Originally Posted by
KRSW
As far as backup systems go, it varies by area. The two hotels I've stayed in over the past week (Fairfield & Courtyard) both had generators. Just eye-balling it, I think they'd probably run an elevator and hallway lighting, but wouldn't expect anything else in the building to on there.
I've experienced power outages in SE Asian hotels where typically WiFi, lifts and limited lighting were kept going by the backup generator. If a place charging $30/night can afford that, I'd expect more from an American hotel charging over 5 times that.