Overview

Great wheelchair accessible central hotel located above Dundee’s Train Station. I was kindly invited to an event at this fantastic central hotel in Dundee representing Euan’s Guide as one of their Dundee Ambassadors. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to stay over, but I was able to previously view the hotels accessible room, read on to find out my thoughts.

Transport & Parking

There are many car parks around the Sleeperz Hotel due to it being so central, they are no longer than a 5-minute walk away. On street parking is also nearby. All parking is free for Blue Badge holders. When I visited, I parked in one of the two accessible parking spaces at the train station, they’re literally behind the hotel. For guests stay at Sleeperz Hotel, if there are no available spaces in the nearby car parks, they can park in Greenmarket Multi Storey Car Park with 25% discount. It is a 5-minute walk away from the hotel, open 24/7 and free between 8pm and 8am. Dundee Train Station is right underneath the Sleeperz Hotel, there is a taxi rank at the side of the train station and more in the city centre at least a 5-minute walk away. There are also bus stops within the city centre going all over Dundee and Angus. Dundee Bus Station is a 10-minute walk away from the Sleeperz Hotel.

Access

When you first arrive at the Sleeperz Hotel the doors are automatic, which is great for visitors who are unable to open doors themselves. There are only meeting rooms on the ground floor, and you have to take a lift to get up to the reception area, restaurants, bar and rooms. Now I didn’t stay overnight during this visit, but if I do stay overnight someplace, I do not travel lightly. I feel that I would struggle to fit in the lift with a whoever I am with, our suitcases and my wheelchair. It might be a good idea to have a button beside the lift, linked to reception, to ring a member of staff if you need assistance. The reception is beside the lifts and is very spacious. Even though the reception desk is high, there is a lower down area to allow visitor who are wheelchair users to sign documents if they need to. There are lots of seating areas on the reception level of the Sleeperz Hotel. The bar is quite high for wheelchair users to sit at, however there are lower down tables in the lounge area. These tables are maybe a little too low for some guests though and some are located up a few steps. I’ve not eaten in the restaurant, but it is very spacious, and all tables are at a great height for wheelchair users. There are booths against one of the walls in the restaurant however, a wheelchair user would be able to sit at the end of the booth as there is no leg in the way. There are 6 fully accessible hotel rooms at Sleeperz and 2 of them have interconnecting rooms for family, friends or carers. However, these interconnecting rooms do not come free with the accessible room. A free interconnecting room is what I always look for when booking a hotel due to needing 24/7 care, and all accessible rooms have a double bed so you can’t even share a room. Within the accessible rooms I would say there is enough floor space for a wheelchair user to drive around. You would only be transfer on to the bed from the right-hand side due to the bed being too close to the wall and there being a curtain at the other side, I’m not sure if you’d be able to move the curtain though for there to be more room. Beside the bed there are plugs which is great for visitors like myself that need to use machinery overnight. I wasn’t able to stay overnight whilst visiting for the event due to needing a hoist. There is no ceiling tracking hoist in the hotel room however, there is room under the bed for a mobile hoist to go underneath. It’s not a lot of space though (see image below). Even though the accessible rooms are very stylish, the only problem I would say is that all tables and some panels on the walls are made of glass. Now of course all guests should be driving carefully in a hotel room, but unfortunately sometimes accidents happen, and glass is the worst thing to hit into. It is also not a great design for visitors with a visual impairment trying to navigate around the room.

Toilets

I didn’t visit the accessible bathroom in restaurant area during my visit, there definitely was one though, I’m just not sure how big it is. Within the accessible hotel room, the shower room is quite spacious. You are only able to transfer from the left-hand side of the toilet and the emergency red cord isn’t in the best position beside the toilet, it could be closer. But, there’s only one for the toilet and shower so it is in a good position if someone has fallen in the shower. The shower curtain is at a good length for guests not tripping over it or it not getting stuck in the wheels guests chairs. There is no hoist in the rooms as I’ve mentioned and there is no Changing Place toilet, there is one though in the V&A Dundee which is located across the road at the side of the hotel. It’s open until 10pm.

Staff

All staff that I spoke to during my visit to Sleeperz were very friendly and helpful. Due to not staying over I didn’t have the usual enquiries that I do in other hotels. I did speak to the General Manager about the need for a hoist and he said he would look into it, which is always a positive thing.

Photos