A Day in the Life of a Contestant on The Fortune Hotel
For someone who loves a good challenge and has a competitive streak, being invited to take part in ITV’s new game show, The Fortune Hotel, was an opportunity too good to pass up. With twists more dramatic than The Traitors and the promise of a £5,000 cash prize for charity, it was a no-brainer.
The show is set at the Silversands resort in Granada, where 10 couples are staying in a luxurious $1,500 per night hotel. Their goal? To win £250,000 by the end of the week. But the catch is that each couple is given a suitcase that either contains the prize money, worthless paper, or a check-out card that ends their stay immediately.
Upon arrival at The Gallivant Hotel in Rye, which had been transformed into The Fortune Hotel for the event, I quickly realized that this wasn’t just a fun-filled vacation. The pressure was palpable, and within hours, I found myself on the verge of tears.
Hosted by Stephen Mangan, the show is filled with high stakes and strategic gameplay. Each couple picks a suitcase at random, and the tension grows as they try to keep their cards close to their chest. One wrong move could reveal the contents of their case, leading to potential theft by other contestants.
The first challenge involved decoding cocktails made with rogue ingredients disguised as classic drinks. After a few sips, it became clear that these weren’t your average cocktails. The task was to identify the five ingredients in each drink and write them down on a blackboard outside the room. The team that identified the most ingredients would get a chance to steal another team’s case without anyone knowing.
Unfortunately, we didn’t win the chance to steal a case, and we were stuck with our blank paper suitcase. Despite the disappointment, we felt relieved that we didn’t have the check-out card.
The next challenge involved a treasure hunt around the local area, where teams had to follow clues and take photos of landmarks. We thought we did well, but in reality, we only managed to take two correct photos out of four, placing us near the bottom of the standings.
As the day progressed, the pressure mounted. In the final round, teams could swap their cases, starting with the last-place team. This meant that the winners had the advantage of choosing any case, knowing no one could take it from them.
At this point, I felt like we were on the chopping block. Our chances of winning seemed slim, and we were just trying to survive. If we had the check-out card, we would be sent home immediately, losing the chance to enjoy the luxury of the hotel.
After swapping our case with a rival team, we felt confident that we had the prize money. However, the next team quickly took our case, leaving us with theirs, which felt noticeably lighter. This realization sent my heart racing—had we accidentally taken the check-out card?
As the teams continued to swap, the tension was unbearable. When it was finally time to open our case, I was trembling with fear. But to my relief, it was just blank paper, not the check-out card. I was overwhelmed with emotion, bursting into tears over what was essentially just a piece of paper.
In the end, the couple we believed had the prize money actually did, until they lost it during the cocktail challenge. The experience was exhausting, and I couldn’t imagine enduring it for an entire week.
The Fortune Hotel is not just about winning money; it’s about mental endurance, deception, and constant strategy. For those watching tonight at 9pm on ITV, know that it’s far more challenging than it appears. If you see contestants losing their minds, you probably would too.
The show airs on Wednesday, August 6, at 9pm on ITV. Whether you’re a fan of game shows or just looking for a thrilling experience, The Fortune Hotel promises to deliver excitement and suspense in every episode.