Hotel (Holiday Inn) Wifi or pay as you go dongle?

nick_f · 09-03-2010, 20:57

Hey all got to stay in Holiday Inn on business, does anyone know what they charge for wifi?

Whats the cheapest way to get online with no contract basically?

DocDutch · 09-03-2010, 21:15

I would say a Pay as you go dongle really....wireless in hotels can be really expensive.

Halcyon · 09-03-2010, 21:27

From what I can see some hotels charge an initial fee of about Â£4.00 whilst others offer free wifi in the lounge/lobby area.

Which Holiday Inn hotel will you be at?

nick_f · 09-03-2010, 21:28

hey thanks for fast reply,

warrington holiday inn if that helps

Turkey Machine · 09-03-2010, 21:46

Mobile broadband dongle, if you have one on contract it's a bonus, otherwise a cheap PAYG one to tide you over should suffice. Check signal coverage in the area before buying though. If you do stay in hotels for business a lot, it's ultimately the cheapest way to go.

Halcyon · 09-03-2010, 21:55

From the website it says the following:

Wireless Data Connection
Initial Fee: Â£5.00
Service Provider: IBAHN

nick_f · 09-03-2010, 21:57

thanks for the advice, so which is the best mobile bb provider?

---------- Post added at 20:57 ---------- Previous post was at 20:56 ----------

Quote:

Originally Posted by Halcyon

From the website it says the following:

Wireless Data Connection
Initial Fee: Â£5.00
Service Provider: IBAHN

yeah just seen that bit confused what it means

09-03-2010, 22:11

Quote:

Originally Posted by nick_f

yeah just seen that bit confused what it means

It usually means there is an initial charge for a time limited connection & then further charges per hour or whatever will apply.

You may find that getting on-line in your room will cost money, but sometimes the hotel 'public' areas have a free connection - depends on the hotel, though.

Previously I would have recommended Vodafone for a PAYG dongle as their top ups (effectively) didn't expire, but I believe that has changed.

AFAIK PAYG deals don't do roaming & can only be used in the UK.

danielf · 09-03-2010, 22:16

Quote:

Originally Posted by gazfan

Previously I would have recommended Vodafone for a PAYG dongle as their top ups (effectively) didn't expire, but I believe that has changed.

I was just looking into this, and you are correct. Credit on the old style dongles still doesn't expire, but you need to log in once every 3 months rather than 6 as it used to be. Credit on the new dongles expires after one month.

jrhnewark · 10-03-2010, 00:53

Well, it expires on some after 30 days but not on others. Depends on the provider - check before you buy.

From staying in a lot of hotels on business and pleasure last year, there's a lot to take into account:

a) will you be staying somewhere urban or rural?
b) does it matter if you want to access in the room or somewhere public?
c) are you paying for it?!

For a, if it's somewhere rural, make sure you check the local phone signal on that provider is 3G.

If you need it in your room, again, check there'll be 3G and if not you'll have to pay for hotel wi-fi.

If your company will pay for it, go for the easiest option!

In practise, I go for a mix of these things. I immediately look for hotels with free wi-fi (as I think it's only fair these days), and if I can find one that fits the bill and has that I use my 3G dongle.

danielf · 10-03-2010, 01:06

Quote:

Originally Posted by jrhnewark

Well, it expires on some after 30 days but not on others. Depends on the provider - check before you buy.

When I last looked into this (slightly under a year ago), Vodafone was the only provider that had a non-expiring PAYG option (they just had a log in once every 180 (now 90) days or lose your credit condition). They have since withdrawn this option, and I don't think other providers have this option. There are some sellers on ebay that still sell the non-expiring dongle, but it's fleabay, so you take your chances.

jrhnewark · 10-03-2010, 01:36

Quote:

Originally Posted by danielf

When I last looked into this (slightly under a year ago), Vodafone was the only provider that had a non-expiring PAYG option (they just had a log in once every 180 (now 90) days or lose your credit condition). They have since withdrawn this option, and I don't think other providers have this option. There are some sellers on ebay that still sell the non-expiring dongle, but it's fleabay, so you take your chances.

Well, I thought that Vodafone was the only one that did it, but a lass in Carphone Warehouse persuaded me quite reasonably the other day that O2 can now also do it and also T-Mobile, but it depends on what you buy.

No idea if there's any truth in it!

Raistlin · 10-03-2010, 01:42

In the Holiday Inn that I'm staying in tonight:

Â£6.50 for 60 minutes access / 200Mb download

or

Â£15 for 24 hours access

jrhnewark · 10-03-2010, 02:21

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rob M

Â£15 for 24 hours access

That's what really gets on my chest - that's a reasonable figure to pay for fast broadband for a MONTH in the non-hotel world.

Sorry, but when you've paid good money for the room, reasonable priced internet access should be expected.

The only place I would let off that is Travelodge - the Ryanair of hotels.

Pauls9 · 10-03-2010, 10:49

Travelodge with internet access? You're winding us up, aren't you?