Tag: Hotel Sick View All Tags
Tags: Hotel Hell / Swine Flu Hotels / Romania Hotels / Hotel Sick / Hotel News / → All Tags
Swine Flu Hotel Closes After 40 People Become Ill
Earlier this year when swine flu first erupted, 280 people were quarantined at the MetroPark Hotel in Hong Kong, we lightly dubbed it a Swine Flu Hotel. But now we have a real Swine Flu Hotel.
Hotel Sinaia, a resort in the mountains of Sinaia, Romania, has been closed after 40 Romainian and foreign law students attending a conference caught the dreaded H1N1 virus.
Health state secretary Adrian Streinu-Cercel says 40 people were hospitalized Sunday in Bucharest, suffering from medium to severe forms of the flu.
Tags: Hotel Sick / Hotel Hell / → All Tags
The Waldorf-Astoria Steakhouse Gross-Out Story is Probably Fake
Dear lord. There is a story going around the ol' Internets today that is going to make you very, very unhappy. We have convinced ourselves that it is fake and ridiculous and impossible, but you're going to run into this story eventually — so you might as well let us deliver it.
Please put down whatever you are currently eating.
A tourist from Germany, Axel Sanz-Claus, has told a local NYC ABC outlet that in his steak and spinach dinner at the Bull and Bear Steak House at the Waldorf Astoria was — seriously, finish your lunch — a tampon. And not a brand new white one, if you get our drift.
Tags: Hotel Hell / Hotel News / Hotel Sick / Hong Kong Hotels / → All Tags
Confirmed: A Week of Quarantine In a Hong Kong Hotel Is Not Awesome
This morning, we were perusing the ol' headlines and noticed a very special one out of Hong Kong that read, "Quarantined guests at Hong Kong hotel get free accommodations." Well, um, yeah — we would assume that the 300-or-so people holed up in the MetroPark Hotel on a seven-day quarantine (due to a confirmed case of swine flu in a hotel guest) wouldn't have to pay for their rooms.
And as awesome as seven free nights in a pretty nice hotel might sound, rest assured that the quarantined guests are not having the time of their lives. Today's Wall Street Journal ran a dispatch from a guest on the inside of the hotel, who calls the seal-up her "seven-day 'life in prison.'
Tags: Hotel Sick / Hotel Hell / Hotel News / Hong Kong Hotels / Swine Flu Hotels / → All Tags
Hong Kong Hotel Quarantined Due to Swine Flu Case
Oh noes. Here comes the first report of a hotel completely sealed off because a guest staying there has been diagnosed with swine flu. Seriously. An entire hotel is under quarantine for seven days.
BBC News reports:
About 300 people at a Hong Kong hotel have been placed under quarantine after a guest there became China's first confirmed swine flu case.
The 25-year-old man, who is now in hospital after testing positive for the virus, had travelled from Mexico via Shanghai, Hong Kong's leader said. Local TV footage showed police wearing masks guarding the hotel exits.
Guh. Can you even imagine being sealed up in your hotel for seven days? Talk about hotel hell.
The Mexican man who was diagnosed with the virus sought treatment at a hospital on Thursday evening, and his hotel — The Metropark Hotel — is now under a seven-day quarantine, and Tamiflu had been given to the 200 guests and 100 staff inside.
[Photo: Reuters]
Tags: Hotel News / Hotel Sick / Mexico Hotels / → All Tags
Due to Swine Flu Crisis, Mexico Hotels Will Waive Cancellation Fees
JW Marriott, Cancun.
Got a hot little Mexico vacay booked? We'll bet you were psyched about the tanning and the boozin' just a week ago — but you probably haven't been so excited, you know, since the CDC issued a travel advisory urging Americans to avoid "all non-essential travel to Mexico," where swine flu-related 149 deaths have been reported so far.
Not particularly interested in taking your chances with the spreading-alarmingly-swiftly swine flu while you're frolicking on the sunny beaches? No worries: almost all the major hotel chains — Marriott, Starwood, InterContinental and Hyatt — have announced that they will waive cancellation fees at their Mexico properties in response to the swine flu crisis.
Though an IHG spokeswoman spoke to CNN Money and promised "the company will waive fees for guests in the U.S and Canada 'on a case-by-case basis'" she noted the company has already seen an increased number of cancellations at its Mexico properties as travelers take the precautions necessary to protect themelves. Don't be afraid to cancel that Cancun trip, people: call your hotel directly.
Tags: Celebrity Scoop / Hotel Sick / Hollywood Hotels / → All Tags
Josh Hartnett's Illness Was Not a Case of 'Hotel Sick'
When we'd heard that hunky actor Josh Hartnett had been taken away from the Chateau Marmont Hotel in an ambulance because of stomach problems yesterday, we thought immediately of the one thing we associate with, you know, gastro-intestinal issues that warrant hospitalization: hotel sick.
The Marmont, a notorious hive for misbehaving celebs, sleazy tabloid gossipers and Lohanesque divas, can't really afford much more bad PR or damage to its rep — so, lucky for us (and you, if you've munched on anything in the hotel recently), this was not a case of hotel sick at all. Entertainment Wise says:
His publicist ... confirmed: "Josh Hartnett walked into an ambulance at approximately 1:45am suffering from a flare-up of a gastro-intestinal problem that plagued him while he was starring in the West End of London during the production of Rain Man. "He is under observation but is resting comfortably."
See? All good in the 'hood. No hotel sick; now all you've got to worry about are pistachios.
[Photo: Getty]
Tags: Hotel Sick / Hotel News / Dubai Hotels / Westin Hotels / → All Tags
Guests Fall Ill After Checking Out of Westin Dubai
You hear about it happening on cruise ships or at cheap hotels, but the most recent outbreak of Legionnaires' Disease may have come from a luxury hotel in Dubai. Last week, a British cricket broadcaster who had just returned from staying at the Westin Dubai Mina Seyahi Beach Resort fell ill with this serious form of pneumonia and subsequently died. Two other guests are also currently battling it, although tests for the Legionella bacteria in the hotel have all so far been negative.
Bacteria don't care how much you spend on your hotel room, especially ones like Legionella, which is spread through infected water droplets in air conditioning or plumbing. This is not a warning for guests to wear masks over their nose and mouth constantly, but for hotels to be constantly vigilant when it comes to cleanliness; the Westin has only been open slightly more than six months. As it is, only 5-15% of Legionnaire's cases prove fatal. The hotel has contacted all other guests to inform them of the situation, but it hasn't yet been proven that the Westin is at fault.
[Room photo via the Westin Dubai; Legionella image via Lueven University]
Tags: Hotel Hell / Hotel Sick / → All Tags
Carbon Monoxide Poisoning Ruins Fourth of July Weekend for Guests
Hotels have got to be more careful these days. We thought last week's flurry of hotel sick was bad, but it keeps getting worse.
Eight people were sent to area hospitals in Virginia Beach after high levels of carbon monoxide were released at the Ocean Sands Hotel on Sunday.
An investigation into the carbon monoxide leak determined the motor in the hotel's spa overheated and burned out. As a result, the ventilation fan stopped, causing the carbon monoxide from two natural gas heaters to get trapped inside the hotel, [a fire department spokesman] said.
Fortunately, none of the victims were seriously injured and the hotel has since been "re-occupied" but we'll probably steer clear of this one for now.
Tags: Hotel Hell / Hotel Sick / Viva Vegas / → All Tags
Hotel Sick Strikes Yet Again at the Tropicana in Las Vegas
Sin City? More like Barf City at the Tropicana in Las Vegas. The hotel's Island Tower was shut down earlier this week after traces of E-Coli bacteria were found during a routine test.
Fortunately, no guests have been reported to be ill. However, as a precaution the hotel moved 500 guests to other rooms and neighboring resorts. KXNT TV News reports:
The Tropicana is the only Strip resort to use well water, which is mixed with municipal water supplies.... The Southern Nevada Health District is expected to conduct more tests of the water today, before giving the green light to reopen the tower. Hotel officials say they will use municipal water exclusively.
We the recent string of hotel sick (that's what we call these types of incidents), we are feeling a little freaked out about staying in hotels.
First, there are all the bodily fluids on the bed. Then there are dirty drinking glasses. And how could we forget bed bugs? Now we have to be careful of a hotel's water supply and the hygiene habits of the kitchen staff. This four-day weekend could not come soon enough.
Tags: Hotel Hell / Palo Alto Hotels / Hotel Sick / Crowne Plaza Hotels / → All Tags
Hotel Sick Strikes Again, This Time in Palo Alto
For at least 21 people who visited the Crowne Plaza Cabana hotel, this holiday weekend is going to be extra-special because they now have "a diarrheal illness" to keep them company.
While the exact cause of the illness has yet to be determined, the outbreak seems to have only affected people at the Cabana, so the hotel invited the Health Department over to check things out.
The San Mateo Daily News reports the Cabana is safe for public use again (even though they didn't know what was wrong in the first place) and they're making sure some changes are made:
they've put together a program for the hotel to prevent future incidents, including sanitizing walls, floors, ceilings and bathrooms, Gale said. Employees also will undergo a one- to two-hour food handling course and managers will receive training on how to recognize a contagious employee.
Uhh, we hope you mean they will be re-training employees about all this stuff.
Tags: Hotel News Briefs / Hotel Sick / Lost Hotel Files / Beijing Hotels / 2008 Olympics Hotels / Hotel Booking Sites / → All Tags
Hotel News Briefs :: Hotel Sick Strikes Tourists in Italy
There's tons of hotel news flying around this week and we don't have time to give each and every story the love and attention it may deserve, so you will have to settle for some news briefs.
· Hotel Sick: 30 British tourists fell ill, and one died while staying at the Grand Hotel Gardone near Lake Garda in Italy. Everyone ate from the hotel's restaurant and a salmonella contamination is suspected. [Canadian Press]
· More Bad News for Beijing Hotels: The hotel industry in Beijing is not going to do as well as predicted. Some put the blame on strict visa policies. [NY Times]
· Booking Sites in Trouble Again: A small New Jersey town joins others in suing popular online hotel booking agencies, claiming they don't pay the full hotel tax demanded by the city. [Newsday]
· No New Hotel for the Javits Center: The Javits Center plan for an expansion which included a 1,200-room hotel along 11th Avenue at 35th Street can now be filed in the Lost Hotel Files. [NY Observer]
Tags: Hotel Health / Hotel Sick / Tips / → All Tags
Illness on the Road: Tips From A Hotel Doctor
If you've been ill in a Los Angeles hotel and needed a doctor, the chances are high that the white-coat who came to see you was Dr. Mike Oppenheim.
He's been a hotel doctor since the 1980s and reckons he's made 15,000 hotel room visits. And advised thousands more over the phone.
He wrote a few tips for hotels recently that might just be useful for you, too, if you end up sick in a hotel room. Lots of hotels are using those agencies who take calls and then page a doctor who might turn up, eventually.
Hotels In: Africa | Asia | Australia | Caribbean | Europe | North America | South America
Our Publications:
Jaunted | HotelChatter | VegasChatter
