365RoadWarrior

I do. I'm just trying to determine if I'm an outlier, or if I'm alone.

My question pertains mostly to the evening "manager's reception" (Residence Inn, Embassy Suites, some Summerfield Suites, et cetera), and, to a lesser extent, the "Executive Lounge".

Personally, I don't drink and feel as if I'm subsidizing those free drinks in my hotel rate. I don't know how much of a hotel's budget might go to this category of expense, but if the Embassy Suites in Temecula last week was any indication... Ahem. Again drawing on last week's example, I'll keep it non-graphic by simply listing a couple of terms and phrases I would have included, had I chosen to be graphic:
1. Vomit
2. Brawl
3. Noise, late into the night.
4. Friends of guests (it appeared) weaving out of the parking lot when happy (two-and-a-half) hour ended.

Others might avoid such places for religious reasons. I've got a touch of that reason too, though I'm no prohibitionist.

Bonus Question: Do you avoid hotels with free breakfasts? Again, there's the "subsidy" argument. And, for me, as a strict vegetarian, the offerings are usually limited to...MELON! (I do like melon, though.) Maybe an egg-less, yeast-less, butter-less bread. Maybe. But looking at that Embassy Suites feast and my cantaloupe...

Sure, we all pay indirectly for pools and parking, shampoo and wi-fi, hair dryers and televisions that we never use, but these seem to be so standard that guests might be shocked by their absence in a quality hotel today. So I accept the subsidy as the cost of doing business.

tentseller

I have been know to enjoy beverages but I avoid these free flowing sessions in budget accommodation for the same reasons.
How ever in costlier establishment with lounge for certain status only and enforce access/behavior I have no problem with.

nerd

What does that mean, strict vegetarian? I would think that either you never eat meat, or you're not a vegetarian.

MrHalliday

I would guess outlier, but NOT alone...

mapleg

Sounds like more food for me then.

I think you are over-analyzing things...I don't care if there is a tennis court, and I don't play tennis. I don't use most items it the mini-gym either.

If the price is right and the room is good, that is sufficient for me....but I will agree I would not stay at a place where happy hour encourages drunkards, brawls and general mayhem. Sounds very low class to me, and if I want low class, heck I may as well just stay at a budget hotel and be done with it.

Ancien Maestro

Well.. indirectly I avoid areas that serve free alcohol.. If there is a higher cost than what I can see for a hotel room vs. extra services..

I simply don't book.

FlyinDutchman

Sounds more like my old college dorm rather than a hotel!

Actually didn't know they served free alcohol at some... I think I'd indeed avoid those places.

User Name

From the examples OP gave they sound like what most people would call vegan.

Personally I avoid hotel rooms that have two trash cans. I can't remember then last time I filled more than one, and there's no way I'm subsidizing the rest of you trash-depositing b*****ds.

holtju2

Should I:

- Avoid hotels that don't charge for Internet
- Hotels that upgrade to suites
- Hotels that have fitness center
- Those that provide free breakfast etc.

There are so many components that one won't use during the stay that IMHO it is irrelevant.

I have been to Embassy Suites maybe 10 to 15 times over the years. Not my favorite Hilton brand. I have never been around when they have the managers reception.

Considering that they probably serve house brands the "reception" cannot cost more than $50 max.

rochel

I neither seek them out, nor avoid them. But I do partake & enjoy them when I am staying at a place that does provide them.

dchristiva

Nope. I don't avoid them nor to I make it a point to book them. And I've never experienced any material "over indulgence" on anyone else's part when I've stayed at these properties.

365RoadWarrior

From the OP:

I agree with you. But every day, I encounter hyphenated vegetarians. "I'm lacto-ovo vegetarian" or "I don't eat RED meat". I say "strict" to make clear, I don't eat meat, seafood, poultry, eggs, dairy, yeast, honey and a couple of other animal odds and ends.

Unlike a lot of vegans (note: I say "a lot of", not "all") I don't claim any moral "high ground" and I don't care what YOU eat.

Sorry, off topic.

peachfront

You have a great imagination. We often seek out motels with free alcohol/manager's reception. There is no noise or vomit. The comped booze is usually from 5 to 7 PM, never seen it go later than 8 PM, to catch people who want to socialize before dinner

This is not an open keg at your frat club. It is a drink, maybe two drinks, chatting up a couple of other business travelers or tourists or (occasionally) evacuees from some disaster. We've met everything from a guy fleeing the Cedar Fire to other computer programmers. No frat boys. No noise. No vomit

Absolutely no reason to avoid such places. It's a nice perk. Managers shouldn't be discouraged from offering nice perks. The places that offer manager's receptions tend to be value places, they certainly do not cost MORE than other places. They generally cost less than the fancy places but more than, say, a bare bones Motel 6.

Oh, on re-reading more closely, I see you also dislike the free breakfast. In other words, there is a type of person who hates and resents anyone else getting a nice comp, if they too can't enjoy the comp.

I would suggest that you stay in five star hotels that charge you $20 for toast and coffee, $12 for a glass of wine, $12 for internet service, and $25 a night for parking, and leave the wonderful, friendly motels where managers actually try to give value for money to those of us who know the value of the dollar and the value of thoughtfulness. Think of all the money you have saved by staying in a foofy fancy pants place where they charge you for everything ala carte!

Your reasoning is so far wrong that it makes me wonder if you pay for your own travel at all. The motels that include free breakfast, parking, manager's reception, business center, etc. -- the base price is far less than you paying to get "screwed" at the foofy place. Half to one-third what you're being charged per night just for a bed. Oh, and I'll tell you a secret. We usually get a free fridge/microwave while you're getting a stupid mini-bar that will charge you $4 for a Coke.

BearX220

You're making a small, arbitrary and economically meaningless distinction between the free cocktail you don't want, which costs the hotel less than $1.00, and all the other free amenities you may or may not use: free parking, free pool, free body lotion, free paper, free cookie at check-in, free airport shuttle bus, free in-room refrigerator, free HBO, free Q-tips and cotton balls, free use of an umbrella on rainy days, free air conditioning, free executive lounge access for elites, free coffee urn in the lobby, ad infinitum. Most of those things cost the hotel much more.

Perhaps you would prefer a Ryanair-type unbundled price plan where the room costs $10.00, then towels are $10.00 each, the TV is 25 cents a minute, hot water is $3.00 a gallon, riding the van to the airport is $25.00, paying with a credit card instead of cash is $10.00, earning loyalty points is another $10.00, flushing the toilet is $2.00, and so on. This can get ridiculous in a hurry.

And as Peachfront points out above, at higher-tier properties with higher room rates, the cost of over-and-above items gets more egregious, not less so. I was helping to run a conference at a higher-end hotel in downtown San Francisco last weekend where it cost $37.00 to get a club sandwich delivered to a conference room. That's more outrageous by far than a free breakfast or something built into the base rate at a midrange chain hotel.

FWIW, Embassy Suites rack rates are generally a little higher than their midrange competition (Courtyard, etc.) because free happy hour and free breakfast are part of the proposition. I try to avoid ES because they're full of screaming children cleaning out the breakfast buffet and running down the halls in wet swimsuits, not because the base rate is $20 more than an HGI.

User Name

But by definition calling yourself vegetarian implies that you eat dairy (the word 'strict' does not change this as the word 'vegan' means vegetarian minus the dairy)? Or am I wriong in my interpretation of what vegan means?

Not meaning to be challenging, just interested.