Or do Premiere Inn towels smell rank now?

[ThenUm]

So have stayed in many PI in different places with work. The last three visits the towels:

1. One smelled so bad I could smell it in the bathroom. When I unfolded it there was a brown blob. It smelled yeasty. I assumed it was a minging guest that used the room before me.
2. The towel had a hole in it and looked badly laundered - off white and badly folded.
3. Towels look clean but one has a fainter yeasty smell than in example 1.

Incidentally I’ve also had recently;

no batteries in remote.
TV not tuned in
tap not switching off properly.
light switch not working.
unclean cup.

which makes me think new ownership? Cost cutting to stay in the game.

What’s going on? Anyone with inside info know? Anyone had similar?

That's ridiculous. On the basis of one post on MN!

I stay in them for work too and have noticed a definite drop in standards. They used to be classed as 4 star on my work booking system and now they're a 3 like travelodge. The price has also increased so much that the breakfast is no longer included as it's over the corporate rate work are prepared to pay.

They used to be my preferred hotel as they were clean, had comfy beds and you knew what you were getting. Now, they are definitely a low budget style. Travelodges are rank but they do seem to have great staff who are willing to go out of their way. They will usually let you in early if you ring them. Premier inn however, no longer have proper receptionists and the last one I went to, the poor woman was working the desk, bar and food orders. I had to wait 20mins for her to come and sort my non-working key card for me to then find the toilet was blocked so they had to switch my room and that was another 20min wait for service 😕

We’re absolutely devastated that the premier inn that we always stayed in the night before we fly and we’re flying 4/5 times a year has recently closed down and another company has taken over!
it definitely wasn’t cheap and there are other B&b’s in the area that are cheaper but we liked it!
Never noticed that the towels had a smell

On recent stays, I’ve thought the towels smell of vinegar, which I assume they are using in the laundry instead of fabric conditioner.

Ok. We have one ‘chemical’ smell and one ‘vinegar’ smell. May be I’m not having olfactory hallucinations. It smells yeasty to me.

It’s not just me then. The staff seem so stretched.

Not sure that would affect the laundry. May be they have switched laundering service.

Ooo. Yes. Give the towels a good sniff and tell us what you reckon. I’ve not stayed in that one before and it’s a different part of the country than the ones I’ve stayed in recently.

There are about 6 Premier Inns in Cardiff -have you tried them all and were they all shit?

We’re in a Premier Inn at the moment and the towels smell fine, but there is a almost dinner-plate sized patch of mould on the bathroom ceiling along with a smaller patch a bit further along. Also what looks like another patch near the skirting board under the window so I will notify reception.

We stay in them 3-4 times a year in various locations and they are mostly all of the same standard, but occasionally we’ve noticed that the general finish in the bathrooms is of varying standards ie shoddy sealant, flooring not laid well, some showers are great vs a trickle etc.

We often use Ibis (the top of the range one,not the Styles or budget) and find them fine. Yes the rooms can be compact but usually clean and comfortable. DH has an Accor Group Membership, which includes Ibis, Novotel and Sofitel) and we usually get a voucher for a free drink.

big up the Garden City 🫡 opposite a Little Waitrose too. my parents stay there when they visit us no room in our house

Yes. I agree. I guess they won’t have their own construction and maintenance people so have to outsource. But there should be better systems for flagging issues.

I've just got back from a premier inn in Essex. We had 2 rooms. I can report back that the hotel and rooms were clean with no funny smells.

That’s my other go to but like a bath so if it’s similar price I opt for PI. Staff at the Ibis I use regularly are amazing. And bar a bit of a doggy smell in a room once, it’s always clean.

Well they are making major redundancies and increasing the work load for remaining staff - all to save money. It really wouldn't be surprising if cost cutting came in elsewhere.

I stay with my dds at a PI on average once a month-all over the country. We chose them because you know what you're going to get. Never had a problem with towels or cleanliness. Some are newer refurbished than others, but nothing I would get upset about.

I have also never had an issue with staff. In fact I'd say all have been brilliant. Mega friendly, even when I'm checking in at 11pm and sometimes leaving at 4am. They bend over backwards.

And if we do get to stay for the breakfast, we all love it!

It's another level to Travelodge. Which is often a similar price in the locations we end up at.

I agree. We’ve stayed in lots and the city centre/tourist area ones are generally very good - just nicer, more modern buildings and higher standards of cleanliness etc, probably due to higher turnover.

I was shocked by one in a more remote location - the room was grubby, dusty and dark, and the restaurant was in a dismal pub opposite. Horrible and depressing. Never again - only stayed in centrally located ones since.

I’ve definitely not noticed a towel issue at PI, but thanks for unlocking a new anxiety - will now be sniffing bloody towels everywhere we go 😂

My son complains that the towels in Premier Inns, smell like 'sick'!!! The towels are clean. Nothing actually wrong with them. I guess it's how the towels are laundered, by the outside company. We've had no issues with PI and stay regularly throughout the year, in different ones.

The only ropey PI I've ever stayed in was the one next to Wembley Park station which was horrible. All others always amazing, but I do think their towels always smell of salt, whichever one I've stayed in that has been the case. Usually central London but also other places. I assume it's the detergent.

I know exactly the smell you mean 🤢

I've never liked the way their towels smell, but it's more the 'sharp' smell of industrial washing powder as opposed to anything else. Certainly not yeasty.

I know Whitbread are doing lots of restructuring including closing lots of the restaurants that are alongside the hotels and bringing all their catering 'in house' so the drop in standards might be connected to that?

Not noticed an issue with towels.

I agree things are going downhill to an extent. We had a family room at Christmas and the put up bed had the most lumpy mattress ever. I initially thought my child was making a fuss until I tried it. Reception couldn't move us and the solution was a mattress topper which was better but still wasn't ideal.
Another time we arrived 10 mins before check in time. We had to wait til the exact time unless we had paid for early check in. This seemed really petty to me as what difference does 10 mins make and it would have been better to not have people standing round in reception.

The other issue we have had is breakfast. With kids the breakfast is the highlight. On the last few visits some items have been unavailable, there hasn't been a hot buffet and you had to order to a waiter (not a major issue) and on our most recent stay there was no hot option as they didn't have a chef and apparently they will refund this (will see if they do this). Not sure why they didn't tell us this when we checked in and looking at reviews it seems this is fairly frequent, so either they don't have a chef or the one they have is highly unreliable.

I think they have been making a lot of cuts which is why the service has gone downhill as less staff.

I stayed in one last night, can't say I noticed a smell but I decided to slum it and shower at home anyway so didn't use the towel. Everything was bog standard as usual with a good breakfast.
Got to say though the toilet paper dispenser is annoying, just put the rolls back in.

Stayed in the Westfield Stratford one in London a couple of weeks ago and it was fine. Only minor issue was a bit of glitter on the chair as it's used by people going to the ABBA thing nearby!

It's a bit tired and dated, agreed, but still better than most of the local alternatives . The one next to the Stadium is miles better. My friend and I usually book on flex as soon as the cup dates come out, then cancel if our team doesn't make it.