Why is it so hard to find accessible hotel rooms?
Finding accessible hotel rooms is not an easy task, still, and it is 2023. Whenever I do have a good experience that hotel then becomes somewhere I look forward to returning to simply because the heavy lifting of location an accessible room is eliminated.
Now, I have encountered difficult and unexpected inaccessible situations but none like a woman from the UK, name Kat Williams. I can’t tell you how annoyed I am on her behalf and it frightens me as I am considering a trip across the big pond and I know finding accessible hotel rooms will be tricky.
Why is it still so hard to find accessible hotel rooms??
Terrible Experience
Kat, who uses a wheelchair and requires a ventilator at night, had to sleep on a sofa in a hotel dining room because the accessible room she had booked was not available.
Obviously, Kat had done her part and carefully planned her trip from South Wales to London. Her plan was to attend a concert at the Royal Albert Hall. Upon arrival at the Travelodge Hotel in Hounslow, she was informed that the accessible room she had booked was “out of order” because it had not been cleaned.
What!! that is a lame excuse, why did the hotel not get the cleaning crew to work while she was at the concert?
The hotel offered two alternatives: a family room that was not wheelchair accessible in the bathroom (which can be dangerous), or an alternative Travelodge hotel in Twickenham which had an accessible room available. Watkins accepted the family room and went to the concert. When Watkins returned to the hotel, she was informed that the family room was no longer available.
Attempts to find a taxi that could accommodate a wheelchair to take her to the Twickenham Travelodge were unsuccessful. As a result, Watkins and her personal assistant had to sleep on sofas in the dining room.
Kat described the experience as traumatic. I’d add humiliating to the list. She struggled to breathe without her ventilator and her back pain is still intense since the night. Kat has been at this hotel before so she did know what to expect. It’s not a surprise that she said she wouldn’t be using Travelodge hotels again.
A spokesperson for Travelodge apologized to Watkins and her personal assistant, acknowledging that they failed to meet their normal standard of service. They refunded the booking in full and offered an e-voucher for a future stay in hopes of reinstating Watkins’ faith in their brand.
Read. the full article here
How do you feel about using Travelodge now?
Access and stairs are never a good combination.
