Back with the accessibility reviews again. But this time a hotel review, specifically the Britannia International Hotel in Canary Wharf, London. This is where I stayed in March 2022 before CW134 at Indigo at The O2 and UFC London at The O2.
(Disclaimer: I’m aware “accessibility” means different things to different people, as I said before, these are MY views on my experience of accessibility at this venue as an electric wheelchair user, I obviously can’t speak for other experiences but feel free to add your experiences in the comments!)
Booking
The initial booking was made with Booking.com, and I booked a standard room and made my request for an accessible room in the booking notes. The hotel then emailed me through the booking to say that they’d received my request and were able to book me in the accessible room I’d requested.
Travel
Travel wise, I got the train from Birmingham New Street to London Euston as I usually do. Then the bus from Euston to Waterloo. Then the Jubilee line from Waterloo to Canary Wharf. From there it was just a short walk to the hotel. Many forms of transport but frankly it all went quite smoothly.
Experience
Once I got into the hotel, things started pretty well as I was given a PEEP (Personal Emergency Evacuation Plan) form to fill out when I checked in. This is essentially a form for me to set out how I will evacuate in case of a fire as a disabled person, and isn’t something I usually receive at a hotel, so it was a pleasant surprise. Once I got to the room, my initial thought was that it was a little tight on space and difficult to manoeuvre around. For example, there was a double bed, but I could only get on the bed from one side. This is because where the bed was positioned meant there wasn’t enough space to position my chair down the other side to transfer.
It was a similar story of pluses and minuses in the accessible bathroom. Initially I was pleasantly surprised again as there seemed to be both a bath AND a wet room shower with seat in the bathroom. I find this is rare as it is usually a bath OR wet room shower bathroom and, if a hotel has both options available, you have to select which one you want. So, I think this was some step in the right direction as choice and options in accessibility are key. However, having both options did make space a little tight as I was unable to get my wheelchair fully in the bathroom and close the door without doing a 60-point turn or parking right up against the toilet. Which as you might imagine, made transferring onto said toilet difficult.
Overall, whilst there were some pleasant accessibility surprises I wasn’t expecting from this hotel, the lack of space meant I couldn’t properly access the pleasant surprises that did exist.
I hope this review is helpful if you’re trying to find an accessible hotel in the Canary Wharf Area.
Stay Invincible!
Em (Invincible Woman On Wheels)
Invincible Woman on Wheels 