Tuesday, January 26, 2010

Sign of the times

It's hard to criticize a hotel that gives you a warm welcome, complimentary drink, a Hershey Bar with Almonds, and an upgrade to a large two room suite.

The hotel even had signs in all the the hotel elevators stating that floors other than the lobby are designated quiet zones. It politely reminded guests that other guests may be on different sleeping schedules. How considerate. Usually the signs are in the corridors. It's nice to warn guests in advance so they can go back down to the lobby if they feel the need to make noise after they arrive. It might just save them a trip.

The Crowne Plaza West Palm Beach in West Palm Beach, Florida seemed to have it all.

But... (yes, there has to be a "but" here.) You know that old saying about too good to be true? Well, this wonderful hotel had everything but quiet. Apparently no one reminded the nearby airport that the hotel guests had varied sleeping schedules.

Now, I booked this hotel knowing it was an airport hotel. I stay in airport hotels a lot because, well, mostly because they're close to airports. It's convenient.

Typically I don't mind the noise because there is usually a fan in the room that blocks everything out, and I travel with ear plugs just in case. But there was no fan in the room. Without a fan in the room even the earplugs didn't block out all the sound. I listened to airplanes well into the night.

Lack of sleep is not a good thing. It might keep me from staying in this lovely hotel again. What a shame.

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