Where not to stay when visiting Blackpool

[Leif]

Personally, I have minimal faith in 'travel review' websites, but this takes the biscuit:

BBC News - Trip Advisor couple 'fined' £100 by hotel for bad review

[HansV]

Related:

A $500 fine for bad reviews? Inn's policy pummeled
Court: Yelp Can Lower Ratings for Businesses Who Don't Advertise on its Site

[Rudi]

So do they give you £100 if you post a GOOD review?

[HansV]

They'd never admit that, but I suspect that some glowing reviews may well be paid.

[John Gray]

Apart from the fact that a charge of this type would be an unfair contract term in the UK, it is fairly instructive to read a few of the other recent reviews of this hotel. The only thing 'glowing' about them is the vitriol!

[HansV]

And still, it's ranked #858 of 894 Blackpool B&B and Inns, so there must be 36 worse establishments...

[John Gray]

And still, it's ranked #858 of 894 Blackpool B&B and Inns, so there must be 36 worse establishments...

No, it doesn't work that way! Down right at the bottom of the 'rankings' are those hotels which have not (yet) received a review. There are a mere ten hotels with reviews which are ranked below the Broadway hotel. (Go down to #858 by visiting page 30 - see bottom right of webpages for the page numbers - then back to the middle of page 29.)

And, to nobody's surprise, that hotel is to stop making the charge, Trading Standards say.

The couple featured in yesterday's/today's hoo-haa must not have had high expectations of the hotel because £36 a night for two people including breakfast is about half the price charged by an average Bed and Breakfast establishment.

[HansV]

Oh, OK.

I agree that £36 is very cheap. For that room rate, you shouldn't expect any luxury, but you'd still want cleanliness...

[StuartR]

After a visit from Trading Standards they have announced that they will no longer include this term in their contracts. No news yet on whether they will refund the money they have already taken.

[HansV]

If they ever want to regain some positive reputation, they'd better do that...

[HansV]

These review sites (TripAdvisor, Yelp, Google, etc.) work like social media - powerful, but also unpredictable. I was amused by this:

"An East Texas restaurant is receiving unique backlash on social media after a waitress told a gay couple not to return, making a homophobic remark in the process.

Using Yelp and Google reviews, online activists are trying to make Big Earl’s Bait House and Country Store in Pittsburg seem like one of the highest rated and most recommended gay bars in Texas."

(Controversial Texas Restaurant Becoming A ‘Highly Rated’ Gay Bar)

[hlewton]

These review sites (TripAdvisor, Yelp, Google, etc.) work like social media - powerful, but also unpredictable. I was amused by this:

"An East Texas restaurant is receiving unique backlash on social media after a waitress told a gay couple not to return, making a homophobic remark in the process.

Using Yelp and Google reviews, online activists are trying to make Big Earl’s Bait House and Country Store in Pittsburg seem like one of the highest rated and most recommended gay bars in Texas."

(Controversial Texas Restaurant Becoming A ‘Highly Rated’ Gay Bar)

They need some new waitresses and here is where they can look to get them. Waitresses Carry Guns At Aptly Named Restaurant In Aptly Named Town

[John Gray]

I would have reckoned that the place was just an off-shoot* of Hooters!

* see what I did there?!

[mishmish3000]

Gee, Murfreesboro had "Tooters" but they had to change their name because it was too close to "Hooters" (just think, a place named after a brass band had to change its name because of a place named after owls?!). Now they're "Toots" (and have fantastic wings, by the way).

[StuartR]

I was listening to BBC RADIO4 in the car today and I heard that this hotel has now refunded the £100

[GeoffW]

Brand new attraction in Blackpool. Experience the genuine Fawlty Towers experience!