Asking what you pay for in luxury hotels?

[Teadrinker11]

This is probably a very stupid question, so I apologise for being an idiot. I am wondering why luxury hotels are able to charge such minted prices? I was looking at the London Savoy recently and it's nice, but why are they so expensive? What are guests paying for other than a bed, shower / bath and toilet and pleasant staff? What the hell validates the crazy prices?

5 star hotels are amazing for service, though you need a certain level of arrogance (entitlement?) to truly enjoy it. Basically if you feel a bit intimidated by the poshness and thus don't want to cause a fuss then it probably won't be great value for money. It'll just be spending a few nights in a fancier room compared to a 3-4 star hotel and enjoying slightly better food.

But if you decide to go all-out and budget a bit more for tips then it becomes quite fun. It's not so much about physical luxury but the hedonism that comes with having everything done for you. All of them have a concierge service that can easily arrange rental cars or get you anything within reason. We stayed at one where they actually offered a complimentary car but it wasn't openly advertised. Valet parking is also a must.

So the best thing to maximise a 5 star experience is get the hotel to do things for you. Rent a car, use valet parking, call you a cab, get room service, use their gyms & laundry service, take your bags down etc. Also people watch. Luxury hotels have some of the most entertaining guests and odd characters. You can also spend time just making up back stories for all of them.

The Savoy is a lovely hotel. I've only stayed there once. The service was excellent, the room was lovely and very comfortable, the view facing the Thames was enjoyable and dinner at The Savoy Grill was very good. I prefer staying more central though, so probably wouldn't stay there again.

Service, atmosphere and surroundings are stand out benefits in a luxury hotel. And the toiletries, especially if there's enough to take home too 😂

For some hotels it's about the names too - I would love to 'have stayed' at Claridges just once. And I did once go to the Ritz for a drink just after going to the Royal Academy. It was fun to pretend I was hugely rich for an afternoon. Though tbh it was incredibly busy and uncomfortable; staying there would presumably feel a lot more pleasant.

Give the amazing hotels series on iPlayer a watch - it goes behind the scenes at luxury hotels so that might give you an idea of what the guests are getting for their money.

It’s everything from the ambience to the quality of the rooms, the settings the service.

We stayed in a high end one in central London (Montcalm) just before xmas, when we arrived they’d upgraded us to a suite, and as it wasn’t ready they took us to the bar and provided us a round of (alcoholic) drinks on the house , the room was literally ready ten mins later and the receptionist came in and told us to come to reception when ready, she walked us to our room, our bags were in there, showed us round and left.

When I wanted coffee in the morning, they brought it to the room complimentary.

Before arriving the day before they emailed and asked what scent we wished for them to scent the room, and what our pillow choice was. They offered us a bath butler who would draw our bath with scents of our choice.We wanted a taxi in the evening and the doorman went out and found one immediately .

Overall we left feeling pampered and relaxed. Compared to a few weeks earlier where I stayed in the ibis also in central London, with some friends, the cost differential was justified. In both hotels I got pleasant staff a bed a shower/bath and a toilet. In both hotels I had a great stay and got what I paid for.

It’s the service, nothing is too much trouble and they remember you and your preferences whether you’re returning from a 2 hour stroll or haven’t been back in 6mths.

@Rosebuud you had a better experience than me at the mountcalm. I stayed there on a girls weekend and it was dire - the bar was dreadful, sticky tables and poor service with club style bouncers throwing their weight around which was wholly unnecessary.

My room was ok, but guests somewhere on there corridor were having a party and the noise was intolerable, the staff eventually broke it up at 4am.

Give me ham yard and say if they week, even if just fir them toiletries.

[quote PegasusReturns]@Rosebuud you had a better experience than me at the mountcalm. I stayed there on a girls weekend and it was dire - the bar was dreadful, sticky tables and poor service with club style bouncers throwing their weight around which was wholly unnecessary.

My room was ok, but guests somewhere on there corridor were having a party and the noise was intolerable, the staff eventually broke it up at 4am.

Give me ham yard and say if they week, even if just fir them toiletries.[/quote]
Which one did you stay at? There are several and some of them are lower end to be fair.

Also people watch. Luxury hotels have some of the most entertaining guests and odd characters. You can also spend time just making up back stories for all of them.

I've never understood this. If you have a life of your own, why would you want to waste time doing this? I'm an utter nobody, but I'd be pretty confident I'm more useful to society than 90% of people staying at a luxury hotel. And I don't find useless people interesting.

I know I'm not the target market: I don't like staying in hotels or eating in restaurants because I don't like being waited on or otherwise having people hanging around me. I have stayed in fairly expensive hotels in a former life where I was of sufficient interest to some pharmaceutical companies for them to fund my attendance at conferences. On the whole, my experience suggests that the more expensive a hotel is, the more uncomfortable I feel in it.

Before arriving the day before they emailed and asked what scent we wished for them to scent the room, and what our pillow choice was. They offered us a bath butler who would draw our bath with scents of our choice.We wanted a taxi in the evening and the doorman went out and found one immediately .

This genuinely makes me feel sick.

5 star hotels are amazing for service, though you need a certain level of arrogance (entitlement?) to truly enjoy it. Basically if you feel a bit intimidated by the poshness and thus don't want to cause a fuss then it probably won't be great value for money.

Agree with this, I'm not really interested in half the services that seem to be some people's idea of luxury. I don't place any value on e.g. a bed turn down service. I spent a lot of time in a hotel in Puerto Rico trying to get through doors without having them opened for me!

@Fatoaf just out of interest why does it make you feel sick? The thought of the scents. Only asking as I'm curious.

I pay for the feeling that it’s a massive treat. I like the robes, the bed linens, the towels, the impeccable service, the incredible food, the often luxurious spas and swimming pools. I can’t get that at 4 star. I work hard and like to treat myself sometimes.

What I really notice is that the staff in the top places chat to you properly. They appear to be genuinely interested in knowing why you are staying with them, what you plan on doing that day and so on. Obviously, it's part of their job, but they are very good at seeming interested in what you have to say.

@FatOaf

Before arriving the day before they emailed and asked what scent we wished for them to scent the room, and what our pillow choice was. They offered us a bath butler who would draw our bath with scents of our choice.We wanted a taxi in the evening and the doorman went out and found one immediately .

This genuinely makes me feel sick.

Me too. It’s just so over the top decadent. A fucking bath butler indeed. Any hotel in any city will call you a cab.

@Fatoaf just out of interest why does it make you feel sick? The thought of the scents. Only asking as I'm curious.

The thought that people are devoting their brief time on Earth to making sure overprivileged people don't have to suffer the privation of having the wrong scent in their butler-drawn bath.

Bath butler?! Sounds like a complete waste of money

We once stayed in a fancy hotel in countryside. Great service and obliging eg offering tea and cake in the garden

But I don't need people turning down the sheets for me etc. That seems a waste of money

I love staying in beautiful hotels and ill happily pay the price. Its the architecture of the building, or the decor itself which is designed for ambience. No harsh lighting, consideration into where electrical points should be etc. Don't have to request a hair dryer or an iron its just standard in the room and they are in good condition.

The staff are super friendly and nothing is an issue and yes I agree with another poster they are more genuine in wanting to know what your here for etc.

I had to stay in a travelogue for a wedding out in middle of the sticks so no choice really and I hated it. Bath wasn't cleaned, smelt of damp. The decor was cheap and not very pleasant to relax in. The price was £80 for the night as well. Not impressed and will never visit one again. At least premier Inn is nicer if your looking for budget.

I understand a bath butler might be over the top but sickening? Really?

What I've noticed in more expensive places:
Much bigger bedrooms with nice comfy chairs, tables, plenty of storage.
A bath in the bathroom.
A pool on site.
Nice tea and biscuits
Fancy toiletries
Daily maid
Bigger fluffier towels possibly also robe and slippers.
Extra pillows and blankets
Actual beds for DC's instead of sofa bed.
Big TV
Decent hairdryer
Good bedside lamps
Variable lighting.
A great view.
No noise from other rooms
A fabulous breakfast
Well spoken well presented staff who are available 24/7.
Problems fixed immediately
Great restaurant on site
Bar on site with a wide range of drinks, lots of comfy seats, roaring fire etc
Someone to carry your bags
Room service
Mini fridge
Plenty of sockets
Super king sized bed with high end linen and 13tog duvet.
Immaculate - no stains, rips, signs of wear and tear etc.

I've stayed in a lot of them for work.

TBH when you do an insane amount of travel your level of tolerance for discomfort becomes practically nonexistent. Luxury hotels make it easy for you to be comfortable (as much as you can be while away from home) and get things done as easily as possible.

Plus you're not spending your own money so you don't care how much it costs.

I pay extra for all sorts of reasons.

Location - it's worth paying the extra to save in cabs and time.

Service - absolutely worth paying for staff who are hopefully paid well - it's is reflected in the service they provide.

Extras -spa, views, backdrop

Sometimes it's a false economy to go for a cheaper hotel, when you add up all the extras you end paying for while staying at a cheaper place you might as well pay a little extra and get more time and a better experience.

I’ve been lucky to stay in 5* hotels for work (eg George V or Crillon in Paris and equivalents hotels in other European cities, Asia, US etc). I live in London so haven’t tried any of the London ones.

Key differences with more mainstream hotels include:

• Service. When you phone reception, concierge, room service etc, someone picks up the line straight away. Due to cost cutting in my industry, gone are the days of staying in 5 hotels. I still tend to stay in seemingly luxury hotels (4) but in reality most of them are run for cash with appealingly low level of customer service.
• round the clock room service with top quality food and drinks
• Michelin star or equivalent restaurants on site
• luxury spa/beauty treatments and gym facilities
• large bedrooms with huge comfortable beds and high end bedding
• large selection of food and drinks in the minibar
• large bathroom including both bath and shower, high end toiletries
• nothing is impossible. You can book anything through the concierge, restaurant, driver, I also used to often have a hairdresser come in my room for a blow dry.

Some of it sounds frivolous but when you travel extensively, long haul with jet lag, you want to be able to eat at any time of the night, have a massage late at night or early in the morning, have a hair dresser come at 6am before work meetings start… When staying for leisure/holidays it’s different, I don’t need all of that.

Forgot to say I agree with a PP who said our level of tolerance is fairly inexistant when travelling extensively for work. That’s what we keep trying to explain to our internal admin managers who just want to keep the costs low (but they never travel for work so they have no clue what it really feels like).

Definitely riffraff related for me. When I go abroad I will pay good money for a hotel with perhaps breakfast that can often be twice the price of an All Inclusive. Friends question me on that but I don’t want to go to places where people are getting shitfaced from 11am whilst their kids are running riot. Give me waitor service around the pool, no kids if possible and well dressed people looking Cool by the pool. It’s my two weeks of pure snobbery each year.