‘Terrible service!’: Blind man arrives at hotel only to find no staff working at night, now he has to find a way to his room without sight

An Australian man has gone viral on TikTok after arriving at the hotel he was supposed to be staying at only to find out that there were no staff on site to check him in. While most hotels have procedures late guests can follow to check in without the help of staff the man was faced with a rather unique problem that made that process all the more challenging: he’s blind.

Ben Pettingill, a blind professional speaker on TikTok, was probably ready to just crash in his hotel room after arriving at the location in Brisbane, Australia. Unfortunately for him, his real journey was only beginning as he arrived to find the doors locked. Of course, being blind meant and alone meant he was pretty vulnerable. 

Ben was able to get through to an after hours reception based off-site via phone. They were able to explain to him that his key fob could be found in a lockbox near a gate by the underground car park. Again, this wasn’t much use to Ben who was alone and blind, where was the car park? What gate? Many questions but with no staff physically present he had no choice but to seek it out himself.

After successfully finding the fob that would let him into the building and his room you’d think the challenge was over, but Ben still had to find his way to the elevator and find his room with no help from others. All the person on the off-site reception could do was wish him “good luck.” Ben decided to record himself trying to find his room.

People TikTok accuse the hotel of not being very disability friendly

Ben’s journey to his hotel room was no easy feat, as seen in the video. It shows just how much we take our sight for granted, especially in situations like this. While most able-bodied individuals would have no trouble checking in this way, every small obstacle becomes almost insurmountable for someone with disabilities.

“This is so distressing,” wrote one person in the comments, “please look into if you can sue for disability discrimination,” they added. Another person gave their two cents, writing, “All I can think about is how terrifying it would be to be a blind woman in this situation.”

It’s certainly a terrible situation to find yourself in as a blind person but thankfully, in Ben’s case, he was able to make it. After some difficulty with the front door Ben then has to feel his way around the deserted lobby until he finds the lift. Finally making it to his floor he still has to feel for the numbers on his door. He films himself feeling random doors trying to find the numbers and after several doors finally finds his room.