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Is no in-room coffee maker and charge for wifi a deal breaker for a hotel these days?

Is no in-room coffee maker and charge for wifi a deal breaker for a hotel these days?

Old Jun 30, 2017, 8:37 pm
  #46  
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Originally Posted by waalien
They so rarely clean those, I've seen mold in way too many of them to ever consider using one.
Exactly. Or some moron puts some other liquid in the jug. Eew.
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Old Jul 1, 2017, 9:29 am
  #47  
 
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Never seen one with mold... a few times I have to clean the unit as opposed to the carafe or bucket. Rarely it's bad enough that I have to call housekeeping to exchange for a clean one, but it happens.

To each their own, and I would know the difference between a 50 year old scotch and one from a box (or a whiskey), but I sure know my coffee and I need a maker/kettle in my hotel room.
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Old Jul 2, 2017, 7:12 am
  #48  
 
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Originally Posted by LondonElite
In-room coffee??? Gross.
SwissHotel in Zurich comes with Nespresso machines in rooms. That coffee is way better comparing what would you get at 90% of 'coffee shops (including 100% Starbucks and Peet's)' in US.
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Old Jul 2, 2017, 8:20 pm
  #49  
 
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For me it's not. In room coffee is gross, and I can just as easily use my phone as a hotspot... Company pays the data charges, so of no consequence to me.
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Old Jul 6, 2017, 12:39 am
  #50  
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Originally Posted by rm456
I know multiple people who travel with coffee beans + an Aeropress, though they're still dependent on hot water from somewhere (usually the coffee maker)
Originally Posted by Collierkr
Sheesh! and I thought I was a coffee snob. I rarely drink what is in the room. In the US I will go find something better outside the hotel, and in Europe most hotel coffee in the restaurant/cafe is light years ahead of the US equivalent.
I regularly travel with an Aeropress and a little hand grinder. Especially if I'm going to the east coast- on top of the 3 hour change, I usually have to be in earlier there, so it's more like a 4-5 hour change. I drink a couple shots from the Aeropress to wake up enough to get to the lobby, where I get some more coffee, and then stop for a to go cup on my way in to work. If I'm going somewhere where I know I can get good beans, I'll get them at the destination, otherwise I bring enough for the trip.

I use the in room machine to heat the water, and I've never seen one that had mold in it. Most that I've seen are quite clean.
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Old Jul 6, 2017, 3:40 am
  #51  
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The bigger issue for me is a hotel, which advertises free in-room wifi, but does not provide it...because
1) antenna is too weak to reach the room (thus, wifi works only if the door is open)
2) router or some technical component fails (usually, a restart solves the issue; but its difficult as a guest to reach those routers)
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Old Jul 6, 2017, 4:20 pm
  #52  
 
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Originally Posted by warakorn
The bigger issue for me is a hotel, which advertises free in-room wifi, but does not provide it...because
1) antenna is too weak to reach the room (thus, wifi works only if the door is open)
2) router or some technical component fails (usually, a restart solves the issue; but its difficult as a guest to reach those routers)
This.

Or the speed is so slow (even "premium" wifi) it's worthless.
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Old Jul 7, 2017, 6:07 am
  #53  
 
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Has anyone else noticed that if you follow this thread for a few days, FT will start displaying ads for Holiday Inn Express advertising a keurig machine in every room?
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Old Jul 7, 2017, 7:40 am
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I haven't noticed... but then being the bean snob I am I would never notice that stale cooked months to years ago and stored in a warehouse coffee cup add
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Old Jul 7, 2017, 7:46 am
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I almost always stay at Hilton family hotels, so wifi is no issue, but no coffee maker will be a deal-breaker for me, unless it is a property that I really like and am prepared to pay for room service. I just can't function without a few cups of coffee in the morning. Even though it is crappy coffee I still appreciate it when I can have it first thing in the morning.
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Old Aug 5, 2017, 1:11 pm
  #56  
 
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Somehow I only encounter this in NYC, the charge for Wi-Fi. So few places seem to include it.

It's a deal breaker for me though at $6, it wouldn't be. Anything over $10 and I won't do it. If it's one or two nights at $10 or less, okay. But multiple nights without free WiFi will drive me mad. I hate working in public
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Old Aug 6, 2017, 9:52 pm
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It's interesting that the question of how hotels charge for wireless has gone through a few iterations. A few years back the higher end hotels were charging for it while low-end and mid-range hotels provided it for free. This seemingly backwards situation was understandable as a matter of price sensitivity.... Guests staying at pricey properties didn't mind an extra $9-13 daily charge for network. Many were business travelers who simply billed their employers or clients for the expense. This fueled a lot of ridicule from price sensitive travelers, including many cost conscious business travelers.

Today the high end hotels are still charging for wifi access and many of the mid-range hotels have joined them. The mid-range properties have copied the high end properties though they've done it under the banner of promoting their frequent guest programs. Book through the website and provide a loyalty program number, and wifi is free; but book through an opaque OTA like Priceline for a cut rate and you'll pay for wifi.

At the same time hotels have largely been able to get away with more frequently charging for wifi because fewer customers than ever before even care. Most travelers have smartphones and know how to tether. 4G bandwidth is good enough in most locations for this to be workable. Indeed, 4G tethering is faster than many hotels' wheezy, oversubscribed wifi services. The only place I really care about free, working hotel wifi is when I'm traveling overseas.
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Old Aug 7, 2017, 5:37 am
  #58  
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The twist I've noticed in recent years is that almost every property I stay in has some sort of free wifi, but it often sucks. You then have to pay to get speeds that suck a little bit less.

Sometimes Gold/Plat/Diamond status bumps you up to a less-sucky speed for free, but sometimes it doesn't.

Sometimes I wish the free wifi that comes just for signing up for the loyalty program would load the 2007 Internet, because that's often all it can handle.

Pulling 0.63 Mb/s down right now at an "iPrefer" hotel.
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Old Aug 7, 2017, 10:03 am
  #59  
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The wifi is annoying, but not a deal breaker. However, no coffee in the room is a full-on deal breaker.

Sadly, there are times when I have no choice. Two annual large conventions in Las Vegas force me to stay in specific hotels where my company has booked a block of rooms. As is common in Vegas, there is no coffee in the room. Even in the luxury suites. This is standard Vegas BS...make the guest come out of the room and spend downstairs. I end up having to buy 4 dollar coffees at Starbucks or one of the Cafe's. Well, my company does. Just one of the many annoyances that is Las Vegas.

And of course, it is not common in Europe either. Some worldwide chains have it, but single property hotels in Europe may not.
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Old Aug 7, 2017, 10:29 am
  #60  
 
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I have never stayed in room in Europe that didn't have a kettle, be it chain or smaller property - so in room coffee (bring your own beans) is very standard in Europe (western at least, IME).
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