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Most guests who are allowed to make exclusive bookings can use some of the member-only luxury hotel booking perks and completely miss others. They don’t miss out on the benefits simply because they have to go through several steps before receiving them.
They miss out because the details of what you need to do at every step to get as much as you can out of them are not well explained. That way, guests with really valuable member-only benefits end up leaving quite some of that value unredeemed each time they stay.
Room Upgrade Timing: Earlier Is Not Always Better
We will now take a look at underused perks in the luxury hotel industry. Most people with access to the chance of being upgraded just assume that check-in is the time that they should ask for an upgrade. Yet, for many options, this is just not the case – it’s actually not the correct time.
The best time to ask for an upgrade is the night before your arrival. The reason is that most hotels do the room assignment for guests in the early hours, from about 3 pm to 7 pm. During that time, if a guest gets in touch with the hotel, the front desk will still have flexibility in the room assignment process, and the staff can accommodate the upgrade request without displacing a guest who’s already placed.
If a guest requests an upgrade at the front desk, the room assignment procedure has already mainly finished, and the ability of the team to be helpful is truly less than before. For guests with access to member-only luxury hotel booking perks who can choose their room category through confirmed upgrade, the timing issue is equally important – and this is for the suite category selection within the confirmed tier. It is likely a good idea to state your preference before arrival as this usually leads to a better result than expressing it at check-in.
Dining Credits: Understand What They Actually Cover
In most of the luxury hotels, property and dining credits that come with a member perk package are subject to different rules that vary by the property – and often people who have no clue about those terms after their arrival end up not using the credit at all or getting surprised by some exclusion.
Typical problems: room service is generally not covered by dining credit, or it would be charged at a different rate. Premium wine lists may have some limitations. Specialty restaurants could be under separate arrangements outside the scope of the credit.
If you’re making a member-only luxury hotel booking perks and dining credit is one of the perks you received in the perks package, get in writing confirmation before your arrival of exactly which outlets are covered, if room service is a valid use of the credit, if per transaction minimum spend requirements apply, as well whether unused credit may be applied on checkout or if it will be forfeited at midnight.
Hotels that give guests such details on their own are probably guest-focused. But hotels that keep you busy with lots of inquiries probably only have hotel margin in mind besides property operations.
Late Checkout: Confirm the Night Before, Not the Morning Of
Late checkout is one of the top perks of staying at a luxury destination. Yet, it is also one of the most inconsistent ones applied. The interpretation of the phrase “when capacity allows” and the reality of the available hour for a guest to leave largely depend on whether the hotel is crowded or not and the moment of asking for a check-out that is later than normal.
You should follow the same upgrade principle: ask for the check-out time the day before departure at night, not the morning of departure. This allows the property time to do housekeeping activities around the check-out that has been scheduled for later, which is more dependable than when guests just randomly come up with a same-day request, which the property was already working on the schedule to prepare the rooms.
Even for guests who enjoy exclusive luxury hotel booking features like confirmed late check-out, it’s still best to confirm the exact timing the night before, mostly in cases where the terms of booking mention that the perk only “is available upon request.” This kind of presentation is pretty common even if it’s framed in a way as a guaranteed advantage.
Reaching member-only luxury hotel booking perks should be the first step. Knowing how to use each one fully — the right timing, the right questions, the right engagement with the property team — is what transforms a good stay into an exceptional one. At Chic Hot Club that practical knowledge is exactly what our editorial content exists to provide.
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