High-end hotels give departing guests a gift

An in-room amenity to welcome guests, such as a bottle of Champagne or a fruit plate, is standard at many high-end hotels, but some properties are also giving their guests a gift at checkout.

At Glenmere Mansion, a Relais & Chateaux property in Chester, N.Y., guests are sent off with a goodie bag that includes bottled water and an edible such as a jar of house-made jam or baked goods like scones. The Lodge at Glendorn in Bradford, Pa., has customized departure gifts. Fly fishers, for instance, get a tackle box with handmade flies and food lovers leave with a jar of honey made by the bees on the property and a freshly baked loaf of bread.

Twin Farms in Barnard, Vt., presents guests with a ceramic dish made by Miranda Thomas Pottery, a local studio, while Palazzo Avino in Ravello, Italy, gives a can of whole tomatoes that come from the Avino family’s operation on the Amalfi Coast.

At the Jumeirah Port Soller Hotel & Spa in Majorca, Spain, the take-home is a locally made straw tote bag for adults and wood and cotton clogs for children.

Properties are also giving gifts to spa and restaurant customers. Spagoers at the Park Hyatt New York in Manhattan get a jar of Epsom salt that’s infused with the oil blend used in their treatment. Diners at the restaurant Salt at the Ritz-Carlton, Amelia Island in Florida, known for the 40 different salts offered tableside, get a sample of salt and a bag of salted caramels.

This recent emphasis on the takeaway is a way for travelers to remember the hotel, according to Misty Ewing, director of public relations for the luxury travel network Virtuoso.

“By taking home a little piece of the experience, it ends the stay with an exclamation point rather than a period,” she said.