Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

The Mystery of the Missing Hotel Toothpaste (2013)

slate.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

61–70 of 116 posts

Re: The Mystery of the Missing Hotel Toothpaste (2013)

#61

Post by icantdrive55 »

bostonpete wrote: post #38
caseymarquis wrote: post #26

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Nope. Same deal. I'd probably pay about $5 more a night in exchange for toothpaste being provided. I'll be on the hunt for Hyatt now that I know it's standard there.

You'd pay $5 more a night to avoid having to buy an extra tube of toothpaste at the store every once in a while? Sometimes, I feel like I'm so cavalier about spending money that my depression-era grandparents must be rolling in their graves, but then when I see comments like this, it makes me feel much more frugal. ;-)

I'm from the same era, and as I've gotten older I'm much more frugal. My decised father was psychotically frugal.

I'm different than my father, but we definetly don't give hard earned money away. Now easily made money I usually spend freely.

Tooth paste--prescription grade, and use pea size amount. (Not out of cheapness--just don't want to give a dentist any money. ) Hair cutting--Flobee. Car breaks down--pull out the tools. Plumbing problems--one day at a garage sale I bought a 4' monkey wrench. I've actually used it. Emotional upset--drink. Need new clothes--pull out sewing machine, and custom fit cheap clothes. Eat out--specifical occasions. Buy Men's hair color to hide getting older in this ageist society--walk right over to women hair color and buy brown 51 for $2.99. The only item I splurge on is a certain glycerine soap. (I have thought about making my own, and might if I can obtain Neutrigenia's propriatiry formula?)

And I would never tell a date/most people any of this. When socializing, I'm a phoney spendthrift, and when it came to my pets money was never an option. I would pay anything to make them healthy/happy. Years later I was talking to a vet I befriended, and he said they have a office subscript for guy's like me--it's WPA. (Will pay anything). I remember being bothered, but their health was my priority, even when I was broke. They all passed, but I have no guilt over their care.

Re: The Mystery of the Missing Hotel Toothpaste (2013)

#62

Post by nemo44x »

achow wrote: post #31
Doctor_Fegg wrote: post #23

A thousand times amen to this. At home I share a tube of toothpaste with my wife: if we go on holiday together, we bring the tube with us. If I'm travelling solo, for business or whatever, then the home toothpaste stays at home, so I need to remember to buy a new tube to take with me. It's the only thing I need to expressly purchase other than the hotel room booking. This can't be that unusual a scenario... can it?

For years I had wondered about this toothpaste conundrum; as the author points out it is in fact one of the important toiletry component if not the most important (for me personally actually it is). I made up a theory that it has to be sourcing problem. Toothpaste is one thing that you don’t hear small supplier making on their own - I get to hear all the time about handcrafted artisan soaps, conditioner, shampoos etc…

They have packets available. You get 2 or 3 uses from them. Every major hotel brand I've stayed at has them for free if you just ask the front desk.

Re: The Mystery of the Missing Hotel Toothpaste (2013)

#63

Post by tuna-piano »

caseymarquis wrote: post #26
Doctor_Fegg wrote: post #23

A thousand times amen to this. At home I share a tube of toothpaste with my wife: if we go on holiday together, we bring the tube with us. If I'm travelling solo, for business or whatever, then the home toothpaste stays at home, so I need to remember to buy a new tube to take with me. It's the only thing I need to expressly purchase other than the hotel room booking. This can't be that unusual a scenario... can it?

Nope. Same deal. I'd probably pay about $5 more a night in exchange for toothpaste being provided. I'll be on the hunt for Hyatt now that I know it's standard there.

I'm not sure this Hyatt thing is true? I recently stayed at a Hyatt and didn't see toothpaste in the room. Maybe their spokesman misinterpreted for "standard in room" and "available upon request"

Re: The Mystery of the Missing Hotel Toothpaste (2013)

#64

Post by mercer »

copperx wrote: post #53
careersuicide wrote: post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> risks offending users of a "higher" or competing brand I strongly suspect that I am not alone in the stubbornness of my toothpaste preference. I will grudgingly use a different shampoo if I have to as most shampoos don't have too strong of a smell. In any given day I use probably 3 to 6 different soaps, with only the one in my house being my preference (mmmmmmmm coconut ginger) so using some random soap at a hotel…

I feel like an alien after reading your comment. I will gladly use any soap, shampoo, or toothpaste as long as it's free. I have never met someone as picky as you say you are with your toothpaste. I don't think you're the norm in any way.

For what it's worth, I'm sort of in between the both of you, and I know a number of people like myself: I almost always make sure to bring my own toothpaste, but I'll begrudgingly use someone else's if necessary.

But similar to the previous poster, I (and the people similar to myself) don't have this at all with soap or shampoo.

Re: The Mystery of the Missing Hotel Toothpaste (2013)

#65

Post by mercer »

Doctor_Fegg wrote: post #23

A thousand times amen to this. At home I share a tube of toothpaste with my wife: if we go on holiday together, we bring the tube with us. If I'm travelling solo, for business or whatever, then the home toothpaste stays at home, so I need to remember to buy a new tube to take with me. It's the only thing I need to expressly purchase other than the hotel room booking. This can't be that unusual a scenario... can it?

Yup, same here (without the wife). I always make sure to have both a normal and travel sized tube of my preferred toothpaste. OTOH I don't really care about soap or shampoo.

Re: The Mystery of the Missing Hotel Toothpaste (2013)

#66

Post by jdminhbg »

_JamesA_ wrote: post #44
vinchuco wrote: post #5

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There is a wonderful podcast series dedicated to your question http://99percentinvisible.org

Speaking of 99 Percent Invisible - that podcast makes the entertainment system in my car reboot when played. It ends up in a cycle of play a few seconds, reboot, play, etc, until I change to another podcast. No other podcast or any other source causes this issue.

I recently read an article that said that most podcasts don't use VBR encoding for MP3s because there are some players that don't handle it correctly; maybe 99% Invisible does and your car system is crashing because of it?

Re: The Mystery of the Missing Hotel Toothpaste (2013)

#67

Post by Al-Khwarizmi »

wodenokoto wrote: post #34
achow wrote: post #31

Earlier quoted context omitted.

For years I had wondered about this toothpaste conundrum; as the author points out it is in fact one of the important toiletry component if not the most important (for me personally actually it is). I made up a theory that it has to be sourcing problem. Toothpaste is one thing that you don’t hear small supplier making on their own - I get to hear all the time about handcrafted artisan soaps, conditioner, shampoos etc…

But they have already set up manufacturing for such tubes for Hotels in Europe and Asia, so it should only make sense that they would want to sell more of these. Emirates also supplies a toothbrush and toothpaste on long flights in a nice little toilet bag, even for economy passengers. These things are everywhere, except apparently American Hotels.

FYI in at least some European countries it's the same. In my recent stays at hotels in Spain and Belgium the situation is just as the article describes for American hotels: you get all kinds of situational or barely useful stuff like shower cap, shoehorn, conditioner, etc.; and no toothpaste. And I have always thought it doesn't makes sense and wondered about the reason, like the post's author.

I think it was the same in other European countries where I stayed, but my memory isn't good enough to be sure. In Asia I have always found toothpaste in hotels though.

Re: The Mystery of the Missing Hotel Toothpaste (2013)

#68

Post by silencio »

IANAD wrote: post #24

Some years ago I went on a cruise and they provided a name-brand toothpaste, and iirc a hotel in UK or Europe provided toothpaste on my stay. I was excited each time I received it. A Sheraton I visited recently provided a packet of shave cream. It smelled of horrible medicine and it didn't protect my face at all during shaving; in fact, I determined over two days that using it had been worse than not at all. Note tha…

Have you ever tried using hair conditioner instead of shaving cream? I prefer conditioner even at home. I never get enough shaving cream for my legs, if I even get one that doesn't smell "manly", so I always just pack extra conditioner.

Re: The Mystery of the Missing Hotel Toothpaste (2013)

#69

Post by mattnewport »

Doctor_Fegg wrote: post #23

A thousand times amen to this. At home I share a tube of toothpaste with my wife: if we go on holiday together, we bring the tube with us. If I'm travelling solo, for business or whatever, then the home toothpaste stays at home, so I need to remember to buy a new tube to take with me. It's the only thing I need to expressly purchase other than the hotel room booking. This can't be that unusual a scenario... can it?

As mentioned in the article, most hotels will send up a free tube of toothpaste if you phone reception and request one. The same is true for a number of other 'essentials' you may forget that aren't provided by default such as shaving kits and sometimes even phone chargers.

Re: The Mystery of the Missing Hotel Toothpaste (2013)

#70

Post by dingaling »

mpclark wrote: post #49
careersuicide wrote: post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> risks offending users of a "higher" or competing brand I strongly suspect that I am not alone in the stubbornness of my toothpaste preference. I will grudgingly use a different shampoo if I have to as most shampoos don't have too strong of a smell. In any given day I use probably 3 to 6 different soaps, with only the one in my house being my preference (mmmmmmmm coconut ginger) so using some random soap at a hotel…

So this is a really valuable marketing opportunity for toothpaste manufacturers, a rare switching opportunity. Here's a chance to get a guest to try their brand of toothpaste, in a market where driving change is difficult. They should be giving little tubes to hotel chains -- and very soon even paying the hotels to stock their brand.

I'm a total toothpaste-tart because of those little tubes; I'll use whatever comes along. My dentist receives them by the boxload, presumably as promotional items from the various manufacturers vying for recommendation, and dumps them in a crate at reception for free distribution.

So every six months I stock-up on a cocktail of various toothpastes and just use whatever comes out of the bag next.

The only one that was jarring was Corsodyl, and it even had a little chart on the reverse showing that people needed three months ot so to adapt to its taste. I persevered with it because it was free but wouldn't choose it voluntarily.

Post reply on HN