Has anybody else noticed the creeping discrepancy between check-in and check-out time at hotels? It’s becoming an urgent matter.
The rule in the old days was: check out before lunch, check in after lunch. That was roughly an hour’s gap, maybe 90 minutes depending on how long you enjoyed for lunch, but it was relatively standard and civilised.
If your room wasn’t ready when you arrived, at least you could retire to the restaurant while the room staff did the essentials.
But on several occasions lately I’ve noticed a distinct widening in the check-gap. At one establishment recently, I turned up at 1pm, perfectly prepared to sit it out over a bowl of lentil soup, to be told check-in time was 3pm. That’s nearly tea-time.
Oh, and check out time at the same place was 11am, which in my book often coincides with breakfast time.
I mentioned this to the manager of the hotel (which I won’t name for fear of embarrassing them and because the rest of my stay was delightful) and he replied: “We’ve had some complaints about this recently. We’ve had to make check-out later and later because people just will not leave the rooms on time, and it causes havoc if all the staff have to get to work on the rooms at the same time.”
He told me about one young couple who, despite numerous phone calls and polite taps on the door, simply refused to leave until dinner time, claiming that they had only booked in at 7pm the previous night and were entitled to a full day’s stay.
They had refused to pay a supplement until security was called and the legal options made plain to them.
But it raises a fundamental issue: if you book a one-night stay in a hotel, are you entitled to 24 hours’ use of the room? I’d be interested to hear from any legal experts in the hospitality industry.
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Still on hotels, and why not since ‘tis the season to be jolly for all hoteliers, and their food and beverages managers, as the bookings for the festive and new year seasons rush in.
Most of the big Jumeirah beach hotels seem well booked in advance, with Christmas Day lunch especially difficult to get this year.
Maybe I’ll have to steer away from the beach and head towards the JW Marriott Marquis on Sheikh Zayed Road. I see the hotel was recently named the best new hotel in the world – a big prize given the opposition in Dubai, let alone in the world.
But the Marquis does seem to have grabbed an impressive chunk of the highly competitive UAE hotel business. By pulling in global celebrities to functions at its lavish facilities, it has made a glitzy name for itself.
Prince Harry, the grandson of Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II, and Tony Blair, the former British PM turned Middle East peacemaker, are just two of the big names who have appeared, or stayed there, in recent weeks.
There was lots of journalistic gossip about the circumstances of Mr Blair’s visit in particular, especially the painstaking security arrangements. But good taste prevents me from reporting them here.
Anyway, congratulations on the Marquis for its gong. Maybe I’ll be there over the festive season to seek further details of the Blair visit.
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Final word on hotels: The Atlantis on Palm Jumeirah is a fantastic place, but surely somebody on the PR side has taken just a little too much Kool-Aid with the statement that it is “as impressive as its namesake mythical island”.
A cynical colleague remarks: “That’s about as absurd as saying your horse is as fast as a unicorn”.
fkane@thenational.ae