Death by Minibar

What hotel gets the minibar right? Let me know because I want to stay there! It as though by trying to appeal to everyone it ends up being a mish-mash of what no one in their right mind would ever eat. Don't hotels do focus groups on minibars?

Here is my dream minibar list:

Champagne that doesn't cost $75 (for a split!)
Pringles
Excellent chocolates (Better than Godiva)
Milk for tea!
Shortbread biscuits
Cheese
White wine
Vogue (not necessarily chilled but available in the room)


I could go on but not a minibar stuffed with sodas, peanuts and cheap chocolates. The sad thing is, after a day of meetings, the only real option is death by minibar. Who wants to deal with the prying eyes of room service or a dingy hotel restaurant?

A good hotel is hard to find

The right hotel makes all the difference for a good business trip. These days my beat is Europe. I consult Mr and Mrs Smith, Trip Advisor and Frommer's. By now the large chains bore me although I should stay there to get points (I know!) so these days I take the risk of staying in boutique hotels.

At a minimum a hotel must have:

1) Quiet
2) Deadbolts
3) Good Room Service Menu, including a grilled cheese sandwich.
4) Pleasant service (they answer the phone)
5) Internet that works

Ideally it has:

1) A lobby with deep sofas for hiding out between appointments.
2) Slippers because I always forget mine
3) Free bottled water. I know hotel tap water is safe but just in case.
4) Taxis readily available outside the door.
5) As good a breakfast in the rooms as if I go downstairs -- never the case!

The Accidental Business Traveller

Picture the business traveler eating breakfast alone not in one of the chain hotels but in a quirkier hotel filled with retired couples on vacation. She is the youngest person there by 20 years. She wants to retire as well. Hotels, flights and packing all become easier with time but the displacement and loneliness of business travel only becomes harder.

Five tips for surviving business travel

1)The more you travel, the more you bring. If you've ever been sick on business travel you will forevermore carry a small arsenal of medicine.

2)A scented candle to ward off the smell of secondhand smoke, cheap cleaning products and stale air.

3)In a strange city where you might not feel comfortable going out to eat alone at night, eat a big lunch at a good restaurant and then a light room service dinner.

4)If your door does not have a deadbolt leave the hotel or push a desk/table against the door. Hotel staff or other guests’ keys may open your door. Nothing like waking up in the middle of the night as someone opens your room door.

5) Try to see one museum, movie or sight whilst on a trip to break the monotony of meetings and hotel rooms.

Taxis

From time to time taxi cab and car service drivers feel perfectly comfortable unloading their most personal problems to their passengers. Yesterday I arrived at Barcelona airport, jumped into a taxi with a driver who is a part-time journalist for one of the leading newspapers but due to the economic crisis in Spain drives a taxi. For the next 30 minutes he talks non-stop about his situation, upcoming divorce, friendship with Sting and jobless friend forced to work in porn movies.

Same thing happened to MJ - the best friend--not so long ago. Her driver even craned around his head to ensure she didn't look at text messages while listening to his rant. Some drivers must like the idea of a captive audience. Does this happen to men?

Last time I was in Barcelona a taxi driver literally cried on my shoulder about her mother's cancer. It was terribly sad and odd at the same time. Then there was the Russian ice hockey player on Facebook the entire time he drove me from BWI to DC: One eye and one hand for the road.

How many times have I gotten into a taxi in a strange city, usually Berlin, and wondered if I was safe? I don't know where I'm going. There are no landmarks I recognize. It is often late. Sometimes I call to give someone in another country my location (dark highway, random city names). How would they find me? I know it is futile and yet it makes me feel better. And yet, nothing untoward has ever happened to me in a taxi.

My chatty driver this time did tell me he doesn't normally talk so much, and he thought I had a lot of positive energy. I'm sure he talks that much all the time but telling me I had positive energy made the whole monologue suddenly bearable.