I find it extremely disappointing when I arrive at a hotel of which I’ve seen photos of a beautiful, characterful building to discover that my room is in the characterless modern annexe at the back of the hotel. The most recent example of this was at the Blackwell Grange Hotel in Darlington. We stayed there on a Groupon Getaways deal. The photos on Groupon and on the hotel’s own site only showed front of the hotel, when in fact the majority of the rooms are in a faceless extension.
Blackwell Grange Hotel Darlington
The homepage of the Blackwell Grange extols the historic features of the hotel with descriptions including:
- “Building commenced in 1693 and was finally completed in 1717, with the property being passed down through the family until 1953.”
- “From the moment you turn into the long and sweeping driveway, and catch your first glimpse of the Georgian façade, you know you are somewhere special.”
I reckon that most people are more likely to book at a hotel which has an attractive exterior. Of course, everyone wants to portray themselves or their product in the best possible light. However, is it acceptable for a hotel to imply that you will be staying in a historic building, when the chances are you’ll be allocated at room in the modern annexe?
I believe that hotels should be obliged to show the whole building in their photos, not just the attractive original building.
What’s your opinion?
I usually never believe a hotels photos unless it’s a major chain, and even then….
I always go online and try to find photos by travelers who have stayed there on sites such as TripAdvisor. Several times it’s saved me from having the same type of experience you unfortunately had.
Jim, all that research takes time. At least with a chain like Travelodge you know what to expect.
I’m wondering if hotel sites might be contravening the UK Trade Descriptions Act:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trade_Descriptions_Act_1968
which “prevents supplier from misleading customers as to what they are spending their money on”?
Hi Karen, I don’t spend a lot of time researching anything like that since I’m too busy. But Googling the hotel’s name along with the word “tripadvisor” only takes a few seconds. Although I don’t always trust reviews on TripAdvisor at least you may see a few guest-generated photos. And BTW, if you look at a hotel’s photos and they don’t show one of the WC, that’s a red flag for me also.