Thelife
- High-end hotels are expanding their bar options to accommodate guests in their very own rooms.
- From bigger minibars to custom-made drinks delivered to - or mixed in - your hotel room, it's all about convenience and comfort, reports Bloomberg.
- The Landmark Mandarin Oriental in Hong Kong and the Darcy in Washington DC are amongst the luxury hotels offering different spins on the expanded amenity.
For anyone who's ever been stuck somewhere between "I'd love a nightcap" and "I'm too tired to get dressed," good news: at some luxury hotels, you no longer have to choose between the two.
High-end hotels are increasingly offering room service cocktail services, drink trolleys in the hallways, and larger in-room minibars, according to Bloomberg.
Offering expanded drink options to guests at their own convenience is just one of many ways hotels work to provide services that make them feel comfortable and noticed.
In some cases, reports Bloomberg, satisfying guests' wishes "means dispatching a bartender for in-person service; at other times, it's about making a room's minibar feel more like a home bar."
Harrison Jacobs/Business Insider
The not-so-mini minibar at the Landmark Oriental.
The Landmark Mandarin Oriental, considered one of the best hotels in the world, is a good example of a hotel that's taking the mini bar game to a whole new level, as Business Insider's international correspondent Harrison Jacobs reports.
During his stay in a 600-square-foot room in the esteemed Hong Kong hotel, Jacobs found the mini bar to be "not so mini, with full and mini bottles of liquor and wine."
Meanwhile, the Entertainment Suite, the most luxurious suite at the same hotel, features a "Cabinet of Delights," which has boutique wines on tap and a mixologist booth.
The Darcy Washington DC, for comparison, has a "cocktail butler," writes Bloomberg: a mixologist who will spend 30 minutes crafting cocktails in your room. The service comes with a price tag, though - drinks cost $17 a piece, plus a 50% service charge.
These services, of course, are not entirely replacing the classic hotel bar itself, some of which are iconic and worth a visit in their own right.