hockeyinsider

I don't eat cake. I don't eat cheese cubes. I don't eat chocolate. Beer or wine is of little interest to me. The only thing that would impress or wow me is a bottle of real French champagne and not California, Italian or Spanish sparkling wines. Lanson is fine by me. I'm like Trump in that I drink 10 cans of Diet Pepsi or Diet Coke every day. I like suite upgrades if the suites are actually something special, but I find most domestic properties either don't have suites or have suites that aren't impressive and often are on lower floors or closer to elevators than a king-sized room on the top floor.

Every good J.W. Marriott or Ritz-Carlton property, as well as every Marriott internationally, has emailed me ahead of my stay. Every special request I've ever made has been fulfilled that way. Some have ranged from a Christmas tree in my room to a framed picture of my girlfriend on my nightstand.

I doubt there's anything the Four Points by Sheraton in Saginaw, Michigan, the Delta in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, or the Marriott in Norfolk, Virginia, could actually do that would impress. On the other hand, there are hotels like the Marriott in Los Suenos, Costa Rica, that surprised me with 4 bags of Costa Rican coffee (probably $12 a bag) after I commented on how good the coffee was. Or there's the Renaissance Paris Republique concierge that surprised me with VIP tickets to a concert in Saint-Chapelle when I mentioned that I wanted to visit this old church but it was closed for sightseeing.