Like Ryanair and easyJet before them, low-cost hotel chains are eyeing the lucrative business travel market – and it’s sweet dreams all round
For the battle-hardened business traveller, budget hotel chains are synonymous with dreary decor, thin walls and the hum of the motorway beyond the window. But in the same way that Ryanair and easyJet raised their game to make the low-cost option acceptable for work trips, cheap hotels are luring the corporate pound with a move upmarket.
So while room service and extra towels are not on the menu, in Premier Inns and Travelodges across the country custom-made kingsize beds and power showers are becoming the norm. Once seen as cheap and soulless, fit only for hen- and stag-do destinations, Britain’s budget hotels have had a makeover and are winning favour with a growing number of business travellers.