History Series / HotelHell

* ReadingsAreOffTheScale: The shower curtain at the Brick Hotel measured a whopping '''5680''' live bacterium in the sample Gordon took. As noted above, anything over 30 is considered unhealthy. 5680÷30=''''189.3''''.

* ReadingsAreOffTheScale: The shower curtain at the Brick Hotel measured a whopping '''5680''' live bacterium in the sample Gordon took. As noted above, anything over 30 is considered unhealthy.

* WhamLine: The very first episode, "The Juniper Inn," has a doozy. Among the hotel's issues, Gordon has discovered that the owner lets his rich friends stay there for free, and they aren't tipping the staff. Gordon forces the owner to call all of them to encourage them to leave tips... and the very first thing out of the mouth of the first person he calls is "[[StealingFromTheTill I left the money with you.]]" The very nearly convinces Gordon to [[ScrewThisImOuttaHere give up on him entirely]].

[[caption-width-right:350:"Hotel Hotel Hell / If you think the beer is rotten / You should see the clientele "]]

* OliveGarden: The Meson de Mesilla again, which is decorated in a generic Italian theme (beige walls covered in Venetian plaster, tapestries depicting bucolic Tuscan views, etc.) Other than being AuthorAppeal on the owner's part it makes no sense, especially given the setting (Las Cruces, NM). The building's traditional Southwestern architecture makes the contrast even more jarring.

* CloudCuckoolander: Karan, the manager of Harper's Ferry, West Virginia's Towns Inn. Not only has she filled the hotel with filthy baskets, boxes of junk, creepy dolls, and expired food, but she also stores her clothes in people's rooms, and [[ArsonMurderandJaywalking sees no problem with the hotel's hamburgers being heated up by boiling in a pan.]] She walks about with a vacant expression, never shows any actual emotion or passion other than a vague smile, and treats the hotel like a bad thrift store, personal storage unit, & her home combined. No matter what awful stuff Gordon shows her, she only smiles vaguely. She admitted that she became an innkeeper simply because it seemed like a fun to do with the rest of her life, despite not having any knowledge of how to actually run an inn. After Gordon implements his changes, however, she seems much more sane, implying that she was simply detached from the whole affair and needed some structure, though she's still a little whimsical.

* TheAlcoholic: The owner of Longview, Washington's Monticello Hotel, Phillip, was revealed to have a drinking problem, with multiple DUI offences under his belt. It probably goes without saying that the hotel itself suffered because of it (though that was far from its only problem). He had been entered into rehab by the episode's end, however.

** The premiere episode, featuring Juniper Hill Inn in Windsor, Vermont, has an example in Robert, the manager and co-owner. Between his spending money on antiques for decoration, as well as a $100,000 motorcoach, his failure to pay his staff on time or a decent paycheck, and his obvious lack of understanding of why his staff is on the verge of revolting against him, it's fairly clear why the inn isn't doing so well. To make things worse, Gordon later discovers that Robert had been letting his rich friends stay at the inn for free while this was all happening and ''stealing his staff's tips'' to pay himself whenever he works. Gordon actually RageQuit and left when he confirmed the latter and only returned for the sake of the staff. The other co-owner, Ari, was only "better" in the fact that he was mostly hands-off in actually running things outside of accounting and book-keeping (which he abused to let Robert take the staff's tips), and otherwise was usually an open JerkAss while Robert could at least play at being a BitchInSheepsClothing.

** The premiere episode, featuring Juniper Hill Inn in Windsor, Vermont, has an example in Robert, the manager and co-owner. Between his spending money on antiques for decoration, as well as a $100,000 motorcoach, his failure to pay his staff on time or a decent paycheck, and his obvious lack of understanding of why his staff is on the verge of revolting against him, it's fairly clear why the inn isn't doing so well. To make things worse, Gordon later discovers that Robert had been letting his rich friends stay at the inn for free while this was all happening and ''stealing his staff's tips'' to pay himself whenever he works. Gordon actually RageQuit and left when he confirmed the latter and only returned for the sake of the staff. The other co-owner, Ari, was only "better" in the fact that he was mostly hands-off in actually running things, and otherwise was usually an open JerkAss while Robert could at least play at being a BitchInSheepsClothing.

** Early in the second half of the Juniper Hill episode Gordon persuades co-owner Robert to sell off his collection of antiques, which is supposedly worth around $300,000 - $400,000, which would clear up the hotel's debts and leave enough funds for it to operate for the next year or even two regardless of guest numbers. Gordon calls in an antiques dealer...who promptly tells him and Robert that the collection is made up of copies and items that are either suffering condition issues or were never that valuable to begin with, and is therefore worth maybe $25,000 at most, which is less than he'd paid for the items and ''much'' less than he thought they were worth, not even enough to cover the next ''five weeks''. Cue a massive FacePalm from Gordon, as it dawns on both he and Robert how bad the situation really is.
** In the same episode, Gordon has suffered through what is a lackluster lunch priced at $74 (already highly overpriced for a cut of lamb and three portions) and is treated for his dessert ''half'' a cake which is all that price pays for. Gordon asserts his right to the other half the dessert of his ludicrously expensive lunch, and finds that it actually tastes delicious. But just as he is finally feeling hopeful, the owner admits it is in fact shipped and not homemade. Gordon is incredulous.

** The premiere episode, featuring Juniper Hill Inn in Windsor, Vermont, has an example in Robert, the manager and co-owner. Between his spending money on antiques for decoration, as well as a $100,000 motorcoach, his failure to pay his staff on time or a decent paycheck, and his obvious lack of understanding of why his staff is on the verge of revolting against him, it's fairly clear why the inn isn't doing so well. To make things worse, Gordon later discovers that Robert had been letting his rich friends stay at the inn for free while this was all happening and ''stealing his staff's tips'' to pay himself whenever he works. Gordon actually RageQuit and left when he confirmed the latter and only returned for the sake of the staff.

** In the same episode, Gordon has suffered through what is a lackluster lunch and is treated with a cake that is a whopping '''$79''' for just ''half'' the cake. Gordon asserts his right to the other half of his ludicrously expensive dessert, and finds that it tastes delicious. But just as he is finally feeling hopeful, the owner admits it is in fact shipped and not homemade. Gordon is incredulous.

* {{Hypocrite}}: No other way to describe Zach, the innkeepers' son at the Angler's Lodge. At their morning meeting on Day 2, he upbraids Gordon for swearing in front of his parents the night before, only to immediately use the word ''"shit"'' right in front of them. Gordon has great fun mocking his double standard.

* JerkAss: Ari of Juniper Hill, and John of the Roosevelt Inn. The former, even when the hotel was turned around, treated staff and guests alike with contempt and was described by his boyfriend as "emotionally constipated," while the latter was only in the business [[ItsAllAboutMe to feed his ego]] and made numerous threats of violence. It was as if [[Series/HellsKitchen Russell]] was a hotel owner.

** Gordon has to give this to the hotel owner, Robert in the very first episode after hearing some of the appalling stuff he was doing, including withholding pay from his employees and cheap-skating on food quality...while simultaneously spending hundreds of thousands of dollars on paintings and antiques and charging ''fifty-four dollars'' for a single meal.

** On his way to the Four Seasons Inn, Gordon thought he was going to be staying in one of the luxurious Four Seasons hotels, only to discover it was the [[ShoddyKnockoffProduct Four Seasons]] ''[[ShoddyKnockoffProduct Inn]]'', and that this was going to be another episode of Hotel Hell.

* JustHereForGodzilla: InUniverse example in the Roosevelt Inn episode. After concluding a Franchise/SherlockHolmes Murder Mystery Diner show, the owner of the hotel and planner of the event, John, mentions that the guests only come for the event and don't usually stay overnight.

** The Roosevelt Hotel owner. Remember, he used to go to school there...

** Early in the second half of the Juniper Hill episode Gordon persuades co-owner Robert to sell off his collection of antiques, which is supposedly worth around a quarter of a million dollars, which would clear up the hotel's debts and leave enough funds for it to operate for the next year regardless of guest numbers. Gordon calls in an antiques dealer...who promptly tells him and Robert that the collection is made up of copies and items that were never that valuable to begin with, and is therefore worth maybe $10,000 - $15,000 at most, which is less than he'd paid for the items, and ''much'' less than he thought they were worth. Cue a massive FacePalm from Gordon, as it dawns on both he and Robert how bad the situation really is.

* DinnerTheatre: The Roosevelt Inn has the FRanchise/SherlockHolmes Murder Mystery Diner. Ramsay criticizes it as a WishFulfillment fantasy for John, who denies it as a sound business decision.

* EarWorm: (InUniverse) In the season two premiere, Meson de Mesilla owner Cali insisted on singing Music/{{Cher}}'s "If I Could Turn Back Time" during every dinner service. Gordon admitted at the end that the song will probably be stuck in his head forever.

* PunnyName: The Towns Inn, run by Karan Townsend.

* GrandmaWhatMassiveHotnessYouHave: Barbara at the Juniper Hill, who is seventy, looks a decade or two younger, which Gordon remarks on.

%%* BerserkButton: Ramsay goes berserk whenever owners of the hotel treat their staff terribly, especially

** The Brick Inn's menu featured one of the owner Virandar's creations: ''A cauliflower steak''. Just to clarify, there was ''no'' actual steak in the dish.

** On his way to the Four Seasons Inn, Gordon thought he was going to be staying in one of the luxurious Four Seasons hotel, only to discover it was the [[ShoddyKnockoffProduct Four Seasons]] ''[[ShoddyKnockoffProduct Inn]]'', and that this was going to be another episode of Hotel Hell.

** On his way to the Four Seasons Inn, Gordon thought he was going to be staying in the luxurious Four Seasons, only to discover it was the [[ShoddyKnockoffProduct Four Seasons]] ''[[ShoddyKnockoffProduct Inn]]'', and that this was going to be another episode of Hotel Hell.

** John and Tina of the Roosevelt Inn have two dogs of their own. Unlike the previous two examples, this hotel was ''not'' designed to accommodate dogs, so they stink up the carpet in the lower levels of the hotel.

** John and Tina of the Roosevelt Inn have two dogs of their own. Unlike the previous two examples, this hotel is ''not'' designed to accommodate dogs, so they stink up the carpet in the lower levels of the hotel.