What a rip-off! LOL!

[nuit93]

I don't see this as sneaky at all but maybe I'm used to it as I see it at almost every hotel I stay at.  Those water bottles are almost NEVER free.

I've noticed that too, I thought it was assumed to be the norm.

[iridaceae]

Honestly, I think all for-charge items in a hotel room should be confined to a mini-bar. Because my first impression would be that anything left out would be complimentary. Guess I know to inspect everything for price tags now...

Minibars are very hard for hotels to make a profit off of. People lie rugs to not have to pay for anything.

[cicero]

i never would have thought that i was being charged for water bottles - i thought that was like the coffee maker and bathroom soap. thanks for the head's up!

Honestly, I think all for-charge items in a hotel room should be confined to a mini-bar. Because my first impression would be that anything left out would be complimentary. Guess I know to inspect everything for price tags now...

Minibars are very hard for hotels to make a profit off of. People lie rugs to not have to pay for anything.

I thought mini bars are now empty - and if you want the overpriced tiny portions of food you have to ask for it - that way, you can't cry "it was missing when i got here!"

[iridaceae]

I have never seen an empty minibar where you ask for what you want.

But the excuses I have heard!! Yeah honesty goes right out the window.

[Sophia]

I remember a mini-bar fridge in Manchester, England where there were sensors at the top that would add stuff to your bill as you took it out.  Doesn't work so great when you push their stuff to the back to fit in your own leftovers. (Thereby getting charged for the entire fridge because the sensors went off)  Then I saw that some of their stuff was on it's side (thereby resetting the sensors) to be accidentally knocked over again.  I think they tried to charge me four times over for the entire contents. 

But, I think the OP is right, it is a rip-off.  I knew that the water was charged an outrageous price.  But, I think that is because at one time in the distant past I was the OP's daughter, or almost.  I think that for all of us, we were once like the OP's daughter or had been warned ahead of time. 

[Thipu1]

On our last cruise, we did have a mini-bar in which everything was free.  You were only charged if you wanted re-stocking.  Of course, on that vacation we'd received a huge visit from the up-grade fairy. 

We have had hotels with empty fridges.  On a cruise to Hawaii we asked that the mini-bar be emptied so we could keep our leis fresher.  It was done.

It's true that mid-range hotels often are more generous than more expensive places.  Our Double Tree hotel in London was perfectly comfortable.  In Southampton, we stayed at a Novotel.  It was more expensive but it didn't even provide washcloths in the bathroom.  Thank the deity there was a nice, big Boots right across the street. 

[WillyNilly]

If there was a big tag hanging off the bottle I can't really see how it was sneaky of them at all.  I mean how much more obvious do they need to be other then a big tag hanging directly off the bottle?

[onyonryngs]

I don't see this as sneaky at all but maybe I'm used to it as I see it at almost every hotel I stay at.  Those water bottles are almost NEVER free.

POD.  It's common practice in most hotels. 

[jpcher]

Really, if you're thirsty, how hard is it to get some ice and have a drink of tap water?

Oh, not difficult at all! Had I known, that's exactly what we would have done!

It's not so much the price of the bottle that I thought was a rip-off, more that the cost wasn't clearly printed (I do mean it was small -- 6 pt. type -- buried under much larger print describing the environmental-friendliness of the bottle) and that the bottles were so invitingly placed.

Add to the fact that we were drinking the same type of water at the spa with no additional charge.

$4.00 isn't going to break me nor spoil my trip. It's just that, not being a travel-savvy hotel patron, it really struck me as sneaky.


Traveler beware! 

[WillyNilly]

I also don't see this as sneaky because, well its a business.  They aren't your friends or family hosting you out of kindness.  And they aren't denying you free water - I have never heard of a hotel without free running tap water and complimentary ice.  They are a business out to make money, and it seems perfectly reasonable to me that they would charge for extras, and a bottle of water is certainly an extra IMO.

[jpcher]

I also don't see this as sneaky because, well its a business.  They aren't your friends or family hosting you out of kindness.  And they aren't denying you free water - I have never heard of a hotel without free running tap water and complimentary ice.  They are a business out to make money, and it seems perfectly reasonable to me that they would charge for extras, and a bottle of water is certainly an extra IMO.

I agree -- but I also think that extra charges for items should be clearly marked.

There's a sign posted in front of the TV -- These movies are available at an extra charge of $x.xx per movie. By the phone, there's a card that clearly states the charges for long distance and local calling.

6 pt. type at the bottom of an informational tag is not, to me, clearly marked as an extra charge.

[onyonryngs]

I also don't see this as sneaky because, well its a business.  They aren't your friends or family hosting you out of kindness.  And they aren't denying you free water - I have never heard of a hotel without free running tap water and complimentary ice.  They are a business out to make money, and it seems perfectly reasonable to me that they would charge for extras, and a bottle of water is certainly an extra IMO.

I agree -- but I also think that extra charges for items should be clearly marked.

There's a sign posted in front of the TV -- These movies are available at an extra charge of $x.xx per movie. By the phone, there's a card that clearly states the charges for long distance and local calling.

6 pt. type at the bottom of an informational tag is not, to me, clearly marked as an extra charge.

Hotels have been doing this with water bottles for years.  By this time they probably think that most people know the water bottles in the room are not free.

[squeakers]

I also don't see this as sneaky because, well its a business.  They aren't your friends or family hosting you out of kindness.  And they aren't denying you free water - I have never heard of a hotel without free running tap water and complimentary ice.  They are a business out to make money, and it seems perfectly reasonable to me that they would charge for extras, and a bottle of water is certainly an extra IMO.

But they give you free coffee and free tea both of which cost them money: for the electricity to heat the water, the water itself and the cup (whether disposable or a mug to be washed later).

I "get" why they charge for it beyond the fact it probably cost them $.30 for the bottle (bulk buying saves them tons) but it just seems cheap of them to do so.  Just checked the local bulk warehouse and they were charging during the summer 4/$10 with the 4 meaning 4 cases of 24 almost 17oz bottles. 96 bottles for $10. Limit of 1 (set of 4).  TPC is open to the public.. I am sure any large hotel gets even better breaks than that for bottled water.

[One Fish, Two Fish]

I remember a mini-bar fridge in Manchester, England where there were sensors at the top that would add stuff to your bill as you took it out.  Doesn't work so great when you push their stuff to the back to fit in your own leftovers. (Thereby getting charged for the entire fridge because the sensors went off)  Then I saw that some of their stuff was on it's side (thereby resetting the sensors) to be accidentally knocked over again.  I think they tried to charge me four times over for the entire contents. 

But, I think the OP is right, it is a rip-off.  I knew that the water was charged an outrageous price.  But, I think that is because at one time in the distant past I was the OP's daughter, or almost.  I think that for all of us, we were once like the OP's daughter or had been warned ahead of time.

I stayed in a hotel in Charleston that had a basket with all sorts of chocolates and treats.  Because my (at the time) 2 y/o DD was with me, I put the basket on the top shelf of the closet.  The hotel tried to charge me for the entire basket's contents & the basket itself.  I think it was close to $250.  It took some convincing that I had only moved the basket. 

[sevenday]

I have stayed at a variety of places in the last couple of years - one hotel in Florida, and a casino hotel up here in the northwest.  No minibar, no bottle of water.  I'd be baffled if I saw a bottle of water sitting out, to be honest.  I guess maybe at the pricier type places they might have them and then charge $$ for them - maybe thinking that people already paid $$$ for the room, an extra $$ won't hurt. 

My parents did stay at a fairly pricy place with a minibar, but they simply asked for it to be emptied/removed before they even got there so there was no issue with trying to charge them for things.