1) Cleanliness
2) Cleanliness
3) Cleanliness
4) Price
5) Location
6) Quiet

Anonymous wrote:I scour reviews and try to avoid hotels where the housekeeping staff have a habit of rudely and loudly knocking on doors early the day of checkout. I find that ghetto and low budget behavior, and refuse to knowingly support those kind of establishments.

I hate that too!!! Sometimes they knock and then enter while I’m in the shower or while I’m still sleeping. I’m taking 9am or so on departure day when check out time is noon.

Number one is location and cost, tied for importance. One doesn’t matter if the other one is terrible. So finding a room that is within budget, and in the correct location, is primary. (Walkable to attractions? Adjacent to an airport? Etc)

Number two is cleanliness , followed by room layout (some have sitting area that is nice for breakfast, etc). Anything else (decor????) I could not care less about, it’s a hotel room, we are using it for sleeping and luggage storage and showering.

Now if we are talking vacation rentals where we are basically living in it as a home for the week, lots of other things like view and number of bathrooms etc are impoetsnt but for a simple
Hotel room, my list is pretty small.

Actual HVAC system, not a wall unit under the window

Shower with a door, not a tub with a curtain

I’m getting to the point where if there’s carpet, I assume it’s old and dirty, so no carpet

A small refrigerator and bottled water

A balcony with a view of something other than a parking lot

Anonymous wrote:I have a teen boy and learned early on that proximity to easy, good affordable food places with good hours made our vacations so much easier. So I always check Google maps to make sure our hotel/resort/rental has good viable restaurants nearby and/or onsite.

+1 I like to have at least one day where I can walk to everything including food

Anonymous wrote:I have a teen boy and learned early on that proximity to easy, good affordable food places with good hours made our vacations so much easier. So I always check Google maps to make sure our hotel/resort/rental has good viable restaurants nearby and/or onsite.

This is interesting and I see your point. The last year or two we’ve stayed at a couple of nicer resorts (an upgrade from our normal) and I really don’t like how limited and expensive the food is onsite, and how difficult it is to access offsite food. I am definitely taking this into account going forward as it was not ideal for a variety of reasons.

Working elevators are a must. Abundant free parking is preferred. I adore good pool bars with good food, and love when good room service options are available. Turndown service is preferable, as well as free private shuttles for local transport. Good knowledgeable concierges are priceless.

I scour reviews and try to avoid hotels where the housekeeping staff have a habit of rudely and loudly knocking on doors early the day of checkout. I find that ghetto and low budget behavior, and refuse to knowingly support those kind of establishments.

I am always delighted by a hotel bathrobe.

Safe clean and a quiet fan/temperature control system

I have a teen boy and learned early on that proximity to easy, good affordable food places with good hours made our vacations so much easier. So I always check Google maps to make sure our hotel/resort/rental has good viable restaurants nearby and/or onsite.

High quality sheets
Comfortable bed
Nespresso machine
Ideally bathtub, if not then rain shower
View
On-site bar
Room service
Charming neighborhood
Minimum 4 star, ideally 5
Bonus if there is a spa, gym, pool

My top 5 considerations in order:

1) Location
2) Safety
3) Cleanliness
4) Noise level: Not loud/not a lot of street noise or paper thin walls where I can hear other guests…if I see a bunch of reviews about loud music in the hotel or ppl running around the halls at all hours and hotel staff not shutting it down-I’m not staying there.
5) Parking situation (I don’t want to have trouble finding parking or pay a ton of $ daily for parking if I can avoid it)

For some people a room to sleep overnight is functional.

For me if I'm on holiday, I'm looking for more than functional, I'm seeking luxury. I'm looking for an experience and enjoyment.
For me, I'm looking for the best room I can afford. In some countries the USD goes further than in others. I'm still looking for that comfortable sheets, quiet and clean room that offers best location, food and ambience and . Some people do not care about all this, I do.

If I'm overnight for work, I'm really just looking for a comfortable enough bed and quiet, clean room.