Hotels ditch room service menu as more guests order in

Room service is quickly becoming a thing of the past thanks to food delivery apps, but we’re not sold.

Here’s the picture – I arrived in a swish London hotel after a multi-delayed flight from Berlin on a trip that had taken most of the day. When I discovered I’d been upgraded to a sumptuous suite, all I wanted was to stay in and order room service.

But then came the response I didn’t expect in such a swanky hotel: “We no longer do in-room dining. Maybe you could try Uber Eats.” It had been a similar story days before in my smart Berlin hotel – it also had no room service, but I was told there was a supermarket close by.

I know Covid up-ended everything in the hotel landscape, but in high-end hotels like these, I was sure I could at least dial up a Caesar salad or club sandwich. In the choices of added extras available on the giant TV screen, in-room dining was no longer on the menu.

Over breakfast the next day in the hotel restaurant the manager, he explained: “There has been a major shift away from in-room dining, as many guests now want more options than we can offer, and are happy to do their own ordering through food delivery services. The service also can be expensive in terms of staffing, so we just put an end to it.”

Days later at another London hotel, I found a fine room service menu, with that manager saying: “Demand continues to be strong, but just as popular is the number of guests wanting more choice through the food delivery apps.”

I’m not as confident with food delivery services like Uber Eats or Deliveroo.

All of which is understandable, but when in a foreign city, I’m not as confident with negotiating food delivery services like Uber Eats or Deliveroo and far more comfortable with an in-house menu.

True, a delivery service can be cheaper than a $30 burger or salad on a hotel room service menu. For $30 on that first night in London, I went to one of my favourite pubs for superb bangers and mash and a glass of wine.

The death knell for hotel room service was first announced over a decade ago when a 2013 US survey revealed three-quarters of travellers weren’t using it. At the same time, one of New York’s largest hotels also stopped room service, and a 2016 report by the American Hotel and Lodging Association confirmed the continuation of the downward trend, with only 22 per cent of US hotels offering it back then.

Over a quarter of US hotels report guests spend on average more than $US100 on room service.

Despite those figures obituaries about room service were premature. A recent international survey by hotels.com revealed demand for room service is up and growing, often identified as elevating a guest rating from “great” to “perfect.”

Over a quarter of US hotels report guests spend on average more than $US100 on room service, with 49 per cent listing burgers, pizza and club sandwiches as the top choice – even in high-end establishments.

It’s a similar story in the Pacific, with the Outrigger Fiji Beach Resort reporting an increase in the total average spend on room service. In 2023, room service orders accounted for 7.3 per cent of the resort’s total food and beverage revenue – a figure 5.8 per cent higher than in 2017.

There is no talk of withdrawing in-room dining service in Australia.

Closer to home, there is no talk of withdrawing in-room dining service among the major Australian players, confirms James Goodwin, CEO of Accommodation Australia.

“We have no knowledge of hotels in Australia completely stopping in-room dining,” he says. “That’s a trend we expect is going to stay for some time, as we are not seeing any suggestion from the major hotels they are looking to remove the service.”

The Accor group, which includes such hotel chains as Pullman, Novotel and Mercure, states a consistent demand for room service.

When staying in a foreign-language country, dealing directly with the hotel dining team can be a challenge.

“In-room dining sales have remained strong across our Australian properties, particularly in CBD locations,” Ben Creek, Pacific director of food and beverage, says.

When staying in a foreign-language country, dealing directly with the hotel dining team can be a challenge – something QR code ordering has streamlined. But I often end up calling anyway, because the QR code is either not working, won’t accept any variations or, as happened a few times recently, informed me I wasn’t staying at the hotel.

With the cost of living crisis, coupled with Australians’ desire for adventure, travel budgets are stretched. Even though room service orders remain strong, it’s likely delivery services will continue to challenge.

I still like the knock on my hotel room door with a tray of steaming dinner.

“There’s a trend among customers of wanting more options with more flexibility, and going elsewhere to get those,” Goodwin says.

But that’s probably not going to be me any time soon. I still like the knock on my hotel room door with a tray of steaming dinner while I sit waiting in a bathrobe with a movie picked out to watch.

Sydney-based travel writer John Burfitt is disappointed when room service is not on the hotel menu but it’s not a deal-breaker. Not yet anyway.

Originally published as Hotels ditch room service menu as more guests order in