Loes Daniels, Founder and CEO of Hotelgift, the world’s leading hotel gift card brand, gives her insider tips to ensure you get the most out of every hotel stay.
- Replace the mini-bar
“Drinks and snacks from the hotel room mini bar are significantly marked up,” explains Loes. “Because of this, you may find yourself paying substantially more for a Mars Bar than you would normally. However if the midnight munchies should strike, a simple tactic is to pop to the local supermarket at the end of your stay and replenish stocks for a fraction of what the hotel would charge.
“One thing to watch out for is hotels that have unique sizes of certain drinks or their own branded snacks, but for generic items such as Pringles or cans of coke, these are simple to replace and mean you avoid shelling out for hotel extras when you check-out.”
- A hotel is a luxury
“Remember that a hotel stay is a luxury, not a necessity,” says Loes. “A simple way to make your hotel stay feel more special, and to ensure you unwind, is to find the time to make full use of the facilities. Have a long bath or shower, use the complimentary robe and slippers, and nip down to the steam room if there is one. Finding time to indulge and relax at home is not always easy, so make proper use of your hotel room by treating it as a luxury rather than just a place to sleep.”
- Cancellations
“If you need to cancel your room at the last minute, but don’t want to lose your deposit, a simple trick is to ring the reception desk and move your booking forward to a few days later,” says Loes. “Wait a few hours, then ring back and ask to cancel the reservation. The original cancellation fee will be bypassed because there’s now a new cancellation time for the new date you booked.”
- Kids and hotels
“For children, staying at a hotel is very exciting,” says Loes. “Being away from home and exploring a new place can be awkward for parents of especially inquisitive or energetic kids, but a simple trick is to bring a couple of treats or presents along with you and reward good behaviour with the promise of a new toy or game. Pack some discreet gifts into your suitcase and hand them out at intervals, one during the journey, and one for the end of the holiday – only give them out if they have behaved themselves of course!”
- Check out street view
“Before you book a hotel, it’s worth doing a Google street view search,” says Loes. “Check what the hotel looks like from the outside, and importantly, the kind of street that it’s on. The last thing you want is to be disappointed with the hotel location or worried about the area that it’s in. A simple street view check can dispel any fears easily.”
- Early bird catches the room
“If you’re staying at a large resort, try to arrive in the morning,” says Loes. “The best rooms are usually snapped up first thing, and checking in late means you may end up above the noisy hotel bar or with a view of the car park. Get your room requests in early by contacting the hotel ahead of time, for example, if you have young children request a quieter room for an easier bedtime.”
- Review the hotel
“Explaining that you are an avid Tripadvisor user and offering to review a hotel can bring benefits, especially for smaller, boutique hotels that rely heavily on customer feedback for more bookings. You may find yourself with a free bottle of bubbly or even a room upgrade, just by offering to do a review of your stay. If you have a good social media following, offer to promote the hotel online and you may be rewarded.”
- Celebrate good times
“Inform your hotel in advance of any special occasions, such as birthdays, honeymoons or anniversaries,” says Loes. “These are all worthy reasons for a room upgrade, and you may find some nice additional touches in your room. Complimentary champagne anyone?”
- Get staff tips
“If you’re after insider knowledge about the best places to go, get to know the staff and ask them for recommendations,” says Loes. “They’ll know the best bars, shops and restaurants to visit, also ask them if any special events are taking place during your stay. You’re guaranteed a better stay if you live like a local.”
- Upgrade etiquette
“Be discreet when asking for a room upgrade and make sure you do it at a quiet time when front desk staff are not busy checking in other guests,” says Loes. “Hotel staff don’t want to start a chain reaction of everyone asking for upgrades, so be smart with how and when you ask. As the saying goes, ‘if you don’t ask, you don’t get’, and this applies for room upgrades, so go for it, but do it quietly.”
To purchase your Hotelgift card or for more information, visit www.hotelgift.com.
-Ends-
Notes to Editors:
Hotelgift founder, Loes Daniels, is available for interview or comment upon request.
For further press information contact:
Jo Kendall/Julie Aguilera
Rooster PR
T: +44 (0) 20 3440 8930
E: [email protected]
About Hotelgift
Hotelgift is the world’s leading hotel gift card brand.
With no catch and no limitations, Hotelgift’s monetary value gift provides giftees complete freedom to book wherever and whenever they want.
The Hotelgift gift card can be redeemed, via the Hotelgift website, for stays at over 110,000 hotels in 170 countries worldwide.
With a choice of 140 of the world’s best-known hotel brands, as well as independent and boutique hotels, recipients of Hotelgift gift cards will find properties to suit all tastes and budgets.
Hotelgift offers a choice of three simple options to deliver the delight:
- A customisable, digital gift card that can be emailed to the recipient, or printed for hand delivery.
- A luxury printed gift card with a handwritten message (shipping takes 2-4 working days).
- A recorded video greeting that can be sent alongside the ecard.
Set up in the Netherlands in 2014 and operating in the UK from July 2016, Hotelgift launched officially in the UK on 21 November 2017. The UK is Hotelgift’s largest market.
The most popular uses for Hotelgift are Christmas, Birthday, Thank You, Wedding, Anniversary, Congratulations, Retirement, Mother’s/father’s Day, Business/incentive.
For more information, visit www.hotelgift.com or follow hotelgift on Facebook (@HotelGift), Twitter (@Hotel_Gift) and Instagram (@hotelgift)
