What amenities do Britons expect in a hotel room? And why do men and women disagree on their importance?

When guests walk into a hotel room, which amenities do they simply expect as part of a standard hotel experience? Which convey that they are in a premium or luxury hotel?

In a recent survey, YouGov polled 2059 Britons about what amenities they expect to see in both basic/standard hotel rooms and premium/luxury hotel rooms.

In-room coffee and tea and wi-fi are the two most commonly expected items in all hotel rooms, with four-in-five consumers (79%) expecting these in even basic rooms and even more in premium rooms. As we move down the list, guest expectations are more differentiated. Only 55% of consumers expects toiletries in a standard hotel room, while 84% expect them in a premium room. About half (48%) expect daily housekeeping in a standard room versus four fifths (79%) in more upscale accommodation.

The items which most distinguish the two grades of room are the mini-bar and the slippers and robe combo. Only a tenth (10%) of Britons expect a mini-bar in a basic room, compared to 73% in a luxury hotel, and only 8% expect slippers and robe to be provided in a basic room compared to 72% in a luxury room. This suggests that these items may evoke a luxury experience to guests. Conversely, if guests cannot wrap themselves in a plush hotel robe and relax with refreshment from an in-room mini-bar, they may feel that they’re having a sub-premium experience.

Breaking the data down by demographic groups reveals some significant differences, particularly when it comes to the premium/luxury hotel tier.

Generally speaking, older consumers expect more in a premium/luxury hotel room than younger audiences. For example, only 62% of those aged 18-24 expect in-room coffee and tea compared to 93% of those aged 55+. Similarly, 64% of 18-24s expect toiletries in the room compared to 90% of those 55 and older. There are a couple of exceptions to this rule. Those aged 55+ have below-average expectations for Bluetooth speakers and in-room tablets.

When it comes to basic/standard hotel rooms, the differences between age groups depend more on the amenity in question. For most features, all age groups are near the median but a few, such as hot beverages, amenities set the ages groups apart. Only half of 18-24’s expect coffee and tea in a basic room but 87% of those aged 55 and over do. The youngest group is also by far the most likely to expect a Bluetooth speaker, at 8%, compared to a national average of 3%. On the other hand, the eldest age group (55+) is more likely by far to expect free breakfast at 37%. This expectation declines through each age group with only 14% of 18-24’s expecting the same.

Luxury hotel expectations also show a broad divergence between the preferences of men and women. The chart below shows the options which most distinguish the genders at the top and those where they answered most similarly towards the bottom.

Women have higher expectations for luxury hotel rooms for nearly every type of amenity. All exceptions to this have to do with gadgets or tech: mobile check-in, Bluetooth speaker, online customer service and in-room tablet. For these amenities, there is no statistically significant difference between the answers of men and women. When it comes to standard-range rooms, there are fewer differences between men and women’s expectations, the largest being that women are more likely to expect a hairdryer and iron (60% vs 46% of men) and in-room coffee and tea (84% vs 73%).

YouGov Surveys: Serviced provide quick survey results from nationally representative or targeted audiences in multiple markets. This study was conducted online in March 2023

with a nationally representative sample of 2059 adults in Great Britain (aged 18+years), using a questionnaire designed by YouGov. Data figures have been weighted by age, gender, education, region, and race to be representative of all adults in Britain. Learn more about YouGov Surveys: Serviced.