How to make hotel Internet fees a little more sensible

by Janice Hough on March 11, 2009

Actually, it would be lovely to have free wired or wireless Internet access in every hotel room. But that’s not going to happen.

But at least we are past the days of dial-up. I still remember a few horror stories when a couple of my clients made the mistake of connecting to long-distance numbers and racked up hundreds of dollars of phone charges.

Ironically, as frequent road warriors know, it’s the budget and moderate hotels that tend to have free Internet access. The higher end hotels charge for it, usually $10 to $15 a day.

I do understand the need to make money. And with most people using cellphones now, I can imagine the hotels are really missing the money they used to make from phone charges. Even though I wish they would just include whatever it costs them to offer Internet access in their room rates.

There’s just one thing about the charges that really bugs me. It’s not per room, it’s per computer. Which means, if you are a couple or family with separate laptops, or for example, college sport teammates sharing a room, the charges add up pretty fast.

Yes, in the grand scheme of things this isn’t a big deal. But in the spirit of a tough economy, and family values, it would be a nice thing for a major chain to institute a flat internet room charge. One charge, per day, to hook up everyone’s laptop. (Limited to the people staying in the room, with perhaps one guest, so that a dozen people in a group wouldn’t all work in one room.) It could also be a nice marketing ploy.

How about it? Any takers?

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Tagged as: hotel fees, hotel internet service

  • Peggy

    I’ve always found it ironic that the more expensive hotels charge for Internet access while the $60/night Comfort Inn offers it in every room free. I hadn’t thought about the per room vs per computer charge though. That’s ridiculous! It should be a per room charge.

  • http://www.ffocus.org Bruce InCharlotte

    If you travel domestically often, consider getting an Aircard through Verizon or AT&T. Since I got it, I haven’t used the hotel’s Internet and the card has paid for itself several times over. Plus I get to use it on extended air traffic ground delays, assuming electronics are permitted.

  • Jim Foster

    Try this, thanks to a Johnny Jet log….Log in with your wireless connection in the lobby and let it capture your IE address, then go up to your room and log back on. It should work, maybe not, but worth the try..

  • Jim Foster

    I should add this should work if the hotel offers free access in the lobby area (most do), and, their access is Wi-Fi.

  • http://www.youmustbetrippin.com chris

    Best Western offers free internet connections at all 2000+ hotels in the US (wired and/or wifi) and it’s not limited to a single laptop.

  • Drew

    I have coworkers that have begun carrying a small linux machine simply to plug into the wired access and then provide wireless to the room… some of the higher-end access points can do this as well.

  • Richard Puk

    I have never been charged a separate per computer charge when I use a travel router between each computer and wired access. Of course, this does not work with WiFi unless the router accepts WiFi as input.

  • jlawrence01

    And now you know why many business travellers never leave home without a wireless card so that they are not at the mercies of the hotel.

  • http://www.compleattraveller.com Jim

    When I traveled in the US last year one of the things on my hotel ‘wish list’ was free internet access. I could do without just about all the other inducements (bar fridge, safe, pool, spa, gym, etc) but not without my internet connection.

    If a hotel didn’t have it, I just looked elsewhere. You are right though – the cheapest hotels (EconoLodge my hotel of choice) offered free WiFi while the expensive ones didn’t.

  • Scott in Detroit

    Internet service charges are just another way that (some) hotels squeeze their profits from our wallets.

    When faced with the issue of sharing one connection between family (or work colleagues) members, a simple solution is to purchase an inexpensive wireless router.

    For under $50, you can connect a paperback-sized router into the hotel’s wired connection. Since the hotel only sees the unique MAC-address of the router, no one’s the wiser, leaving you to connect multiple additional computers via wire or wireless.

  • Bill

    I carry a travel router with me which often solves this problem. However, they do not always relay wi-fi.
    My wife and I checked into a Marriott in the UK where they only had Wi-Fi. They wanted 15 pounds per day or 75 pounds sterling per week – for each computer!

    We checked out the very next morning and stayed somewhere else. They lost a lot of money on room rental, breakfast, other meals (since they were a little remote). All in all, it cost them probably a couple of thousand pounds over that extra internet charge.

    I realize the hotel has to make money, and I was willing to pay the internet charge – just not twice.

    It is apparent that they not only need to change their rate plans, but also renegotiate with their suppliers as well.

    I am all for treating travel vendors fairly and for them making a profit if they treat me fairly as well – but it is a poetic justice when their policy costs them BIG TIME as it did in this instance.

    I can’t be the only one who runs into this problem. Hotels need to learn that economical internet is as important as having running water.

    I do have an air card (and a cradlepoint modem) which takes care of the internet in North America. Still working on the Europe internet issue though.

  • Dave

    For a while I was saving money (I thought) by using Priceline to book very good rates at 4 star hotels. The problem was that they were eating me alive with excessive parking and internet charges, and the cost of breakfast didn’t pass the laugh test so I had to go elsewhere. I shifted to 3 star hotels,where parking, internet and breakfast are almost always free and the total cost has been substantially lower.

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