For Luxury Hotels, Welcome Amenities are a First Impression, and can set the tone of a stay, in the same way that the quality of the amuse bouche sets the tone for a meal at a Michelin star restaurant. For most luxury hotels that I reserve for clients, there's a welcome amenity of some fresh fruit in the room, or sometimes some sweets from the hotel's pastry kitchen, or a bottle of champagne or sparkling wine if the guests are celebrating an anniversary or birthday.
For example, on our recent stay at the Four Seasons Prague, there was fresh fruit, some decadent chocolate truffles and even a bottle of Czech red wine for me:
At Cheval Blanc Randheli in the Maldives, not only was there a bottle of champagne (we weren't even celebrating an anniversary or birthday), there was an abundance of fresh fruit and also French macarons, from the incredibly talented culinary team. There were even beautiful his and her beach bags for my husband and me.
If there are children staying, welcome amenities can include kid-friendly treats such as a juice or smoothie, whimsical cookies or chocolates, perhaps a plush animal, toy, puzzle or the like. At our recent stay at Four Seasons Prague, my son loved that the special welcome amenities for him included fruit purees (dips for the marshmallows), a puzzle, and even his own bath products and toothbrush/toothpaste set.
At the Mandarin Oriental Tokyo, his fruit welcome amenity was ingeniously designed as a “pizza,” even coming in a pizza box. One of the hoteliers that follows me even commented admiringly on how innovative this was.
At the Four Seasons Maldives at Landaa Giraavaru, we still use the playing cards that my son was given, along with a cute tote bag, t-shirt with manta rays on it, inflatable beach ball, guide to Maldivian fishes, and puzzle.
Sometimes the kids' welcome amenities are so cute that even an adult client requests it–I've had a couple clients (without kids) ask for the plush manta ray kid's welcome amenity when staying at the Four Seasons Bora Bora.
That's why, at our current European hotel, it was so disappointing to go to our room and find that the welcome amenity was…bottled water. Now, bottled water as part of a larger welcome amenity is good. But when there isn't even any fresh fruit or other welcome amenity, I find it stingy, and unwelcoming.
Now, it's true that I'm paying an industry rate for our stay, so at first I thought that perhaps the hotel is just being stingy with me, due to the industry rate. But on checking with the front desk, I discovered that rates under EUR 500 per night don't receive anything except bottled water (even if there are kids). But rates over that amount do receive a welcome amenity. For example, one of the rooms I toured had a kid's welcome amenity of Alain Milliat juices, fresh fruit and cookies–yet these would not be given to kids in less expensive rooms.
Hotels are obviously a business, and certainly guests are aware that booking a suite can entitle a guest to certain additional privileges, such as club lounge access in hotels that offer club lounges, or a complimentary airport transfer or other benefits.
But to me, luxury hotels should offer a certain minimum of welcome amenities to all guests, and having a welcome amenity of only bottled water, and only providing kids' welcome amenities to children in higher priced rooms just is not that welcoming, in the context of luxury hotel competitors that routinely offer more than that. And that unwelcoming tone has caused me to focus on other aspects of this particular hotel that fall short of luxury.
Which luxury hotel welcome amenity have you experienced as the most thoughtful?
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Dare I ask the identity of the hotel which hasn’t provided you more than water? Inquiring minds would like to know!
I plan to discuss this with my contact at the hotel; perhaps they’ll change their policy. For TravelSort clients considering stays in the less expensive rooms here, I will advise them of this, as well as my other observations from the site inspection.
I agree with your post Hilary. If they are going to be stingy with the amenities (which really don’t cost much at all) then they should call themselves a “Mixed Luxury” hotel. Where below a certain price point, you will have a less luxury experience, and only experience full luxury above that price point.
I just stayed at the inn at Perry cabin. Virtuoso stay; top level suite (though my agent had negotiated a very aggressive rate and upgrade). I received no welcome amenity, which shocked me… I can’t remember the last time that’s ever happened.
Sorry to hear your recent Virtuoso stay at the Inn at Perry Cabin was also missing a welcome amenity. To be honest, I’ve not heard great things recently about the service and dining quality or consistency, and have avoided sending clients there. How was your experience apart from the lack of welcome amenity?
Agreed on what you’ve heard. I knew that going in. It’s about 1.5 hours from my house and it’s is the first time in 10 years that we’ve been. There’s unfortunately just no other options locally and this was a very last minute trip. Setting is nice; our suite was well decorated but otherwise it’s not really worth it (so I guess it met my low expectations?)