Hotels cutting free breakfasts but adding Internet access
Does our own David Burns have a crystal ball when it comes to hotel service?
A recent survey by Smith Travel Research for the American Hotel Lodging Association finds that hotels are cutting down on free breakfasts but increasing the availability of Internet access.
The survey found that wireless Internet access is being offered by 91 percent of hotels, up 35 percent from four years ago. Most hotels that offer Internet access don’t charge guests.
Only 15 percent of hotels charge for Internet access, down from 18 percent in 2006 and 22 percent in 2004. But charges for Internet access were most common at more expensive properties, with three-fourths of luxury hotels and 91 percent of “upper upscale” hotels charging guests to access the Internet from their rooms…Nearly three-fourths offer a computer in the lobby for guest use, though economy hotels are least likely to offer this service.
As for free breakfast, 59 percent offer a complimentary breakfast, down 9 percentage points from 2006.
The American Hotel & Lodging Association conducts the survey every two years. Surveys are done by e-mail or fax. More than 45,000 hotels throughout the U.S. were invited to participate in the survey and more than 10,000, or 23 percent, responded.
Two hotels that I’ve stayed at last year in North Last Vegas still offer both services.
The Holiday Inn Express on Donovan Way offers a free deluxe continental breakfast, which includes hot items like oatmeal and biscuits and, in the evenings, cookies and milk. Wi-Fi access is free in-room and there’s a desktop with Internet access and a printer available in the common area.
The Hampton Inn in Summerlin, a suburb of Las Vegas, offers a free continental breakfast as well as a Business Center with a desktop computer with Internet access and a printer.
I tend to stay with the Hampton Inn because it is quiet and spacious, with all non-smoking rooms and a friendly staff.
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One Response to “Hotels cutting free breakfasts but adding Internet access”
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It always galls me to have to pay another $9-12 per day to use the internet in my room, when the hotel is charging me $199 or more per night.
I love the Ashland Springs Hotel in Ashland, OR. While this hotel may be the most expensive in town, they have an above average continental breakfast and free WiFi in all the rooms and lobby areas.