The disgusting state of one of Cardiff ’s best-known hotels has been uncovered with an investigation finding unmade beds, smelly rooms, and blood stains on the wall.
The Big Sleep, in Bute Terrace, was the subject of the investigation and the owners of the hotel – which was once owned by eccentric US actor John Malkovich – have vowed to improve.
It follows an investigation by BBC’s X-Ray team which also found dead insects, mouldy windows, and dirty duvets.
The Big Sleep is usually known as a stopover for hen parties and travellers on a budget and was hailed as a “designer budget hotel” when it opened in 1999.
In 2012 it was also named one of the top 10 celebrity hotels and was listed alongside heavyweights such as New York’s Chelsea Hotel and Chateau Marmont in Los Angeles, where Hollywood’s movers and shakers go to party.
But now dismayed customers have expressed their disgust at the rooms they stayed in.
As part of the programme presenter Omar Hamdi booked a room at the hotel and on arrival found the mattress and bedding were stained and the bed itself broken.
He told the programme, due to be aired on BBC One Wales on Monday: “Everywhere I looked there was grime.
“A blood stain on the wall, hairs on the bedding, thick dust on the skirting boards, and stains in not one but both drawers of the bedside table.”
Jan Jones, from Porthcawl, said she found the room “strewn with rubbish” and the bed unmade after paying £68 to stay there for a night in January.
She added: “I really thought it was occupied by someone because it was just an absolute mess.
“There were empty food containers in there, there were empty beer bottles, the mattress was exposed and it was stained.
“The bathroom was filthy dirty. And the smell was awful because there was stale food in there. It was just shocking.”
Lina Tsaltampasi, 58, from Thessaloniki, Greece, stayed at the hotel in September, and told the programme she bought products to clean the room herself.
Becky from Hay-on-Wye, discovered blood stains on her bathroom wall while Sharon from Essex had a shocking shower curtain, a cracked sink, and a heated towel rail with exposed wiring.
Josh from Staffordshire found a big stain on the duvet.
Reacting to the investigation, the hotel apologised and described the “lapses in quality” as unacceptable.
It added it would take action to improve housekeeping and address and tackle the poor management.
It told the programme it was confident once the current refurbishment was finished it would be “transformed”.
The Big Sleep will refund all those featured on the BBC programme. We have also contacted the hotel for additional comment but have not received an answer.
X-Ray will air on BBC One Wales at 7:30pm on Monday
http://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/blood-walls-smelly-rooms-disgusting-12240307
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