Hotel Life

[wheypat]

Just booked a hotel for next week. They congratulated me, I've now spent over 365 days staying with their chain.

1 whole smegging year And I never stayed with them till I was 34. So in the last 12 years I've spent a year with them. 8% of my life has been in this hotel chain.

And did I mention I also hold platinum status with another chain . . . . . .

[AleisterCrowley]

I hate staying in hotels for work - much rather be 'home' even if the hotel is a good one.

[robbelg]

It may be a function of age ( and how nice your home is )

I spent most of my mid and late 20s spending 2 or 3 weeks a month in hotels and loved it - It didn't hurt that my co had no problem with my eating off the top of the menu and a bottle of wine.

Not spending a penny of my own money 4 nights a week was very good for my bank balance too.

[Annanalyst]

We have started using AirBnB instead of hotels now that I am a consultant rather than an employee. On a business trip to Edinburgh we got a flat for under £100 a night. Nice location just down from the castle - bedroom, great power shower, lounge and small kitchen. Think of the amount the firm could have saved if AirBnB had existed way back when.

Having said that, the quantity surveyors in the back office would probably have banned AirBnB as everything (flights, hotels, taxis) had to be booked centrally even if you could book it cheaper direct. So ability to track what I was doing was far more important than the cost.

[wheypat]

It may be a function of age ( and how nice your home is )

I spent most of my mid and late 20s spending 2 or 3 weeks a month in hotels and loved it - It didn't hurt that my co had no problem with my eating off the top of the menu and a bottle of wine.

Not spending a penny of my own money 4 nights a week was very good for my bank balance too.

Agreed - when I left academia aged 26 I joined a graduate training scheme and I carefully picked the worst assignments that involved hotel living and at the weekends lived back with my parents. This had several benefits (including as you state living for free 5 days a week) but also I was noted in the company for my willingness to travel and do the terrible jobs (also working away there was nothing to do in the evenings, so I worked longer and harder). I got promoted far faster than my peer group, something that has benefited my career to this date.

[Ashfordian]

With the increase in WFH and the flexibility this gives on your location to live, a night or two stay every week in a hotel is becoming more common.

This was the case in my last role where a hotel stay was around the same cost as the petrol to go back home for the evening (160 mile round trip) but it also saved on a late finish and very early start so was worth doing.

I'm now about to start a new role where I'm required to office based at the start so will be in a hotel during the week, at least to start with. Sun-Thu nights in a hotel works out cheaper than the petrol cost (200 mile round trip) or weekly rail ticket. This also saves at least 2 hours of commuting each day. Even though I will not have home comforts the hotel will be better for the overall quality of life.

[AndyPandy]

The first Company I worked for was an International Travel IT Company. Spent the first year where the furthest I travelled was to Heathrow to fix the kit there.
Once I got the first foreign trip under my belt, however loads then followed. Germany, Spain, Bangkok, Hong Kong, Taiwan, even Orlando and back in 24 hours.

As a singleton in his 20's with not much money, I loved this world of free holidays. Loved the trying of new foods and culture (guided tour of Patpong, anyone? Look, don't touch).

It helped that the Company was not stingy with expenses and decent hotels. You can have too much of a good thing and I see how it could have become a chore. One of my seniors flew out to NY and as soon as he landed was told to fly straight back as there was a bigger problem back at base to deal with. Couldn't do it so easily now with a family in tow. Most of it was pretty short notice stuff. Also, once you're working inside an aircon Computer room you could be in Honolulu or Hounslow for all it was worth and you would tend to put in long hours.

Happy days and still love staying in Hotels when someone else is paying.

[AleisterCrowley]

Alright if you're working somewhere nice. I always end up in a Premier Inn/Travelodge overlooking a car park or similar, in Leeds or Birmingham.
I never want to go back to the Premier Inn Solihull South ...ever