So what's the trick with Destination Charging?

[supratachophobia]

After a very successful Destination Charger installed in my local office park, I got to thinking that I should look at the places where I do mid-distance travel and see if those locations would be as interested as I was in free charging hardware from Tesla. I've been really surprised on the reluctance to take advantage of the program and I wanted to see if there was some trick to getting people excited and on-board with the idea.

The very general consensus is that these decision makers see no current or future value in attracting EV business to their location based on their conception (rightfully so in some areas) that electric vehicles aren't that popular. I'm not a salesman, I just see value in trading my business with other businesses where I can get a quick splash of electricity in pinch, or better yet, stick around longer and spend more money.

 

[Doug_G]

I tell hotels I can't stay there unless they have EV charging. There's enough competition that I can go elsewhere

 

[thegruf]

I tell hotels I can't stay there unless they have EV charging. There's enough competition that I can go elsewhere

I actually did just that with a hotel I use on occasion, sent them a link on destination charging, and they responded by saying they would definitely look into it. win-win.

 

[ecarfan]

I tell hotels I can't stay there unless they have EV charging. There's enough competition that I can go elsewhere

Every time my wife and I take a trip in our S we ask if EV charging is available at a hotel, motel, or house we are considering renting. We do it on purpose to raise awareness. Much of the time the person we are speaking too either does not know what an "EV" is (we have to say "electric car" for them to understand) or they don't even know if charging is available at their establishment or not. Sometimes they do know. Occasionally that information is available online so we don't need to ask but we do anyway to confirm it is operational.

 

[justg0]

i just went on a trip and had asked the hotel front desk on the phone if they had EV charging and they said yes. When reaching there, I could not find it. So when I asked again, they said they have outlets in the room. After some confusion, it turned out they were thinking i was asking about iPhone charging

Luckily there was as supercharger nearby and I had enough charge to get to it!

 

[Loden Hotel]

Hello....there's no trick at all.

We have been Tesla enthusiasts since having the opportunity to display the Roadster at our front door in 2010 and installing our first two High Powered Wall Connectors in 2012.

We wish to welcome travelers visiting or passing by Vancouver British Columbia in the beautiful Pacific Northwest. BEV guests staying with us automatically have complimentary valet parking and connection to our Wall Connectors with up to 16 kW of power. Best part is not having to queue in line as we just expanded our offering to cover 8 parking stalls (including a ChargePoint J1772 connector).

If you wish to discover more click here www.theloden.com/ev-charging/

Cheers

 

[CuriousG]

The trick is to get there before the other guy so they don't hoard the charger and leave it plugged in the whole time then you don't have to leave a nasty note.

 

[ecobon]

The trick is to get there before the other guy so they don't hoard the charger and leave it plugged in the whole time then you don't have to leave a nasty note.

Many places that have destination charging will require that the circuit be turned on. This is usually done by walking to the front desk and asking them to do so--at least the ones that indicate "for patrons".

Wouldn't it be nice if the person at the front desk request that they customer leave a phone number or their key so that the vehicle can be relocated after 4 hours (if someone else is waiting)? It would keep most (but not all) happier... "you are only willing to give me 4 hours when I could keep my car parked at the other place for 3 days straight while I fly to a different city and back?"

 

[f-stop]

As I mentioned this in some other thread... I make sure to let establishments that provide EV charging know that I appreciate them doing so, and that supporting EV-owning customers is good for their business. It seems more and more businesses are recognizing this, and hopefully competition will spread it further.

e.g. I took a road trip to California in my Model S this past fall. I specifically chose a hotel at my final destination that had 2 Tesla HPWC chargers (and self-parking), based on my search on Plugshare. I made a point of thanking the front desk staff for providing the chargers and mentioned I specifically chose their hotel because of the chargers (the rest of the hotel turned out to be great, too). I also mentioned the same in a customer feedback survey and got email after that from the hotel manager. I think the hotel appreciated their destination chargers are a valuable amenity to offer.

On a separate road trip closer to home, I visited some nearby wineries - a couple of them had EV chargers. At one small winery we visited, coincidentally the other customers there at the same time arrived in a Chevy Volt - so there were our two electric cars in the parking lot. I spoke with a couple employees and discovered they had a couple marked EV parking spots, though with only 120V outlets and the spaces were out of sight in an employee area of the lot, not in the front customer lot. I mentioned to them that it would be better to put the EV spots out front, and they agreed it was a good idea - they also mentioned they were already thinking to install 240V circuits. I took a few photos and created a Plugshare entry for the location - hopefully they'll follow through with the 240V outlets someday.