If you’re planning on traveling smart, you’ll want a smart hotel choice too. Learn the top useful facilities in a hotel to look for here.
Hotel amenities can make or break an experience for guests. The hotel industry is very competitive in the United States, considering that there are over 166,000 hotels across the country.
That means that if customers do not like what your hotel offers, they can just leave and go to the next one. To avoid this, you will want to make sure that there are enough amenities and facilities to satisfy these guests.
What useful facilities in a hotel do guests look for? Here are ten of the biggest ones.
1. Hotel Room Service
One of the biggest things that hotel guests may look for once they settle into their room is if room service is available. They could look for a phone number or some way to connect to the front desk about this.
Room service is one of the biggest levels of convenience that a hotel can offer a guest. The reason is that for the right price, someone who works for the hotel will bring whatever is available on a room service menu directly to someone’s room.
There could be some hotels where you have to walk several minutes on one floor just to get to a room. Or, there could be a lot of floors in that hotel.
Either way, it could take a long time for a hotel guest to go all the way down to the lobby and order something to eat or drink in some of these buildings. Room service eliminates the need to do this and instead lets a guest relax in their room while delivering what they want directly to the front door of their hotel room.
If possible, try to find a hotel that offers this if you want a more relaxing vacation.
2. Gym
The next thing that some hotel guests may look for is a gym. This is becoming more and more of an expectation for people that travel because travelers are starting to prioritize keeping their fitness routine while they are on the road.
Depending on how into fitness you are, you may not feel like you can afford to stop working out even for a few days. Rather than finding a gym in an unfamiliar area, it could save a hotel guest time and money just to simply walk downstairs and go work out in a gym that the hotel provides.
Just how common is this trend becoming among travelers? Well, 53% of American travelers believe it is important to exercise while traveling.
Having a gym may not be enough for some people. Depending on how into fitness you are, you may be looking for specific equipment in that hotel gym.
Can you do a deadlift in this hotel gym? How about lifting weights? What about machines specifically for your arms or legs? What about a simple treadmill?
These are things that some hotel guests may look for, and it could be something worth looking into before you book your hotel.
3. Dining Area
Something else that you should not overlook is if the hotel has a dining area. This is especially important if you want to eat breakfast at your hotel most days.
Having this available provides a few advantages to the hotel guests. The first is that it allows someone to settle into a new day slowly.
They do not have to pack all of their belongings or be ready to go out the door for their activity for the day just yet. If you want, you can stroll downstairs in some decent pajamas, grab a cup of coffee and some cereal, and then just relax for a few minutes.
On top of this, you may be someone that is on a budget for your vacation. A lot of hotels offer free breakfasts, and this could be something that you are relying on to try to save a little money.
The longer that you plan on traveling, the bigger this perk becomes for you. An example could be that if you are staying somewhere for a week, you could save at least $70 in breakfast costs just by having it at your hotel every day.
Combined with the convenience that a breakfast dining area offers you, plus the money you save by not having to get breakfast somewhere else, this could be a facility that decides whether you stay at a certain hotel or not.
4. Bathroom
Something that you may focus on is what type of bathroom you have to work within your hotel room. What you need is going to depend on what toiletries are important to you, how many people are sharing your room, and what kind of physical condition you are in.
An example could be that if you have multiple people staying in one room, you could want a bathroom that is more convenient for two people to get ready at the same time. To do this, you would need a hotel bathroom where the sink is separate from the toilet and the shower.
Then, you have the shower itself. You or a loved one could have physical limitations and need a handicap-accessible shower. Or, you could just have someone in your party that is a bit clumsy and can easily fall in the bathroom if they are not careful.
This happens more often than you may think. Every year, about 235,000 people in the United States get injured in the bathroom. The majority of these injuries are caused by slip and fall incidents.
So, you may look for a hotel bathroom with a grab rail in the shower. Or, you could look for one that has a shower where you can simply walk right in.
Try to find out as much information about bathrooms in rooms as you can if this is important for you and your party.
5. Swimming Pool
Did you just come back from doing a strenuous activity? Are you in a hot climate, and you just want to relax?
In these situations, a hotel swimming pool could be exactly what you are looking for. Depending on how much time you are planning to spend at the hotel, this could be a big perk for you. Families could use this as an opportunity to entertain their kids without having to leave the hotel property.
However, you may not always find this in the United States. That is because only 43% of hotels have outdoor swimming pools, and 36% of hotels have indoor swimming pools.
Swimming pools could be one of the few opportunities you have to genuinely relax at your hotel without having to sit in your room. For outdoor pools, it could also be a good opportunity for you to get fresh air without having to leave the property.
Westgate Resorts is a good example of this. In their Branson resort area, they do offer pools for their guests to enjoy.
Take the time to look for this before booking, and think about how important this is for you.
6. Bar
For those of you who like to have an adult beverage while on vacation, a hotel bar may be the perfect place for you to do it. If you want to watch a game while having a drink, this could add another benefit to the hotel bar.
Depending on what kind of hotel you are staying at, you may find that this is just part of the hotel restaurant. Or, it could be an entirely separate area, and it could be a rooftop bar at a nice hotel in a big city.
The nicer hotels may use this as a facility that can offer a more luxurious experience for your guests. However, even if you want to just kick back at the hotel and get a beer without having to drive to a store, a hotel bar can be a great perk for this.
7. Spa
When people are on vacation, one of the top things that they think about is ways they can relax. If you are out of their work environment and typical routine, you may want to go all-in on this mindset and go to a spa.
Some hotels do offer this, and depending on the quality of the spa, it can be a very relaxing experience.
One of the main services that hotel spas tend to offer is a massage. You can get a masseuse to give you a certain type of massage, and it can afford you the luxury of taking a deep breath and relaxing for an hour or two.
Other hotels go the extra mile and have other amenities in their spa along with this. Some amenities you may look for include a hot tub, whirlpool, sauna, and more.
8. Parking
Depending on where your hotel is located, there may not be free parking guaranteed at your hotel. You will have to read the fine print carefully here to see what kind of parking your hotel has to offer. There are a few different things that you may run into here.
The first thing you could find is free parking. This would be your best option, and this is typically found in more affordable hotels as well as those that are in more suburban areas rather than large cities.
Another thing hotels might offer here is paid parking. What they would do here is charge a certain price to park your car each night you stay there.
To do this, you would likely have to register your car information with the hotel. This can range from your exact license plate number to the make, model, car color, and more.
This last option is more of a luxury, but some people may prefer valet parking depending on where they are going. This can especially be the case for hotels in cities where parking yourself is not the most convenient option.
What you do here is register your car with the hotel, and a valet will take the keys and park your car for you. Then, they will bring your car back to you when you are ready to go.
Figure out what the parking situation is at the hotel you want to stay at and determine if it is something that you are willing to tolerate.
9. Meeting Rooms
For someone who is at the hotel for business purposes or someone who wants to host a large reunion, you may find meeting rooms at hotels to be exactly what you need. This is typically a large space that can fit dozens of people into one area.
You may want to use this meeting room for a sales pitch, business presentation, or even as a venue to get more of your family and friends together.
10. Rooftop Area
Finally, you could just be looking for somewhere that is comfortable and relaxing to get some fresh air. Some hotels may decide to have a restaurant and bar on their rooftop.
Other places may choose to go a more simple route. This can be anything from an outdoor garden to a place where you can play some games and lie down on a couch.
Similar to a swimming pool, this can be a great excuse to get out of your hotel room without having to leave the property.
Learn More About Useful Facilities in a Hotel
These are just 10 useful facilities in a hotel that you may look for while you are traveling. Whether you want a hotel bar, a swimming pool, free breakfast, free parking, or a relaxing rooftop area, it is important to know what your priorities are and look for them before booking a hotel.
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