A new fee idea for hotels (from my childhood)
 

Some of us are old enough to remember motels with 25 cent coin boxes to operate the TV.
We have resort fees, destination fees, use of credit card fees, and automatic maid tip fees. Why pass up this proven money making fee??

https://www.earlytelevision.org/imag...50_covideo.jpg

25 cents for 30 minutes is around $5.50/hour in 2021 dollars.

I'm waiting for a point redemption fee.

You can use your points to redeem a free night at any hotel in the Hilton portfolio! Just don't forget to pay the redemption fee of .5 cents per point! :)

I do not believe that COVIDeo will be a name which is well-received these days...

In one of the area I worked at Disney World, everyone had a unique stage name. The idea was to make it easy for guests to single out a Cast Member (aka employee) using a name. Some guests wanted our full name to use in a complaint/compliment. We'd say: "My name is Lance and I'm only person here with that name."

Anyway, occasionally Cast Members had to change their stage names if a scandal, event, or news story created a bad connotation with guests. Both "Clinton" and "Monica" were nixed the Clinton Impeachment. I knew someone going by "Isis Rose" when I worked there. I'm certain that name and any using "Isis" were changed when that name became connected to terrorism.

Unless your a duck, maybe Donald became a toxic name.

Hotels.com beat you to it there.

wouldn't be surprised if Marriott beats hilton to it

Since not really specific to Hilton-family hotels, will move to Travel Buzz.

Thanks,

cblaisd, Co-Moderator, Hilton forum

I don't remember those (I do remember something like that in airline terminals) but I remember boxes like this in motel rooms that would make the beds shake! I'm sure my parents loved it when I pestered them for the fun shaking bed!

Those were a hit when travelling for sports tournaments with a bunch of adolescent boys.

I seem to recall that laying the box on it's side would trick-it in to vibrating indefinitely

I don't remember seeing these coin-op TVs anywhere other than bus/train stations and military air terminals. Half were always broken and the entire area stank of cigarettes. If I remember rightly, the chassis and seat were molded glittery fiberglass in all kinds of colors.

I can remember stuff this from when I was maybe six, but calculus? Forget it.

I haven't seen coin-operated TVs ever, but I have vague memories from few decades ago that some hotel TVs did feature some pay channels, one or more obviously offering adult entertainment content. However, I can't remember how the usage and payment worked, might been something like that if you switch to those pay channels then the TV set or set-top box hooked to it noticed that and after watching for more than short grace period, this information was recorded into the hotel billing system.

Does anyone remember the coin operated massage mattresses in some Ma & Pa USA motels in the 1950s/60s?

JFK et al had coin operated TV chairs in the 60s/70s - and maybe early 80s?

We had one of those systems at the first hotel I worked. It was called SpectraVision. If you kept the TV on one of the channels for more than 3 (or maybe it was 5) minutes, the cost of the movie was added to your bill.

Of course, that was back in the dark ages when on-demand didn't exist. The movies started at the specific times listed on the card in your room. If you missed the start, you had to wait for the next showing an hour or two later.

I could be wrong, but I believe the machinery was custom-built laserdisc players that ran on repeat. They were locked away in the same room that held the huge computers that ran the computer system. And I do mean huge...the nightly backup involved many 8-inch floppy disks.