Why are British hotels so unremitingly crap?

[gbb]

The star rating of a hotel relates to facilities not quality of such things of service food etc.

No, thats right, but one invariably goes with the other.

On the home front...are Best Western seen as a good/fair chain ?
I stayed in a motel style one at Durham. The rooms were exactly what you'd expect, fine but plain (ish), the hotel reception/dining areas etc were really quite acceptable, breakfast was good, service was good...and really quite cheap too.
There another BW hotel in Peterborough, that does have a very good reputation locally.

 

[lukesdad]

The difference between a 4 and a 5 is service.

Read my post again, its not quality of service

 

[redcard]

No, thats right, but one invariably goes with the other.

On the home front...are Best Western seen as a good/fair chain ?
I stayed in a motel style one at Durham. The rooms were exactly what you'd expect, fine but plain (ish), the hotel reception/dining areas etc were really quite acceptable, breakfast was good, service was good...and really quite cheap too.
There another BW hotel in Peterborough, that does have a very good reputation locally.

I believe you'll find a great variation in Best Western's as they're not a chain as such. Kinda like Holiday Inn and Crowne Plaza, they're brands / franchises that are all run by different operators. They're all meant to adhere to similar standards, but I'm sure some get away with providing less than others.

 

[lukesdad]

No, thats right, but one invariably goes with the other.

On the home front...are Best Western seen as a good/fair chain ?
I stayed in a motel style one at Durham. The rooms were exactly what you'd expect, fine but plain (ish), the hotel reception/dining areas etc were really quite acceptable, breakfast was good, service was good...and really quite cheap too.
There another BW hotel in Peterborough, that does have a very good reputation locally.

THF posthouses used to be four star and they were rubbish, at the same time places like the Lygon arms in Broadway and Chewton Glen in the new forest 2 of the finest hotels in the world were only 3 star. So they don't really reflect quality.

 

[lukesdad]

Ah. gettya.

I often wonder how these places such as that place in Dubai are rated 7 stars. Presumably they do it themselves.

Probably got a helicopter landing pad on the roof with a lift to the suites and its own private yacht

 

[Hover Fly]

Explanation of the European system here:
http://www.hotelstars.eu/en/index.php?open=Criteria

 

[Fab Foodie]

I used to work in the Portbury industrial estate...

Anyway, there's some nice road riding from that area down the lanes into north Somerset. I can usually arrange an evening ride with a bit of notice.

Would be good to do, let's see if we can make it happen.

 

[Fab Foodie]

I stayed at a hotel in Nottingham a few years back and when I went into the room someone was already in it!

Just stayed at a Premiere Inn last night and it was actually quite good and all the people who worked there were very friendly and helpful!

Wifey kicked you out again?

 

[Fab Foodie]

Oooo a hotel-off!

We stayed at Claridges in Buenos Aires and The Sheraton at Iguazu Falls about 10 years ago for B&B prices. [/smug]

How many hours dishwashing did you have to do though?

 

[dellzeqq]

I travel ... a lot, but mostly overseas, predominantly Europe but occasionally further afield and yoiu know what, on the whole hotels, resteraunts etc are pretty excellent. The buildings, rooms, environments are generally good, the service excellent but not overpowering and food is usually more than acceptable and often very good indeed, both in chains and independants.

Tonight I decided to stay-over near our Bristol factory and am staying at a 'Country Club' hotel, looks fine on the internet, but it's a mess, the building is/was 'designed' in best described as a random style of nothing in particular that's good, the staff are fairly hopeless, the beer choice is crap and the foods awful, they'd run out of anchovies for the Ceaser salad ....
I dispair, and it's £90 a night.
No wonder the Premiere Inn is always full.

ninety quid!!!! Well, if you insist on slumming it......

 

[dellzeqq]

I'm originally from Middlesbrough

you mean your family owns it!

 

[dellzeqq]

I've got no perspective on this, because, to be honest, if it's clean I'm happy. I don't care about the details, I just want to feel that I'm not keeping company with somebody else's pubes. But I'm married to someone who describes the Plaza as a dump. And when she was touring with that Lily Savage fella they walked out! And.......she loves the Swan in Southwold - so it can't be bad.

 

[Fab Foodie]

ninety quid!!!! Well, if you insist on slumming it......

... and that was corporate rate!

To be fair, it's hard to find hotels in business areas for much less, Premiere Inns advertise 'from £40 but weekdays you'll easily pay £75 plus.
Frankly for the hours I do, the travel, the value of business I support, I reckon I'm worth £90 and a decent meal

 

[threebikesmcginty]

Frankly for the hours I do, the travel, the value of business I support, I reckon I'm worth £90 and a decent meal

I rec you've over-valued yourself, kebab and a park bench at best.

 

[Globalti]

On the home front...are Best Western seen as a good/fair chain ?

No, Best Western are the pits; they specialise in buying up failing hotels and running them on a budget. Most of their places are worn out old house conversions or seventies concrete dumps. Definiteley at the crappy end of the scale.

Best hotels I've stayed in on business? The Al Salaam Rotana in Khartoum and the Serena in Kampala.

Best on my own account? Any Premier Inn. Oh, and The Samling in Ambleside where Mrs Gti and I got married.