Beware of budget hotels for a dirty weekend
06 January 2009
People staying in budget hotel rooms may be shocked to discover what is lurking beneath the bed sheets, warns a new undercover investigation by Which? Holiday*.
Stained and mouldy mattresses, a suspected blood-stained duvet, and food debris on the floor were just some of the grim discoveries made by Which? Holiday during stays at the UK’s five most visited budget hotel chains**.
Ibis performed particularly badly in the investigation. A mattress in a room at an Ibis Hotel in Manchester*** was found to be so badly soiled that the cover had frayed and mould had begun to grow. In a room at a second Manchester Ibis****, Which? Holiday discovered a stain on a duvet, which an accompanying technical consultant suggested could be blood.
It’s not just the beds that revealed poor cleaning standards. The toilet inspected in one of the rooms at Ibis Euston, Cardington Street, London, had the worst toilet, in terms of cleanliness of all the budget hotels rooms visited. Urine and faeces was found round the edge of the toilet seat, while urine was also streaked down the pedestal.
The bathrooms in the rooms of the Travelodge hotels inspected were also found to be unclean, leading to concern about the bacteria***** found in four of the five rooms. There were high levels of dust under the bed in one room in Travelodge, Gray’s Inn Road, while dirty handprints and ground-in dirt were found on the walls.
Comfort Inn and Jurys Inn both performed well in the investigation, with the rooms inspected by Which? Holiday found to be clean. The rooms in three Premier Inn hotels visited in Manchester were described as spotless by the researcher, while the rooms in two London Premier Inns had some room for improvement, although bacteria found in the bathrooms caused no concern to the technical consultant.
Lorna Cowan, editor of Which? Holiday, says:
“Although this investigation was just a snapshot, it does raise concerns about the cleanliness of some budget hotel chains. It’s clear from our research that some of the hotels are getting it right when appropriate cleaning methods are being used. Paying guests should be guaranteed, at the very least, a clean room.”
“There doesn’t seem to be one single accepted standard for hygiene in hotels across the UK, and we would like to see this change.”
-Ends-
Notes to Editor
* During a four-day period in September 2008, Which? Holiday inspected 16 rooms in budget chain hotels in London and Manchester. These were all within a one-mile radius of London King’s Cross station and Piccadilly station, Manchester.
Which? Holiday booked the rooms online or by telephone, pretending to be an ordinary paying guest. A Which? Holiday researcher, accompanied by a microbiological technical consultant with 23 years’ experience, then inspected the rooms allocated to them.
Between 45 and 60 minutes were spent in each room, and swabs were taken from the bedside light switch, telephone (or remote control), sink, toilet, toilet flush and bathroom door handle. These swabs were sent to a lab to be tested.
** Which? Holiday inspected rooms in budget hotels belonging to the UK’s most visited hotel chains (Mintel report, September 2007).
- Comfort Inn, Argyle Street, London
- Comfort Inn, Chad’s Street, London
- Ibis, Cardington Street, London
- Ibis, Charles Street, Manchester
- Ibis, Portland Street, Manchester
- Premier Inn, Duke’s Road, London
- Premier Inn, York Way, London
- Premier Inn, Lower Mosley Street, Manchester
- Premier Inn, Portland Street, Manchester
- Premier Inn, Victoria Bridge Street, Manchester
- Travelodge, Grafton Place, London
- Travelodge, Gray’s Inn Road, London
- Travelodge, King’s Cross Road, London
- Travelodge, Blackfriars Street, Manchester
- Travelodge, Great Ancoats Street, Manchester
- Jurys Inn, Great Bridgewater Street, Manchester
*** Ibis, Charles Street, Manchester
****Ibis, Portland Street, Manchester
*****Which? Holiday tested for Coliforms, Faecal Coliforms, E Coli, Staphylococcus aureus and TVC.
Which? Holiday is a subscription-only holiday magazine published 4 times a year by Which? For details on how to receive 2 issues of Which? Holiday for £3, telephone 01992 822800 or visit which.co.uk.
