Things That Bug The Hell Out Of Me When I Travel. Part III: Hotels
Before I mess up the room, I check the view, the furniture arrangement and search for outlets.
It’s the last leg of a travel adventure, getting to the hotel room.
Short trip or long trip, all you want to do is throw the bags in the room, take a shower and get to work, relax, meet up with business associates or friends, or hit the town.
Most of the time, this goes pretty smoothy. I’ve been to hundreds of hotels and frankly, it’s the easiest part of traveling. Still, not all it perfect, as Mr. Sorehead points out with these points:
More outlets! I have a computer, cell phone charger, digital camera battery charger and need to plug in an iron, yet finding enough electrical outlets is like trying to locate that last beer at a party. Having power strips in every room would easily eliminate this annoying headache. By the way, if a hotel has ample outlets, then I be sure and point it out in my review of the property.
• No Free Internet. Why do nice, upscale hotels always charge for Internet access – ranging from $10-20 a day and the mid-priced or budget ones have it for free? You would think it would be the other way around! This is one reason I prefer to stay in the mid-priced or budget hotels. So there! At any rate, so to speak, Internet access should be included with the price of the room. You’ve already got it; give your customers a small perk.
• Sheraton’s “Resort Fee.” This one got me riled up in Hawaii, of all places. I was not made aware of this $20 daily fee until I checked in after booking and let’s just say my temperature rose higher than the heat on Waikiki Beach. For this, of which I could not decline, included pool towels (oh wow; like I can’t take one down for the room or buy one for 10 bucks at an ABC Store), in-room Internet access (it was free in the lobby) and a “drink” from its crappy little bar. Well I immediately asked for a double, which the bartender provided when I provided tip money, and then spent two hours on the phone trying to get the Internet to work. It never did and I got the fee waved, but for three days that would have added nearly $100 to my hotel bill. At the very least give guest the option to decline.
• Hotels Advertise Views But The Desk Is Always Facing A Wall. The second thing I do when getting to a room – after figuring out how to overcome the absurd lack of outlets – is to rearrange the furniture so the desk looks out over the window. There’s a nice view but I’ve got to stare at a wall when writing a story or checking e-mail? This is another thing that makes no sense to me. And yes, I move it all back before I check out. In fact, the maid always moves it back when she cleans the room each day until, after a few days of this cat-and-mouse game, she leaves it the where I put it.
• $20 (or more) For Overnight Parking!? It’s not enough that we pay super-high rates for downtown hotels in major cities, but we also get socked with daily parking prices of $20, $30 or more!? Hey, WE’RE THE GUESTS!
• Scented Shampoo Stinks. What would possess a hotel – upscale ones seem to be the worst offenders – to put scented hair products in the rooms? I don’t like going out for an appointment, out to dinner or to a bar with my hair smelling like strawberries. To counter, I’m forced to travel with the my own shampoo (trial-size bottles).
– Mr. Sorehead
MORE MR. SOREHEAD STORIES
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