Whatever Happened to Manners in Luxury Hotels?

I grew up in a household where elbows on the table were not an option. Holding your knife and fork incorrectly would elicit: "Are you going to war or eating your dinner?" You did not speak with your mouth full. You did not interrupt. You said please and thank you. You waited your turn. You dressed properly when the occasion required it. None of this was presented as grand sophistication. It was simply how one behaved.

For a long time, I thought manners were part of the quiet foundation of luxury travel. Not etiquette in the absurd sense, not knowing which fork to use for asparagus, but the simple awareness that one is not alone in the world. In a hotel, especially a good one, this matters. A luxury hotel is not a private villa. It is a shared stage, and one badly behaved guest can ruin the atmosphere faster than a bad sofa or an overcooked omelette

I have been thinking about this a great deal recently, because bad manners now seem to travel very well.