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Original poster

Premier Inn question about guest

99 replies

Workinghardeveryday · 01/05/2022 09:01

We need to visit a Premier Inn in July for a family event.

As a family of 5 (dp myself, dd16, dd11, ds11), we will need to book 2 rooms. The cost is nearly £300 for one night!

Can I just get a family room sleeping 4 and 2 of the kids share?

I just think it’s very expensive as it is a Premier Inn at the end of the day....

OP posts:
lassof · 01/05/2022 10:03

How it works, if you think you can all squeeze in, is that you do a single adult+ some children check-in then the other adult follows with the other child/ren so you are never seen together as a group of 5
Nobody actually cares
Apart from a few posters on mumsnet who get upset about this kind of thing

purplepaintedpineapple · 01/05/2022 10:06

We used to do this - helps that all mine are same sex and look similar, so we used to go in with 2 then with the other one so not as a group of 5. Only for one night though and smallest had a sleeping bag and camping mat. When they got bigger we used to have them all in one room together.

JeremiahObadiahJackanoryJonez · 01/05/2022 10:10

We’re a family of 6 so really couldn’t all squeeze in to one Premier Inn room when they were younger. We used Youth Hostels a lot at that stage as they tended to have 6 (bunk) bed family rooms. Could that be an alternative?

Honeyroar · 01/05/2022 10:10

That’s incredibly expensive for a premier inn, they’re usually £50-60 a night. There must be cheaper hotels than that around, surely?

Paq · 01/05/2022 10:12

Premier Inns are pricey rn. With a family of 5, with those ages you might be better off looking at AirBnB.

UnicornMadeOfPinkGlitter · 01/05/2022 10:12

I admit to doing this when the children were younger but wouldn’t when the eldest is 16.
we just stayed at a premier inn in Edinburgh (York place) and the room there would have been big enough for a camp bed/sleeping bag on the floor but the additional bed was only a single. So a double bed and a sofa that they took the back off of and then out sheets on to make it a single bed.

try holiday inn express. We stayed at the one in York by the racecourse regularly and that had room for 5 (we booked and paid for 5) and also Accor Novotel.

nearlyspringyay · 01/05/2022 10:16

We have to go to a premier inn quite a bit to visit elderly relatives £150 isn't abnormal for PI.

You've got 3 kids you get two rooms.

MrsDeaconClaybourne · 01/05/2022 10:20

We have 3 DC and when they were little we'd book 1 room then ring up the actual Premier Inn and double check it was OK for us all to share. They were always fine about it. Haven't tried it as they've got older as ours wouldn't want to share so don't know if there's a cut off.

We were semi - regular at one near to PiL and in fact it was the receptionist there who told us it'd be fine. We'd booked 2 rooms the first time we stayed.

Hallyup89 · 01/05/2022 10:28

I would. I don't know who everyone thinks is checking which people go into which rooms all the time. What about people who bring friends/dates back? It certainly isn't the receptionist on minimum wage who would do exactly the same themselves.

TheYearOfSmallThings · 01/05/2022 10:34

I think at the ages they are you are getting past family rooms tbh. Your problem here is the cost per room, which is more than I have ever paid for a Premier Inn.

Doubleraspberry · 01/05/2022 10:38

Premier Inns are priced on demand so it’s not remotely unusual to pay £150 for a family room in an area/time of high demand. Just because posters have never encountered it doesn’t mean it’s not normal!

Ted27 · 01/05/2022 10:41

I love a Premier Inn but would never pay that much

Are you sure you are looking at the right rate - the flexible rates are usually quite expensive, the fixed rate is a lot cheaper. I’ve just booked 2 rooms in Portsmouth opposite the Dockyards in July - £56 per room

ImInStealthMode · 01/05/2022 10:42

You'll invalidate their insurance by breaching their fire regulations, so no.

Geezabreak82 · 01/05/2022 10:43

When we were kids we used to go on holiday with another family of five and we'd always have a stopover at a premier inn, travel lodge or similar. At that time you were only allowed four people in a family room, so they'd check in with the youngest two and leave the eldest in the car. Shortly after the Dad would go for a walk and return with the eldest. One of them would have to sleep on the floor though because the beds are not the biggest.

MrsAvocet · 01/05/2022 10:44

Honeyroar · 01/05/2022 10:10

That’s incredibly expensive for a premier inn, they’re usually £50-60 a night. There must be cheaper hotels than that around, surely?

It's a long time since I managed to get a room for that price, apart from once very recently I booked on the day and they'd presumably discounted remaining rooms to try to get rid of them.
You might still find cheap rooms out of season, at weekends in places that generally are geared up to business customers, or if you book a very long way in advance but £100+ is pretty normal nowadays, especially in major cities, holiday destinations or places that are convenient stop off points for bigger destinations. My DH uses PIs for business travel and we've also been to visit quite a few places as a family this year and apart from that one lucky last minute booking I don't think we've paid significantly less than £100 per room in the last 12 months, often more. Travelodges are similar prices too.
And that's assuming you can get rooms - we've found lots of places booked up well in advance recently.
I suspect it's a combination of Covid still pushing demand for UK breaks up, and companies passing on the cost of fuel increases etc. Cheap rooms seem to be something of a rarity at present.

Yayayaya20 · 01/05/2022 10:48

If a premier inn is £150 a night per room then other hotels nearby are likely to be more expensive - Premier Inn usually cheapest. The price of Premier Inn varies so much from place to place and time of year/day of the week it’s not really relevant to say ‘I’ve only ever paid £5 a night’.

I’m certain my sibling and I were sharing a hotel room alone by early teens never mind 16! So you and DH sleeping separately should not need to be an issue.

Beelezebub · 01/05/2022 10:57

Workinghardeveryday · 01/05/2022 09:18

I just think it’s strange they have no rooms that sleep 5. My dd16 wouldn’t want to be in a room on her own, so that means dp and I would have to sleep separately for the night. Why should we?!

it’s not like people don’t have 3 kids is it!!

And to think breakfast is on top of that price.

“Why should we?”

erm, because you’ve got 3 kids and are looking at a premier inn which will absolutely maximise room sales and occupancy when looking at the number and types of rooms to put in a building?

Razbitso · 01/05/2022 10:57

We always just took a sleeping bag - we only sleep there. Not wasting cash on a room we don’t need.

Just booked in for four. It’s not like they count you in and anyone could have extra bodies in a room or missing people. Find it hard to be sympathetic to big chains - if they go under it’s not coz we squeezed in one extra person to kip!

TokenGinger · 01/05/2022 10:57

If you call them and make them aware of it, you’re going to end up paying for two rooms. They can’t consent to five being in the room. But what they don’t know, can’t hurt them.

I worked at a Premier Inn throughout college and my Aunt and SIL both still work there as receptionist. If you flag with them that there’s five of you, they’re not going to say that’s fine, they’re going to say it’s too many and they’ll keep an eye out for you on check in.

If you’re comfortable all sharing a room, the most likely combination in a PI is a king size bed, and two singles - one being a sofa bed, one being an under bed pull out. The three kids would fit fine in the double, with you and DH in singles.

You mentioned re: paying for breakfast, too. Just so you know, two kids per paying adult eat for free, so you should get all three kids for free.

TokenGinger · 01/05/2022 10:58

Oh I meant to say, on check in, don’t all go to the room together. You go in with two DC. Check in. Then text DH the room number.

HoobleDooble · 01/05/2022 11:01

Whenever we've stayed in one ( DH, DS & myself) there's been a huge double (Super King-size) and a single with a trundle bed tucked away under it. There'd be plenty of room for one of the smaller kids to get in the double with you. I'd just go through reception in 2 groups, it's not like they have you standing outside your room for a headcount. Most of the time the kids eat free at an adjoined place for breakfast so don't pre-book it and pay separately in the pub/restaurant, there's 2 PI's near us and we sometimes go to the Brewer's Fayre next to them for breakfast so they won't know whether you're stopping there or not.

Floralnomad · 01/05/2022 11:02

PI are usually £80+ per night nowadays so £150 for high season doesn’t sound too out there , your children are not little and the rooms are really designed for 2 and a child as the sofa beds are pretty small . Anyhow surely the point is they don’t have a room that suits so you either pay for 2 rooms or stay elsewhere .

SpiderinaWingMirror · 01/05/2022 11:05

PI do surge pricing. As someone who lives in a tourist area, you will prob be able to find something better for less than 2 PI rooms. Nothing against them and I use them frequently.
Eg locally there's a country house hotel that has a family suite for £170 pn including breakfast.

TheChurchOfEli · 01/05/2022 11:05

We recently stayed in a PI on a bank hols and it was £49, hotel was fully booked so not a quiet location.

It’s a small roomed, budget hotel and at 16 she is able to stay in her own room. I would have snapped my parents hands off at that age to be alone in a hotel room than have to share with snoring, farting adults and annoying little brothers. It’s just how budget hotels work.