Tips on how to be a good hotel customer

[Jason Tandro]

Some people really irritate me at this job. Some customers just don't get it. Here are some tips to help you survive, and these are all based on actual events.

Making the Reservation

1. Let your host prompt you.

I can't stress this enough. Don't spit out a bunch of information all at once, especially over the phone. Chances are we can't type at 1000 wpm or read minds, and since we have to ask you all this stuff before we enter it anyways, you're likely to just waste your time and (in extreme cases) complain that we "weren't attentive" and that you had to "repeat information".


2. If you're calling over the phone, don't give us your life story.

One of the best things about working in hospitality is meeting people and hearing some interesting stories. Working with people can be a rewarding experience. But please, don't do this to us over the phone. When you come into the hotel, you can see if we're busy or not and you'll usually bow out of your story out of courtesy. Over the phone you have no way of knowing and we're not allowed to tell you to shut up so we can get our work done.


3. Don't quote me rates.

I work at a Best Western. We have HSIA, pool, hot tub, sauna, fitness room, excercise room, guest laundry, vending on each floor, cable television and all the rooms have a fridge, microwave, two sinks, iron, hairdryer and your choice of two full beds or king-size and your choice of Smoking or Non-Smoking rooms. So when I offer you our lowest rate of $59 plus tax, don't quote me the Motel 6's rate. They may be $20 cheaper, but they can't meet our quality. I literally had some guy call me a liar because we didn't have "the best rates in town" as we advertise.


At Check-In

1. Ask Questions

If you're not sure about something, or want to know, check-in is the time to ask me. It's much more annoying to have to deal with a room service call than solve these problems at check-in when you're at the lobby. Especially during the night audit, when the poor guy has to lock everything up before he can leave on a call.


2. Have your payment method, ID and coupons ready.

This just saves us so much hassle, and your host will be thrilled that you've made his/her life easier. It also helps to have your license plate number memorized or written down, because we usually ask for that too.


3. Don't make suggestive comments to the host/hostess.

Don't flirt or hit on me or my co-workers. As charming as you no doubt are, there are some true creepers out there, and it just freaks us out. (You all know the story I'm talking about)



During Your Stay

1. Respect Quiet Hours

Which-in a hotel- is all the time. I have truckers who come in the mid-afternoon and sleep during the day because they have to be up all night. Don't think just because the sun is shining you can be screaming and yelling, and especially don't do it at night.

2. Don't Get Drunk

This is just a common sense thing. I've had drunk girls knocking on every door in the hotel at 3 in the morning trying to find their room. I can't deal with that, and our guests shouldn't have to.

3. Don't Go Outside to Make a Phone Call

People think that by going outside to make their calls, they are being considerate to their neighbors. It is actually much easier to hear somebody outside your door than in an adjoining room.

4. Don't smoke in nonsmoking rooms.

Even if no smoking rooms were available, please don't smoke in a nonsmoking rooms. First off, if we catch you, you're likely to pay a fine, and secondly other guests have to use those rooms who don't have that habit. Some guests even have handicaps or lung disorders like COPD which cigarette smoke, even lingering scents, can trigger. Go outside to smoke if you must.

5. Complain

I know this seems counter-intuitive, but it's better business. If you have a problem, bring it to my attention. That way I can make your stay more enjoyable and you don't end up complaining about your lousy stay at Best Western. According to a study that was performed 87% of guests who didn't enjoy their stay never brought their problems to the attention of the staff.

6. Fill out those guest surveys.

We have a quota we have to fill every month on those little cards. It really helps us! Even if you think we did a lousy job, fill one out and say that!

7. If you can, leave a tip for your housekeeper.

It really makes their day.


At Check-Out

1. Have your payment method ready.

This way we can get you out of here faster, as you're probably in a rush.


2. Don't hand me your keys and then go off to get breakfast.

I hate it when guests do this. Please wait the five minutes it takes to check you out, because I have to have you sign something anyways. Plus odds are if i have other guests who stop in, I won't remember your face when you come back to get a reciept, and then you'll get upset with me.


3. Check out when you are leaving.

Don't check out at breakfast and then qualify it by saying "we're gonna be here until noon though". When I check you out, I assume that our housekeeping staff can get to work cleaning your room.


Some General Tips

1. Wait your turn.

If you see me dealing with somebody, don't butt in when I've stopped talking to write something down with a request, even a small one like needing an internet cable or a card fixed. It's rude and it stumbles me up.


2. Join the Rewards Program

Assuming there's no cost to join, just get signed up for those reward programs. They help your host by allowing him/her to earn incentive points and they may come in handy.


3. Compliment

If you host did a great job, be sure to compliment them via comment card or in person, BY THEIR NAME! Don't just say "the staff was wonderful" if one particular person stood out. Get their name and compliment them because it makes them feel great and it is something that their bosses take note of.

4. [Edit] Keycards are generic.

Hotels that use keycards (i.e 97% of all hotels in the world nowadays) use about the same type. They are programmed by the hosts and do not have any personal information on them. That's why we have the sleeves where we write the number down. So please don't hand me your card and say "checking out" and assume I'll know the number based on that.


Now I don't want you to think I'm just complaining. Here are some things you guys should know too.

1. Unless we specifically say we can't, we can usually give you a lower rate.
The way I operate is I quote you our "standard" rate, something like $80. But then i'll say something like "but i'll tell you what i'll do. I'll give you the triple-A discount" (this is assuming you don't already have triple-A, in which case I go to the next lowest). This is to make you think you're getting a great deal.

But here's a little secret. Most hotels have a "walk rate". It's the rate we quote you if it looks like you're about to leave. It's usually even lower than the military discount which is traditionally the lowest rate.

It goes something like this:

Standard Rate: $84.99
AAA/ CAA: $74.91
AARP: $72.24
Government/ Military: $69.96
Walk Rate: $65.49

(these rates include state and lodging tax).

So that fictional guest could have saved almost $10 by not buying my bullshit.

Also, if you want to go to hell, you could pretend that a family member has just died, and get our "bereavement rate" which is usually a couple bucks cheaper.


2. House Blend is our fancy word for "regular coffee".

Self-explanatory.


3. We have to smile.

But that doesn't mean we don't hate you. We make fun of you when you leave.

4. You'll have a much better stay if you don't think about the fact that statistically speaking at least 6 other couples have had sex in the bed you're sleeping in over the past year.

Based on a report I heard that said that 76% of couples who stay at hotels have sex during their stay.

Anyways, if I think of more, I'll post them here.

[EverPhoenix]

most of that does seem pretty intuitive, but now that ive read it hopefully ill be a slightly more pleasant customer to deal with

[Jason Tandro]

[general tips]

4. [Edit] Keycards are generic.

Hotels that use keycards (i.e 97% of all hotels in the world nowadays) use about the same type. They are programmed by the hosts and do not have any personal information on them. That's why we have the sleeves where we write the number down. So please don't hand me your card and say "checking out" and assume I'll know the number based on that.

[Freedan]

Most of that advice is pretty common sense stuff.

I never knew about the discounts, though. I always figured hotels never mentioned their best rate right off the bat, but I didn't know there was a designated last-ditch effort one.

Also, I demand a mint on my pillow. No, two mints. Good ones. Every fucking night.

[Jason Tandro]

Freedan wrote:

Most of that advice is pretty common sense stuff. I never knew about the discounts, though. I always figured hotels never mentioned their best rate right off the bat, but I didn't know there was a designated last-ditch effort one. Also, I demand a mint on my pillow. No, two mints. Good ones. Every fucking night.

It's interesting that you mention common sense, and then assume a business, even a hospitality business, would do the decent thing that is best for the consumer. 8

But no, hotels exist to make money just as much as other businesses, and we're going to try and make you pay as much as possible. Unethical? No, but it's not nice either.

[inferiare]

Freedan wrote:

Most of that advice is pretty common sense stuff.

That's giving too much credit to those who deny that common sense exists in the world of consumers. It does for a very small portion of people, but for everyone else, it eludes them.

Case in point: I'm at lunch at work. I'm off the clock. I have a sign up saying when I'll return over the button used to call me. People still hit the button, and they'll do it multiple times, usually about 20 minutes before I'm supposed to be back.

No. Common. Sense.

@Jason: So basically, "don't be a bitch, don't be rude, and don't be stupid."

[psychokind]

Quote:

4. You'll have a much better stay if you don't think about the fact that statistically speaking at least 6 other couples have had sex in the bed you're sleeping in over the past year. Based on a report I heard that said that 76% of couples who stay at hotels have sex during their stay.

so you want to say you don't wash the sheets that often?

[chicken]

reminds me:

10 things you should not do, when checking in

and

10 things you should not do, when checking out

its in german but i guess you'll get most of the jokes. this man is a genius HAIL HIM!

[Blade]

tl, dr all of it. But it reminds me of our guesthouse, where we had some funny customers aswell. One group tried to hide an extra guy in one of their rooms, but our cleaningwomen found him. Then he -still- tried to get away without paying anything

And another group checked out uber-early. 2 hours later we found the toilet crashed. They payed though.

[Yet One More Idiot]

LOL. Most of those are pretty much what you'd expect (I always figured that hotels don't quote the best rate right off the bat, but I'm not one for haggling much, and the hotels I stay at occasionally are still good value for money anyway). We always make sure that we've completely removed all our stuff from our rooms BEFORE we go to check-out, so we don't get in the cleaning staff's way when they go to work.

The problem with commonsense, ya see, is that it's just not that *common*.

===

I did have one funny instance with a hotel though.

My mother and I were going to my cousin's wedding (my cousin on my mum's side, not that that's important to the story), and we booked two rooms at the nearby hotel. My dad wasn't invited (they were divorced, it's not his family) and my sister simply didn't wanna go.

So we get to the hotel, check-in together, and the receptionist says to my mum, "Here's your key, you're in room....(number)." To which I reply, "great, which room am I in?" And the receptionist looks completely non-plussed by that question.

Turns out that when my grandmother had booked our rooms (she had arranged all the bookings for everyone in the family), the receptionist had seen that we were recorded as Mr and Mrs Cooper, and given us a double room. The mistake came in that they assumed Mr and Mrs meant A COUPLE - even though my parents are divorced, my mum still goes by Mrs Cooper, she's not reverted to her maiden name.

And when we turned up together, I also look old enough to pass as her husband anyway.

So, needless to say, lots of red faces all around, and the receptionist quickly searched to find us another room; we ended up each having to take a double room because all the singles were already filled for the weekend, but because of the mistake with the bookings they very kindly offered us both doubles at single-room rate.

And my grandmother got a telling-off later, to boot.

[Jason Tandro]

@Raini: Well also some of it is actually being nice rather than not being rude. Accepting to join the rewards program, for instance. It's not rude to refuse, but it's nice if you accept.

[Jason Tandro]

Okay here are some more general things that tick me off:

You Have a Room. Use It

Don't sit and linger in the hotel lobby. It annoys us and makes incoming customers feel awkward because it makes them feel like they are cutting in line.


Group Mentality

This is especially true of bikers. I hate it when I've got a large group getting separate rooms and while I'm trying to get information from one of them, the others are talking loudly and even bombarding me with questions. Wait your damn turn I'll get to you!


Pointless Reservations

People call me to make a reservation when they are five minutes from the hotel. The ideal time to make a reservation is at least a day before you show up. If you're in the neighborhood just walk in. Any place that requires you to have a reservation also requires more than 24 hour notice.


Bring Your Stuff With You!

Why do people come in, check rates and then say: oh, I have to go out to get my credit card and license. Women are the primary offenders. BRING YOUR STUFF IN WITH YOU, IT'S NOT THAT HARD!!!


Proximity Complaints

Here, everybody wants to be close to the pool. Even on higher floors where proximity to the pool doesn't make a bit of difference... errg... so stupid...

[Jason Tandro]

Jason Tandro wrote:

Pointless Reservations People call me to make a reservation when they are five minutes from the hotel. The ideal time to make a reservation is at least a day before you show up. If you're in the neighborhood just walk in. Any place that requires you to have a reservation also requires more than 24 hour notice.

Oh, and here's a great one that has officially killed half my night.

This idiot makes a Hotel.com reservation five minutes before he shows up at the hotel. This unbelievable moron has no idea how badly he has screwed me over.

Here's a few tips. Around midnight I have to close the computer down and start the new day. Well because this guy made the reservation a few minutes after midnight, Hotels.com made his arrival date for the night of the 8th.

Hotels.com is a third party reservation site. Which means they will send it to Best Western Central Reservation, who will then send it to me.

Each transfer can take up to 30 minutes.

So I will now have to wait probably an hour for a reservation to show up in my computer, and I can't start the new day because if I do his reservation will show up as cancelled and he'll get double-charged.

Oh and guys. Here's a newsflash. Hotels.com, Priceline, etc. They're a total crock. They do not get you better discounts. They get you discounts off the RACK rate which you would have most likely gotten if you had called the hotel in the first place.

They are good if you need a reservation a few months down the road because they do know the market, but basically you're paying for an agent, when you could just shop around on your own.

[EverPhoenix]

Jason Tandro wrote:

Jason Tandro wrote: Pointless Reservations People call me to make a reservation when they are five minutes from the hotel. The ideal time to make a reservation is at least a day before you show up. If you're in the neighborhood just walk in. Any place that requires you to have a reservation also requires more than 24 hour notice. Oh, and here's a great one that has officially killed half my night. This idiot makes a Hotel.com reservation five minutes before he shows up at the hotel. This unbelievable moron has no idea how badly he has screwed me over. Here's a few tips. Around midnight I have to close the computer down and start the new day. Well because this guy made the reservation a few minutes after midnight, Hotels.com made his arrival date for the night of the 8th. Hotels.com is a third party reservation site. Which means they will send it to Best Western Central Reservation, who will then send it to me. Each transfer can take up to 30 minutes. So I will now have to wait probably an hour for a reservation to show up in my computer, and I can't start the new day because if I do his reservation will show up as cancelled and he'll get double-charged. Oh and guys. Here's a newsflash. Hotels.com, Priceline, etc. They're a total crock. They do not get you better discounts. They get you discounts off the RACK rate which you would have most likely gotten if you had called the hotel in the first place. They are good if you need a reservation a few months down the road because they do know the market, but basically you're paying for an agent, when you could just shop around on your own.

and how did this guy take it when you told him all that?

[Jason Tandro]

I didn't tell him. Are you crazy? I chew out a customer like that I'd get fired and rightly so. I simply checked the customer in under a dummy reservation and when/if the hotels.com one shows up I'll go ahead and move his information into that one.