Premier Plus vs Standard Room - read our expert guide
to help you decide if it is worth paying the difference
to help you decide if it is worth paying the difference
In recent years Premier Inn have been experimenting with giving customers the option to upgrade from a standard Premier Inn room to a so called 'Premier Room' which adds in a few extras which they believe customers will be willing to pay a premium price for.
We recently booked a two night stay to test drive these rooms and you can read our full, honest Premier Plus room review here, it was not what we were expecting!
Travelodge has been doing a similar thing with their own brand of SuperRooms, so it was inevitable that both budget hotel brands would go down a similar path.
Premier Inn offers the Premier Plus rooms in about a quarter of their hotels, this equates to roughly 200 hotels in the UK. You tend to find that older city centre hotels are getting upgraded with Premier Plus rooms added to the top floors and any new build hotels are getting them by default. Ring road and out of town Premier Inns are unlikely to offer them. You can see the full list of hotels offering Premier Plus rooms here.
Interestingly you will nearly always find that it is the standard rooms that all sell out first in a Premier Inn, meaning that if you are booking close to your actual stay date your only option may be to book the Premier Plus room and pay the premium.
We recently booked a two night stay to test drive these rooms and you can read our full, honest Premier Plus room review here, it was not what we were expecting!
Travelodge has been doing a similar thing with their own brand of SuperRooms, so it was inevitable that both budget hotel brands would go down a similar path.
Premier Inn offers the Premier Plus rooms in about a quarter of their hotels, this equates to roughly 200 hotels in the UK. You tend to find that older city centre hotels are getting upgraded with Premier Plus rooms added to the top floors and any new build hotels are getting them by default. Ring road and out of town Premier Inns are unlikely to offer them. You can see the full list of hotels offering Premier Plus rooms here.
Interestingly you will nearly always find that it is the standard rooms that all sell out first in a Premier Inn, meaning that if you are booking close to your actual stay date your only option may be to book the Premier Plus room and pay the premium.
How much extra do you pay for a Premier Plus room vs a standard room?
We checked prices at different times of the year and across many different Premier Inn hotels and found on average you pay 10% more to upgrade to a Premier Plus room.
We checked prices at different times of the year and across many different Premier Inn hotels and found on average you pay 10% more to upgrade to a Premier Plus room.
Do you think that paying a premium price for a Premier Inn room might mean you could get a smaller bed than in most of their standard rooms?
I didn't, and it seems almost unbelievable that this is what Premier Inn is doing in some of their Premier Plus rooms by providing guests with a double bed instead of the king size bed that they advertise. When we first investigated this we assumed it was an anomaly in the particular Premier Inn we had stayed in, however after numerous back and forth emails to Whitbread customer service pointing out that thier website advertises the rooms as having king-size beds we received the following final official response from management:
"After further review with our management team, they have confirmed it does state on the website that the premier inn plus rooms have king size beds however we only provide double beds and it depends on the location where you can find the king size beds." Whitbread Premier Inn Customer Services(October 2023)
Premier Inn claim that guests are informed during the online booking process whether the hotel will have king-size beds or not in its Premier Plus rooms but we have tested this out multiple times over many different Premier Inn locations and found it is simply not true.
We would advise any guest planning on booking a Premier Plus room to telephone the actual hotel and confirm the bed size with the staff if the bed size is important to you.
I didn't, and it seems almost unbelievable that this is what Premier Inn is doing in some of their Premier Plus rooms by providing guests with a double bed instead of the king size bed that they advertise. When we first investigated this we assumed it was an anomaly in the particular Premier Inn we had stayed in, however after numerous back and forth emails to Whitbread customer service pointing out that thier website advertises the rooms as having king-size beds we received the following final official response from management:
"After further review with our management team, they have confirmed it does state on the website that the premier inn plus rooms have king size beds however we only provide double beds and it depends on the location where you can find the king size beds." Whitbread Premier Inn Customer Services(October 2023)
Premier Inn claim that guests are informed during the online booking process whether the hotel will have king-size beds or not in its Premier Plus rooms but we have tested this out multiple times over many different Premier Inn locations and found it is simply not true.
We would advise any guest planning on booking a Premier Plus room to telephone the actual hotel and confirm the bed size with the staff if the bed size is important to you.
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Don't forget that you could stay in a Travelodge hotel which guarantees king Size beds in all of its rooms, the hotels are found in similar locations to Premier Inns and they offer a premium room option - the Travelodge SuperRoom™.
On average you will save 30-40% on your room rate for a very similar hotel experience |
Central London Travelodge SuperRoom™
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The table below lists all the differences between a Premier Inn Room and a Standard Room
Premier Plus Room |
Standard Room |
located on top floors |
located on lower floors |
accommodate two adults |
can accommodate families (two adults + two children under 16) |
king size or double |
king size or double |
ultimate WiFi service included |
£5 per day for ultimate WiFi (standard WiFi free) |
mini fridge |
no fridge |
complimentary bottled still & sparkling water |
no complimentary water |
nespresso Coffee machine / tea tray / chocolates |
standard tea / instant coffee tray |
desk with comfy chair |
standard desk and chair |
armchair with footstool / separate bench stool / movable bedside table which doubles as a chair meal table |
no armchair, footstool or bench stool |
iron + ironing Board |
no Ironing facilities |
wardrobe + curtain pelmet LED lighting |
unlit wardrobe/curtain pelmet |
air conditioning |
air conditioning not guaranteed |
USB charging by bed |
USB charging normally by desk area |
bespoke artwork on walls |
standard artwork |
rainfall shower - some with a separate handset |
standard fixed showerhead |
upgraded complimentary toiletries (shampoo/conditioner/hand gel) |
standard toiletries (body/hair all in one gel) |
carpet / bathroom floor and general room decor has a lighter modern feel |
standard decor - still very nice! |
Not currently available as an accessible room |
Available as accessible and family room options |
So do the differences make it worth paying an additional 10%?
Well that really depends on your personal preferences. The bulk of guests staying in a Premier Inn are looking for a good quality consistent experience with a comfortable functional room and that is exactly what the brand is expert at. Premier Inn is a bit like the Mcdonalds of hotel chains, now the challenge is to persuade some of those guests to upgrade for a few extras...
We think the stand out pluses for the Premier Plus grade room in descending order of value are...
The remaining bonuses such as LED curtain pelmet and wardrobe lights, bespoke artwork on the wall and different/better toiletries are nice but unlikely to swing a decision on whether or not to stay in a more expensive room.
It is worth noting that currently Premier Inn have not got accessible rooms available as the Premier Plus upgrade, this is in part due to the fact that Premier Plus rooms are located at the top floor levels of the hotels, thus benefiting from far views and lower noise levels/disturbance but this is not ideal for guests who may have impaired mobility and makes them only accessible via the lifts for such guests.
Well that really depends on your personal preferences. The bulk of guests staying in a Premier Inn are looking for a good quality consistent experience with a comfortable functional room and that is exactly what the brand is expert at. Premier Inn is a bit like the Mcdonalds of hotel chains, now the challenge is to persuade some of those guests to upgrade for a few extras...
We think the stand out pluses for the Premier Plus grade room in descending order of value are...
- Free Ultimate Wifi (worth £5 per 24hr) and that is mainly because the standard Premier Inn WiFi is pretty poor.
- Fridge with some water - a real useful bonus and enables guests to keep their own beer/wine nice and cool or enjoy fresh milk for their tea/coffee.
- Rainfall shower and some of the Premier Plus although not all come with a separate handset on the shower which is a definite bonus for washing long hair etc and a constant grumble from guests using the standard room ensuite with a fixed showerhead.
- Comfortable armchair and footstool - really nice to be able to sit in comfort without having to lay on the bed.
- Nespresso Coffee machine - nice touch if you like real coffee.
- USB charging by the bed - definitely useful but really just highlights the fact that standard rooms should not lack this basic requirement for guests to be able to charge thier mobile next to thier bed rather than on the other side of the room.
- Guaranteed air con - a definite plus for summer stays but most standard Premier Inn rooms also feature this.
- Bed size - according to the premeirinn.com website you get a king size bed in Premier Plus rooms, unfortunately in practice this is not the case and actually varies between hotels so you may well end up with a double bed (see our Premier Plus room review).
- Ironing facilities - a definite plus if you are staying for an event or for a few days with a smart function to attend - note you can always loan an iron/board by asking at reception if you are staying in a standard room.
The remaining bonuses such as LED curtain pelmet and wardrobe lights, bespoke artwork on the wall and different/better toiletries are nice but unlikely to swing a decision on whether or not to stay in a more expensive room.
It is worth noting that currently Premier Inn have not got accessible rooms available as the Premier Plus upgrade, this is in part due to the fact that Premier Plus rooms are located at the top floor levels of the hotels, thus benefiting from far views and lower noise levels/disturbance but this is not ideal for guests who may have impaired mobility and makes them only accessible via the lifts for such guests.
What does the Standard Premier Inn Room offer guests?
- Luxury bed, usually King size
- Hypnos Premier Inn Mattress
- Lightweight but warm duvet
- Choice of firm and soft pillows
- Stylish ensuite bathroom with power shower (and bath in most rooms)
- Hairdryer
- Freeview TV offering up to 80 channels
- Free Wi-Fi
- Wardrobe space with vanity area
- Tea and coffee making facilities
- Desk with chair
- Blackout curtains
- Toiletries (soap/shower gel)
- Loan of ironing facilities available on request from reception
Premier Inn offers several different room types which vary by size, comfort and accessibility.
This website is not affiliated or endorsed by the Premier Inn brand
