Lately the discussion around hotel internet fees has been so inflamed you might think evil dictators and flagrant human rights violations were involved. Among the decriers is Wired UK editor David Rowan, who accuses hotels of “unbridled profiteering” and urges travelers to “join the war on paying for hotel Wi-Fi”.

Like many hoteliers, I have two minds on the issue. As a traveler, I naturally want free Wi-Fi. I want it reliable and at lightning speed. But I also want free breakfast, massages and late-night mini-bar rampages.

As a hotelier, I understand that quality and convenience come at a price. Hotels are in business to make a profit. We’re just really bad at it.

Contrary to popular belief, hotel managers don’t sit around twirling our moustaches and conspiring over ways to cheat and deceive travelers. We leave that to the airlines. We loathe internet fees too. When I was a GM, each year we started budget season determined to abolish internet charges. But we could never figure out how to offset the loss in revenue. There’s a special place in the unemployment line for managers who submit budgets to ownership proposing a decrease in revenues.

And the backlash was never as severe as we feared. Most travelers take internet fees in stride. Some don’t notice them—the rich, the blind, travelers on expense accounts. Others find them irritating but tolerable. Only a small minority finds internet fees as heinous as child slavery and tribal honor killings.  Continue reading →