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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

Minibar £35

102 replies

Sandinmytoes · 16/04/2016 03:58

To think you shouldn't just blindly help yourself to the minbar when someone else is paying?

£35 for a vodka/tonic- extortionate
I don't mind paying for a beer @ £4 or a juice but that's ridiculous.

She hasn't realised and now I have to bring it up- which is just awkward

OP posts:

notonyurjellybellynelly · 16/04/2016 19:49

I get you OP. Its like when you tell someone to help themselves to cake or something and they help themselves to the extent there's none left for you. Its the lack of thought behind it.

Skittlesss · 16/04/2016 19:54

On a side note, I just Googled your hotel (being nosey) and omg it is gorgeous :) is the design as fab in real life?

Need to drop some pretty big hints to hubby methinks.

Original poster

Sandinmytoes · 16/04/2016 20:02

It's very special
Service is amazing.
You can get some very good deals

OP posts:

notonyurjellybellynelly · 16/04/2016 20:23

Skittless, The Jumeirah Beach is a lovely hotel even though its not as great as it was when first built years ago - which was long before Emirates Holidays started to use it as a hotel of choice. The level of service has gone downhill but its still our first hotel of choice if we're nipping up to Dubai for longer than a weekend. I actually love the place and I've loads of happy memories stretching back to when my two youngest were children, and now with my grandchildren. We go back time and time again because its only a few hours up the road from us and if we've ever tried another hotel we've usually checked out after a day and gone back to what we know and love the most.

In fact Im having a really nice wander down memory lane here

fascicle · 16/04/2016 20:40

Sandinmytoes
Why's it relevant?

It's a bit misleading, including the prices in £s, without mentioning you're in Dubai. Lots of responses have questioned how the prices could be so high, and whether an error was made. The fact that you're in Dubai puts the prices into context.

My point was wherever you are surely you look at the prices before you take any drink from the minibar?

I would expect alcohol and alcohol prices to have come up beforehand if you're visiting/drinking in Dubai.

GoringBit · 16/04/2016 20:56

My point was wherever you are surely you look at the prices before you take any drink from the minibar?

I would, and especially if someone else was paying.

edwinbear · 16/04/2016 22:02

We are going to Atlantis, The Palm in the summer. I have made a mental note to step away from the minibar.

Original poster

Sandinmytoes · 17/04/2016 03:11

So if I'd said 170 dirhams, it would have been ok? Odd
It didn't occur to me not to convert the currency for you all.
I think then maybe it would have been "well how much is that?"

Alcohol prices hadn't come up.
I've been here a dozen times and alcohol being expensive is not the first thing I think of.
It was never about alcohol prices in Dubai, it was about looking at minibar prices before you drink.

OP posts:

Canyouforgiveher · 17/04/2016 03:36

*My point was wherever you are surely you look at the prices before you take any drink from the minibar?

I would, and especially if someone else was paying.*

Exactly. It doesn't matter where you are in the world minibar prices are always hiked up madly. I have never had anything from one in my many years of travel - last vestiges of my frugal upbringing.

I stayed in a very very fancy hotel in Miami (for work) and there was a notice in the room saying it was forbidden to bring alcohol purchased outside the hotel into the rooms. I wanted to leave a note saying "does Sr. Bernadette from my old primary school make the "rules" for this hotel? Will she take the ruler to me if I bring in a bottle of beer?" The minibar was exhorbitant, the bars were similar but you could buy a bottle of mediocre ten dollar wine for 50 dollars in the gift shop!

My credit card got scammed in the same hotel. But then miami is a strange place anyway.

Sounds lovely though OP and glad you said it to your sister.

fascicle · 17/04/2016 10:14

Sandinmytoes
So if I'd said 170 dirhams, it would have been ok? Odd
It didn't occur to me not to convert the currency for you all.
I think then maybe it would have been "well how much is that?"

It's not about providing/converting the currency. But by giving (extortionate sounding) prices in £s and not mentioning you were in Dubai, many people assumed you were somewhere in the UK and responded accordingly.

mouldycheesefan · 17/04/2016 10:23

Ah ok Dubai.
Yes would have been helpful to say that and thus avoid thr many posts querying the price as for uk or Europe it would be likley an error.

Original poster

Sandinmytoes · 17/04/2016 10:30

Well you're missing my point completely
But never mind

OP posts:

sahddad · 17/04/2016 10:36

YANBU

TheFlis12345 · 17/04/2016 10:44

£8 is a bit different to £33 for one drink.

Miniatures are normally 50ml so intended to be used to mix 2 drinks.

If she used 2 of those bottles in one drink, I'd be more concerned about her knocking back quadruple vodkas than the cost!

fascicle · 17/04/2016 10:49

Sandinmytoes
Well you're missing my point completely

I don't think so. There were two and a half pages of responses, many commenting on the extortionate prices, suggesting an error etc, before you mentioned Dubai. Not providing that detail coloured the responses you got.

With regards to your question about your sister and the minibar, I would have thought anybody visiting Dubai, and intending to drink alcohol there, might be aware of/give consideration to the price of alcohol ahead of the trip. So if your sister is 'not very responsible', and you are kindly paying for her, didn't you prime her beforehand?

BoomBoomsCousin · 17/04/2016 10:52

I wouldn't necessarily look at the price if someone else was paying (seems rude to be sort of totaling up the amount) but I would ask if it was alright to drink from the minibar. You say she had a beer before, so maybe she just thought you were OK with whatever minibar proces are. If she's a bit clueless she wouldn't necessarily know it was going to be much higher than the bar and if you'd indicated you were alright with paying for her drinks she might not have thought it mattered where they came from.

But she's presumable learnt now!

tappitytaptap · 17/04/2016 10:57

Who buys anything without checking the price from a minibar?! I am comfortably off but still wouldn't want to just throw money away.

Original poster

Sandinmytoes · 17/04/2016 11:00

Dear lord
My point was- look at the minibar price list before you drink them.

I count about 6 people who queried the price. Why are you so argumentative?
It's really inconsequential post!!

One mentioned Norway, another NY.
Someone else mentioned £20 for water.
It could be anywhere

Maybe I should have clarified that it was 2 miniatures, that makes a bit more sense.

OP posts:

notonyurjellybellynelly · 17/04/2016 11:03

Who buys anything without checking the price from a minibar

Me. Because I know that no matter where I am it will either be roughly the same price as Im used to paying anyway or it will be cheaper.

UpsiLondoes · 17/04/2016 11:23

Actually mini bar prices are about the same everywhere UNLESS you're in a country that has a massive alcohol restriction and or huge taxes imposed. So I wouldn't look twice at prices in Paris or Los Angeles but I'd be triple checking them in Egypt or Maldives.

And prices go up with the % of alcohol so spirits will always be more (and imported) than wine and beer in the Gulf and Middle East.

fascicle · 17/04/2016 11:38

Sandinmytoes
I count about 6 people who queried the price. Why are you so argumentative?
It's really inconsequential post!!

It's not a case of being argumentative, just pointing out that your omission affected responses. There were 20 + responses commenting on/querying the price before you mentioned you were in Dubai.

Where you unaware that alcohol prices would be high?

hairygodmother · 17/04/2016 11:57

Actually, even for Dubai, that's quite expensive. We used to live in the Middle East and would go to Dubai for the weekend, often staying in a posh hotel for a treat. We would regularly pitch up with a full cool box of booze and noone batted an eyelid! They'd just stick the cool box on the posh trolley thing with the rest of the luggage. Lesson learned for next time perhaps. Hope you're having a fab time, booze prices aside ...

notonyurjellybellynelly · 17/04/2016 13:38

Actually, even for Dubai, that's quite expensive

Its not.

hairygodmother · 17/04/2016 14:07

Prices must have gone up a lot lately then. But then I wouldn't know the minibar prices anyway since we always took our own ...

The point being, I hope the OP and her sister have resolved this issue and at the very least popped out to a local supermarket for some tonic water at least.

GoldfishCrackers · 17/04/2016 15:09

2 doubles then. So about the same per drink as the £8 beer.

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