How to choose a hotel? General recommendations for tourists
Choosing a hotel is one of the most important components of a good holiday. Often we do not attach much importance to this, relying entirely on the employees of the travel agency, and then, upon arrival at the hotel, we encounter certain inconveniences and begin to look for those to blame. As a result, instead of forgetting about everything and enjoying every moment of our journey, we start to get nervous and annoyed. In this article we will try to tell you what criteria should be used to choose a hotel and what to pay special attention to.
What are your expectations from the hotel?
In the event that you have opted for a beach holiday, 80-90 percent of your time will be spent on the territory of the hotel. At the same time, many factors will influence the final impression of the trip - this is the number, and entertainment, and food, and much more. If you are vacationing with children, you should immediately clarify whether there are services related to babysitting, amusement parks, entertainment programs, children's animators in the hotel of your choice. And vice versa, if you want to spend a romantic trip without the participation of outsiders, you should not overpay for the set of the above services unnecessarily.
The situation is quite different if you go on a sightseeing trip, and it does not really matter to you where you will be brought after, the main thing is that there is a bath and a bed. In such a situation, the location of the selected hotel comes to the fore, and not the level of service. First of all, you need to pay attention to the distance from the hotel to the main attractions.
"Star rating" of hotels
It is necessary to know that the "star rating" of hotels does not have a universal standard. When counting on a good hotel with three stars, the agency may offer not the best hotel for the same price, but with four stars. Everyone makes a decision on their own: on the one hand, a 4 * service will still be better than a 3 * service, but on the other hand, prices for additional services, such as a taxi call or dinner at a restaurant located somewhere near the hotel will be much higher.
What can make a hotel “good” or “bad”? Of course, this is exactly how you meet your needs. Sometimes vacationers feel in a modest "three-ruble note" much more comfortable than in an expensive five-star hotel, and this is simply because they do not want to wear trousers for dinner at all, but prefer to wear shorts. Therefore, you should not chase stardom, because it is not a fact that this will necessarily come true.
When choosing a hotel, try to abstract yourself a little from the stardom and just first look at the photos and read the description, and then collect as much information as possible about the hotel you like.
Food in hotels
BB - meals only once (breakfast), HB - meals twice a day (half board), FB - meals three times a day and the presence of the "All inclusive" system (full board). If you choose a hotel in the resort area of Europe, there is no need to worry, because in such cities there are cafes and restaurants offering any cuisine at every step. In the event that you have opted for the southern exotic, you should think in advance about stomach problems that may well arise from exotic food. In order not to run around local restaurants, choose FB or HB hotels.
Check-in and check-out
Check-in in hotels in most cases takes place at 14:00, check-out at 12:00 noon, in apartments at 17:00 and 12:00, respectively. Therefore, if your plane arrives early in the morning and departs late in the evening, you should make sure that the agency to whom you entrusted your trip will book morning check-in and evening check-out for you. Of course, if you are willing to pay extra for it. If not, get ready to spend some time waiting for your number to be vacated.
If, when checking out from the hotel, you did not manage to vacate the room on time, then you will have to pay extra for a longer use (usually, if you did not vacate the room on time, you will be asked for the full daily cost). It is also necessary to find out if the tour operator provides a transfer from the hotel to the airport.
Important little things
First of all, when going to a country with hot weather conditions, you should find out if your room will have individual air conditioning. Is there a safe in the room. Does your hotel have smoking and non-smoking floors.
If your vacation is on the beach, find out how far your hotel is from the sea (find out not in minutes, but in meters). Does your hotel have a free beach with sun loungers (often you have to pay extra for sun loungers and towels). In order not to be bored in bad weather, sitting in your room, ask in advance if your hotel has a swimming pool, sauna, gym, etc. Ask which services are free and which are paid and how much you have to pay for them.
Tourist reviews are the most important thing
Often, when choosing a hotel, it is the reviews of tourists that become decisive. You should only rely on the reviews of people who have arrived recently. Reviews of a year ago have lost their relevance, because during this time the manager could have changed, and now this hotel has completely different rules and procedures. It's good if there are a lot of reviews, in which case the overall picture will be more objective.
As you can see, there are many key points that require you to pay attention to them. Do not hesitate to ask and find out from the agency all the details of your vacation. The more you ask questions and clarify the details, the less chance of disappointment after your arrival.
Enjoy your travels!