{"id":1434942,"date":"2020-03-03T16:11:56","date_gmt":"2020-03-03T22:11:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.tasteofhome.com\/?p=1434942"},"modified":"2024-09-30T11:09:58","modified_gmt":"2024-09-30T16:09:58","slug":"heres-the-real-reason-hotels-have-ice-machines","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.tasteofhome.com\/article\/heres-the-real-reason-hotels-have-ice-machines\/","title":{"rendered":"Here&#8217;s the Real Reason Hotels Have Ice Machines"},"content":{"rendered":"Most hotel rooms have things like fresh sheets, blackout curtains, a Bible and free ice machines. Although the last one might seem like a random amenity, ice machines have a special place in hotel history and American culture.\r\n\r\nThe free ice trend is mostly thanks to\u00a0Kemmons Wilson, the founder of Holiday Inn, which was the first hotel to offer guests free access to ice machines, according to <a href=\"https:\/\/slate.com\/human-interest\/2015\/08\/why-are-there-ice-machines-in-so-many-hotels.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Slate<\/a>. Wilson introduced these machines in his hotels after staying at competing hotels that charged high prices for ice\u2014yes, people had to pay for every cube. As the\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/business.time.com\/2012\/08\/01\/how-holiday-inn-changed-the-way-we-travel\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Holiday Inn\u00a0franchises<\/a>\u00a0spread, the free ice trend spread across the country, too. This love of ice, however, didn't really extend across the pond.\r\n\r\nWilson is just one example of how much Americans love ice. At one point it was an expensive luxury good, but as ice became more plentiful and less costly, more and more people had a hankering for cold drinks, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.epicurious.com\/expert-advice\/why-ice-cubes-are-popular-in-america-history-freezer-frozen-tv-dinners-article\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Epicurious<\/a> reports.\u00a0Before refrigerators and freezers, people also only had <a href=\"https:\/\/americanhistory.si.edu\/blog\/ice-harvesting-electric-refrigeration\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">ice boxes<\/a> requiring a large block of ice to keep food cool and prevent it from spoiling. Keeping up with ice demand is pricey for hotels, so when ice machines came along, hotels were some of the first customers, per Slate. The machines not only make it easy for customers to get their own ice, but they also keep costs down for hotels, too. In a few years, these hotel amenities might not exist.\r\n\r\nYou could always switch to these <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tasteofhome.com\/collection\/best-airbnb-kitchens\/\">Airbnb rentals with gorgeous kitchens<\/a>.","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>There&#8217;s one person, in particular, you should probably thank for ice machines in hotels. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7378,"featured_media":1434946,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ep_exclude_from_search":false,"footnotes":""},"tags":[303797,303859],"categories-v2":[308432,308465],"coauthors":[146124],"acf":{"ncv_override_generic_settings_option":false,"ncv_autoplay_option":"","ncv_stickyplay_option":"","ncv_ads_option":"","ncv_mute_option":"","ncv_comscore_option":"","ncv_moat_option":"","ncv_autoplay_mobile_option":"","ncv_viewable_threshold_option":"","ncv_sticky_offset_option":"","ncv_autopause_option":"","ncv_sticky_offset_mobile_option":"","ncv_autopause_mobile_option":"","ncv_sticky_mobile_option":"","ncv_remove_player_option":false,"long_pin":"","long_pin_file":false},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v23.3 (Yoast SEO v23.3) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Here&#039;s the Real Reason Hotels Have Ice Machines | Taste Recipes<\/title>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\t\n\t\n\t\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Here's the Real Reason Hotels Have Ice Machines | Taste Recipes","description":"Many hotels have free ice machines for guests, which comes in handy for drinks and coolers. 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