I don’t think I’ve ever seem a filled ice tray (or even an empty one) in a hotel fridge.
When I drive to a place I often bring soda in a cooler with me (with freezer packs, not ice) to drink on the way. If I don’t drink the soda, I bring it up to the room to drink later - with ice.
I found a vole in one once.
I’ve never used the iron, ironing board, or blow dryer, but I always use the ice bucket and ice.
Also always use them, and expect them. When I was in Europe however I found that this is not the norm and if one requests ice one may get a glass of ice.
30 minutes! Nobody has to wait for 30 minutes for anything! This is ‘Merikuh! Try adding some water to the ice in the bucket. Don’t know about beer, but gets soda cold in about 6 minutes.
I only use hotel ice to cool things down. Wouldn’t think of putting it in anything I ingest.
Dude! How else can you fill the bathtub with ice for your beer! We used to clean out the machines from a couple of different floors!
Now that I’m married and have 3 kids, we travel a lot. We use the ice machine regularly for refilling the cooler, mixing drinks, etc… If we’re down south in the heat a plastic/ziploc bag with ice is great for cooling down too.
Come to think of it, I don’t think I’ve ever used the iron, in fact, I don’t think I’ve even hung anything in the closet or put any clothes in the dresser either.
I don’t think I’ve ever used a hotel ice machine. Obviously I’m in the minority.
I’ve stayed in plenty of hotels. I’ve never used the ice machine or the ironing board and I don’t turn on the tv. That said, I’m not perplexed as to why people might use them. I guess I have a well developed imagination.
I use them, but I take care to use the little plastic liner they provide. You really don’t know how long they go between washes of the bucket and you don’t know what germs might live in there.
If you’re germaphobic, don’t think about how long it’s been since the ice maker was cleaned out and properly sterilized. Probably never.
Same is true for ice makers in bars, restaurants, fast food places, etc.
I usually try to book rooms with mini-fridges, but I still use the ice machines. The mini-fridge just doesn’t get stuff that cold. And a bucket of ice can get your beer or soft drinks really cold. On hot summer days sometimes stores will put out a big cooler with ice, water and soft drinks. Customers love them, because the drinks are really cold.
The last time I was in a Holiday Inn Express, I didn’t have an opportunity to buy an evening snack before I checked in. So I had seen the complimentary coffee bar and thought “A cup of hot chocolate will do nicely”. So later that evening I went to the coffee bar to make my hot chocolate and they were out of hot water. So I discovered if you make hot chocolate mix with coffee instead of water it’s really good.
But here is my question. I’m not much of a world traveler, but I’m under the impression that the ice machine/soda machine in hotels is an American convention. Because I’ve never seen them while traveling outside of the states and I miss them. But then again, my travel experience outside the US is limited to a handful of trips to Mexico and Central America. So, do you guys typically see ice machines in hotels outside the US?
I don’t use those little bottles of skin or hair conditioner they have in motels/hotels and I’ve never seen anyone use them, therefore nobody does and they’re a waste. :dubious:
I use the ice machine practically every time I stay in a motel.
For me it’s more like the mini-fridges’ range is never very adjustable, but the specific temperature of any given fridge is variable. Some are just in the right range to cool food and drink (while not giving ice), some are slightly too warm, while others will freeze everything solid no matter what you set them to.
I am with the few others that have never used the ice machine and have always wondered who did. It sounds like if you are not bringing in warm soft drinks/beer, making mixed drinks, needing to fill a cooler, or needing to keep the kidneys fresh, then you wouldn’t ever need ice in a hotel. I guess I am one of the lucky (unlucky?) few.
You had an ice machine in your room? I bet that was noisy.
You must have missed the caffe mocha phase of the late 80’s early 90s. A lot of bars and restaurants served it as just 50/50 coffee and hot chocolate.
Yeah, never read your local restaurant inspection reports. LOTS of citations for disgusting ice machines.
A buddy owns a bar and a restaurant located about a block away from each other. He keeps the ice-maker at the bar and has an employee wheel a huge cooler back and forth so that the restaurant has ice. He does this to avoid having the ice-maker from being subject to inspection.
The one at the bar doesn’t have to be inspected?
The restaurant inspectors never question the source of the ice?
I’d rather have a fridge than an ice machine, but these are not always available; or are so crammed with overpriced items they have little free space.
Anyway, I like and usually use the hotel machines. I don’t always drink alcohol when I travel, but drinking makes the machine even more useful.