Away for work (still in UK). Boss paid for the accommodation up front at last minute. Nothing else was available within reasonable distance of my work thing and within what he considered a reasonable budget.
I gave it a quick Google before leaving home yesterday and reviews weren't all bad. Pictures on the website made it look basic but clean.
Checked in yesterday after a long day of travelling and I haven't slept since.
SPACE - one tiny shelf with a kettle on it (and two tea bags, one sachet of sugar, one pot of UHT milk) leaving me half a shelf-space to put my stuff like makeup and deodorant on. No shelf in the bathroom. Areas beside the sink taps are tilted and tiny so can't keep anything there. No flat surface in the shower to keep anything. There is a teeny bedside drawer. Handles are broken on two of these. Bottoms keep falling out of the drawers whenever i try to put socks or stuff in so I've had to leave them empty. Just need to keep all clothes in suitcase. Can put my beauty/wash stuff on top of this bedside table I suppose but a bit worried i'll knock it over in my sleep (if i ever get some). Can't move it away from the bed as it's screwed into the floor.
PLUGS - two in whole room. One beside bed which the lamp is plugged in to atop the bedisde cabinet. Can't get behind the cabinet to remove this plug for my phone as it's so tightly pushed against the wall and screwed into the floor. There is another one at the other side of the room which the kettle is plugged into. This looks totally unsafe. The back is coming away from the kettle plug. Won't be using that!
CLEANLINESS - Fake tan/foundation hand prints over the bathroom walls and wall next to bed, Inside of drawers are disgusting and stained (so just as well i didn't keep my socks in there!) A red smear that looks like blood next to the bed. Black splatter on wall next to sink. There is no housekeeping service. There are no towels or any little shampoos etc. Not even a bar of soap.
BUGS - There are little bugs along the window which look a bit like book lice (definitely not bed lice - I check for these in every hotel I stay in on holiday). I'd try to close my window to see if that stops them but it's so hot and clammy!
NOISE - it's a small place with maybe 15 rooms. Doors when closed have an awful centimetre round gap from the door frame. Doors are clearly the wrong size. This means I can hear every conversation my neighbours have. My next door neighbours got into trouble at 4am this morning for setting the fire alarm off as they decided to smoke in their rooms. The reception is only manned between 8am and 10pm so the manager had to drive down from his own home to check on it (took him 10 mins btw, and nobody evacuated the building). Manager then entered into a bit of a curt telling off with neighbours. He then drove back home. Since then, neighbours have been going down stairs and outside every ten minutes for a cigarette. While they're outside (right outside my window), they're shouting up to their pal in the room while he's hanging out the window next to mine. Doors and stairs alone make an absolute racket never mind them chattering.
I've asked them to be quiet. They just laugh and say sorry (i'm assuming they're drunk or just very immature).
HEAT - heater is on full and there seems no way to turn it off.
SIZE - room is very small. Maybe 10ft x 3ft. Then bathroom is approx 3ft by 2ft. Basically, when you stand up from the toilet and turn to flush, your bum touches the shower glass.
I have text the reception's out of hours number at 5am and 6.30am about the heater but had no reply. Not great, is it? What if there was an emergency?
There are no nearby shops to buy a sandwich or takeaway etc. No food offered at the hotel. Not even a drinks machine. It's basically a reception desk then rooms upstairs. Nothing else. Everything appears to be 30 min walk in any direction. Only garages and factories nearby. Luckily i get fed lunch at my work thing and i'm out every day. But i'm dreading spending the next 6 evenings here. It wasn't even cheap. £430 roughly to stay here seven nights. It honestly reminds me of the time I stayed in a hostel but at least I now have my own room and loo.
Hotel is non-refundable and no way would my manager be willing to lose that money and try to find me somewhere else. Doubtful he'd be able to as everything is booked up that's nearby. This hotel on their website is saying no availability too. So not even likely the manager can switch my rooms when I get back in this evening. Manager will say this is perfectly adequate. I suppose it is. I have shelter and a bed. But ... it's quite shit. This is my first work trip away and I was quite looking forward to it. Now I'm dreading future ones. Maybe in a few years if my salary goes up, I'll be able to afford adding to my boss's budget and booking somewhere a bit better.