Originally Posted by
ElkeNorEast
When I worked in hotels (Four Seasons), we recognized this as a major issue and would usually send some sort of amenity (bottle of wine, chocolate plate) to the room if the guest was still in house, or would send them an apology letter and voucher for a future stay if they were checking out and it was obvious that they were going to be reimbursed by their company.
If there was a question about their status (we didn't know if they were traveling on business or not) we would ask them outright, and tell them that we recognized that they were the ones who suffered and felt it was only right that they receive the benefit of any form of compensation - every person I ever explained it to appreciated our thoughtfulness.
I like this approach. Send a bottle of wine up to the room, and perhaps a voucher for a free stay. Most times, I'd end up using the voucher for a future work-related trip anyway, since I'm on the road so much. (So far, I have used 5 coupons this year, for my company travel - free hotel room, two free rental car days, and two airline vouchers... and figure that'll probably happen again a few times before the year's out. And, if I decided to use one for personal reasons, I'd clear it with my boss first - who I'm sure would understand and agree.)