Hotel snacks can be expensive, so a TikToker’s mother spilled the tea about how she gets hotel snacks for free while traveling.
TikTok user Julia (@thejuliabaird) said her mother always arranges something special for her while she’s traveling through the hotels she stays at. For example, when traveling to Vancouver, Canada, for work, Julia’s mother called the hotel and had it put together a gift basket for Julia. “Literally from my mom, for free,” Julia exclaimed while showing off the goods, including Pellegrino sparkling water and Smartfood Popcorn.
“If you or your mom isn’t calling the hotel every single time you travel, you’re doing something wrong,” Julia continued.
In a follow-up video, Julia shared her mom’s secrets.
“OK, mom. The internet wants to know what you say to get free hotel snacks,” she said in the follow-up, talking to her mom.
Her mom said she calls the hotel and builds rapport with the employees who answer.
“[I] tell them a little bit about myself and who I would like to send a little gift to,” she explained. “And just see if there is anything that they can do to help make the stay a little more special for the person.”
Her mother doesn’t outright ask for free stuff; she instead just asks “if they can do something.”
“You don’t get it if you don’t ask,” Julia’s mother encouraged.
“We’re at a hotel right now, and they left us a bottle of Prosecco and some really adorable chocolates,” she said, revealing that her mother’s advice is sound.
“That’s all. That’s the script,” Julia concluded.
@thejuliabaird Replying to @Zoe 🫶🏼 Mama knows best! Should i share more of her hotel/travelling tips?! #hotelhacks #travelhacks #hoteltips #traveltipsandhacks ♬ original sound – Julia
The Daily Dot reached out to Julia via Instagram direct message and TikTok comment. Her video racked up 135,000 views, and alleged former hotel workers weighed in on the mother’s method.
“I used to work at a hotel and would give out the free snacks/waters to whoever asked for one or whoever was nice to me so this def works lol,” one viewer confirmed.
“I worked at a hotel and we picked each day someone to build a VIP gift basket for. it was usually someone celebrating an event or being kind to staff,” a second concurred.
“When I worked in a hotel we would always have different snacks ordered to make bags and put in the rooms for stuff like this,” a third stated.
In addition, others shared how they have successfully done this before.
“My hotel that I went to on the seacoast of New Hampshire, made a heart swan and went and bought fresh flowers for my wife’s birthday:) all I had to do was ask,” one user recalled.
“Whenever I book, I always tell them why we’re booking (anniversary, birthday, etc) and they have always left us something too, usually chocolate or cake, one time souvenir champagne glasses,” a second shared.
The internet is chaotic—but we’ll break it down for you in one daily email. Sign up for the Daily Dot’s web_crawlr newsletter here to get the best (and worst) of the internet straight into your inbox.