Jude M.
1/5
I sent a message to the location when I booked letting them know I'd prefer a downstairs room because I was bringing my wheelchair. I let them know I can walk a bit so a step here or there was fine but generally I needed something accessible. They said that was no problem and accepted the booking.
When I arrived, the staff person let me know that the only downstairs rooms they had had a shared bathroom down the hall rather than an ensuite. Also, someone was already in those rooms, but if I wanted, they could make those people move to the room I booked, which was apparently upstairs.
Being trans and disabled, I don't like to share bathrooms, and I really wasn't thrilled with the prospect of rousting whoever was in the downstairs room and forcing them to move to the room I booked. Also, the room I booked was more expensive, I guess because it had its own ensuite bathroom+shower, and there was no mention of a refund for the difference.
So I dragged myself and my chair up the narrow staircase with a 90 degree landing in the middle and got settled in. The room itself was about 7ft x 10ft which is NOT how it looked in the photos, the bathroom door had no lock on it, which I guess isn't a huge deal for a room meant for one person, but felt weird. The wallpaper where the bed was was gross, and with my chair in the room there wasn't room for much else. No mini fridge or microwave in the room but that's fine, whatever.
The bathroom was moldy, had a step up into the VERY small shower, and the whole thing was only about 2ft wide by 5 ft long. The wallpaper was peeling, the toilet was loose where it met the ground, and the fan was also gross. The platform the shower sat on was moldy as well. I ended up not showering while I was there.
The TV was not actually a TV, but just a radio? Which was weird. The bed was comfy enough.
Tbh I would stay there again if I was a solo traveler who just needed a bed to sleep in for the night. It was cheap (£40 per night plus fees so £90 for my two nights).
AFTER I checked out I found out there was a ground floor family suite with it's own bathroom and entrance, but of course I wasn't offered that, which was a higher price than my room and also already booked, just the single room with a shared bathroom that was cheaper with no refund for the difference and already booked as well. The shared bathroom was also tiny and inaccessible, and the door didn't open all the way, so it would have been difficult for me to use. The shared bathroom rooms each had their own shower, I assume similar to the one in my room.
It was a cute BnB. It could use a good clean and some new wallpaper but tbh it was safe, quiet, and cute. It had a breakfast nook area with several tables and you could grab some cereal or toast or whatnot any time. There was a downstairs lounge with a couch and a tv.
But bottom line, if someone books your hotel, and sends you a notice they need it to be accessible, and you know damn well it isn't accessible in ANY stretch of the imagination, just say so and cancel the booking and refund me! I'm lucky enough to be an ambulatory wheelchair user so I was able to manage and drag my chair up and down the stairs, but if I had higher accessibility needs, I wouldn't have even been able to get in the building, let alone use the toilet/shower or make it up a flight of stairs.
It's just unacceptable to accept a booking when you know you cannot accommodate the person. It's fine that you can't (although not really, ramps exist and the front walk is easy to make accesible) but then just say so so I can book somewhere else! Like why? Just why? Honestly shame on y'all.
