Russell Hannon - December 28, 2023
HOTELS THAT GIVE FREE DRINKS
This ValuePenguin.com survey found travelers who drink spend as much as $380 on alcohol while on vacation. Additionally, 27% of business travelers admitted to binge drinking while traveling for work in this survey.
Although free breakfast and Wi-Fi are often touted as the most valued hotel freebies, free drinks can save you more than the cost of breakfast and Wi-Fi combined. But before you bring your own booze, or buy it retail, there’s a cheaper way to save on alcohol while traveling – stay at hotels that give FREE drinks!
CLICK HERE to hear me list hotels that give free drinks on Calgary 770 News Talk radio.
Due to the pandemic, a number of the following hotels may have temporarily discontinued their evening wine hours. Before booking your stay, check with each individual hotel to see if they are still running their evening wine hour.
Kimpton Hotels
Kimpton estimates to pour 300,000 bottles of wine during free wine hours in a year! Next time you partake in Kimpton’s free wine hour, raise your glass to their founder, Mr. Bill Kimpton, who pioneered the concept of free hotel drinks in 1981 when he launched complimentary wine hours every evening from 5-6pm which Kimpton still does to this day.
Embassy Suites
Every evening, from 5:30pm – 7:30pm, Embassy Suites hosts a complimentary evening reception where they offer free wine, spirits, cocktails and light snacks ranging from nachos, chips, and pretzels.
Canopy by Hilton
Every evening, Canopy hotels has free tastings at their hotel bar, where you can sample local wines, beers and spirits at no cost. Some Canopy hotels keep the free taps flowing for as long 6 hours, from 3pm – 9pm. Click Here for details.
Outrigger Hotels & Resorts (Hawaii):
Get two (2) free alcoholic drinks per day when you book your room here using the promo code FREEDRINKS.
Residence Inn
Mondays through Wednesdays at 6pm, most Residence Inn locations host an ‘RI MIX’ social hour. The free drink selection includes wine (red and white), an assortment of premium beers, and a daily rotating menu of:
- Mondays: Light bites.
- Tuesdays: Off the grill food.
- Wednesdays: Food trucks and wine pairings alternate every other week.
Homewood Suites
Every Monday through Thursday from 5:30pm – 7:30pm, Homewood Suites hosts an evening social where they offer complimentary beverages and appies.
Staybridge Suites
Staybridge hosts a free social happy hour, every Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday where drinks and light snacks are on the house. Click Here for details.
Drury Hotels
- In Pennsylvania: Enjoy one (1) free drink with salad, soup and snacks every evening between 5:30pm – 7pm. Get up to 2 more drinks for 75 cents each. Click Here for details.
- The Saint Louis Pear Tree Inn (near Union Station) gives pretty much everything beyond the room fare for free, including free evening beverages, free parking, free local calls, domestic long distance up to 60 minutes, free hot breakfast, free soda and popcorn, and yes, free Wi-Fi. Click Here for details.
City with Most Hotels that give Free Drinks
New York City
- Click Here for a list of NYC Hotels that offer free wine:
- All Affinia owned hotels in NYC host a daily ‘Social Sips’ wine hour from 5-6pm. If you are a guest at any Affinia hotel, you can attend any 'Social Sips' wine hour any Affinia property in Manhattan. All you need to do is present your key to get in.
West Coast
The Los Angeles Hotel Angeleno
Centrally located on Sunset Boulevard between Santa Monica and Beverly Hills, the Hotel Angeleno hosts a daily free wine hour with complimentary appetizers from 5:30 – 6:30pm. Click Here for details.
FREE Napa Valley Wine Tastings
Regardless of where you stay in Nappa Valley, stop into the Napa Valley Visitor Center. Word is they have a limited number of Free Tasting Coupons for giveaway to visitors who are undecided on what to do.
Las Vegas
Just as free parking has been phased out, casinos are experimenting with ways to restrict free drinks to slot players who spend enough to justify a comp. drink. Some casinos are downloading software to their slot machines that print drink tickets once you’ve played a set amount. Other machines are equipped with a new ‘drink light’ that lights up once you have played enough to qualify for a drink. In the meantime, you can still get free drinks at many Vegas slot machines and at all gaming tables.
Europe & Far East
Far East Hospitality has 70+ hotels throughout Singapore, Malaysia, New Zealand, Australia, Germany, Hungary, and Denmark. They offer FREE evening cocktails in their hotel lounge. Click Here for details at their Quincy Hotel in Singapore.
In Glasgow Scotland, Superior and Executive rooms at the Carleton George Hotel have a stocked minibar full with vodka, gin and whiskey - all FREE to consume. Better yet, executive rooms also grant you access to the Executive Lounge where alcoholic drinks are free from 5pm - 10:45pm.
'ALL YOU CAN DRINK' Tequila Train
Every Saturday morning, the luxurious Jose Cuervo Express departs Guadalajara on route to Tequila, Mexico (yes Tequila is a place). The 11-hour tour offers a range of class experiences, the highest of which includes an open bar, and where the cheapest seats ($176 USD or 2,995 pesos) include a 3-drink tasting:
SOME HOSTELS GIVE FREE DRINKS TOO!
Matt Kiefer of HostelGeeks.com ranks the following hostels as ‘5-star’ hostels for their many features including these free (and super cheap) drink deals:
- STAY Hostel in Rhodes (Greece) has a rooftop patio, massage studio, gym, has loaner Mac PC’s, and gives you a free welcome drink upon check-in! Click Here for details.
- Passenger Hostel (Porto) does not routinely offer free drinks, but during summer they have all day sangria for 1€. If you frequent their bar on Friday and Saturday nights, they’ve been known to pass around free shots. They also have great happy hour deals including beer for 1€, and a glass of Port wine for 2.5€. Click Here for details about the Passenger Hostel.
Up in the Air
In 2018, Southwest Airlines offered free green beer to all legal age passengers flying on St. Patrick’s Day. But that’s not all, according to this USA Today article, Southwest Airlines is also known to send free drink coupons in the following cases:
- 4 free drink tickets once you book four flights in a year.
- Occasionally to newsletter subscribers and Southwest Rapid Rewards card holders.
