Hotel has told us there will be no power from 11am-5am

[Geometry88]

OH and I have booked a night away at a 5 star spa hotel in a few days' time (£400 for bed and breakfast including spa access).

The hotel have emailed to say due to an emergency they need to re-boot their power systems so there will be no power throughout the hotel from 11pm to 5am. They say they have selected this time in the hope guests will be asleep.

They are being very casual about it but IMO we are paying a lot of money and I don't expect there to be a 6 hour power cut ! We are rarely asleep before midnight, will be wanting to charge our phones overnight, and I don't expect to be stumbling around in the dark if I wake up in the middle of the night needing the toilet.

According to the T&Cs it's too late to cancel but I think we should have the choice to given the circumstances? I'm thinking as a minimum we should be offered some form of compensation on point of principle? Or even being able to reschedule to the following evening (which might work ok for us) at the same cost?

I think you've done the right thing, OP.

I'm sure breakfast prep starts about 5am, so that would have been impacted, and no 24 hour room service.

And who on Earth wants to grope around a room in the dark to go for a wee in tbt night? Can't believe they are even suggesting it 😲

Hope you have a good time on the next evening.

It's just basic safety to me.

I'd want to know I could turn on the light if I woke up in the night feeling unwell, or needing the toilet - or if I had DC, I'd want to have the light on if they had a nightmare, or felt sick, or had an accident etc.

Having no access to electricity overnight doesn't strike me as very safe.

It would be no good if one of the guests had sleep apnoea and used a CPAP machine. If this was us, we would have to rearrange because DH can’t be without his machine.

The craziness of this place sometimes. I cannot believe even a single person would in reality be happy to hand over the full price for a room in a hotel with no power. Not one.

If it needs doing they have to pick a night and a time somewhere.

And they should be realistic and pick a night when they offer guests a discount or the chance of swapping their booking to a different night. As, in fact, they've done in this case, though it would have been sensible for them to have made that clear when they first contacted the guests.

Sounds like a load of nonsense to me. I bet they just wanted you to move your reservation so they could take advantage of a more lucrative booking.

Make sure you give them a ring at 11.30pm and ask them if the power has gone out yet.

I once stayed somewhere where there was a power cut in our section of the accommodation overnight. It was all cheap and cheerful and I didn't complain, but it was really quite annoying. When I'm in a strange bed, I tend to struggle to get to sleep and in that situation I find it's best to read a bit to help me wind down - whether that's before I go to sleep or if I wake up in the middle of the night. As I couldn't do that, I slept quite badly.

If I'd been paying a lot for the room, I certainly would have considered asking for compensation.

It wouldn't bother me in the slightest, I've not see 11pm in a while, and would just pack a torch the the inevitable night time loo run. But as it bothers you the hotel would be hugely unreasonable not to let you reschedule.

Whilst i would be OK in theory with this - my hesitation is navigating trips to the loo in the darkness - it would fish me to know there's a problem that needs to be fixed and I would worry that this may not be resolved as they hope.

@Geometry88

Aside from charging your phone, how else do you feel you'll be inconvenienced? What do you feel is a reasonable solution beyond rearranging or having discount?

I don't think it is too much to charge your phone earlier. They've given enough notice. Equally, modern phones charge within a couple of hours so put it on charge before bed and then when the power comes on, Bob's your uncle.

In terms of waking up for the toilet in the night, again, perhaps request a torch should you need emergency lighting? I imagine they've probably considered such things already.

I appreciate £400 is a lot to pay, but the hospitality sector are still struggling financially after COVID. An alternative is they completely close for one night, just for six hours of rebooting. Seems silly.

I think they've made the most sensible decision in unfortunate circumstances. If it was me personally, I'd suck it up. Much worse things happening in the world.

There are good reasons to be concerned about having no power, but it’s really sad to list not being able to charge your phones as one. Phones only completely run down in a day if you’re on them for hours - surely you won’t be if you’re at a fancy hotel with your dh?

I wouldn’t have gone either. Surely they cant plan to have a hotel full of people and no lighting overnight! Surely thats a fire risk?

Take a charged battery power pack thing with you and use that to charge the phones. Use the light from your phone if you need the loo in the night or I suspect the hotel will provide torches.

She's already re-arranged, but what's the point in paying £400 a night so you can tiptoe around in the dark using your phone torch?

Honestly, some of these comments are batshit.

The effect on most customers will
Be absolutely minimal.

But it doesn't hurt to ask. You might get a bottle of wine to swig in the darkness.

How much power are people using between 11pm - 5am?
I don't get it.

Probably more than in the daytime, when they're out and about, it's warmer and they don't need artificial lights.

Glad you got it sorted, OP, but what if you'd specifically needed accommodation for that one particular night, believed you'd booked it, and then found that it wouldn't be of an acceptable standard?

I can't believe all the people telling you that you can just 'make do' and not to make a fuss about it. What other basic essentials could the hotel not provide and you're expected to just adapt?

No bed available? You can just roll up the dog's blanket from the car boot and some coats on the floor; straightforward.

Toilets all out of action? Ask housekeeping if you can borrow a bucket; no biggie.

TV not working? Bring a mouth organ, gramophone and Buckaroo and make your own entertainment, like in the good old days.

It's not meant to be a night wild-camping out in the woods - it's paying a lot of money for a luxurious stay that ends up having fewer basic amenities than you take for granted everyday in your own home!

@coffeecupsandwaxmelts you really don't need to have a go at everyone who doesn't share your opinion. Some people would be bothered by it, some people wouldn't. It's batshit that you can't accept that.

What is wrong with people that they think it’s ok to pay £400 a night to not even get basic amenities? I can’t decide if they’re on the wind up or just stupid.

Chronic Contrarianism.

@RJnomore1 basic amenities, like what? Like being able to charge my phone that's already charged? And that's pretty much it. I'd be asleep. That's not stupid. The people who would be awake at that time I understand them saying they wouldn't be happy. The people who would pretty much be asleep and not notice it, it doesn't make them stupid at all. It makes you stupid for calling people stupid for daring to have a different opinion to you.

Basic amenities like electricity. Absolutely stupid to think that’s acceptable. It’s not a different opinion it’s fact that to accept sub par goods rather than Rick the boat is stupidity.

Anyone can wake in a strange bed and need the toilet, in the pitch dark. I’m sure you would all be fine with the hotel if you bang your foot and break a toe or fall over something and bump your head.

No lights is a hazard.Anyone who pays £400 (or less!) to be knowingly handed a hazardous room is an idiot.

My new phrase. I might post a thread about the sky being blue just to see how many turn up to disagree. 😁

Provision of Goods and Services Act? They are not providing what you can reasonably expect (24 hours power is pretty basic expectation for the UK) so they should reschedule.

What is your guarantee that you will be asleep all night and will never conceivably need the light? How do you know you wouldn't need the loo, feel ill, get woken by a noise or whatever?

@RJnomore1 awww you crack on calling people stupid and idiots if it makes you feel better.