15 things I hate about hotels

15 things I hate about hotels

Ok, maybe hate is too strong a word but here are 15 things that really irk me about hotels. Don’t get  me wrong. I love hotels and would probably stay in them all the time if I could but there are certain basics that I wish every hotel would take into account.

1.No Wi-fi or expensive/slow Wi-fi

It's 2022 – for heaven’s sake . All hotels should offer complimentary wi-fi and it should be fast unless the place specifically markets itself as a place where you are disconnected from technology in which case you can have an electronics detox.

2. Not enough electrical sockets

This is the electronics age. Everyone has multiple devices that need to be charged - in my case, we need enough sockets for a family of four. My husband and I carry multiple devices and my kids have their own devices too. And we’re always short of electric sockets. Every hotel room should have sufficient sockets in convenient locations. No climbing under beds or moving furniture to look for them. The more modern hotels have USB charge ports. Some of those are great too.

Hotels Electric sockets

Electric sockets

3.  Unfriendly staff and those who don't know how to smile

There are just too many of these people around – in hotels. Friendly staff can make or break your stay – no matter how luxurious the hotel is. It can be quite deflating to be welcomed at a hotel you’ve been looking forward to – by a surly face. My view is - If you don't know how to smile or be friendly you shouldn't be working in the hospitality industry.

4. Early breakfast that ends at 9am

Yes , some hotels have this. You're on holiday – why on earth would you want to wake up so early? Personally, when I’m on holiday, I personally prefer to have a later breakfast, skip lunch and have an earlier supper.

Breakfast Buffet

Breakfast Buffet

5. Early check out and/or late check in

I've been to hotels that only allow check-in from 4pm and require you to check out by 10am. How much time do you end up spending there then and how much time do they need to clean the room? You end up feeling like you’ve been shortchanged – especially on a one-night stay.

6. Bathrooms

I hate it when towels are placed on a rail over the toilet. I just imagine all the germs from the toilet being splashed all over the clean towels.  When I walk into a bathroom and I see this, the first thing I do is take all the extra towels into the bedroom and place them in the wardrobe.

Hotels Bathrooms

7. Still on bathrooms…

It irks me when there are no hooks or hanging space in the bathroom. I need a place to hang my toweling gown in the bathroom.

8. No blackout curtains

I don’t want to be woken up at the crack of dawn by light streaming into my room or be kept up till late at night by city lights.

9. Centrally controlled temperature

I often feel cold in hotel rooms and have to bundle on the layers - because the temperature is centrally controlled. One person’s idea of a comfortable temperature is not the same as another. Even my husband and I disagree on a comfortable temperature. I like to be in charge of my room temperature.

10. Beverage facilities

Hotels in some countries have these while others don’t . But if you have coffee facilities, please don’t give me coffee creamers. I want real milk in my coffee.

54 on Bath

Coffee Machine

11. Windows into the bathroom from the bedroom

Whoever thinks its romantic to watch your partner in the toilet, is out of touch with reality. Every hotel room should have a private place to retreat to—especially when it comes to doing your business! If you must have a window, at least give guests the option of closing it with blinds.

12. No water or expensive water

In countries where you can’t drink the tap water – which is in most of the world besides South Africa – there should be a bottle or two of complimentary drinking water. It doesn’t cost the hotel much.

13. Insufficient storage space

I don’t like living out of a suitcase. I want to be able to unpack my clothes, pack my suitcase in a corner and feel like I’m in a home away from home.  Give me enough storage space to do this.

14. Small safes

I often carry my laptop with me and my husband usually carries his too. We don’t want to be exploring strange cities while carrying our laptops. The safe needs to be big enough to hold the laptop.

15. This one is specific to luxury hotels…

Plush toweling gowns, comfortable slippers, welcome drinks, reading material (magazines) and turndown are a must. If I don’t get any of these, I feel shortchanged.

Do any of these bother you too? If not, what do you hate about hotels ? Let me know in the comments below. #FirstWorldProblems

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15 things i hate about hotels

31 comments on “15 things I hate about hotels”

  1. Nice post! My pet peeves mostly have to do with hotel bathrooms.. From a clogged or slow draining shower trap (hate standing in a pool of soapy water while showering) to a messy, watery shower exit because the glass door wasn’t sealed properly and this happens in the best of 5 star hotels too! Another irritation is when there is inadequate shelf space in the shower for my bath products. And not to mention the absence of a toilet hose! This should be standard in all hotels by now, scrap the unhygienic bidets. If only I could carry my bathroom with me when I travel lol 😝 ….another annoyance is the pillow, either too fat & fluffy or too flat & hard, but never right…does this taleI sound like goldilocks and the 3 bears??? 😂 LOL

    1. Haha. Thanks for sharing. I have the same bathroom and pillow issues too. I should add them to the post.

  2. I totally agree with you. Another thing I don't like is no power. In my last trip in Zambia and Uganda, some of the places I stayed had no power and no generator. In Uganda, since I'm more familiar with the place I changed my hotel in the evening after waiting for a couple of hours for it "to be fixed".

    Also, I hate waiting for the hotel pick up. This happens a lot in Uganda. They are almost every time late even though I've started giving them an earlier time than planned. Still doesn't work.

  3. I hate it when the staff (reception) cannot direct you to places. They not familiar with the area or simple things like bus, tram and train times. Not all hotels have a concierge service. A clear map for tourist would be helpful and staff that understand English.

    And of course everything you mentioned.
    I visited 2 countries the vast difference I experienced in small cosy hotel vs a huge chain was shocking. The small hotel won hands down.

    1. I agree. There should be at least one staff member who can give simple directions and information. And small hotels often do have much better service.

  4. Thanks for taking the time to share this post, I feel strongly concerning it and love reading more on this topic.

    1. Good idea Wenchy. I take 2-pin plugs and international adaptors for overseas trips but we need so many for our family - so it helps if the hotel provides them 🙂 !

  5. YES to so many of these!! Especially the early breakfast, no blackout drapes (this should be a mandatory), and the windows into the bathroom! Privacy please? I really dont get that one ughhhh.

    1. Crazy Travelista, I'm glad you agree. I don't know whose bright idea it was to start putting windows into bathrooms.

  6. Great points! I hope the hotels are listening. No wifi is unacceptable this day and age. Also the window from the bathroom to the bedroom seems to be a trend that needs to stop - I don't get it either!

    1. Thanks Anisa. I hope the hotels are listening too. I thought the window between the bathroom and bedroom was mainly a South African thing although I did see it in Hong Kong too. Where did you see it?

  7. I am totally with you on all of these, with the wifi and the outlets coming in at the number one most annoying thing for me! I also get really annoyed when there's no space for all my things – like counter space for my toiletries, or enough space to open a suitcase that's not absolutely minuscule! Sometimes I think the people who design hotel rooms never actually travel themselves.

    1. Thanks Sara. I think you have a point there. The hotel designers probably don't travel much - or maybe they're single males who don't care about storage space, haha,

  8. Totally agree on a bunch of them! Especially the slow or expensive WiFi. And the late check-in hours. At least pretend checking if our room is already cleaned and ready for us. What do you expect us to do when we arrive at 1pm after 10 hours in transit to get from our home to your hotel? We want to freshen up!

    1. Oh yes, Birthe, it's really crappy to get to your hotel after a long journey and be told that your room is not ready - at 1 pm. Although I have been to some nice hotels that have let me check in early.

  9. Hah, interesting read for me because I know both sides. I stay quite a bit in hotels when I travel, but I'm also a housekeeper.
    Before I started that job I hated the late check-ins and early check-outs. Ok, I agree 10/16 is a little extreme, but at our hotel it's 12/15 which only gives 3 hours to clean 170 rooms.
    Just keep in mind that not only your room has to be cleaned, but each and every room 😉 And depending on the hotel/room class that might take 20-60 minutes a piece on average 🙂

    Jacky

    1. That's interesting Jackie. I would love to stay at your hotel as a guest then. 12/15 are certainly times I can live with. I wish all the other hotels would follow suit. But from a housekeeper's point of view, I can imagine that it would be stressful to clean so many rooms in such a short time.

  10. I have to agree with quite some of these! If only hotel managers would read this!
    Sometimes a small thing like no blackout curtains or not enough electrical sockets can ruin your whole vacation. We learned the hard way, so now we usually take electrical plugs with multiple USB connections which allows us to charge 4 devices with just one outlet. And at one moment we were even travelling with a roll of aluminium foil and some tape to be able to cover the windows hoping that the kids won't get up at sunrise. 🙂

    1. Thanks Jurga. Yes, I wish the hotel managers would read this and do something about it. We also usually carry our electrical plugs with us nowadays. But I've never carried aluminium foil and tape for the windows though. It's a great idea. Either that or I should just cover the kids' eyes with eye mask when they're sleeping. 🙂

  11. I have stayed in one hostels in Berlin where electrical sockets were two meters above me (LITERALLY) - I needed to climb a bed and some cabins to access them haha. And there was no window in a room. Such a nightmare!

    Totally agree with most of the points that you have listed 🙂

    1. Wow Milena. That's crazy. I wonder why they put the sockets so high. Oh yes, and a room without a window is another thing that bothers me too.

  12. I think the only thing(s) that would bother me from this list are the small safe thing and the windows into the bathroom thing (because that's just suuuper weird.) Maybe I'm just not picky enough 😉 The rest I feel like I can live with (I guess depending on how much I'm paying to stay there. Obviously if I'm paying quite a bit I'd expect more.)

    Good post! 🙂

    1. Thanks Jaimee. I think I'm quite fussy so these things bother me 🙂 - and as you say - if you're paying quite a bit, you expect more.

  13. I have to say I agree with most of what you mentioned. Some I have never paid attention to like the location of the towel racks. I hate a cold room, I like a hook for my shower cap, I hate early check out and late check in...lol funny post

  14. The wifi comment makes me laugh! Constantly being on the road and looking to upload YouTube vlogs wifi is really important. When I find a place with good wifi connection it feels like I've struck gold!!

    1. I know the feeling Robyn. You're brave - I wouldn't even dare upload vlogs on the road because I'll never expect them to upload. Funny enough, I usually find good wi-fi in Starbucks cafes - then I never want to leave there.

  15. The lack of outlets irks me too - too many things to charge these days, help a girl out! Haha.
    I do have to admit, though - I've never seen a bathroom with a window from the bedroom. Who thought that was a good idea?!? Yikes!

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