Last week I stayed at the Hilton Financial District in San Francisco.  All rooms have free wireless access, as do all public areas. Kudos to them, it is a great hotel. I would recommend it to anyone. This week, I was in Boston and stayed at the Hyatt Harbor Side and they charged me $9.95 for 24 hours of Internet service.  It annoyed me and certainly did not enhance my "guest" experience at the hotel.

A message to all hotels:  Stop charging "guests" for Internet access in rooms, (especially if you want to attract business travelers)  it's like charging for towels, or soap.  I can get free access in thousands of places where I spend little or nothing. Why at a hotel where I am spending hundreds of dollars anyway should I  have to fill out a form and pay, to check my email, or make a reservation at another hotel.  With the emergence of iPhones, and other Internet "appliances", more and more people will expect free wireless access in their hotel rooms.

Some hotels do provide free access in public areas and then charge guests in their rooms.  So in other words,they reward people who just hang out in the lobby or visit (and spend nothing), and penalize their paying guests (who spend a lot). This makes sense, right?

Next time you are charged at a hotel complain to the general manager about Internet charges in your room. Eventually they will stop these nickle and dime charges, enhance their customer experience and become competitive with hotels that have joined the 21st century.