When you check into a nice hotel, you might find that a welcome amenity of some sort is often placed in your room. However, this can cause some confusion, given the inconsistency with which this is offered. So I’d like to address that in this post — what are hotel welcome amenities, at what hotels and under what circumstances should you expect them, and what do I make of them?
In this post:
What are hotel welcome amenities?
In a nutshell, a hotel welcome amenity is a gift that’s typically placed in your room on the first day of your stay. Sometimes you’ll find a welcome amenity in your room when you arrive, while in other cases it may be delivered on your first afternoon or evening, after checking in (which is why it could be worth not putting up your “do not disturb” sign). At more limited service properties, you may be given a gift bag upon check-in, or something along those lines.
In some cases a welcome amenity is advertised as a perk of a stay, while more often than not it’s a “surprise and delight” thing, where it’s not something that’s published, but it is common.
You’ll find that luxury hotels consistently provide these to guests. The quality can vary significantly, though. At some hotels (like the Mandarin Oriental Boston) it could be a few pieces of fruit.
At other hotels (like Cheval Blanc Paris), it could be a bottle of champagne, some amazing homemade sweets, and some fruit.
What’s offered as a welcome amenity can vary significantly, though more often than not it’s some sort of a food & beverage offering. It’s most commonly a fruit plate, cheese plate, sweets, and/or wine.
Note that in this post I’m not talking about hotel welcome amenities offered by hotel loyalty programs, where you may receive some bonus points as a “welcome amenity.” I’m talking about tangible in-room gifts provided proactively by hotels.
What impacts whether you get a hotel welcome amenity?
I find that most “true” luxury hotels offer some sort of a welcome amenity to guests. Even beyond that, though, you may find that many upscale hotels also offer welcome amenities under some circumstances.
What impacts if you get a welcome amenity, and for that matter, the quality of the welcome amenity? Potential factors include:
- The type of hotel you’re staying at
- Your elite status, if you’re staying at a hotel with a loyalty program
- Whether you’re a repeat guest at that specific hotel
- If you’re celebrating anything special, like an anniversary or birthday
- If you booked through a travel agent program that offers a welcome amenity as a published perk, including Hyatt Privé, Mandarin Oriental Fan Club, Marriott STARS, etc.
Don’t be offended if you stay at a hotel that doesn’t offer you a welcome amenity. Similarly, you may find that you stay at the same hotel twice, and are offered a welcome amenity once, but not the other time. Whether or not you’re offered one on a particular stay can come down to a variety of factors, including how busy the hotel is that day, what staffing is like, etc.
My take on hotel welcome amenities
I figured I’d share a few personal thoughts on hotel welcome amenities, of course acknowledging that this is hardly the most important aspect of a hotel stay. Then I also want to pose a question to OMAAT readers. The way I see it:
- Personally I’m a bit surprised when I don’t receive some sort of a welcome amenity at a luxury hotel, while otherwise I don’t expect one, and am pleasantly surprised when I receive one
- I admit that hotels are in a tough spot when it comes to welcome amenities, especially with alcohol; it’s nice when a bottle of wine is offered, but if it’s a $6 bottle of sparkling wine, it may leave a bad taste in some peoples’ mouth (figuratively, and maybe even literally), especially if they’re paying a lot for a stay
- While it’s always nice to receive a welcome amenity, as a frequent traveler it can be hard to “maximize” these — I hate wasting, but when I’m given a plate with about 4,000 calories of chocolate…
Now here’s a question for readers — if you’re proactively offered a welcome amenity but you don’t like what’s being offered, do you let the hotel know? Here’s my personal take:
- Unless it’s a published benefit of what I booked (like for booking through a certain program with a travel agent, or at certain luxury hotels that market a welcome amenity as a feature), I would feel weird requesting a different gift; I think the exception would be if I didn’t drink alcohol, and the amenity consisted of alcohol, or if allergies came into play
- At the same time, if you are offered a nice bottle of wine, it doesn’t seem unreasonable to request a swap to a different similarly priced bottle (for example, if you like white wine, but are offered red wine)
I know some people will even email hotels and request a specific kind of welcome amenity even if a welcome amenity isn’t an official perk. Personally I would feel sheepish and never do that, but to each their own…
Bottom line
It’s always a treat to get a welcome amenity at a hotel. The quality can vary significantly, and it could be anything from a couple of bottles of water to a nice bottle of champagne and a cheese plate. It’s most common to find welcome amenities at luxury hotels, at hotel groups you have status with, or at hotels that you frequent.
What’s your take on hotel welcome amenities? When do you expect them, and what do you expect?
As a Hyatt Globalist that stays at a lot of different All-Inclusive resorts within the portfolio (with many repeat visits at some), there are generally 2 types/versions of welcome amenities they leave for me in the room…the artistic, local-themed chocolate sculpture (always creative and usually too big to eat all of it) or the cheese and meat plate. What always kills me with the latter is that many times there is no or little bread...
As a Hyatt Globalist that stays at a lot of different All-Inclusive resorts within the portfolio (with many repeat visits at some), there are generally 2 types/versions of welcome amenities they leave for me in the room…the artistic, local-themed chocolate sculpture (always creative and usually too big to eat all of it) or the cheese and meat plate. What always kills me with the latter is that many times there is no or little bread or crackers, or if there is, it is dried out and/or moist from the humidity from sitting in the room for an extended period of time…along with the cheese. In other words, there isn’t too much thought into the details of a) what they are giving me and b) when it’s delivered. So most of the time, the entire plate goes uneaten since the cheese has been sitting out for some time. :)
Years ago, the international nonprofit I worked for held a large conference in Bangkok, Thailand. We were all staying at one of those fabulous five-star hotels that, back then, still fit within our per diem.
One of my colleagues from Senegal had never traveled outside his country before and was absolutely amazed by the hotel's luxury. When he entered his room, he found a welcome note, a beautiful bowl of fresh tropical fruit, and a...
Years ago, the international nonprofit I worked for held a large conference in Bangkok, Thailand. We were all staying at one of those fabulous five-star hotels that, back then, still fit within our per diem.
One of my colleagues from Senegal had never traveled outside his country before and was absolutely amazed by the hotel's luxury. When he entered his room, he found a welcome note, a beautiful bowl of fresh tropical fruit, and a bottle of wine waiting for him.
He was genuinely touched by the gesture. We explained that the welcome gift was complimentary. He smiled and said that, as a Muslim, he didn’t drink wine, but he was excited to try all the exotic fruit.
Fast forward to checkout day.
Another colleague quietly pulled me aside and said there was a problem with our friend from Senegal. After enjoying the complimentary welcome gift, he had discovered the minibar and naturally assumed everything in it was free as well. Every snack had disappeared. Every bottle had been consumed. Housekeeping faithfully restocked the minibar each day, and he faithfully emptied it again.
By the end of the conference, the minibar bill was… impressive.
Rather than embarrass him, we quietly paid the charges and gently explained how hotel minibars actually work. He was mortified and apologized repeatedly.
To this day, though, one thing still puzzles me. If he didn’t drink alcohol, who on earth finished all those tiny bottles?
Accor has welcome amenities as a status gift and I think this is a way that you can see if the hotel is run by someone thoughtful.
Even a fruit place can be nice if they have put unique local fruits that are less common elsewhere.
I have been to many hotels who will leave a bottle of the local beer or wine. Sometimes it will be a local sweet or even toy....
Accor has welcome amenities as a status gift and I think this is a way that you can see if the hotel is run by someone thoughtful.
Even a fruit place can be nice if they have put unique local fruits that are less common elsewhere.
I have been to many hotels who will leave a bottle of the local beer or wine. Sometimes it will be a local sweet or even toy.
I think that this can be done relatively affordably in a thoughtful way that highlights the city or region you are visiting.
Accor has welcome amenities as a status gift and I think this is a way that you can see if the hotel is run by someone thoughtful.
Even a fruit place can be nice if they have put unique local fruits that are less common elsewhere.
I have been to many hotels who will leave a bottle of the local beer or wine. Sometimes it will be a local sweet or even toy....
Accor has welcome amenities as a status gift and I think this is a way that you can see if the hotel is run by someone thoughtful.
Even a fruit place can be nice if they have put unique local fruits that are less common elsewhere.
I have been to many hotels who will leave a bottle of the local beer or wine. Sometimes it will be a local sweet or even toy.
I think that this can be done relatively affordably in a thoughtful way that highlights the city or region you are visiting.
I think that a little creativity can go a long way in terms of a welcome amenity. A Novotel where I stay frequently (probably 100-ish nights over the last two years) includes often a bottle of beer that's been created in partnership with a local craft brewery as a welcome amenity as they're celebrating 50 years. Maybe the beer itself isn't *super* special, but I appreciate that someone actually figured this out and even bothered...
I think that a little creativity can go a long way in terms of a welcome amenity. A Novotel where I stay frequently (probably 100-ish nights over the last two years) includes often a bottle of beer that's been created in partnership with a local craft brewery as a welcome amenity as they're celebrating 50 years. Maybe the beer itself isn't *super* special, but I appreciate that someone actually figured this out and even bothered to put the hotel itself on the label.
Also, hotel program often allows the participants to put their preferences in the loyalty account and theoretically that should translate into more accurate welcome amenities (e.g. no alcohol for a non-drinking person).
The article suggests that it would be OK to request something non-alcoholic if you don't drink, but it wouldn't be OK to ask for something savoury if you don't eat sweet stuff. Why? What's the difference?
I'm one of the rapidly growing number of people who very rarely eats anything ultraprocessed or with added sugar. That means at least 50% of my welcome amenities aren't wanted.
But if I don't like what's on offer, that's...
The article suggests that it would be OK to request something non-alcoholic if you don't drink, but it wouldn't be OK to ask for something savoury if you don't eat sweet stuff. Why? What's the difference?
I'm one of the rapidly growing number of people who very rarely eats anything ultraprocessed or with added sugar. That means at least 50% of my welcome amenities aren't wanted.
But if I don't like what's on offer, that's my problem. So I've never asked for an amenity to be changed.
Looks like girl food .
Ben, instead of wasting the extra boxes of chocolates you may receive, why not take some of them back with you, and give them to the flight attendants on the plane going home?
Quite, Jim.
This needs to be differentiated.
Family staying 5 nights, sure a fruit platter is nice.
A lone work stay, waste of food.
And, in some cases, if you are a regular, there's something special for you every day. :-)
As a Bonvoy Ambassador, I noticed the welcome gifts becoming more and more elaborate and most often very sugar-heavy or alcohol-related. I travel alone for work most of the time and there is no way I am sitting in my room by myself drinking a bottle of wine. Plus a massive (beautiful) cake is not very good for the waistline! So I asked Bonvoy to let the hotel know not to put these in my...
As a Bonvoy Ambassador, I noticed the welcome gifts becoming more and more elaborate and most often very sugar-heavy or alcohol-related. I travel alone for work most of the time and there is no way I am sitting in my room by myself drinking a bottle of wine. Plus a massive (beautiful) cake is not very good for the waistline! So I asked Bonvoy to let the hotel know not to put these in my room, as it is a waste of food. Instead, they have been asked to think of a packaged box of local cookies or chocolates which I can then bring home for the team at the office. This is working pretty well so far!
I had been an Ambassador for years. Sometimes I would book one of my "regular" properties via a bank portal to use a credit. In spite of being ineligible, they would nonetheless extend elite benefits and a welcome amenity.