Friday, July 15, 2011

Wifi-less in London

Just got back from a short trip to London. I stayed in a city centre hotel in Bloomsbury which cost 340 euros for two nights. The room was not ensuite, with the bathroom down the end of the corridor. There was no wifi or internet access, except for a terminal in the lobby which you had to pay for (3 pounds for 15 minutes). The conference venue also had no wifi access. I didn't find a free wifi hotspot anywhere. Having the bathroom at the end of the corridor was fine. Having limited access to the internet was a pain (and I used my precious 15 minute slot on the lobby machine to access work email). I'd have thought in a global city like London that every hotel in the city centre would have wifi access. And it should be free. At this stage, internet access is a public utility, like water and electricity. In one way it was nice to be cut off, but in another it was a real nuisance, especially when so much of my work is done through email. Anyway, that's the reason for the silence.

1 comment:

Uriah Robinson said...

Rob that does seem ridiculous at that price for a room. We went last month on a trip to London with our granddaughter. On the way back we stopped in a Little Chef cafe, hardly gourmet eating, but there was free wi- fi and she had her Blackberry on line in a few seconds. Twelve year olds can do this. ;o)