Category Archives for Hotels.
The cheapness of a Hyatt Regency refusing coffee refills notwithstanding, is it weird that the background of this property owner likely puts the Albert Embankment property into the category of hotels I want to avoid?
There’s a live social media debate over whether expensive hotels are “that much better” so as to justify their extra cost – that a modest price over cheaper accommodations may buy you a better stay, but that once you get past a few hundred dollars the extra money just doesn’t buy you very much.
I think there’s a lot of nuance to this, and I don’t spend $600 or more out of pocket on room nights myself though I regularly redeem points for hotels that cost far more than this. My controversial take is that I do feel that they can deliver a lot for the money! But that I’m reluctant to spend that money myself.
While we’re seeing 3-to-1 category increases (seems bad!) it’s interesting that these are very different from similar clusters of increases in the past.
Previously we’ve seen a lot of high end hotels become more expensive as redemptions. This time we’re seeing lower category hotels go up the most. The bulk of the action with these changes are in the bottom half of the chart’s distribution. The biggest grouping of changes is category 3 hotels becoming 4’s, while we also see 1’s become 2’s and 2’s become 3’s.
Langham hotels is launching a brand new loyalty program – Brilliant by Langham – and it’s a points program with a slate of new elite benefits.
Not all hotel rooms have windows. But they still have curtains covering up a wall, making it seem like there’s a window? There’s an allegory for Marriott at this Courtyard property in there somewhere.
Hotels have been on a mission to cut back on housekeeping costs. They don’t want to do full cleans of every room every day. They’ll make you request it (and sometimes fill out paperwork) so that there are fewer rooms to clean, and they can hire fewer housekeepers who don’t work as many hours.
And hotel owners are pushing tips for housekeepers so they don’t have to pay the housekeeper as much.
The man who cooked baby back ribs in a hotel bathroom and garlic shrimp in a Delta Air Lines lavatory is now making nachos for dinner in a hotel bathroom sink.
He calls it “Dump Dinner Nachos.”
Being woken up in the middle of the night during your hotel stay is a huge fail, since fundamentally the basic thing you’re paying for is a night’s sleep!
As a general matter if you see something white it’s being changed, if it’s multicolored it was probably purchased specifically to avoid showing stains. Pricier chains have changed bedding more regularly than budget hotels. There was once a standard in the industry for mid-priced and below to change duvets four times a year coinciding with a deep clean of the room.
I hate tipping because of the frictions. You don’t know what you’re supposed to tip, it’s ambiguous. You’re supposed to have cash? It’s so much better when employees are compensated by their employers and listed prices are the amounts you actually pay.
If tipping is supposed to ensure better service, why is it such a bad customer experience?
Gary Leff is one of the foremost experts in the field of miles, points, and frequent business travel -- a topic he has covered since 2002.
Co-founder of frequent flyer community InsideFlyer.com, emcee of the Freddie Awards, and named one of the "World's Top Travel Experts" by Conde' Nast Traveler (2010-Present) Gary has been a guest on most major news media, profiled in several top print publications, and published broadly on the topic of consumer loyalty. More About Gary »
