15 Old Hotel Amenities That Have Completely Disappeared
There was a time when checking into a hotel came with a predictable batch of extras. You could count on finding a luggage rack, maybe a paper menu, and if you were lucky, a mint on the pillow. But the industry has moved on, and these once-standard hotel touches have vanished—and chances are, you won’t see them again anytime soon.
Paper Room Service Menus
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Most hotel menus have been swapped out for QR codes or digital menus accessed through the hotel’s apps. It’s more convenient for staff to update, and it reduces paper waste. This doesn’t always sit well with senior travelers who find digitization of menus unnecessary.
Mini Toiletry Bottles
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Those tiny plastic shampoo and lotion bottles were once free souvenirs of every hotel stay. However, with rising environmental concerns, hotel chains like IHG and Marriott have moved toward refillable dispensers in the shower. California even passed a ban on small toiletry bottles in larger hotels.
Mints On The Pillow
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Pillow mints weren’t fancy, but they made you feel looked after. The turndown mint vanished as a casualty of cost-cutting and stricter hygiene rules. Finding one feels more like discovering a hotel relic than a sweet perk.
Sewing Kits
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Forgotten buttons and last-minute wardrobe malfunctions could be saved by an in-room sewing kit, usually tucked beside the shower cap. These mini emergency kits were common throughout the ’90s and early 2000s. However, fewer travelers pack formal wear, and the disposable culture means repairs are rarely made.
Gideon Bibles
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For decades, opening a hotel nightstand drawer meant discovering a Bible placed by The Gideons. The group has distributed over 2 billion worldwide, but placements in U.S. hotels have declined sharply. A 2016 survey by STR found only 48% of hotel rooms included religious materials, compared to 95% a decade earlier.
Bed Scarves And Throw Pillows
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Decorative accents on hotel beds have mostly been stripped away. Bed scarves and excess pillows looked nice in photos but weren’t cleaned regularly, and most guests tossed them on the floor anyway. Modern hotels aim for a cleaner and more practical room setup.
Luggage Racks
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Recent surveys show fewer rooms feature a fold-out luggage rack in the closet or corner, with hotels replacing them with built-in shelves or expecting guests to live out of their suitcase. Guests who miss them are left improvising with chairs—or risking their backs on the floor.
Room Phones For Outside Calls
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The landline next to the bed has become mostly decorative. Calling the front desk still works, but dialing out is rarely used or free. Though they were once a revenue stream, hotel phones for long-distance or outside calls stopped making sense in the age of smartphones.
Business Centers With Computers
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Business centers used to be essential, especially for printing boarding passes or checking email. Yet with Wi-Fi everywhere and travelers carrying their own devices, those desktop stations are already gathering dust. Many hotels have transformed them into grab-and-go snack areas or small lounges.
Standard Minibars
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The classic minibar—with its tiny liquor bottles and overpriced snacks—has mostly disappeared or been gutted. Hotels found them costly to maintain and a common source of disputes over charges. In their place are curated snack boxes, empty fridges, or partnerships with local convenience stores.
Bathtubs in Standard Rooms
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For travelers who enjoyed a soak at the end of the day, this one stings. Bathtubs have vanished from standard hotel rooms, replaced by walk-in showers. Tubs are now reserved mainly for suites or luxury-level accommodations. Most guests are too rushed or too wary to use them anyway.
Free Newspapers Outside The Door
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Declining readership and waste management played a role in reducing the number of morning newspapers in hotels. You can still request one at some hotels, but automatic delivery is essentially a thing of the past. News is already refreshed hourly on phones, too.
Traditional Room Desks
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Bulky wooden desks with swivel chairs and blotters are no longer fixtures in many rooms. Hotels design more flexible spaces—small tables or just a ledge—since many travelers work from the bed or a café. For business guests with laptops and documents, the shift feels cramped.
Printed Under-The-Door Bills
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Most hotels send their bills by email or make them available through their app. Finding your final hotel bill slipped under the door in the early morning used to be standard practice. The change helps reduce paper waste and front desk congestion.
Welcome Fruit Plates
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Checking in once came with a room-temperature plate of apples or bananas, but generic welcome gifts like fruit plates have mostly disappeared. Guests found them impersonal, and hotels saw them go uneaten. These days, properties aiming to impress might offer local treats, curated snacks, or nothing at all.