Your support helps us to tell the story
Hotel guests make some rather outlandish and unusual room service requests, according to a new report.
The survey asked 4,000 hotels worldwide about the most surprising and extravagant items that guests had asked to be delivered to their rooms.
One of the standout requests was an Evian-filled bathtub, requested so that a child could bathe in the “purest” water available.
Other guests have more unique tastes. Hotels have been asked to source everything from fresh goat’s milk to a caviar hot dog to satisfy guests whims, revealed the Hotels.com survey.
Some holidaymakers have specific room service requests on how food should be served, with one hotel being asked to serve up burnt toast rather than lightly warmed.
Other guests requested a specific amount of food, such as 2kg of bananas.
Pet pampering is another way that hotels have been asked to make effort for the occupants of their rooms. The Hotel Innsights report discovered that there have been requests for customised allergen-free menus for pets, with options such as gluten-free or dairy-free meals.
But not all odd requests are food-related. One hotel guest asked for a high five from a staff member, not as a quirky joke, but as a confirmation that their room service order had been read.
The report also asked what hoteliers were doing to ensure guests’ needs were met during their stay. It found that hotels were adapting to the possibilty of making guests’ rooms more comfortable and had put policies in place to cater for unusual whims.
For example, W Osaka has installed a “Whatever/Whenever” button to allow guests to order anything at any time.
Meanwhile, the Hospes Maricel & Spa in Palma de Mallorca offers Beauty Room Service, where guests can indulge in facials and high-tech beauty treatments from the privacy of their room.
For more travel news and advice, listen to Simon Calder’s podcast