HOTEL staff are used to receiving weird and wonderful requests from their customers.

But staff at Bournemouth's three Travelodge hotels reckon this one takes the biscuit: "Can you arrange for me to take a shark diving course here?"

It's all the stranger because the majority of the most bizarre requests concern love and romance, says the hotel chain.

"We've been asked 'Can you write “Will you Marry Me” on the sand and arrange for a romantic dinner on the beach?', 'Can you arrange for two donkeys to come to the hotel and take my partner and I on a romantic sunset beach ride and 'Can you decorate my room with 250 red roses for my 25th wedding anniversary?'" said a spokesman.

One member of staff was even asked by a groom to step in as a Best Man because the actual best man was 'stuck in Dubai' and another was requested to dress up as C-3PO and accompany them to a Star Wars themed wedding.

Requests like this make others, such as 'can you fill my bath with tepid mineral water?' and 'Can you make two swans, a cat and a monkey towel decoration on my bed?' look tame.

Travelodge Spokeswoman Shakila Ahmed said: “Annually we welcome around 19 million customers at our 570 hotels which include three properties in Bournemouth.

"Our hotel teams receive thousands of interesting requests from business and leisure guests. Where possible, our hotel teams will go above and beyond to help customers as they relish a good challenge.

“Interestingly, over the last 12 months, our hotel teams have reported a rise in customer requests to help with wedding proposals. Requests have included a customer asking for a unicorn pedal boat and for a rainbow to appear above the hotel at 16:16 for a wedding proposal at Thurrock Travelodge," she said.