Open Letter to the Hotel Industry


Okay, I’ve had this pet peeve for a while, and it’s time to get a little frustrated and feisty. Hotels: stop charging me stupid prices for water. Stop it. We all know it’s silly. Just don’t do it. HIDE THE CHARGE SOMEWHERE ELSE. It’s okay. Don’t tell anyone. I won’t if you won’t. But give me the water for free.

This is the silliest thing in the world. You might as well also charge me for the plastic laundry bag in the room.

Please? Pretty please?


  • Lee
    We stayed at the Grand Hyatt in Buckhead last weekend, and they had that same little sign on the bottles and I thought the same thing! I have stayed at some expensive hotels where it is free, but at Hyatt....$4.
  • Chris,

    That is awsome I want to pay $4.00 for one bottle of water Make it $8.00 no $12.00 and give me a dozen.

    I agree it is an insult at the very least Very well said...
  • Bottle water is a bad idea anyway -- shipping tons of water around the globe is crazy when you think about it. Our golf club (semi-private, so the public green fees are not cheap) used to have bottled water at various spots on the course. We have since transitioned to water stations (purifiers) for filling up our own water bottles. It not only saves money, but is much better for the environment.
  • Leon Aldrich
    Chris, after "Man on the Go" rockets to 1,000,000 subscribers... Can you do another site only for campers & rvers? I don't travel, camp or rv. I just want you to stay busy helping out other industries.

    Keep being you Chris (I just finished reading Trust Agents)
  • Oh, I'm sticking my nose into lots of industries. It's been a lot more fun than just straight marketing, that's for sure.
  • I just stayed at the new Marriott in Niagara Falls... $10 for that same bottle. Seriously. And this was in a room that was already $275+ per night. Geez.
  • ~edited~
  • May I suggest the opportunity for each of us who travel to carry an empty BPA free water bottle past security, fill it up from the water fountain at the gate, then keep filling it all the while that you are on the go? Not only will you drink more water--a healthy choice for you--but you are minimizing your use of plastic--a healthy choice for the planet.
  • Business hotels serve customers who often fly to the business hotels via airplane. If an airline will charge you for a soft drink, a snack, and the privilege of carrying your bag on to the airplane, then a hotel is naturally going to follow suit.
  • Interesting perspective. I think of airplanes as different, as they have to haul it around (fuel costs) and because it's a captive audience. Hmmm. I never thought of it that way.
  • croffe
    Hi Chris and everyone who commented on charging for expected amenities!

    Just wanted to mention that not all of us charge for amenities piece by piece. We provide wireless access at our property (guest rooms, convention space, pools, tennis courts, & even onto the golf courses!), offer coffee & tea service in the mornings from 6 – 9:30am, and Afternoon Tea (a Greenbrier Tradition for almost 100 years now & similar to the Peabody Ducks) with Coffee, Tea, Iced Tea, and pastries made daily from scratch in our Pastry kitchen! You can get a bottle of water at either of these times to take back to your room if you wish at no cost.

    We are able to offer the above services plus an array of other amenities (newspapers, robes, business center, free nightly movies in our theatre, etc.) by having a daily Resort Fee to cover the costs and not make you feel like you are being nickel & dimed one water bottle at a time…

    Chris Roffe
    www.greenbrier.com
  • Now this sounds lovely, Chris. I'll have to take a looksee at your place, and I'm really excited that you stopped by. : )
  • croffe
    Don't forget the family when you take a look... we offer a bunch of awesome activities and have been hosting family vacations since the 1800's (not even joking). I post a few pictures a week on twitter @croffe for a different look at the property then our website offers.

    There are some rocking travel tips here!
  • Well said! Add to that... parking fees and WiFi. They serve us free breakfast at most hotels, why should they charge $4.00 for a bottle of water - which is probably from someone's tap anyway?
  • Kerri, you would think that the car rental companies would have an incentive to subsidize hotel parking. There have been many times when I have chosen to take a shuttle to my destination, rather than renting a car. The idea of renting a car and then paying $20 a day just to have the car sit for 23 hours makes no sense to me.
  • Really good advice/idea, John. Hmmm. Why didn't I think of that? : )
  • sarahhubbell
    Love it. AGREE a thousand times.
  • Chris, drink from the tap.
  • Hi Chris,
    Remember the housekeeper you discussed in your last post? Just call her/him housekeeper/bookkeeper/auditor. This is the person that needs to track whether or not you drank the $4.00 bottle of water. This is another reason they want the housekeeper to service your room. You are correct...I use this water only in case of emergency illness.
    Judy
  • Stop charging for WiFi. Also my most important peeve, which I'm experiencing right now. Don't make me wait til 3pm for a room. If I show up at your hotel at 8am just having gotten off a plane guess what, I need the room right away. I'm tired and I want to shower and rest, I don't want to be told to come back 7 hours later!
  • Simon, it amazes me that business hotels often charge for wi-fi, while non-business hotels often do not. However, as I noted in another comment to Chris' post, business hotels serve the same customers that are served by business airlines, and if the airlines are going to nickel and dime you, the hotels are going to follow suit.
  • Any reputable hotel accommodates this situation Simon. Sometimes, however, the room is simply *not available* due to late checkout by the previous guest or because of the housekeeping schedule.

    Nine times out of ten we get to check in as soon as we arrive at a hotel. Good luck, I guess.
  • croffe
    David,

    What you outlined is absolutely correct, if you want to check in early many properties can make it happen with advance notice, we will make every effort to move your reservation to a room that had someone check out earlier then expected and work to get your room ready if we know you are coming early.

    On the other side of the coin, if you are going to be checking out later then expected call the front desk and let them know... this will help the person behind you who may be trying to arrive early... and save them from having to wait to check in after traveling as Simon mentioned above.
  • Agree. Charging for Wifi is just nuts - even havin to sign in through some 3rd party is plain daft. Bury the cost somewhere else. You'll make far more money in the long run by maiking people happy.
  • Gotta agree with Simon here too. $20 for wi-fi?!?! That's a big GFY too. While we're at it... long distance and local calls? They really do need to revisit that whole system.
  • If you think about it, it's also ridiculous to pay $1.50 down the street for that bottled water. I imagine the water out of the tap at the hotel you are staying at is just great. Although I do it, too, I am starting to wonder why we pay a premium of nearly 2000% for bottled water vs. tap water. The whole concept of drinking bottled water is kind of crazy, but we all bought into the marketing hype of the water bottlers.
  • Umm, no. While municipal water sources are required under federal laws to meet certain standards of purity and quality, the piping system from source to outlet are old. A hotel may have been built 5, 10, 50 years ago; do you really want to know what's squeezing through the cracks in the water pipes and going into your mouth when you take a swig? Use Brita-filtered water for boiling and cleaning, but bottled water is sometimes better than the free stuff -- because of the pipes.
  • I don't disagree, but as I travel quite often, I'm never sure whether to trust the local water. It isn't always safe. I have firsthand experience with that one. :(
  • Have you considered getting a refillable water bottle with a filter. You can get a BPA free one that is lightweight for under $10.

    I use one when I travel if I feel it'll be necessary.

    I just took a flight and was amused when the all male flight staff gave out those big litre bottles of water at drink service. I guess they decided that made more sense than having to come back through 3 times with water (As the attendants did on the way out).
  • I agree Chris, but for the most part when any of us travel in the USA or Europe (I know you travel elsewhere, too) we never have to worry about the water safety. I'm not throwing stones here; I have used bottled water as much as the next guy, and only recently thought the process through more thoroughly and am weaning myself from the habit.

    Not to mention the whole recycle issue and where those empties normally end up...even if they are "recycled".
  • I don't buy bottled water except when I'm in a position where I can't feasibly carry a container to refill with water or have no access to cold water. I appreciate having bottled water in those situations... I'm basically paying money for the container and the cold.
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