What's the worst hotel experience you have had?

[NewLion]

Staff double booking my room.

On what should have been a "Luxury" 5* hotel in Kenya many years ago. It was in the brochures of Thomson, Kuoni and Hayes & Jarvis, and all three used similar photos of the rooms etc which showed luxury! We booked with Thomson. In the event, it transpired Thomson had "bought" the un-refurbished rooms in the older wing of the hotel, whereas the other two tour operators bought the refurbished rooms in the newer wings. We were there two weeks. Threadbare carpets and curtains and bedding and towels were just the start. After a couple of days, we had no water for several hours and the reception blamed "local supply", then we had several power cuts each for several hours, again reception blamed "local supply". But when we got talking to guests in the other wings, they had no problems at all! It transpired that it was outdated water/electrics only in our wing but the hotel staff wouldn't admit it. We had to go 2/3 days without loos or a shower. Then once we found out the other wing had utilities, we found a shower/toilet block at their side of the pool and literally barracading ourselves into it to have showers, which we did daily. The Thomson rep was utterly hopeless and useless. Upon return, we made a formal complaint and ended up taking Thomson to court, and we eventually got a full refund!! Never went with Thomson again.

In Turkey, many years ago, on my own in a hotel. The owner was trying to flirt with me, inviting me out etc but I was not interested. He then tried to get into my room, which had no phone (and this was before mobiles) so I had to barricade the door and wasn't able to sleep. Next morning I went out and found the Tourist Police, told them, and was pleased to see him being dragged out to their car.

Staying in a premier inn where there was a stag party booked at the same time and one of them turned up naked, knocking on the door at 2am thinking we were some girl he’d met at some pub earlier that evening. My (elderly) Mum answered the door and told him to get lost and he was very embarrassed but it could have been so scary had he been deliberately targeting us.

I went to a conference and checked into my room. Went out for diner and some other people had been in and had a shower, their toothbrushes were by the sink and they’d clearly had a shag in my bed. They were ‘quite relaxed’ on reception and thought I was overreacting

In Turkey 40 years ago at the beginning of their mass tourism boom when hotel standards were very low.
The hotel room was in an annexe to the main hotel and had a corrugated tin roof with holes in it.
The bar opposite played loud music all night with dancing and clapping till 6am so we didn't get a wink of sleep. We had booked with a tour operator and fortunately because it was October there were other hotels available and we were transferred.

It is a contest between B&B Ai Prati in Bergamo, and the Formula 1 hotel near Basle airport. Having stayed in both, I would have rather slept in a random hedge or on the streets. Bloody hair-raising, and I have stayed all over in some of the most basic of places. It is worth checking tripadvisor.

Male cleaner stealing 3 brand new bra&knicker sets from our room. Boyfriend and I were early on in our relationship and on our first weekend away.

We got a refund on the room but I felt so creeped out for a long time afterwards.

At a youth hostel, I was given a bed in a men's dorm (though I didn't realise till morning, as no one was around when I went to bed, and I slept well, but it could have gone differently.) I got a full refund and a huge apology in the morning. I'm pretty sure I look female, and my name is female, so there should not have been confusion. It is no longer a youth hostel, I noticed last time I was up that way.

Last year, I was spending one night in a city hotel. It was cheap, so I not expecting more than a bed , loo and shower, but the bathroom light wasn't working, so the proprietor just got the bedside light and led it round the doorway into the bathroom. The shower itself was barely functional, the floor was badly stained, and a small window was badly cracked. There were also holes in the curtain. I shopped them to the local Environmental Health, who called me after the weekend for more details. Haven't checked if they're still in business.

If I book somewhere cheap, I don't expect luxury, but I do expect clean and safe and compliant with legal requirements.

Staying in a city centre budget hotel in a family room. Arrived late night with 2 DCs after a wedding.

Heard very loud arguing from a nearby room which was getting more and more scary sounding.

Then security staff arrived - more shouting
Then Police arrived - more shouting and an arrest including very loud threats to come back and burn the place down
By the time the noise stopped I was too stressed and scared to sleep!

awf tummy bug in Menorca on holiday as a single parent with 3 kids aged 4, 8 and 9. There had been issues for weeks - hand sanitizer everywhere etc (pre COVID) but one child knocked over the bog brush - the most vile smelling stuff spilled onto the floor - ushered kids out and mopped it with bog roll- 8 hours later I was in a bad way - lost too much weight for an all inclusive! I could barely walk upstairs by the end - staff were amazing and kept the kids busy but it was hell.

£4000 comp helped pay for another holiday though

Ibiza around 16 years ago. We turned up only to find we’d been given one double room between 16 of us, had to wait ages for it to be sorted. The rooms looked like they hadn’t been updated since the 70s, had men knocking on the door all hours looking for sex workers, fights breaking out constantly and couldn’t leave the room at one point as the corridor was covered in broken glass. The balcony was very low too and since I stayed 3 people have fallen from them.

Travelodge in MK for work on a random week night. People running about making noise all night, zero sleep and then a physical fight outside my door in the early hours resulting in blood up the walls and police being called out. I was not a happy bunny.

Travelodge in Leicester - many years ago, so hopefully they’ve improved.

Everything was just dirty and cracked, and I brought bedbugs back with me.

A rat in my room in Colombia, shit-caked loos in Mexico, outside a busy bus stop in Germany(in rhe
daya of diesel buses and every time a pulled out of the stop, the noise was horrendous- this starts at 5am. Stayed in a hotel in the US that had featured in one of Gordon Ramsay’s ‘nightmare’ shows -it was such an odd place, disgusting strong BO smell in a room in China.

At a hotel in Luxor. Went onto the balcony and closed the door behind me and sliding door locked so I could not get back in the room! Had to bang a metal chair against the railings to attract attention. Eventually a guest appeared on a lower balcony and I shouted down to them to get reception. It took an hour to get free.

Various middle eastern hotels with young men who clean the rooms assuming I was up for sex. They would tap on my door at night ot ring up. I learned to always unplug the phone and use a door wedge. They went away after a few minutes as scared of disturbing other guests. The room boys in Iran always trying to see me with hair uncovered. It was waist length and auburn then.

None of this really threatening, just a bit annoying and part of solo mid eastern travel.

Yes, the Formula One hotel at Basel Airport. Far and away the worst hotel experience ever. Only stayed as we had an early flight the next day.
lack of air con on the hottest night of the year. Had to keep windows open to get some air, but was so noisy, could hear the jet engines, heavy goods vehicles and baggage handlers all night, the place stank of weed, half the hotel was sealed off with yellow police security tape, the beds were awful with the thinnest mattress and there were rats. Literal rats in the corridor as well as around the grounds.

I thought a shower cubicle in the corner of the bedroom and toilet down the hall was bad, but I read a thread on here recently where there was a new couple on their first weekend away together and the bathroom turned out to be one of those switchable smart glass affairs.
For those that don’t know, this is where the bathroom is partitioned off with clear class that turns obscure when you flick a switch… only it was broken. It stayed clear glass, and the hotel couldn’t move them as it was fully booked!

It’s the kind of thing, after being married for nearly 30 years, we would laugh about. But as a new couple on a first romantic weekend away together it would be awful!

Staying in Vienna just before Christmas. We booked a small hotel about 30 minute walk from the city centre in order to try and save costs. It was before the days of the smoking indoors ban. i have asthma and the entire hotel was filled with cigarette smoke. i could only sleep sitting up because lying down made me gasp for breath and choke. In addition it was a hotel where rooms could be hired by the hour and the room next door was being used in that way with the accompanying moans and screams and banging of headboards against the wall.

After about 2 days we walked in on a whim to the Hotel Astoria RIGHT in the centre of Vienna only to discover the price for a small room was the same as our Hotel. Of course, just before Christmas it was fully booked but we went there the next year and it was blissful.

Mine, my Mum's and my Stepdads first holiday abroad. I was 15. I had a single bed about 5 inches away from their double bed 🤣. Lovely.
Very early 90s when you booked on teletext and requested accommodation on arrival if you wanted to go cheap.
Hmmm. Just no!

Country hotel in the Cotswolds. Absolutely lovely room, we got newspaper and tea/coffee tray upon waking up with some biscuits to tidy us over until we wanted to go down for breakfast.
But - the very clonking radiotor pipes run behind our bed, it was November and freezing outside so the heating went on at 5am. I think they didn't expect us to asking for the tea that early.

Original Tudor estate/Country Hotel in Sussex for a New Year Dinner. Our original plans had fallen through so we decided to treat ourselves to a suite and tasting menu.

Went to bed after the amazing dinner and champagne at 1.30am just to be woken up by fire alarm at 3.30am. Went back to bed after it was determined it was a false alarm and the hotel extended breakfast time and checkout times until after lunch as everyone slept in.

Hilton at Paddington Station. Took DS to Lego land for his 6th birthday. Came into London for the night to then go to Hamleys the next day. Arrived at hotel, checked in and was told room not ready despite it being 5 pm. Plan was room service, bath and early night. They sent us to their executive lounge and said they’d come and get me when room was ready. They didn’t. Eventually took myself back to reception to be told there was no issue with room in the first place. Got key, went upstairs, key didn’t work. Up and down 3 more times until a receptionist came up with me. Her key didn’t work either. Called security with a master key who over rode the system. Walked into the room to find an American mason fast sleep in bed. He erupted. Scared DS and me. We were taken back down stairs and given a key to a different room which eventually worked. By this point it was 7 pm. 2 hours since we arrived. DS shattered and upset.

Manager was waiting on us the next morning for check out. Apologised profusely and we received a full refund.

Arrived at the hotel about 11pm we were delayed because of a bad traffic accident on the motorway.
Woke about 3am to see a naked man going through our room to use the shared bathroom.
We hadn't been told it was shared. DH complained the next morning to be told that at the price we
paid we should have realised it was a shared bathroom. £220 per night.

The Lloyd Hotel, Amsterdam. The only hotel where I had to ask that the room was cleaned before we used it, it was filthy. Waiter also basically told us when we tried to order drinks that he was too busy to serve us for the next hour 🤣 There were loads of empty tables too.

A so called boutique hotel in Manchester where there was no plug in the bath and the sink was full of previous guests hair.