My friend God Save The Points touched on something that has been frustrating me recently after a recent stay at the Viceroy Santa Monica.
He notes that "In travel, and particularly hotel loyalty, the gesture of buying someone breakfast has been a long standing tradition to honor those who book directly or show an amount of loyalty by earning a level of elite guest status."
Regarding his recent stay, he had this to say: "Like many leading hotel groups, Viceroy offers a preferred partner ‘Guild’ rate, which is bookable by top travel agents and provides a slew of direct booking benefits and perks for agents and their clients. A $50 hotel credit, “daily breakfast for two”, late checkout and a welcome amenity are among the rate benefits here."
In recent years, I've seen a breakfast credit offered at more and more properties for both top tier elites and those who booked via preferred booking programs (Hyatt Privé, Marriott STARS, etc.).
It's particularly frustrating since the credit often doesn't cover breakfast if you get a main course, coffee, and juice. This is especially true at many big city properties in the U.S. as the credit has to cover gratuity (20% is often standard) and taxes (10% in some cases) as well.
Let's take the Conrad Washington, DC as an example. Hilton Gold and Diamond members get a $25 credit ($50 for two people). A main course is $25, a regular coffee is $6, and juice is $7. Throw in 20% and 10% for tax and you've nearly doubled the credit.
In the case of the Hilton dining credit, you at least know the cap ahead of time even if it's absurdly low based on the prices hotel restaurants charge. However, in many cases, you don't find out that it's a credit (that's too low) until check-in.
Hopefully, preferred booking programs and loyalty programs will start requiring properties to cover breakfast fully - even just a main course plus coffee or juice.
In the meantime, make sure you confirm the breakfast details when you check-in so you're not caught off guard.
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