> The hotel internet did not like multiple devices off the router. It didn’t reject it outright but it throttled or nerfed it.

Curious - what tools would they use to detect this, and what could someone do to work around this?

I hit this once - it was using the TTL. I setup an iptables rule on the router to rewrite TTL and then it worked fine.

I have Wireguard (and OpenVPN off TCP/UDP 443 as backup) on a router connected to residential symmetric 1G fiber. Among the many uses for that means I can watch the NFL (et al.) when abroad just as if I were home; there's WG/OPVN clients for the FireSticks I carry when travelling.

> travel router

What's the difference between that and tethering off your phone?

Possibly ethernet from the cabin wall to the travel router? I haven't ever taken a cruise, but I could imagine that, some hotels have ethernet in their rooms.

Phone-based tethering is not nearly as configurable as a router.

Tethering on an iPhone acts as a simple pass-through of its cellular internet connection over Wi-Fi.

It does not establish a private local area network (LAN) for connected devices to communicate with each other.

The travel router can use an iPhone for internet via tethering, though that iPhone won’t also be able to connect to the network created by the travel router.

The travel router is ~the same as a home WiFi router, but they come with configurations meant for dealing with common issues on the road.