It’s no secret that the hotel room minibar has peaked in popularity and is disappearing from more and more hotel rooms. Guests are bringing their own drinks and snacks or just drinking the vodka and replacing it with water.

Minibars are expensive to fill, time-consuming and not as much the profit-center as they once were. Several major hotel chains have decided they’re simply not worth the time, hassle, risk or expense.

So what can hotels put in place of the minibar?

One thing that many guests find useful about the minibar is simply the fact that it is in-room refrigeration. So why not give guests more of that - many properties have found it practical to put medium-sized refrigerators in guest rooms in place of minibars.

Whether it’s a bar fridge or an actual medium-sized fridge, such as you would put in your spare room or garage, or even a full-size refrigerator, it might make sense for you to offer your guests a place to store their food instead of trying to tempt them into minibar purchases.

You can select refrigerators that fit with different room furnishings and decor, such as glass door fridges, stainless steel and other styles.

Wine chambers are also in more and more hotel rooms, especially in properties around wine country or places that cater to more long-term guests. Good chambers hold half a dozen or more wine bottles and can be greatly appreciated.

Or simply keep your old minibar units in the rooms, but let guests know it’s now for their use. Certain guests are now so conditioned not to even open the minibar that they probably won’t know unless you tell them.