With much publicity, including a spot on BBC news no less, a budget hotel has opened in London. And it is big news, because as I've mentioned before, it takes a lot of effort to find a hotel room for under £75/night in London that isn't a flea-bitten flophouse.
Promising 5-star beds at 1-star prices, Tune Hotels have properties across Malaysia and promise rapid expansion in Britain. With the 2012 Olympics right around the corner, Tune has plans for over a dozen hotels across the city.
Taking a cue from the no-frills business model which has revolutionised air travel, Tune offers a basic product with numerous extras at a cost. You need a towel? You can rent one for £1.50. Want to watch TV? Yours for £3 a day. You need the room cleaned during your stay? That's £7.50.
How about a chair, wardrobe, telephone or desk? Tough. The room is just big enough for a double bed and tiny bathroom, so there's no furniture. Some rooms don't even have a window (that's another £5 - seriously).
And in another page out of the no-frills rule book, there is its misleading location. For now, Tune has one London site, advertised as 'Westminster' which in my mind conjures images of the Houses of Parliament, Big Ben and Westminster Abbey. In fact, it's across the river in Lambeth, about a mile from Parliament Square but almost on top of a tube station.
Finally, there's the pricing policy. Rooms 'from' £35, the website trumpets. Just like the no-frills airlines, advance booking is required for this rate and weekends are excluded. My test booking for a weekend stay in October offered 2 nights in a basic room for £130, while for a midweek stay in March a windowless cell could be mine for £40.
Personally, I don't think I'll be singing along to this Tune anytime soon!
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