Tell Us Your Hotel Pet Peeves

Ben from One Mile at a Time is so autistic it's painful.

R1 Bullseye

[quote]In-room TVs automatically being turned on

[quote]This is minor, but you know how most hotels have the in-room TV turned on when you first enter the room, with some sort of music or advertisement? I always immediately turn that off. I guess these are largely ads promoting the loyalty program or something else, which is why they’re on, but I do find it to be unnecessary.

People this ridiculous are allowed to leave their houses? This one's as crazy as a shithouse rat.

Weak water pressure. I stayed in the Palazzo in Vegas semi-recently and was disappointed to discover that the water pressure was weaker than the pressure in my mediocre 1980s split-level.

It's a nice hotel so I was expecting an incredible shower.

I hate when the hotel posts something like “we encourage you to keep your towels hanging if you wish to reuse them to help our sustainability efforts.” And then housekeeping replaces them anyway.

Hotels cheaping out and downgrading their formerly top-notch bedding product, and yes, I am looking directly at you, Westin Heavenly Bed!

When they were introduced 25 years ago, they literally changed the industry: they're why hideous polyester bedspreads were banished forever, and replaced with white duvets. The first Heavenly Beds were as described: extremely plush mattresses with down and down/feather pillows & duvets all around. Also pricey all-cotton linens, sourced from Turkey.

Except THEN Marriott bought out Starwood, their parent company and now Westin & W beds are as basic and awful as Marriott crap! Fake-ass foam pillows *and* duvets! UGH!

When the desk and the nearest electrical outlet are 15cm further apart than the length of my laptop's power cord and phone's charger.

When there's an electric kettle that can only be filled from the bathroom tap by turning the kettle sideways thereby losing most of the water from the tap.

Digital clocks with an alarm that goes off at 5am - set by the previous occupant. Nobody with a smart phone needs an alarm clock.

Family groups of rubes excited at staying in a Best Western - fancy! - running between rooms and slamming doors all night.

Hotels that flat-out REFUSE to fix a known problem with doors that slam far too loudly, enough to wake the dead. This can be fixed merely by replacing the older handle hardware with newer models, but franchise owners are too fucking cheap for it!

While on noise issues: newer hotels make it REALLY obvious how shitty insulation between rooms was, even for some buildings built in this century. Last month I stayed at a hotel that I initially *thought* was new, but then the low, popcorn ceilings gave away its age. The screaming argument that erupted between my neighbors was thankfully enough to get me moved to a suite with no one in surrounding rooms, but I'll still never return unless they fix that noise shit.

The latest thing in boutique hipster hotels seems to be shower stalls without walls or curtains. Resulting in flooded bathroom floors.

The chic Civilian Hotel in Manhattan even supplies each room with a gigantic squeegee for mopping up your own floor. I found the same issue at London's Hoxton Holborn but without the squeegee.

Or bathrooms/toilets in the middle of the room with a clear glass surround if you're lucky. Who wants this?

I usually like hotel pillows, one place I stayed had Downlite pillows, I liked them so much I bought a couple for my bed at home

I travel quite a bit for work. My biggest pet peeve is the turning off of the ac at night while you sleep. I believe they have some sort of light or motion sensor on them so at night they will turn off while you sleep. I will wake up sweating and have to trigger it back on and wait for it to cool the room down. My other pet peeve is the mini fridge. For God's sake, spend more than $ 2 on it. I am mean very large chains. Half the time they are barely passable to cool down a drink to lukewarm. Finally, can we just skip the Kreuigs and get Nespressos in hotels? Superior in room coffee and espresso.

I remember when Ben went on a review trip to New Orleans and had a terrible time when he left the hotel. New Orleans is precisely the wrong city for autistics — unfamiliar sights, loud sounds (live music), unfamiliar scents, a general lack of order, sensory overload.

He spent about an hour outside then returned to the safety and sterility of the hotel where he could be happy counting the washcloths or whatever.

Daily maid service only upon request.

Having the blanket and top sheet all tightly hospital-cornered UNDER the mattress. Having to undo all that while keeping the bottom sheet properly tucked in before getting into bed each night is a 1st world problem of the greatest proportions.

Hate that!

Just finding the light switches in some of these hipster hotels can take a major chunk out of my move-in time.

Can someone explain why hotels leave the TVs on? Even the hotels that don't display your name or have a lot of guest service options through the TV sometimes do this. It's a waste of energy. Do some people really expect their TVs to be on and get pissed if they have to turn it on themselves?

r17 I think it gives the illusion that your room was freshly attended too. I never understand it either. Same hotels paranoid about AC running leaving tvs on all the time but I assume flat screens use much less than AC.

Having the mini fridge so full of pre-stocked drinks that you can't put your own bottle of water or somesuch in it.

The aforementioned clear glass walls from the bedroom to the bathroom- I don't want to see anyone using the toilet in view.

All of the answers above make sense but my biggest pet peeve is why do we need our card key to work the elevator????? Now, when u invite trade over, you have to go down to the lobby and travel back in the brightest, most unflattering light in the elevator, with the guy. I Hate doing this. .Hotels were synonimous with affairs and some 'fun'....why have hotels made this more awkward for their paying guests? Also, treking to ur room and the key doesnt work...especially if youve shopping with you. (I know you'll say its for safety reasons, but its not necessary.

r20 one of the reasons I'm sure is crafty people sneaking to the pool -we used to do it all the time in Vegas after climbing in Black Velvet Canyon for days to clean off. Also done in L.A., and got chased off by security.

The One Mile at a Time guy may be picky/autistic (or just one of those prissy, demanding queens) but there's a few things on his list I agree with.

I hate the big decorative pillows, especially on the bed and near pillows I'll be sleeping on. I don't think it's unreasonable or germaphobic to think nah, I don't want a pillow that's been touched by many hands to touch my bed pillow.

The resort fees are out of control - I wish they'd just roll it into the room rate. If you have to charge me $60 so you can let me use the gym and get two bottled waters, something is off.

As much as my arthritic knees appreciate a shower (and not a bath) in a hotel room, agree that many of the setups in rooms are very weird.

When the virile young male guests look right through me.

More hangers in the closet please!

He's right about the lack of hooks in the bathroom. My travel partner and I end up hanging everything on the 2 hooks that they provide.

A budget room at the port of Mediterranean city. There's a sink and toilet in the room but no shower or tub. So you take a whore's bath and there is no rattan screen to build some mystery and seduction for your gentleman caller.

Cheap ass mini-fridge set to iceberg. If I put any leftovers or drinks in there, they come out frozen. I always turn them to the lowest setting but sometimes my stuff still is frozen.

Smart TVs that only integrate with Netflix and YouTube but no other streaming services. At least give us Hulu, Peacock, and HBO Max.

Bathroom doors that don’t close all the way, or showers that are separate from the bathroom. I’m shocked at how common these have become. Who is this for?

Control panels instead of light switches. You arrive at your room after dark the first time and it’s completely dark and you have no idea how or where to turn on the lights.

[quote] bathrooms/toilets in the middle of the room with a clear glass surround if you're lucky. Who wants this?

It’s okay if you’re solo, and if you are with someone, it helps people to get to know each other better.

Actually, I think it's to discourage you from getting just one room when you're with people you know, but aren't fucking. Traveling with a work friend, relative, etc? Get two rooms so you don't have to watch each other shower. Probably not, but it's hard for me to imagine why else that exists.

You may be right, r31. I always thought it was to give the bathroom more natural light and make it feel more open.

Just stayed at an otherwise very nice property that had poor water pressure in the sink (it was OK in the shower) and a thermostat that was bat-shit crazy and set at something like 68. I'm from the south and just about froze. Finally just turned it OFF.

Hotels that feature 'wing-like' shower doors that don't hold the water in the shower space -- it slops all over the floor, creating a mess and safety issue. What is the fucking point!?

Maid services scheduling. How many times have I stopped back at my hotel room to find the maids servicing it (and seemingly almost done.) if I say I'll stop back shortly or ask them just to do the basic things and put the bathroom and room in quick order, they never hurry the fuck up...I can come back 45 minutes later and they are still fussing about, no end in sight. Hurry it up, Toots!

And if I've rearranged the furniture a bit, know that it's more comfortable for me that way -- don't keep moving the chair back to where Housekeeping wants it until I've checked out, nor arraying the guest services info just so, undoing my stack because I don't need a wine and drinks menu in the middle of the space where I've put my laptop.

Finally, a really good hotel should be attentive to scheduling housekeeping - signalling to them that 206 had breakfast and is out for the morning or whatever. Increasing if you help the front desk with that info, it goes into their "Well, Isn't That Nice!" nice file with an eye roll.

And yes, spending hundreds a night, I would like Housekeeping to do a quick pass through my room: tidy up, clean the bathroom surfaces, replace the used towels, replenish coffee things... (And it doesn't take two people 75 minutes per room every day.)

If I spot the maids early on, I'll speak to them and ask just for the important basics (spelling them out) and also giving a good tip up front then a daily beyond. But everything and everyone is stupider by the day, so the wisdom of that now only seems to work about half the time (depending mostly on where in the world.)

R6, you ain't kiddin'!!

Years ago, when I was still scoring essays for the GREs, they flew us readers from all over the country into NJ and we scored essays in person in Princeton. We stayed in the Westin and slept in the Heavenly Beds!!

Most of us were (generally, English) professors, and you never heard such a bunch of geeky academics [bold]rave[/bold] about what a great night's sleep we had! We all talked about how the beds were so comfortable we could barely force ourselves out of there in the morning.

When I got home, I actually looked up how much it would cost to buy a Heavenly Bed with all the trimmings, and it was (of course) some outrageous amount of money, so there went that idea. But talk about a bed that made you feel like a queen!

Those were the days.

*Increasingly

My biggest pet peeve is not being able to open a frigging window ! I like fresh air and I highly doubt anyone is going to climd thru my 5th floor window during the night.

Towels! Jesus Christ, would it kill brand-name chains to have towels thicker than toilet tissue? Sheets. Can I please get at least 300 count?

Like nearly all of the travel reviewers, Ben is a huge needy queen who expects his concept of perfection and freaks out at anything different. See also: The Points Guy and staff, Nonstop Dan, and many more.

I will say that my expectations vary based on what I'm paying for the room.

At a Holiday Inn Express I want basic cleanliness and expect little more.

If I'm at an $800/night hotel (which I've done a few times in the last few years) the expectation levels are different.

I don't like sliding barn doors for the bathroom. This popped up in a couple Hampton Inns.

I'm also not a fan of the lack of power plugs near beds. I travel with a portable power strip and this helps, but still!

The best hotel bedding I've encountered in a long time was at a Candlewood Suites. It was a pleasant surprise. The bed was a real beauty and the little kitchen came in handy. Contrast this to a recent stay at a higher-end Archer Hotel near DC. Bed was like a board and the room had no mini fridge.

I’m lying in my Westin Heavenly Bed™️ at home right now. My partner traveled for work so much he was lifetime Platinum level for SPG hotels. That meant we got a great deal on the bed so we bought one. I’ve had to replace the overlay and sheets many times but it’s still a great sleep.

My pet peeves:

1. Scaled down cleaning service. I always appreciated the daily cleaning with fresh towels. Now you have to jump certain hoops to get it done. The real annoyance is though that hotels sell the lack of cleaning as an environmentally conscious good deed.

2. The lack of strong power outlets near the bed for phones and tablets.

3. I need my own blanket. Love my husband, but I need my own blanket.

4. Not so much a problem for me but for the room service: I'd appreciate a bar code sticker somewhere in the room for tipping. I haven't used cash since before Covid. And especially when you travel to a foreign country and run out of their currency, it would be nice if I could just Venmo my tip to the cleaning staff.

My pet peeves are pets with unruly/untrained owners, suites that aren't suites, lobby popcorn that stinks up rooms all over the hotel (I'm looking at you, Drury), thin walls, and duvets when alternative blankets aren't in a closet.

When I can I travel with my own pillows.

I do a scan with blue light/orange filter just to be sure I'm not at the Overlook Hotel (I do forensic work). I check for bedbugs no matter what I am.

My expectations go with the price and claims of the hotel. Except for bed bugs. And one time there was shit, blood and sand on the bed under the nicely prepared coverlet. And THAT was an expensive place.

I checked into a hotel and found a sock in the bed from a previous guest. Yeah, those bed linens were never changed. I asked for a new room.

Ben and R22 are spot on right about the decorative pillows. They are gross and nasty. Placing them on my bed where I am going to sleep is revolting.

Another vote for the hard to find light switches.

The standard check-in time that STAYED at 3pm AFTER COVID. It never reverted back to 1-2pm. Sometimes it's even 4PM (I see you Air BnB and I fold).

Then the check-out time is now 11AM not noon. This is just an excuse for them not to have enough cleaning staff. Why are we paying hundreds per day when the first day is only 9 hrs? It should be pro-rated.

r45, how often do you find bed bugs? More in the U.S., or everywhere?

Condom wrappers under the bed of supposedly classy joints

One trend I find disturbing is the shampoo, conditioner and body wash all attached to the shower wall in pump bottles? I mean, what is to stop some psyhco from dumping fentanyl in there? Or just taking a piss in the bottle for laughs or cumming in it? I am skeeved out by them.

Liquid soap. Can’t wash my ass with this. Need a hard soap bar.

Blood stain on the blanket. Philadelphia, of course.

My sister and brother-in-law had bedbugs in Edinburgh about ten years ago. The management refused to admit it. Said it was "midges"

[quote]Liquid soap. Can’t wash my ass with this. Need a hard soap bar.

I just pack my own bar now all the time.

What is Ben being autistic about today? Duvet covers.

[quote]Personally, I really like when a hotel bed’s duvet insert is fully enclosed in the duvet cover, using something like a zipper or buttons. Other hotels simply have a duvet insert that’s sandwiched between the duvet covers, and then it easily comes apart, meaning you may often find yourself in direct contact with the duvet.

[quote]That leads me to the question — the duvet sheets are of course washed between all stays, but how often are the duvet inserts washed? In an ideal world, everything would be washed between all stays, but I don’t think that’s actually the case.

[quote]I can get over the sheer volume of people who may sleep in a given hotel bed, but it’s the duvet and decorative bedding situation that really gets me.

Rage

R57 The little queen would DIE if he ever saw that scratchy, neon-colored coverlet on a Motel 6 bed.

Rats in the bathroom

Bedbugs up top

The lack of smart TVs in hotels really does bug me in this day and age. Anyone who can afford $200+ a night for a hotel has at least one streaming account they could sign into, and bare bones smart TVs are dirt cheap. It really sucks to pay all that money and be left with nothing to watch at night but Blue Bloods and M.A.S.H. marathons with 15 commercials every 4 minutes.

Look at me, I'm in tatters

[quote] Blue Bloods and M.A.S.H. marathons with 15 commercials every 4 minutes.

Help! I've fallen and I can't get up!

The bedding at the W Hotel in New Orleans was like sleeping on a cloud. 21 years ago I was there to see Siouxsie Sioux perform-I didn't want to get out of bed! Best hotel sleep ever.

Sorry, I know this is a complaint thread, just had to share.

Smell of Febreeze.

Hate it.

Bad sign too.

Not a pet peeve exactly, but it’s amazing to see antiquated IPad chargers and other dead technologies in my hotel room.

Hotel mini bars with EUR 10 crisps and rancid chocolate.

The worst are the fridges that monitor consumption.

R66 Yes! I still frequently see ipod docks being touted in the amenity list for premium rooms in expensive hotels like it's 2006.

R50, I've never found bed bugs. At the worst of the early spread of them I'd check the online reports and avoid places where they were reported.

I've been lucky! Outside the US, too.

Husband travels a more frequently than I do, for work, sometimes the Canadian north. He had a colleague who caught crabs from a bathtub and he's had bedbugs. Won't bring any luggage into a room until it passes his inspection, which includes undoing the bedding.

Haven't found any problems in about 6 years. But about 7 years ago we were attending a wedding in a small Ontario city. Walked out of two places and ended up 40 miles away.

[quote]I travel quite a bit for work. My biggest pet peeve is the turning off of the ac at night while you sleep. I believe they have some sort of light or motion sensor on them so at night they will turn off while you sleep.

As it so happens, I used to be a professional travel writer, before the interwebs killed most journalism, and I'm still a very heavy leisure traveler. I have no idea where in the world you might be, but I honestly can't recall encountering an A/C system that entirely turns off at night. Do you stay at the same property each time, or is this something you've seen at multiple places? It's at least possible that a progressive area barred A/C at night if the area doesn't need it, but if so I've never seen such a place (plus I was just in Portland last week – if anyone had such a thing, it'd be them, but they do not).

Yes, it's entirely normal nowadays for hotels to require you to place the room key in a slot near the entry door merely to turn *on* the power in the first place, but that can't be your issue since the power *stays* on when you do that. No, it's decidedly *not* normal to turn off the A/C in the middle of the night, and for exactly the reason you stated: lots of people, myself included, are hot sleeper who wake up drenched in sweat if they pull that shit.

Yes, HVAC systems now operate on sensors as well – but that one needs a caveat of sorts, too: most explicitly do *not* have "auto-off" set at night, and again for the same reason. This type of thing does nothing but piss off guests: I never voluntarily return to hotels that clearly don't have their shit together.

But again, this is all REALLY weird. I know summer's basically over and you may not need A/C, but if this is all going on at a single hotel, I'd strongly suggest moving to a new one.

Resort fees that include luxuries such as free long distance calling and boarding pass printing.

[quote]All of the answers above make sense but my biggest pet peeve is why do we need our card key to work the elevator?????

It's because other types of "rough trade" (off the street) have a tendency to walk in and start stealing shit: it's not like hotels have security guards on every floor (or anything close). Which is why nearly all urban hotels have had keyed elevators for DECADES, hence my surprise at your "sudden" discovery.

you can bring home bed bugs from even the best hotels now...scary stuff!

[quote] As it so happens, I used to be a professional travel writer

Can I assume this is your pickup line?

[quote]Smart TVs that only integrate with Netflix and YouTube but no other streaming services. At least give us Hulu, Peacock, and HBO Max.

You're welcome to bring along your own Amazon Fire stick or Apple TV box. (I usually do for extended trips.) Also, Peacock is one of the smallest streamers: the main ones they need in addition are for Amazon Prime & Disney+, the latter if only for programming to keep the kids occupied. Or maybe watch either on your laptop? Or phone? Or tablet?

[quote]My biggest pet peeve is not being able to open a frigging window ! I like fresh air and I highly doubt anyone is going to climd thru my 5th floor window during the night.

No, but what the hotel's worried about is YOU (and other guests) throwing shit out the window, considering it could literally be lethal if it's from a high-enough height. (Also, modern skyscraper construction doesn't generally allow for window vents.)

[quote]I don't like sliding barn doors for the bathroom. This popped up in a couple Hampton Inns.

Same, but I've seen WAY more than that! Seems like that trend's thankfully dying away, however.

[quote]The standard check-in time that STAYED at 3pm AFTER COVID. It never reverted back to 1-2pm. Sometimes it's even 4PM (I see you Air BnB and I fold).

Standard check-in time in the US has been 3pm for decades, and it was literally never 1pm. (I'm also skeptical about 2pm, but it's possible.) You're correct that many of the larger chains now have an 11am checkout time, but it's definitely not all, plus they usually let you check out late upon request unless they're sold out or something. Btw Airbnb sets zero check-in or checkout times; hosts control all of that. (And yes, it takes long to service one since they don't have the luxury of a full-time housekeeping staff.)

[quote]The lack of smart TVs in hotels really does bug me in this day and age. Anyone who can afford $200+ a night for a hotel has at least one streaming account they could sign into, and bare bones smart TVs are dirt cheap. It really sucks to pay all that money and be left with nothing to watch at night but Blue Bloods and M.A.S.H. marathons with 15 commercials every 4 minutes.

Agreed, but you're aware you can bring your own dongle – an Amazon Fire stick, Chromecast thingy or even an Apple TV – for use instead, right? You might need to take a spare HDMI cable, but the TVs are standard issue and should have multiple slots you can use. (Btw I always take my Apple TV unit with me if I'm going anywhere for more than a week.)

[quote]Not a pet peeve exactly, but it’s amazing to see antiquated IPad chargers and other dead technologies in my hotel room.

I thought they were FINALLY gone for good – except then I ended up in an older Courtyard over the summer that still had them, along with those tacky old circa-2010 first-gen LCD TVs.

[quote]...but for the room service: I'd appreciate a bar code sticker somewhere in the room for tipping. I haven't used cash since before Covid. And especially when you travel to a foreign country and run out of their currency, it would be nice if I could just Venmo my tip to the cleaning staff.

Venmo won't help you tip the help outside the U.S., R44, neither to send nor to receive. It would be convenient, but international banking regs... Tipping, *very* small purchases of a couple of Euros, and flea markets are the about the only cash transactions I make --or witness-- in Europe. Tipping is always in cash.

r74, if you come home to cold winter leave your bags outside for a bit

Black painted dark hotel rooms where you can’t check how clean they are. Like certain „gay“ hotels.

Can you safely assume that every hotel room in NYC has been hosting at least cumdump orgy in the last 6 weeks.

Any gay hotel managers/bellboys here?

[quote]Years ago, when I was still scoring essays for the GREs, they flew us readers from all over the country into NJ and we scored essays in person in Princeton. We stayed in the Westin and slept in the Heavenly Beds!!

Ha! That's how my mom first discovered them, too, while out of town at a work conference: she had a "holy shit!" revelation, as did I (on the first trip I was able to stay at a Westin). But both Westin and particularly Ws have slid far downhill over the past decade. I'm not even clear if Marriott *wants* to keep mainline W Hotels running. Speaking of:

[quote]The bedding at the W Hotel in New Orleans was like sleeping on a cloud. 21 years ago I was there to see Siouxsie Sioux perform-I didn't want to get out of bed! Best hotel sleep ever.

I wasn't there for Siouxsie Sioux, but I stayed in both of NOLA's Ws at multiple points – except both are now kaput. The one just outside the Quarter near Harrah's is now a Le Meridien, and the one inside is a Renaissance hotel. Yuck. But that was a great hotel back in the day! Also nice to be near the Quarter but not directly inside it.

[quote]I’m lying in my Westin Heavenly Bed™️ at home right now. My partner traveled for work so much he was lifetime Platinum level for SPG hotels. That meant we got a great deal on the bed so we bought one. I’ve had to replace the overlay and sheets many times but it’s still a great sleep.

R43, this raises an interesting point. As I already noted, the Heavenly Beds in active use at actual hotels have been significantly downgraded over the past decade. They've moved from down-filled duvets & down-feather-filled pillows to polyester foam for both, and also downgraded the all-cotton (and *good* cotton at that) sheets into a thin cotton-poly combo.

What I didn't know is if they also downgraded the Heavenly Beds they sell to guests, and as it so happens, my mom just replaced her original Heavenly Bed (from around 2006 - she's not usually one for splurges, but happily made that one!) with a brand-new one earlier this year. I'm not sure which bed you & your partner have, but the current model is definitely NOT the original. My mom figured it out even before I did! She laid down and knew something was "off" instantly!

Is your bed older or more recent? My mom couldn't find any of the old packaging for her bed, so she couldn't deduce what changed in terms of the mattress design. She simply said, with sadness: "It's no longer heavenly."

Of course you can ask about the room you are being assigned at check-in (and I usually do), but I wish desk clerks were more informative before handing you a key card.

"For the Executive room you requested, we have a room on the 7th floor with a good view over the avenue and the city, or a slightly smaller room on the 11th with a view toward the mountains." That sort of thing... Most people don't have a strong preference; they will say the larger room, or the quieter room, or the one with the better view. For those who do care, it gives at least a suggestion of having some choice -- which I would prefer to the desk clerk saying, "Here, you're in 418."

[quote] bring your own dongle

Talk dirty to me, daddy!

Why are the paper rings around the toilet, that I then have to lift the set to remove, needed? Is there really a purpose for them?

R84, those are merely "evidence" of a sort that the toilet's been "sanitized." No, they're not needed, and yes, they're weird. And yet she persisted.

Einstein @r4, Las Vegas is in the middle of the desert. There is not an endless water supply. Everyone must conserve water -- even hotel guests.

[Quote] Is your (Heavenly Bed) bed older or more recent? -R81

We have the original version which we bought through the US website in 2013. We had it shipped to Australia as the version they were selling here was made under license and not as good.

bad place to locate business based on hotel guests then. maybe they should rethink those fake Venice canals and other water features and supply a more acceptable supply to their guests.

I slept at Mar-a-Lago and got bedbugs! It was worth it though to gain access to classified documents.

Bedbugs in Canada....I may be working in Winnipeg during the coldest months (mid Jan-mid April), so we shouldn't have them. I'm really hoping that they shoot in Pittsburgh instead, but they're saving at least 3 million going to Winnipeg.

Winterpeg

the provincial bird in summer is the mosquito

When higher-end hotel chains (Hilton, Marriott) serve only preservative-laden pre-packaged pastries, sugary yogurts, and weak coffee as "breakfast".

I just hate when the maid folds down the edge of the toilet paper.

As if it proves everything's AOK!!

[quote] I'm really hoping that they shoot in Pittsburgh instead

Have them put you up at the Fairmont. It's the nicest place in town.

r34, I'll rent a place then. They told me the dollar goes far in Winnipeg, so they can give us great accommodations. But it's Winnipeg- how nice can it get?

1. Plastic cups instead of glasses. 2. Paper cups instead of mugs. 3. Accent chairs that are ALWAYS uncomfortable. 4. HVAC that you can't turn off (fan is low or high, temp cold or hot) 5. Bathroom vanities that are a mile wide so you can't get close to the mirror. 6. Lack of an in-room safe (happens more than I expect). 7. Stained plastic showers/poorly grouted plastic showers (in brands you wouldn't expect). 8. Keyless entry that works haphazardly.

All the glowing LED’s in green and red light on the TV, Smoke Alarm, even outlets. Some hotel rooms look like airport landing strips, and can’t be darkened.

On the same idea, I hate when you cannot close the drapes fully and there is a sodium or stadium light just outside your room (commonly in Washington DC). I keep a few binder clips in my suitcase and black file dots to conceal the led pin lights.

Electronic governors (limiting the cooling settings) on air conditioners, and damaged compressors that make the a/c feel as though someone is breathing on you. You can press the thermostat buttons in a certain way to enable you to lower the temperature setting below 65, I do that sometimes.

If conserving water was the top priority then they wouldn't have put a big soaking tub next to the shower, r86. That thing held enough water for several high-pressure shower sessions, you fucking idiot.

Thank you for telling me that Las Vegas is in a desert. Where would the world be without your charm and intelligence.

Thin walls/noisy neighbors

Any sign of mold/mildew in showers at all

Hard beds

I didn't mean they shut off the air, but it seems motion sensing. If I set the temp to 68, with the lights on working or watching tv the ac is running. While it may not turn off at night, it definatley does not run..the same is true when I leave the room. Like a nest thermostat, I believe it has an away setting where it turns up the temp when it senses no one is in the room or you are sleeping at night.

In the early 1980s, QEII stayed at the St Francis Hotel in San Francisco, back before it became a dump. She liked the mattress so much that she ordered a bunch to be shipped back to England. I would later learn that it was a McCroskey. They're still made by hand here at a factory that's still family owned since the 1800's, I think. They're made by hand and built to last "forever".

The main sales store is in the Market/Castro area. About 25 years ago I needed a replacement mattress. My office mate urged me to get a McCroskey because "you spend a third of your life in bed". Our employee stock was way up. I went to the McCroskey store with my partner and was served by none other than the grand or great-grandson of the McCroskey founder. He happens to be gay. He told us the story of the QEII purchase. I think it was an eye-opening $5,000 or more (25 years ago...), just for the mattress. We also bought an expensive down feather bed topping, but used our old box spring. The partner is gone, but I still have that awesome mattress. It has to be flipped and turned one quarter turn every season. Best splurge I've ever done.

"One quarter turn".....is it square and not rectangular?

I hate hotels that won’t let me bring my pet (or charge an exorbitant fee to do so).

Hotels that allow pets and children.

r104, it is a California King and is pretty much square, but I really meant a 180 degree turn. I took Calculus, Analytic Geometry, Linear Equations, and Biostatistics in college, but I'm in my late 60s. Now you do the math...

R96 Totally prefer plastic or paper cups in most hotels. You think your glassware is being washed and sanitized? Ha! It just a maid rinsing it out in the sink.

Or worse. I stupidly used a ceramic mug one time and it tasted strongly of furniture polish.

[quote]I keep a few binder clips in my suitcase and black file dots to conceal the led pin lights [TV, smoke alarms, etc.]

You make me feel so very normal, R97.

My civilizing routine consists only of frcluttering all the in-room literature and signage and city guides and things I won't need or don't like to look at...the ice buckets, little baskets of assorted tea bags, decorative cushions, etc. and shoving them into a drawer (with a note for Housekeeping to leave it there until I've checked out.)

*decluttering

My neurotic hotel habit is always traveling with my own lightbulbs--15 and 25 watt warm or amber incandescent ones. I can't stand when hotels and airbnbs use those cheap, bright white LED bulbs that light everything like a Nordstrom Rack dressing room.

The crappy coffee makers in even high end Marriott hotels. Even lower end hotels have installed mini Keurigs. Why can't they improve their coffee maker situation?

What foresight, R112. It's been ages since I encountered cold white lightbulbs, and I remember having to light the room only with the light of a television.

Shower taps and dials so complicated that it takes 10 minutes to figure out how to get the correct flow and temperature.

Shower heads positioned such that the spritz you with cold water when you turn on the water.

American hotel breakfast

🤢🤮

Decorative cushions

Ughhh

Probably never cleaned. Just sprayed with Febreeze.

When you can’t get the hourly rate….

Complicated light switches, that mutually cancel each other.

Fake hotel web pages that scam you.

You're repeating yourselves at this point, bitches. Enough already unless you have something new to add.

European Hotels that don't let you check in until 3 pm.

After an 11 h flight.

Modern smoke detectors that blink like a strobe light all night long, placed right near the bed. Are you kidding me? Did anyone test your room design before it was replicated?! And couldn’t agree more about the modern showers that splash water all over the bathroom.

It's a pain in the ass, and a standard one, R123, not a conspiracy or anti-Americanism.

[quote]Hotel check-in times in the U.S. typically range from 2 PM to 4 PM, with 3 PM being a common standard.

They're going to make you pay extra if you want to check-in at 07h, because your story of having flown 11 hours from the USA is not going to spill out the cornucopia of VIP perqs.

Lately I’ve been “stranded” with only green tea Keureg capsules in hotel room coffee services. I suspect because fewer people drink the green tea, they have more of them left behind.

When I stay at a property that I know has a Keureg unit in the room, I pack Illy K-cups in my carry-on (so they don’t burst in an unpressurized luggage hold in smaller aircraft).

I agree that the tiny coffee units that have square coffee bags in a disposable plastic drawer make for a sad cup of bong water.

glowing lights everywhere, on clock, electronics etc

Housekeeping in general has gone to shit since COVID.

I stayed recently for a week in a hotel near a hospital where I was having some tests done, and on the first day I was there, I used one of the glasses to drink something. It sat uncleaned and not taken away/removed from the room for the rest of my stay, even after I wrote notes saying "please take care of this."

Ha r120- I just came back from Greece, and in one of our hotels (which was quite lovely), it had a row of switches by the bathroom. My travel partner has to pee at last 2x a night and once when he was exiting the bathroom, he was trying to turn the light off. He ended up turning our room into a disco for about 5 minutes- even with my eye mask, I burst out laughing, because of all the distressed sounds that he was making, trying turn the light off.

There’s never enough room in the mini fridge for all of the lemon squares.

R129 If I can remember I try to bring a night light with me on trips, so I can put it in the bathroom and not even have to turn the light on.

Back to bedbugs, after watching that web series Another Dirty Room I am very good about checking for them on the mattress. I don’t sit on any hotel room couch.

R123 try Californian hotels that won't let you check in until 3pm. After a 15+ hour flight.

It's not the fucking hotel's fault you people just got off a long flight. Rules is rules.

A lot of hotels will let you check in early if the room is ready

I used to work at a hotel front desk. The 3pm check-in time is to provide a reasonable window of time to get all the late check-out rooms cleaned. Very often, people don't get out of their rooms til 1pm (or the front desk calls up to their room), and very few people take the time to formally check out, so cleaning staff doesn't know when it's safe to go in and start cleaning, and they have no idea what state the room will be in when they finally get in there.

Staying at an expensive hotel in Old Montreal next week. Breakfast is not included, but of course, there's a chic restaurant onsite and room service. Might as well just splurge some more. After all, it's only Canadian money.

Really R136 - there are THAT many late check outs? I’ve found it’s almost impossible to get late checkouts in hotels - and they act like they are moving heaven and earth to let you check in before 3PM. It’s ridiculous that even high end hotels dont have a communication system that lets the check in desk know rooms have been cleaned. Pandemic seemed to make everything more business friendly and less customer friendly. And more expensive.

Uniformly, they leave two regular coffee packets and two decaf. WHO is drinking so much decaf? And given the general weakness of the "regular" coffee they provide, I need at least three cups to get moving.

I love London but one thing I don't like about some of their hotels is I have to pay for the entire breakfast buffet as opposed to just choosing an item or two I'd like.

We always with a tub of Lysol wipes. First thing we do is wipe down the room's hard surfaces. includnig the remote. Does not matter if it is The Mondrion or the Motel 6

[Quote]there are THAT many late check outs?

Oh yeah. Generally, only old people and those who had flights to catch checked out early or on time. We were told to assume every guest would be checking out late to avoid over-promising early check-ins, because it's such a frequent occurrence. Late check-out is guaranteed, therefore early check-in cannot be.

R141 I do that too. I always had little Wet Ones to wipe down the remote but since COVID I wipe down the headboards, nightstand surfaces, etc. Anywhere me or my pillow might touch, and everywhere my hands might touch (faucets, door handles).

[quote]I love London but one thing I don't like about some of their hotels is I have to pay for the entire breakfast buffet as opposed to just choosing an item or two I'd like

Again, not something especially specific about London - but specific to the concept of breakfast buffets.

What should they do? Charge you by the weight of the food, serve the offerings on different color plates and tally up like at one of those Japanese restaurants with the conveyor belts? Give a discount to skinny Americans? Have 17 tiers of pricing for a buffet?

You do know that, gasp!, you can book the night prior if it’s really important to land after a long flight early in the morning. I used to do that fairly frequently. Do call and let them know your intention though so they can mark your reservation, otherwise they could mark you as a no show.

I am always a FAT WHORE at those breakfast buffets. The cheesy omelets at Hampton are to die for.

R146 Mid-range chain hotel breakfasts are inedible. Microwaved omelets? Frozen waffles? Frozen cartons of cheap orange juice?

You'd get a better meal out of a dumpster, dearie.

Shower controls…some are difficult to figure out….how about just hot, cold, and medium

Winding hallways with no sign where the elevator is.

How do you all feel about hotel showers??

I wish hotels with pricey all-you-can-eat breakfast buffets also had servers with a la carte menus as an alternate option, r144. It's that simple.

Seems to me in the olden days there were those options at hotels I stayed at.

I love all of you, I really do, but I'm going to recommend that some of you need to stay at home.

r131, that's genius! We travel 1x-2x a year, so I'll suggest it to him.

The problem with doing the book the day before early arrival, R145, and I speak with some experience here, is that hotels often give the room away if you haven't checked in by midnight on the day as they assume that you're a no show.

What you need to do (and again I speak from experience) is to specify when making the reservation that although you've reserved a room for the day of - say - Wednesday 17th September, that you'll be arriving early on Thursday 18th September after a transpacific flight and will need your room. NOW!

Sorry R145 - I just re-read your post which describes just that.

Seriously people? You are befuddled by shower controls? Maybe you shouldn't leave home.

Not hotel related, but when you go camping and get access to shower that has an adjustable dial that is always a perk.

I like this thread; granted, it's #First World Problems and while you have to adjust your expectations when you're staying in a relatively cheap chain, it's kind of irritating when you pay for a nice hotel and the shower is wonky or the TV continues to glow or coffee maker is really crappy.

I can't remember which chain but it was near Toronto airport. A friend was staying there. It had a kitchenette that included a microwave and a small glass cooktop. When she used the microwave the whole room started to stink.

On closer examination the microwave looked clean until she checked the ceiling of the unit. Covered in greasy gunk.

Disgusting, R159.

In a hotel, kitchen facilities are not a plus for me. A refrigerator is sufficient.

I'm a bit delicate about the smells of other people's food. Smelling some previous guest's exploded Moo Goo Gai Pan burning on the ceiling of the microwave would send me to the front desk to demand a room change.

Related peeve: inoperable guest room windows. I like to have a bit of fresh air, or just open the window for a second to gauge the outside temperature. ...Or blow the disgusting food stink out of a room

I have two condos I rent out as income-generating properties. I started out using high-end materials. 600-count cotton sheets, high-end mattresses, appliances, Nespresso machine, etc. Thick towels, all the top-notch stuff. People treat rental and hotel items like shit. They do things they would never do with their own stuff at home. My expensive sheets? ruined in three months, having to bleach them so badly they fell apart. Towels stained with something you cannot get out. AC turned down to sub-zero levels, so badly that my HVAC system seized three times. I have had to replace the Nespresso machine twice and most of the countertop appliances. Don't even ask about the plumbing. I cannot imagine having to deal with it on a hotel level. I have not even talked about the damage they have done.

Dark hotel corridors painted black. I hate them.

Hotel breakfast buffets with Germans.

R161 You ignorant slut! Everybody knows you can't trust RENTERS with your classy shit!

R163 German breakfast buffets suck ass. A plate of cold luncheon meats? A basket of raw eggs and a little hotpot for boiling them yourself? Mueslix cereal that's basically ground-up wicker furniture? My condolences to your colon!

r161, was there no screening process or reviews of said renters?

I find that boutique hotels in foreign countries have amazing breakfasts.

It’s not the German food, it’s the inevitable feeding frenzy that ensues when Germans participate. Because they are entitled to a FULL plate!!! These buffets look like Gettysburg half way through.

I guess other nations are not that much better.

R166 Try a breakfast buffet at a mid-range Hong Kong hotel. It's all Mainlanders, and they're all chain-smoking in a non-smoking hotel, and they'll walk off with the entire steam tray.

Nobody swipes free shit faster than a hungry communist.

Italy Switzerland Germany at a 3 or 4. star hotel you get breakfast in the room rate. In resort towns in the alps the breakfast is also surprisingly generous, considering the Swiss are not.

I haven't found the German breakfast buffet to be that awful. In the cities it's good bakery bread, butter, jams, usually passable cheese, hard boiled eggs, fine coffee, real dairy. I agree they'll have shitty cold cuts, which is a crime because of course Germany has excellent cold cuts. IN some regions youre a follower not to go local for breakfast, such as in Hamburg, where fish for breakfast is a miracle.

you're a fool (typo: follower)

R165 They are not renters, VRBO, Airbnb - few days to a few weeks at a time. There is insurance they have to pay and a set cleaning fee but when they do damage, I have to get it fixed and if it is during a rental period and I have it booked for the next three weeks it is hard to get in and get it repaired without interrupting the new renters. Then I have to make concessions etc. R161 it is the good shit that sets me apart from the average places. They are both in Florida and competition is high. I have all five star reviews and they always compliment the quality of the materials, the sheets, the towels, the little touches like having a weeks worht of espresso for them at no charge, but jesus keeping that shit up is expensive. If you ever see a guy buying 20 sets of 600 thread count sheets at costo when they are onsale, it's me lol.

In Florida??!! Well that's on you.

Eye vood like a sausage vith my breakfast.

In my late teens I had a friend whose summer job was laundry at The Royal York hotel in Toronto. Every day there was at least one "shit the bed" incident and the chambermaids never emptied the deposit. But they, laundy, washed those.

The bigger problem was hair dye. Those bed linens and towels, and anything else, were discarded. Lots of speculation about fugitives changing appearance. He lasted about two weeks and became a waiter with me at a country club.

People become filthy animals when they stay in a hotel. I'm fine with no housekeeping service if I'm only there 2 or 3 nights. At home I use the sheets/towels over multiple days, why would it be any different at a hotel? Besides, that minimizes opportunities for the maids to go through your shit and steal.

Have you ever had your stuff stolen by the maids? The only thing I bring of value is an ipad, passport, + credit cards (soon to be obsolete with iphone/iwatch payment), I don't have designer clothes, jewelry, or bavs.

*bags*

[quote]At home I use the sheets/towels over multiple days, why would it be any different at a hotel?

Unlike at home, hotels often don't have a place to hang towels to dry. Hooks yes, racks rarely. Often they have showers where the water spills beyond the enclosure or shower area onto the floor, or sink faucets with wild pressure that splashes everywhere. The solution for wet towels: throw them on the floor under the sink for Housekeeping to replace. Habits are often different from home to hotel, and not always entirely at the hands of "animals." It's not always easy to do the "right thing" at hotels.

No, R176, having spent many, many nights in hotel rooms.

That would be me, R139. I appreciate the decaf later in the day.