Originally Posted by BOH
He does say he is able to sleep OK in Y seats though and getting the middle seat on a long-haul minimises his chance of being disturbed. I can see the logic but I cringe at the thought of a middle seat on a long-haul - just being in Y is bad enough
. Public transport would be usually used if available, ie taxi in London would be a total no-no as there is a perfectly good tube network (I agree with him on this)
In the UK he normally stays in TravelInn or Travelodge type hotels or something at around £50-£60 per night. In the USA it would be Holiday In Express or similar. He also frequently uses FR to fly in Europe which we all find bizarre as his company is based in Devon so he actually passes LHR on the way round to STN
. But his rationale is often BA is asking >£300 for a tix that FR is <£50 for.
I happily admit to using UK budget hotels as when I travel in the UK. I'm normally arriving late at night and still have some distance to go in the morning. So the sheer convenience of them alongside major roads is a plus (no having to travel in and out of a town or city when arriving and leaving to stay in a more expensive one). Also I can arrive at the early hours and know the reception is still going to be open. And normally arriving at past 23:00 and leaving before 7:30 the next day I don't care about any other hotel amenities as long as it has a decent bed.
Fair play to him for sticking to it. But what *does* he spend his money on? I wouldn't see the point of working so hard, being that loaded, and not spending it. Nice cars? Great house? Is he simply prepared to rough it on the road but spends lots elsewhere, or is he simply not motivated by material gains at all?
I've used plenty of budget hotels as well when I'm not really going to be in the room much - no point paying for somewhere nice when you're not going to use any of the facilities. In fact when I'm in the UK I'm unlikely to spend a lot time in any hotel room, so it's more price / location. However if I'm actually going to be spending time in a hotel room, I can do without the stark Soviet-bloc style minimalism of a Travelodge room
I really like the Holiday Inn Express chain though, for budget hotels I'd rather stay there than some 4*s I've stayed in at twice the price.
I'd love to be able to pretend I was like your client, but I know I'm not. I can rough it on occasion and have slept on plenty of kitchen floors in my time, but when I'm travelling, I like nice hotel rooms, flying premium classes, and generally avoiding having to stand in queues and mix with the plebs as much as possible. Terrible