Hotel's mother-in-law deal raises eyebrows

CARDIFF, Wales, Nov. 24 (UPI) -- Some advocacy groups are scolding Holiday Inn for a British promotion offering discounts to help "offload" mothers-in-law during the holidays.

Holiday Inn said the mother-in-law rate, which offers rooms across Britain for 25 percent off, is designed to reduce holiday stress in overcrowded houses between Dec. 23 and Dec. 29, the Western Mail reported Tuesday.

"The mother-in-law rate is a tongue-in-cheek initiative providing families with an alternative solution to help them avoid the stress of an overcrowded home this Christmas and save the in-laws from sleeping on the sofa," a spokesman for the hotel chain said.

However, Iwan Rhys Roberts of Age Concern Cymru and Help the Aged in Wales said he does not find the promotion funny.

"Someone needs to tell Holiday Inn that this is 2009, not 1979," he said. "Attitudes have changed a lot over the last 30 years and mother-in-law jokes have gone the way of the kipper tie. Christmas is meant to be a happy time -- a time for goodwill and family but it can also be a difficult and lonely time for many older people."

"I'm surprised that anyone would market the idea that you can offload your mother-in-law at a hotel over the festive period," he said. "It is insensitive and very offensive."