing outside our room where they screamed, ran around and then got into an actual fight (complete with shouted insults and wails for a parent). It happened again this morning at 7am (there goes our lie-in) and this time the call to reception had no effect.

I'm really cross that I haven't been able to have a lie-in because of their lazy parenting. I remember going to hotels with my family when I was small and my mother coming down on me very hard when I was too loud and in danger of disturbing the other guests. They're the only children at the hotel and their running and screaming in the library yesterday was attracting frowns from every other couple there. AIBU to hate the parents of the noisy brats for being so selfish and entitled? My feeling is that when you have kids, you don't get to just ignore behaviour that might be ruining an experience for other people.

[Bahhhhhumbug]

Pag Ok then , right you are.

[Bahhhhhumbug]

How about playing Daleks with the wheelie bins ?

No?

[NewtRipley]

Don't worry OP, once you've had the baby, and you dare to think other people's parenting is lazy or inconsiderate, there will be some saying:

"What do you know, you only have a PFB/you only have one child/you only have a toddler/you only have a Primary school age child etc etc...."

[Misspixietrix]

Ive already explained it Cliff. Im not going to repeatedly bang my head against the wall explain the same point over again. I have a life to live and stairwells to play on

[Pagwatch]

Daleks with wheelie bins sounds magnificent. I have Nerf guns..

[YouTheCat]

I've got 3 wheelie bins and a catapult and a plunger.

[Pagwatch]

[Pixel]

What's SN got to do with anything? Surely if they chucked children with SN out into the corridor they are even worse parents than we previously thought .

[feelingfuckingfestiveok]

BAM BAM BAM

[CeliaLytton]

Before I was a parent I hoped that I would act to curb tantrums. Now that I am a parent, I do act to curb tantrums, as does every other parent friend of mine. I read that as meaning that OP would try to distract/reason with/remove DC from a situation, or even ignore if that was the best tactic, but that whatever she did would be done with the intent of limiting the tantrum and its effect on others.

OP you were not being smug. You rightly have an idea of how you would like to parent and although you seem aware that kids will tantrum/be noisy/embarrass you in public places, you are already thinking about how to encourage good behaviour and an idea of how to behave in social situations, which I think will stand you in good stead to be a pretty great parent.

Good luck with everything, enjoy your new baby!

[SDTGisAnEvilWolefGenius]

When HomeIs said she would 'act to curb tantrums' - I didn't read that as her saying that she believes she will always succeed in curbing those tantrums - but that she WILL be trying. I see nothing arrogant or ignorant about that.

[Bahhhhhumbug]

Pagwatch, Feeling Festive and You the Cat

We could do with two big plungers to stick on front and flashing lights , great fun. Which nice quiet posh hotel should we attack book in to?

Just had horrible thought though - Daleks couldn't climb stairs if l remember rightly (or did they correct that) so we would have to take them up and down in the lift.

[Bahhhhhumbug]

OMG. Daleks can hover upstairs?

Thanks , that'll be me waking up screaming tonight

[YouTheCat]

Yes, Daleks now come with a hover function.

[MinesAPintOfTea]

Cab I have a darlek with a hoover function please?

[YouTheCat]

That would be better - they could do the stairs. I hate hoovering the stairs or anything .

[sandfrog]

What's a "boutique hotel"?

[happytalk13]

YANBU to expect to not be woken up by children being sent out to play on the hotel landing unsupervised - the parents are lazy and inconsiderate.

YABU for calling them brats.

[Bahhhhhumbug]

Is this an official Dr Who Dalek deterrent then ?

" shove a lemon up their sink plunger "

[Bahhhhhumbug]

I am going to adopt that as my default threat to anyone who pisses me off from now on.

'Stop that or I'll shove a lemon up yer sink plunger'

I imagine this will be their reaction >

Not sure how l will explain it though if queried

[HomeIsWhereTheGinIs]

My apologies that I disappeared completely from this thread - I was sitting back and watching with interest and have learnt various things from this post (such as what to call POs!).

I'm glad that so many people seem to think that the children shouldn't have been turfed out and thank you, those of you who were kind enough to say that you didn't think IWBU. And also for those of you that thought it was a good idea to intend to bring up children with some manners. For what it's worth, I will try to bring my children up to be polite and respectful. And if they're being noisy I'll take the advice of some posters here and take them out for a walk or distract them (note the use of the word try in all this) because nothing is worse than a badly-behaved child than one with parents making no attempt to stop it. But I can guarantee I'll never just shove them outside where they won't bother me but will bother other people.

I have to say, this thread has made me love MN - thank you all! Some of you were very kind - and it did make me feel better about the weekend to know that I wasn't just being a pregnant grouch!