Hotels.com® revealed its inaugural Room Service Report which surveyed hotel partners around the world to uncover what’s considered “in” when it comes to in-room dining, from the most popular to the most unusual orders. Despite the popularity of food service apps, 75% of hotels surveyed said that room service demand has stayed the same or increased over the past year. Top key findings include:
The weird side of room service
- Hotels revealed their most unusual guest requests including “diet” water, melted ice cream, blowfish and a raw fish caught by a traveller who wanted it cooked to order.
- Top properties are pushing the boundaries of room service to go beyond food, offering in-room concerts, breakfasts delivered by canoe and even robot-operated room service.
Burgers in bed
- Globally, burgers are the most popular item (40%) and are most likely to stay on the menu year-round, ranging from the most classic staple all the way up to a 24K gold brioche bun burger with a $1600 USD price tag.
- Food orders are also evolving year over year with vegetarian and vegan requests increasingly more popular than keto, dairy-free or gluten-free orders at 42% and 33% respectively, for travellers who prefer to opt for a mouth-watering non-beef patty alternative.
To dine in or out
- Almost half of travellers tend to choose restaurant service over room service for celebrations like birthdays and anniversaries and tend to order fancier dishes when dining out.
- The report found the most popular time for Canadian in-room diners is bright and early, between 7-10 a.m. for breakfast, though when asked about hotel etiquette, hotels prefer guests not answer the door for room service while naked.
- Over half of respondents (52%) plan to keep offerings the same or expand room service menus and hours in the next year to meet the growing demand.
Revelling in room service
- Hotels revealed a third of their guests (30%) will go all-out while ordering in, spending on average, over $100 on a single room service order.
- More than half (54%) of hotels said guests travelling for business tend to order more room service compared to leisure travellers.
- Canadian hotels said champagne or sparkling wine is the most expensive item on their room service menus.
“Room service holds a special place in the hearts of hotel guests,” said Melanie Fish, spokesperson for Hotels.com. “Whether it’s a treat-yourself moment or a must-have after a long day of sightseeing. A tip for Hotels.com gold and silver rewards members – you can find VIP properties where food and beverage credit is always on the menu in the app.”
The top 10 most unusual room service requests:
- Diet water
- Melted ice cream
- Blowfish
- Boiled bottled water
- A raw fish that the guest brought with them to cook
- Cockle popcorn
- No-egg-white omelet
- Rice bowl for dogs
- Bison
- Eggless eggs in hell (shakshuka)
