in which an old-fashioned mom-and-pop motel saves me from union busters

For the portion of my training taking place in Campbell River -- two days this week plus all of next week -- I was booked into the Coast Discovery Inn, a Coast chain property. Before this trip, I was unfamiliar with the Coast chain. Their slogan "Refreshingly Local" means they acquire already-established hotels and bring them into the Coast brand. We stayed at one in Tsawwassen the night before taking the ferry to Vancouver Island, I stayed at one in Nanaimo. They were both very nice -- lovely rooms, amenities, and service.

Based on those experiences, I was very disappointed when I saw my room in Campbell River. It was tiny -- one bed, and the bed took up the entire room. This is fine when you're out exploring Paris, but when you're living in a room for 10 days, it would be confining and inconvenient. In addition, Allan and Diego are spending the weekend (yay! can't wait!), and I don't see the three of us living in a shoebox together, even for a few days.

I asked if I could change rooms, and explained why. I was told: "All our rooms are the same size. The only difference is the size of the bed."

I asked, "You don't have any rooms with two beds?"

"But you are booked by yourself. Do you need two beds?"

I was amazed. One person staying in a room with two beds is standard. Rather than argue about that, I noted that my partner was arriving on Saturday, and bringing our dog, and we needed a larger room. He said there was a room available on Sunday. I said never mind.

I had arrived in Campbell River that morning and was checking in on my lunch break, so I would be able to crash right after work. I went back to the room, found another pet-friendly Campbell River hotel, cancelled the rest of my reservation, and went back to work, grabbing something for lunch along the way. (Not exactly a relaxing break!)

After work, I went back to the Coast Discovery Inn. The moment I walked in, I began to cough -- quite a bad "fit" requiring use of my inhaler. The whole place smelled very strongly, either from cleaning products or air "freshener". Luckily my room didn't also smell, or I couldn't have stayed even one night.

I went to the hotel restaurant for dinner. It was dismal. It looked like a coffee shop -- which is fine for coffee shops, but strange for a supposedly upscale hotel -- and the food was marginal at best. I had a decent night. Breakfast was the usual limited hotel self-serve options. I packed up the car and went to work. 

Later that day, I mentioned to someone that I was checking into a different hotel. She said, "I'm glad you're not staying at the Coast anymore. They are extremely anti-union."

Apparently the owner shuttered the hotel for nine months rather than work with the union representing hotel workers. Googling, I didn't find a lot on this: one story from the local Campbell River Mirror, and one in the Times Colonist. **

So, after work, I drove off to find the Heritage River Inn. The name is misleading, because it is an old-fashioned mom-and-pop roadside motel. My room is huge, with a full kitchen! This is very welcome, since I'll be here for a full week. It also has a wooden floor. The feature of mom-and-pop motels that is often an issue is old carpeting. On our road trip from Ontario, we stayed at non-chain motels in two towns, Wawa and Ignace. Both rooms had carpeting and a corresponding musty smell. They weren't mouldy -- I know that because my body is a mould detector -- but the carpets were somewhat icky. The bare floor solves this problem.

There are other chain hotels in Campbell River, but they are not pet-friendly. So if this room didn't work out, I would have to change a second time, after Allan and Diego go home, and I did not want to do that.

** I found this story from Unite Here, about a one-day strike earlier this month at this same hotel -- which means they did unionize. And from the small-world department, the union bulletin was written by someone I know.