Five things that hotels never get right – and that serviced apartments do
There's no denying that staying in a hotel can be relaxing and fun; room service, housekeeping and on-site restaurants all make them an appealing choice for business or pleasure trips. But those facilities and amenities can also be the very things that actually make suite-life more than a little irritating, and when compared with a stay in a serviced apartment, make it clear which offers the real home from home experience...
Hotel vs Serviced Apartments
What would you prefer?
Check in and out
From the moment you arrive in a hotel to when you depart, you have to adhere to their polices on timekeeping, and usually, a lengthy wait at a crowded reception desk and much form filling before you are handed your keys. And does anyone enjoy waking in a hotel on their day of departure knowing they have to wolf down breakfast, pack and again join the queuing hoards just to get out of the place?
Dining times
Much like with check-in and check-out, you are often at the mercy of the hotel in terms of what time you eat, too. How many times have you gone without your breakfast altogether rather than do battle with crows of other people at the buffet table at 7am? Or had a rushed 6pm dinner sitting because that was all that was available?
Climate control – windows and heating
Hotel room temperatures – either fever-style sweltering, or cold enough to freeze your socks off – are the perennial bugbears of the frequent traveller. No matter how much you twiddle the thermostat or ask housekeeping to assist, only two climates seem to exist in hotel-land: boiling or chilling. And if it's boiling, you are unlikely to even be able to open a window wide enough to get some air flowing because of health and safety regs...
Lack of facilities
A hospitality tray of sachets of tea, coffee and hot chocolate can be a welcome sight when you fall through the hotel room door after a long journey, but less appealing once in an settled and wanting something a little more substantial without leaving your room. Yes, there's room service, but along with it comes a vast price tag, and provisos over what can be served and when.
Interruptions
Even when you firmly attach the Do Not Disturb sign on the door, it's a fortunate hotel guest who doesn't still endure the call of 'it's just housekeeping!' the second they get in the bathtub, or settle down for an afternoon snooze. And if it isn't hotel staff disturbing your peace and quiet, there's the constant coming and going of guests in adjoining rooms or linen trolleys being trundled down the hallways......
So how do serviced apartments differ?
From swift and slick check ins (and out!) through to a real sense of privacy and independent living, serviced apartments offer the home-from-home feeling that even the most prestigious of hotels can never get quite right. Fancy a relaxed, home-made kitchen dinner, or a take-away in front of the TV? Want to eat breakfast in bed at 9, and enjoy an afternoon tea of sandwiches and cake on the sofa at 4? When you are in a Smart City apartment you are in total control of your stay from check in to check out.
So think about it – what's more appealing – doing your own thing, or doing theirs?
