To say most places are too cold to be enjoyable?

[Mushroo]

The cold snap has really emphasised this, but AIBU to say most places are freezing and it really puts me off going?

I love the idea of a cozy coffee shop, warm pub with a fire, warm restaurant and red wine.

in reality, most places are draughty, barely heated and you have to keep your coat on.

It's not the weather, as I've travelled in Europe to much colder places and everywhere is so toasty and lovely in comparison, even places that are warm in the summer seem to do winter heating well.

Is it just me, or are others often disappointed? I don't even think I'm a particularly 'cold' person.

I have camped in deep snow.
I have never sat outside a tea room having a drink and snacks, because it was too hot inside when the temperature outside was between 1 and 4 degrees.
That is just madness. A tea room drink and snack is time to sit and relax and chat. I have stopped for something quick to eat when hiking in very cold weather, but I have only stopped for a very short while and it is not relaxing. You just want to get going again to stay warm enough.

Totally agree.
Oh I find anywhere heated too warm and had to sit in the pub garden today to eat Sunday lunch with sleet coming down. But I was still too hot so took off my coat, jumper and trousers and just sat in my pants and t shirt. It was 1 degrees temperature, but I was still too hot!

I had to visit A&E just before Christmas. I was in the waiting room from 6:45pm till 2am and it was freezing!!! It was so cold, they had to start handing out blankets to people!! And then they wondered why it was difficult to get blood out of me!!! It’s because I was freezing!!! ( though to be fair, it’s always difficult to get blood out of me🫤),

I find cinemas almost unbearably cold.
We were at a restaurant for a meal last night. I had thermal base layers and socks on for the walk from the car, expecting to overheat at the venue. The radiators were all off.
I take a blanket scarf everywhere; easy to remove if it’s warm and if not, it’s an extra layer to wrap round me.
I worked somewhere that used to be so cold after the weekends that a colleague walked out to WFH till it had warmed up. Fair play, she stuck it out till lunch then just announced she wouldn’t be coming back till the next day!

but of course people having a different opinion to the OP is relevant because, if you can assume that MN is to some extent a microcosm of the 'real world' then it could explain why places don't prioritise heating.

If EVERY SINGLE CUSTOMER was going into these pubs/restaurants/etc and walking straight back out or complaining that it was too cold, sitting there with coats and gloves on, and writing reviews saying the same on trip advisor etc, then, presumably, more venues would at least consider ways of trying to warm the place up.

But those people are probably the minority - mixed in with them are the majority who might be feeling a bit cold but not doing anything about it, or who just decide to not return without telling the venue why, and then those who are absolutely fine and don't think it's too cold, or who complain when the heating is on that it's too warm. Because, shocker, not everyone is the same.

Staff are likely to be constantly moving so won't feel the cold as much. So venues might not be doing it because they can't afford heating, or are trying to maximise profits (or even just to break even) but because they genuinely haven't been told it's an issue.

Do you think people should only reply to posts when they completely agree with the OP? Would be very boring, and sort of defeats the point of a chat forum, doesn't it?

Our oil-fired boiler central heating stopped working a few days ago. DH has just been discharged from hospital but we kept the ancient immersion heater and a wood burner and an air source heat pump in the kitchen so we are warm enough, wearing sensible layers. The weather is mild but wet and windy.

I agree. My number one feature for a pub or cafe is that it's warm. Comfortable seating a close second. I definitely stop going if it's not relaxing to sit without a coat. I wear lots of layers so happy to take a few off if it is very warm.

I get that but it's a bit of a false economy if they don't have any customers because no one wants to sit there. I went in a coffee shop yesterday and it was chilly and felt unwelcoming (the atmosphere, I didn't speak to the staff) so we walked out again.

I have to agree with PPs who have said it might be false economy for businesses not to heat their premises to a temperature comfortable for customers. In early December 2023 I went for a group meal to a lovely local pub, made a beeline for the radiator (as I get cold sat still for long periods) and it was off. Needless to say a lot of us took a good half hour to take our coats off and many kept our scarves on as it was bloody cold in there. It put me off so much that I didn't go this Christmas because I'm not paying £30 for a meal to eat in a cold room. I can understand the high costs of heating but they could've put the heating on for a while so it was warm for us on arrival then switched it off once we were there and our bodies were heating the room surely.

I did t say nobody could. I said I’d rather not go out than go there. I know lots of places as cheap anyway.

Most places are way too hot

ill admit i prefer the cafes of local supermarkets and seem ok

Other colder countries have better insulated buildings. Most British buildings are not well designed for the weather we have!

I think it's this. The cold weather in England goes right to the bone, I think. And so many houses I've been in were cold and damp. No wonder you all drink so many hot drinks! I was freezing much of the time. Tea and blankets for the win.

We have a damp climate, Houses need to be ventilated

I love going to a pub with a roaring fire, particularly over the festive season but 4 different places we went in hadn't lit them! In previous years they have. Really disappointed but assume due to cost.

Agreed. I'm fed up of going out and paying £7.50 for a glass of prosecco and having to sit in my coat to drink it. When I go out I want to wear nice clothes, not a bulky coat and scarf that were only intended to get me to the venue. I may as well stay home and be comfortable.

I especially hate eating in my coat. It feels so wrong.

You’re right OP, this time last year I took a trip to Poland where I was met with snow and -15 degrees temperatures. What I found is everywhere I went there - cafes, , restaurants, bars, even large museum with wide spaces and high ceilings - were all nice and warm inside! I find a lot of indoor spaces too cold in the UK.

The hotel in Poland also had an easy to use wall heater/AC too so I was never cold in the room. I’ve had to ask for heaters in a couple of Uk hotels because the room heater wasn’t working well or at all. I’ve never had to do that in any other country I’ve traveled to. In one hotel in Glasgow no heater was available I was fuming, could barely sleep it was cold.

They do much better outside heating in europe than we do here, the amount of places that have patio heaters but they're not on.

There's a film I want to see at the cinema - I keep putting it off because I know it's going to be freezing. It always is. Even in the summer I have to wrap up in the cinema.

Can't go in Primark now - opposite problem - I come out drenched in sweat and feeling faint from the heat.

Oh and to add I regularly travel to Glasgow for work, so I’d never go back to that hotel I mentioned didn’t have a heater. Last time I was there I chose a different hotel very close by, so yeah businesses are losing out.

I work from home and would love to spend a few hours in different local cafes sometimes
and would order coffee and lunch etc,
but I have asthma and breathing in such cold air for a long period of time while sitting is likely to trigger a chesty cough. Asthma aside it’s just unpleasant.

I’ve had my own coffee making equipment since 2020, and I only go to cafes if I’m meeting a friend.

@devilspawn sounds like you have the right idea for your business!

yes every single building we visited in Toronto/Ontario this Christmas including our accommodation was so warm as was Heathrow Airport and we were constantly taking clothes on and off as we were warned in my thread in S&B. I knew my house had poor insulation but I’m really feeling it now 🥶
they also have warm zones/cool in summer for the less fortunate

This thread and also my visit to Poland last year, has helped me realise it’s not the cold weather I hate, but it’s more the cold weather in the UK that I hate.

Seriously thinking of relocating. Cold indoor places coupled with the grey skies (I live in the north) just sucks lol

I always think it's the damp/wet as well
If it's dry and cold and sunny it can be pleasant but so often it's cold and wet. And if it's not raining it's either just finished or just about to
Yes, I live in Lancashire

Yeah I’ve lived in Glasgow and the rain and constant overcast really got me down! Whereas when I stayed in Dundee I much preferred the blue skies and relatively dry weather even though it was way colder.

So true, rain is always on the horizon in the north - never leave my house without an umbrella!

I have had lunch in a pub this week that was nice and warm and we went out for a curry tonight and the place was toasty as anything. I had to switch off the heater I was sat right next to.