3Cforme

Oh, they give thought to it, and choose not to spend the money. Low-end properties across all major chains are cost-engineered to within a half-inch of tolerability. Try an aloft and count all the ways Starwood cuts corners. Stay at a few recent build Holiday Inn Expresses. Some of it is clever. Some just comes across as nasty-cheap.

CCIE_Flyer

It's not just the "budget" brands, unfortunately. Going back probably 15 years ago, I stayed in a brand new mainline Marriott - believe it was in Tampa - where I could hear the folks next to me carry on normal conversation - and understand everything they were saying. I didn't stay in another Marriott for years and years to come after that experience. Then there was a recent thread about a new property in the Keys I was looking at vacationing at - until one of our members started posting in real time about the utter lack of soundproofing in this just-opened property. Poof! Didn't darken their door, and I never will.

I've never stayed in an Aloft, and I hope not to ever have to. I practically live in an Element property next to an Aloft, and they are constantly hosting obnoxiously loud events. I can only imagine what that must be like for the folks on the lower floors (except that they mostly appear to be millennials, who probably don't mind). And don't get me started on all of the romper room furniture in the common areas...

reslfakb

Last summer we took the family to Yellowstone and stayed in the new rooms at Canyon Lodge. It was interesting how they built them. With the very short building season they elected to go with modular designs with much of the construction occurring in Boise, Idaho. They were very nice, received LEED certification. They were also ridiculous to rent-- over $500 a night for the two bedrooms units.

http://www.yellowstonenationalparklo...canyon-lodges/

There's a time lapse video at :

http://www.yellowstonenationalparklo...ge-time-lapse/