Luxury Hotels in Hua Hin

[Siani]

We had a lovely maid, nothing was too much trouble for her. We gave her a nice tip when we left. They get such low wages, probably not even the cost of a bottle of hotel water per day, well Sofitel water anyway! It is amazing how bad mannered people are, some cannot say thankyou. I found an Iphone in the computer room in the hotel, handed it in to reception. Amazingly the owner claimed it and did not bother to say thanks to me. How life has changed!
I am sure prcscct meant the free bathroom water not the other bottles in all fairness to him.

[PeteC]

prcscct wrote:

I simply take it off the maid's cart when she's in another room cleaning.

Then let me inform you that in the hotel business in Thailand it is customary that any item that goes missing is paid for by deducting it from the responsible staff member's salary. Room maids have to pay for missing mini-bar stock, hairdryers, towels etc.

I'm talking about the FREE room water Roel which the maid cart has 1 or 2 cases of on the bottom section, not mineral water, mini bar items, towels, supplies etc. If they don't give you enough free water to start with in this steaming climate, and then try to charge you for it, stuff them. Many times if you see a maid and ask them for more water, they give it gladly and no charge is assessed. You call the front desk and ask for water and for sure the charge will show at check out, it just happened to us two weeks ago.

While I'm at it, many places actually make a comment and try to intimidate when they see a person walking in with a bag from 7-11 with water and other supplies. Something like..."no outside food is allowed in the hotel sir..." I agree with that if someone brings in a sandwich and sits down in the restaurant to eat it. It's nonsense concerning needed supplies, especially if you have kids with you. I guess since 95% of the customers at these places are tourists, they don't really care about repeat business from local residents. Pete

[lomuamart]

The 7-11 trick passed me by years ago when staying at The Hilton in BKK. I was there on semi-official business and so my room was taken care of for the five nights there.
I never took an alcoholic drink out of the mini bar, but did the water and fruit juices each morning and evening.
As I was checking out and paying for my room extras, the boss was behind me in the queue and had a word with me later. "All of us hit the the 7-11 first, drink that stuff and replace the hotel's each morning so the hotel's stock take is correct. We should have educated you beforehand".
Anyway, I didn't really mind as I'd had a good few days and to pay a bit didn't bother me.
Heaven forbid that the hotels catch on to some English ones with the mini bar. As soon as you lift anything up a few centimeters it triggers some electronic thingy that sends that cost to reception. So, you can't take their stuff out and replace it with your own.

[migrant]

As I was checking out and paying for my room extras, the boss was behind me in the queue and had a word with me later. "All of us hit the the 7-11 first, drink that stuff and replace the hotel's each morning so the hotel's stock take is correct. We should have educated you beforehand".

I've had room maids tell me that, it earns them a good tip

[pharvey]

Heaven forbid that the hotels catch on to some English ones with the mini bar. As soon as you lift anything up a few centimeters it triggers some electronic thingy that sends that cost to reception. So, you can't take their stuff out and replace it with your own.

Having traveled and lived away from the UK for a fair few years, the 7-11 (or similar) visit has always been the norm whether paying myself or on the company...even the local laundry Not a tight-@rse, just refuse to pay extortionate prices for something I can get locally that takes little effort and is neither taking advantage of the hotels facilities or breaking any laws.

The bl**dy UK mini-bar however caught me a couple of years back when staying at one of the airport hotels in Heathrow for a meeting... as lomu says - lift a couple of centimeters and you're charged. I simply took a few items out of the mini-bar to check the price and once I had my breathing and heart back under control, returned the said items...... only to be charged for the b*ggers on checking out. I had not drunk or eaten any of the items, had not bought any replacements or my own food, items still had the hotel sticker and price...... but still had to argue with the pompous tw@t behind reception for a while before leaving without the additional bill or in handcuffs.

[Siani]

The 7-11 trick passed me by years ago when staying at The Hilton in BKK. I was there on semi-official business and so my room was taken care of for the five nights there.
I never took an alcoholic drink out of the mini bar, but did the water and fruit juices each morning and evening.
As I was checking out and paying for my room extras, the boss was behind me in the queue and had a word with me later. "All of us hit the the 7-11 first, drink that stuff and replace the hotel's each morning so the hotel's stock take is correct. We should have educated you beforehand".
Anyway, I didn't really mind as I'd had a good few days and to pay a bit didn't bother me.
Heaven forbid that the hotels catch on to some English ones with the mini bar. As soon as you lift anything up a few centimeters it triggers some electronic thingy that sends that cost to reception. So, you can't take their stuff out and replace it with your own.

I do not think you should take their stuff out and replace it with your own. Just be aware that the cost of "non free" water is extremely high. I will be going to the 7-11 to buy water, a different brand from the hotel. I will not hide the fact. If I had bought a bottle of water from outside the hotel to drink for example,while out, I would not be expected to throw it away on entering the hotel. I will keep a few bottles in the wardrobe (stock) and a bottle which I want to use in the fridge. It is their loss, I will not be caught again and have to pay 250 baht for a bottle of water, about £5, it is madness. The water bill for the 14 days was just under £140. Also the hotel, which was nice, should realise that this leaves a sour taste in the mouth to guests when paying the bill and leaving. Here I am after 14 days of enjoying relaxing in a good hotel, ending up talking about water. I should be telling you all how great the hotel was instead of the rip off water charge! Sofitel, take note if you are reading this please!

[hhfarang]

As soon as we check into any hotel, our first stop is the nearest 7/11 or Minimart for the following:

- Water (which there is never enough of free in the hotel room)
- Beer (not only is the beer in the room expensive, it is sometimes not the brand(s) I want)
- Toilet Paper (there never seems to be enough with those small rolls most hotels stock and calling the maid in the middle of the night is not fun)
- Snacks (I like to munch before bedtime while watching TV and the snacks in the room are too expensive)
- Mixers (see traveling bar below... )

When traveling by car (like to Bangkok, Pattaya, Issan, etc.), I also bring with me:

- My own hot water maker (some rooms don't have them)
- A coffee bean grinder (most rooms have instant coffee)
- A french press (I love a good cupa joe first thing in the morning)
- My traveling bar containing my favorite spirits, liqueurs, red, and white wines
- Cooler with ice
- Snacks that can't be found easily while traveling in Thailand such as various crackers, cheeses, etc.

Also, my SUV came with a folding table as an integral part of the cargo space floor so the above can make for a nice roadside picnic in a pinch too!

[Nereus]

Any room left for the Missus, HHF? Or does she have to follow by bus?

[hhfarang]

She's very small so she fits in nicely... there's even room for some of her fruit and healthy snacks!

[PET]

I do not think you should take their stuff out and replace it with your own. Just be aware that the cost of "non free" water is extremely high. I will be going to the 7-11 to buy water, a different brand from the hotel. I will not hide the fact. If I had bought a bottle of water from outside the hotel to drink for example,while out, I would not be expected to throw it away on entering the hotel. I will keep a few bottles in the wardrobe (stock) and a bottle which I want to use in the fridge. It is their loss, I will not be caught again and have to pay 250 baht for a bottle of water, about £5, it is madness. The water bill for the 14 days was just under £140. Also the hotel, which was nice, should realise that this leaves a sour taste in the mouth to guests when paying the bill and leaving. Here I am after 14 days of enjoying relaxing in a good hotel, ending up talking about water. I should be telling you all how great the hotel was instead of the rip off water charge! Sofitel, take note if you are reading this please!

Surely there was a price list so that you were aware of the cost of a bottle of water ?

This does not excuse the exorbitant cost though !

[Spitfire]

Heaven forbid that the hotels catch on to some English ones with the mini bar. As soon as you lift anything up a few centimeters it triggers some electronic thingy that sends that cost to reception.

Excuse my surprise and guess you must be right......but,

What? They actually get away with pulling that crap?

It's not illegal for them to do it? Would have thought the papers would have a field day with that sort of stuff.

Admittedly haven't been back for 9 years now but, Man!....I have been away too long then.

That's completely F'ed up if it's the case. I'm with everyone else on the 7-11 jobbie as it's just a complete piss-take really with how much they charge for stuff.

Man, O man, O man.

[Nereus]

Heaven forbid that the hotels catch on to some English ones with the mini bar. As soon as you lift anything up a few centimeters it triggers some electronic thingy that sends that cost to reception.

Excuse my surprise and guess you must be right......but,

What? They actually get away with pulling that crap?

It's not illegal for them to do it? Would have thought the papers would have a field day with that sort of stuff.
Admittedly haven't been back for 9 years now but, Man!....I have been away too long then.

That's completely F'ed up if it's the case. I'm with everyone else on the 7-11 jobbie as it's just a complete piss-take really with how much they charge for stuff.
Man, O man, O man.

Many International Hotels around the World use that system. The product is stored in a rack which has a small sensor that triggers a signal if the product is removed from the rack. It is not just in the UK.

[jimmy40]

Same as Australia, i was at the Hilton last year there. And my brother woke me up at 7am and said there was a letter under the door, i opened it and it was for 2 cokes and a water. My brother said how the F*** did they know did they come in our room?[we were pissed that night] So i thought that must have happened. Then i took a close look at the fridge, it had some little spdt switches under flaps inside. When i got home i looked it up,they are hard wired cat4 cable to a central cpu that matches the maids cart with the bill, unreal. I suppose it wouldn't know if you held down the switch and put a bit of tape on it though, but then the maid would cop it

[Arcadian]

When traveling by car (like to Bangkok, Pattaya, Issan, etc.), I also bring with me:

- My own hot water maker (some rooms don't have them)
- A coffee bean grinder (most rooms have instant coffee)
- A french press (I love a good cupa joe first thing in the morning)
- My traveling bar containing my favorite spirits, liqueurs, red, and white wines
- Cooler with ice
- Snacks that can't be found easily while traveling in Thailand such as various crackers, cheeses, etc.

Also, my SUV came with a folding table as an integral part of the cargo space floor so the above can make for a nice roadside picnic in a pinch too! [/quote]

Never mind the missus, sounds like you need a butler.

[elem]

Wow, I must admit I am impressed, some of you are real pros in getting the best out of 'luxury hotels'...anywhere in the world I guess