Travel & Hotspots

HOTEL SECRETS YOU HADN’T HEARD OF YET

One of my best friends has worked in the hotel business for years and she was a PR rep for well-known hotels that always catered to a bunch of celebs. The other day while we were sipping on some wine, she spilled all the beans about the ins and outs of hotels and she had me hanging on every last word. Afterwards I decided to look for more fun facts and lo and behold, I bet you didn’t know about these now did you?

Tripadvisor

It’s the most important thing there is for large, well-known hotels. Every morning the reviews from the previous day are read and answered (every single one of them), and if they had something negative to say it is taken in with the morning staff meeting.

Book directly

I always book through booking websites, but a lot of hotels pay up to 30% commission to these websites, so the hotels prefer for you to book straight through them. And you can probably get a discount out of it this way too.

Checking in

If you’re check-in is reserved for 14:00 and you arrive at 11:00, you can’t expect the room to just be ready then and there. There’s a whole system and planning and seeing as your room isn’t the only one in the hotel, you better stick to the arranged check-in times.

Upgrade

If you’re hoping for a free upgrade, you should ask the desk clerk when there’s nobody in earshot of your convo. This is when you have the best chance of scoring a bigger room for close to nada.

Requests

The reception is busiest between 09:00 en 13:00 o’clock because most people check in during these times. If you have a special request, it would be wise to do so outside of these hours. They will have more time for you and thus will be less inclined to shoot your request down.

Breakfast

Breakfast hardly costs anything, but it is the most important aspect, namely because it’s the last experience that a customer has at the hotel before he or she leaves. If the breakfast is great, it will benefit the customer review.

Negotiate

Almost anything is negotiable. Ask for free breakfast, free internet, etc.

Be loyal

Large and important hotels such as the Waldorf know exactly who you are prior to your arrival. If you’re an important person (you don’t even have to be famous), they’ll put a star behind your name and it’ll ensure that the staff knows your name, address you with it and remember your preferences from previous stays. And that pays off. Come back to hotels and build a bond with them. This way, you’ll get better service with each stay and possibly even a nice little discount.