They are meant to be the finest examples of five-star hotels in London, where celebrities, tycoons and visiting dignitaries pay up to £4,000 a night for rooms of unparalleled luxury. Yet according to documents obtained by The Observer, facilities even at these top hotels might not always be as deluxe as they appear.
Westminster Council has released environmental health reports showing that inspectors found some instances of a lack of cleanliness were a 'serious danger to health'. A potential source of Legionnaire's disease was found in taps and air conditioning, dangerous pathogens were discovered in baths and bacteria were found in pools and spas.
One offender was the Dorchester in Park Lane, Mayfair. In February, Westminster's Community Protection Department wrote to the general manager, saying: 'Some of the bacteriological results for some of the guest room whirlpool baths were very poor and constituted a serious danger to health. On one occasion a result of 1,000,000 of pseudomonas aeruginosa bacteria was recorded. Guidelines for the safe operation of commercial spas state that there should be zero levels of pseudomonas in the systems.'
Pseudomonas aeruginosa is a pathogen that can cause skin diseases, urinary tract infection and even pneumonia. Health experts believe its greatest threat is in providing an ideal breeding ground for Legionnaire's Disease. The hotel says that the worst case emerged when a group of residents stayed for a prolonged period in some rooms and refused staff access to clean.
In May and June 2005 the hotel's air-conditioning system tested positive for legionella bacteria - the pathogens that can cause Legionnaire's disease. Christopher Cowdray, the hotel's general manager, said: 'On the isolated occasions when a matter has been brought to our attention, we have taken the relevant action immediately.'
Last year inspectors found legionella bacteria in four rooms at the Savoy in the Strand. While three samples were at relatively low levels, tests on the cold water tap in one bathroom discovered the presence of legionella bacteria at seven times the safety level. According to the health inspectors, anything over 1,000 colony forming units of legionella is potentially lethal - they found 7,600 units in room 313. The Savoy disinfected the system immediately.
In March last year inspectors wrote to the manager of the Langham Hotel after tests found potentially dangerous pathogens in the hotels spa pool and swimming pool. Although the levels of bacteria were reasonably low, the report stated: 'Your own testing record as well as the sampling you carried out at the time of the visit showed that the spa pool and swimming pool was often running either at the absolute lowest extreme of these limits, or in some cases slightly outside these parameters ... this is not acceptable.' A hotel spokesperson said: 'We acted immediately after Westminster Council alerted us to this problem and on 3 May last year received a letter from the authorities stating everything was in good order.'
Inspectors also criticised The Halkin Hotel, where the much praised Nahm restaurant specialises in Thai food. Yet Westminster's environmental health team pointed out the 'worn and dirty boards in use. Several food containers dirty/aged. Coconut cream prep [preparation] area messy ... containers on floor of coolroom ... drinking ice in bar sink.'
The disclosure of problems behind the scenes at some of London's top hotel come after it was revealed that an American lawyer and his wife are seeking millions of dollars in compensation for being traumatised by bedbugs at the Mandarin Oriental Hyde Park Hotel.
Sidney Bluming claims that he and his wife, Cynthia, were covered in red, itchy welts after a five-night stay last May and suffered 'mental harm and anguish'. Danielle DeVoe, a vice-president of Mandarin Oriental Group, confirmed that there was 'a regrettable but isolated incident of infestation'.
No one from the Savoy, Halkin or Westminster Council was prepared to comment.
