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Do you eat at the hotel or do you traipse through the lobby with grocery bags?

Do you eat at the hotel or do you traipse through the lobby with grocery bags?

Old Jun 8th, 2003, 05:33 AM
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We mix it up. With a toddler, we have to always play things by ear. Don't be afraid to bring grocery bags through any hotel lobby. Who cares what other people think! Life is too short to worry about the opinions of others, and people who would sneer at people with grocery bags obviously have some insecurities of their own. Just my opinion!
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Old Jun 8th, 2003, 05:36 AM
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We have kids, and when staying at a hotel we almost always bring our own drinks, snacks, and breakfast items to eat in the room. If it is a "driving" vacation, then we have a cooler in the car that we tote in with our other stuff.

I don't think it is inconsistent to stay at a Ritz Carlton and eat in your room. Choices of lodging and meals are separate $$ decisions. You can choose to spend more on the Ritz than staying at a Days Inn, but you are not getting the same "product". However the $3.00 bowl of Frosted Flakes in a restaurant will be exactly the same as the bowl you eat in your room.

The lodging ususally doesn't cost extra with kids in the room, but every meal out in a restaurant - multiply the cost times the number of people in your party. It can run up fast if you eat out 3 meals a day for a week.

Also, we find that it is much quicker to eat breakfast in the room. You get out for your days activities faster than getting waited on in a restaurant.
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Old Jun 8th, 2003, 06:49 AM
  #23  
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When we know there is a refrigerator and coffee maker, we sometimes make our own breakfasts, by packing some cereal from home and stopping in a supermarket for juice and milk just before we get to the hotel. Rather than carry shopping bags, we put our groceries in a suitcase, so no one knows. You don't carry your clothes in open bags, so why should you carry food in bags? ~o)

When we can, for breakfast we go to the nearest Starbucks for a latte and scone, which is a real treat for us. It is much better than paying $20 for a big breakfast that we don't even want. b-(

I don't think the argument that since you paid a lot for the room you should pay a lot for food is valid.
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Old Jun 8th, 2003, 07:01 AM
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Ditto to Jed.

Also to Andrew304.

Its YOUR money. Its YOUR trip. Do what YOU want. We do.

Remember, people working in these hotels are WORKING in these hotels. They don't own them. They most likely do the same thing.

And who cares what other guests think. They're probabaly mad that they didn't think of it, too.

Life is too stinkin short to worry about such nonsense. Live your life and enjoy it.
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Old Jun 8th, 2003, 08:46 AM
  #25  
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Someone started making a point about business travelers. Lots of people throwing money in these expensive restaurants are backed by large companies which pay for the entire trip. When they get home its back to mac and cheese with the kids!
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Old Jun 8th, 2003, 08:49 AM
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an interesting thread...and to go a tad off topic I'd like to add that I resent hotels that make it difficult for me to "do my own thing."

For example, at the 5 star Mauna Lani hotel and at the 5 star Little Dix Bay hotel the rooms do not have coffee makers and you cannot even request one.

I find this totally unacceptable. It is NOT about paying $15 for a pot of cold coffee from room service - I CAN do that if I want. It IS about the convenience of having MY coffee when I want it and not having to DEAL with another person if I choose not to - especially in the early AM...why should I have to get dressed and comb my hair because the hotel INSISTS upon serving me?

When I requested the coffee maker at Mauna Lani, the desk clerk polietly suggested that it would be better for me to just let them "serve" me and that I would find that more relaxing - where does he get off making that decision for me?

This attitude is condesending...again, MY room, MY bill, so I get to DECIDE how/when/if I will be served.

And the same applies to food/snacks - the hotel services are conveniences that I can CHOOSE to take advantage of or not...

Keep proudly bringing in those grocery bags...when, what and how to eat is totally UP TO THE ONE PAYING THE BILL.
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Old Jun 8th, 2003, 09:32 AM
  #27  
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Andrew: Do you know my mother? That is exactly the argument Mom had with the Night Manager of the Ritz Carlton. They actually had the nerve to use this argument next - "Ma'am, the Ritz-Carlton cannot guarantee the quality of the coffee that an in-room coffee maker might make"! Have they lost their minds?! Also, when Mom needs a cup of tea, it is now. Not 30-40 minutes later when the room service valet gets there. She probably makes 5 cups of tea a day, drinks small amounts and then discards what she doesn't drink. Having room service come up that many times a day is not practical or convenient.

I find it interesting that many people view it as an issue of being able to afford to stay in luxury hotels and complaining about the price of food. I have no problem affording the hotel restaurant or room service prices, I just can't see the point in waiting for room service or having to schlep down to the vending machine, when I can have my bottle of wine/soda and my cheese and crackers on the desk when I get back to the room. And I won't eat from the room stock - that stuff is old and disgusting, it only gets placed fresh when a guest uses something. I once found an expired bag of chips.

As far as the breakfast with kids, when I was a kid, if you had tried to get me to sit still in a restaurant for breakfast when I could see a 2- tiered pool and a beach out the window, you would have had a very unpleasant meal.
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Old Jun 8th, 2003, 09:44 AM
  #28  
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Our children are grown and we travel often. We always bring wine for our room and I always go to the lounge and borrow 2 wine glasses. I wash them after each use and they remain in our room for the duration of our stay. We also bring bagels,peanut butter and bananas for breakfast as they do not require refrigeration. This gets us off earlier for the day's activities and is much more economical. We always dispose of our trash in the wastebaskets and we always tip the maid.I agree with a poster above, it is our room and I really don't think anyone cares.
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Old Jun 8th, 2003, 09:45 AM
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Some excellent points here!

This is exactly why we choose moderate hotel chains - Hampton, Best Western, Holiday Inn Express etc. They have coffee makers (gotta have our morning FIX right away!), free bfst and aren't pretentious enough to care WHAT we carry in.

As an aside, the LAST thing i wanna do on vacation is feel like i'm at a Business Meeting!! Besides the cost, thats a MAJOR reason why i purposely avoid Marriotts, Hyatts etc. Clark is an educator and would enjoy staying there, but he too, would rather have 3+ weeks on the road in moderate motels than a week in a Ritz!
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Old Jun 8th, 2003, 09:53 AM
  #30  
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It's an issue of cost and convenience.

First, "if I can afford to stay at the hotel, I should be able to pay their price for their snacks"...well, I can, that does not mean I care to.

Secondly, we routinely bring wine and/or beer into the room, fill one of the sinks with ice, and keep the stuff cold.

Fine hotels offer a range of services, all with a certain panache, all with a price tag attached. We select what has value from the hotel, and what does not.

Sounds like being a smart consumer to me...
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Old Jun 8th, 2003, 10:34 AM
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We do a bit of both. We've never brought grocery bags full of food, but we frequently bring our own wine into the room, juice for the kids and sometimes some fruit or snacks. We've never brought an actual meal into a room.

Those breakfasts sure can be expensive, but sometimes they are just phenomenol, like those at El Tovar, just yummy (better be at $50 for the family), and Ritz Carlton's serve fresh rasberries and strawberries with cream and brown sugar that's to die for! Sometimes it's fun to go all the way with the splurge.

And other times we'll leave the hotel and head for a Starbucks for some really good coffee and a muffin. You can only eat 1,000 calorie breakfasts for so many mornings without getting sick.
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Old Jun 8th, 2003, 12:00 PM
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There's a basic flaw in some of your arguments.
What services a hotel offers are not up to you...it's up to the hotel! If they choose not to provide coffee maker, then they can, and there's not a damned thing you can you about it while you're at THEIR hotel. If it's that important to you, go to another hotel.
And, I still find it odd that a person would go to a luxury hotel and look for all sorts of ways to cut corners. When I go to a luxury hotel, I want just that.....LUXURY! And that doesn't mean sneaking in some snacks in bags or suitcases!
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Old Jun 8th, 2003, 12:46 PM
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I think I agree with Howard
We have really never had this problem, since the hotels we stay in have room service. BUT, if I were to be bringing children, and feeding them was an issue, I would look for hotels (4* or not) that met MY requirements.
Then you could traipse or not according to the way YOU feel.
I personally, just like Traipsing about just for the hell of it
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Old Jun 8th, 2003, 12:53 PM
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Howard and Scarlett -- you are missing the point.

It is NOT about cutting costs...anyone who can afford a $500/night hotel can certainly afford to have room service or go to the restaurant.

The issue here is convenience and MY definition of what I want at any given time. There are some times when I do not WANT to go to the restaurant or wait for room service (regardless of cost).

And, I do make it a point of not returning to hotels that FAIL to meet my definiton of luxury. To me it is luxurious to be able to make a hot pot of coffee at 3:30 AM (after waking too early in Hawaii) and do my own thing without HAVING to involve the hotel staff or wait until room service or the restaurant "opens."

Clearly we are beating this issue to death, but it is interesting to see how people react.

I still stand behind my original thoughts about the original post...if you pay for the room, you can pretty do whatever you want in that room and if you fall into the psycho-trap of feeling inferior because you want to drink a specific bottle of wine or have coffee at your own convenience, then you deserve to be at the hotel's mercy.

Stand up for your right to be on vacation!
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Old Jun 8th, 2003, 01:17 PM
  #35  
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I love it when Fodorites quibble.
 
Old Jun 8th, 2003, 01:37 PM
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What an interesting discussion! My husband and I are both BIG time diet coke drinkers, so we always bring some along with us for the hotel room (or, we head out to a local grocery store and buy some before we are in for the night). It's my vacation--I can do what I want and one thing I don't want to do is buy a hotel soda for a ridiculous amount of money. Just because you can afford something does not mean it's a wise buy.

We also tend to bring or pick up snacks for the room, and we usually buy something for our breakfast the night before. It's often so much easier to just eat in the room as we're getting ready for our day. There's nothing wrong with picking up some groceries and keeping them in the hotel room, no matter where you're staying.
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Old Jun 8th, 2003, 02:01 PM
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One issue I think has not been mentioned in this thread is the conern of how much food mess you leave for maid to deal with. In a non-kitchen hotel, a maid can reasonably expect to make beds, clean bathroom, etc. Now, if you add cleaning up scattered Rice Krispies from kids eating on the run and pizza left glued to a nightstand by teenagers, I do not believe that is reasonable. Maids are expected to clean a certain number of rooms/day - fewer in suite type hotels with kitchenettes, more if just regular rooms.

So, trying not to get too preachy, as long as you are not cooking spicey curry in a crockpot at the Ritz (I can't stand the smell of curry), who cares what you eat in your room - but I suggest it is considerate of staff to make an extra effort to clean up food items, especially in non-kitchen settings. And/or leave a nice tip (but I don't want to even get started on the issue of to tip or not to tip hotel maids again!)
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Old Jun 8th, 2003, 02:19 PM
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Andrew, we don't disagree. You said that if a hotel doesn't satisfy what you consider luxury, you don't return. Right! And, getting back to the original poster's aversity to spending $3 for cereal...to me, a luxury hotel means $3 for cereal!
And, don't get me wrong. I see nothing wrong with bringing some snacks or drinks into you room. In fact, I bring little juice boxes when I travel (whether to a luxury spot or an average motel...and not because I want to save money. It's just that I want my juice as soon as I get up.
It all seems so ludicrous to go to a luxury hotel and bring half the pantry with you!
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Old Jun 8th, 2003, 02:53 PM
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Just because someone wants luxury lodging doesn't mean they wish "luxury" food as well. Similarly some people stay at cheap hotels but go to nicer restaurants. We akk have our own price:value standards.

Howard is correct in that hotels decide what services to offer. I, the customer decide what services I wish to USE. I never use the in-room phones. Should I feel obligated to and pay the hotels rip-off fees?

A fool and his money are soon parted.
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Old Jun 8th, 2003, 03:27 PM
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i can't get started in the morning without coffee and a banana, so i always have a bunch of bananas in the room, along with some cereal bars or something like that.
Eating out isn't just expensive - it's very caloric, and I am not one to order just a salad. so for me, toting around my own food is a way of cutting costs AND calories.
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