Arriving in hotel after 6 pm after announcing via telephone
In Germany it is common that your hotel room booking is guaranteed until 6 pm. If you plan to show up later, you can give your credit card number beforehand, otherwise your room might be given to someone else. The advantage is that there is no cancellation fee if you don't show up.
Sometimes it happens that I haven't given my credit number beforehand and on my way to my destination it becomes clear that I won't make it before 6 pm. I usually call the hotel and tell them that I am on my way, that I will show up and please do not give my room to somebody else.
My question is: Is this commonly accepted in hotels and will the hotel staff take it into account? Or could I just as well not call and hope for the best?
Best Answer
When you book a room in Germany, with either one of the large websites like booking.com, Expedia or similar, you will be able to select your arrival. Most places will honour that. If you book direct with them, write down and ask for late check-in. If that doesn't work either, give them a call and explain you will arrive late.
I travel on Friday evening a lot, and have arrived after 10pm in many German cities. This has never been a problem as long as the hotel reception is still open. When I lived in a hotel for several months in central Berlin I would often talk to the evening staff, and they would sometimes complain that not everyone has arrived yet, leaving a check-in for the night watchman rather the actual trained hotel staff.
It has never even occurred to me that a hotel would give away your room if you don't show up early. There's a comment on the question that says this is common, but I strongly disagree. I've not seen this, and in fact business hotel websites even advertise that you can cancel up to 6pm as a feature of their service.
You cannot usually leave your credit card number with a hotel in Germany. That is exceptionally uncommon, and if a hotel would ask that of me, it'd be a massive red flag. Of course you can do a payment guarantee through a website, but never over the phone in Germany.
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What happens if you arrive late to a hotel?
If you are significantly late, the hotel might decide you are a no-show and sell the room to someone who walks in off the street. If you have quoted a credit card to hold the room, the hotel may keep the room available and charge your card for the first night's accommodation if you don't show up.Do you need to call hotel if checking in late?
It's not necessary to inform the hotel of a late check-in if you will be checking in during standard lobby hours. However, if you will be exceptionally late, it can be helpful to keep the hotel staff in the loop so that they don't sell the room to someone else.What is 6 oclock policy in hotel?
Typically, these hotels will guarantee the room for a specific arrival time, such as 6:00 PM. If the traveler does not check in by the guarantee time, the room will not be held for them.Can you check out of a hotel at 6 am?
Yes you can, as there is 24 hour reception.HANDLING RESERVATION CALL | HOTEL RESERVATION
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