Hotel Room Upgrade – Our 5 Simple Tips
Wondering how all those people get their room upgraded? In this post we are sharing 5 simple tips on getting an upgrade to a room of your dream at no extra cost.
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Does This Sound Familiar To You?
The excitement of an upcoming trip starts as soon as we start researching for a place to stay. After finally clicking “book” on what seems like a perfect room our expectations fly high – we envision a cozy quiet room with a nice view. Just like on the photos we have just scrolled through.
The reality is usually different. At the check-in you might hear “Sorry, no more rooms on the 8th floor left, only on the 2d one”. Or you get a room right next to a noisy elevator or with windows facing the wall of the neighbouring house instead of the Eiffel tower. Above all is a room stinking of cigarettes. We have been through them all.
No reason to get upset. With these 5 simple tips we have tried on ourselves you will get a room you’ve been looking for or an upgrade to an even better one.
Are you planning your trip? Feel free to check out our post library – maybe you’ll find something helpful there.
Hotel Room Upgrade Tip 1 – Join the Club
This is one of the easiest ways to get a better room or an upgrade. Many hotels and hotel chains have their own rewards programs. They work by the same principle as airlines miles programs. You register for a bonus card – usually free of charge – and by staying at a hotel you get points. At the end you can exchange those points for benefits like “free upgrade”, “free stay” and other stuff. Logically, clubs members usually have check in priority and better rooms saved for them. A couple of times per year members might get emails with discounts or upgrade vouchers.
We have been members of Club Carlson and Hilton Honors for quite some time now and have been upgarded many times simply showing the card at the reception.
Have a look at this blog post to see the top ten hotel loyalty programs.
It makes sense to join a club if you are a frequent traveler.
Hotel Room Upgrade Tip 2 – Start Talking
As simple as it sounds this method works wonders. This is actually our favourite tip for getting a room upgrade.
When at the check-in you realise that the provided room floor is too low for your taste – simply ask for a higher one.
Upon entering your room you see that it’s too dark or smelly, too noisy or just doesn’t’ have a nice view simply call reception. Politely ask if they can switch it for another one.
If there is not too much going on the personnel would gladly cater to your needs and mostlikely give you a couple of options to choose out of or a room upgrade.For instance, when staying at a hotel in Sofia, Bulgaria we entered our first room and opened the windows – there was a grey wall of a Soviet era house in front of us. Therefore we just asked for another one. After asking for another room we were presented with a room overlooking the Alexander Nevsky Cathedral – the main tourist attraction of Sofia.
Hotel Room Upgrade Tip 3 – Late Check-in
This tip for getting your room upgrade is risky, but it could be a winner too. Life is risky, right?
There are two scenarios on how this might turn out:
Scenario One
When checking in late, a hotel has no more rooms available in your booked category, therefore they will provide you with an upgrade. Simply because they can’t give you anything lower in standard than what you have paid for. This happened to us in Amsterdam. We have booked a twin room and upon check-in the hotel had only doubles left. We insisted on having twin beds so they gave us an upgrade to a family room with two large double beds and lots of space.
Scenario Two
When checking in late the hotel is full and consequently there are only crappy rooms left, because the better ones were given to the other guests. This happened to us in Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia. We arrived late, were very tired and got the worst room in the whole hotel with a tiny window overlooking the elevator shaft, no space for luggage and a stinky one too. This ‘hotel upgrade tip’ is the downside of late check-in.
Tip 4 – Find a Good Reason for a Hotel Room Upgrade
If you got a room which you are not happy about and the check-in personnel doesn’t want to exchange it, than you should find a good reason why you simply can’t stay in it. Here are some starting poins:
- loud aircon
- uncomfortable mattress
- loud neighbours
- leaky bath tap
- smells like smoke
To be honest, this tip comes from a personal experience – we have had all of these issues during our travels. It is sometimes better to wait until the shift changes, so that the check in crew goes home and the new one starts so you can explain them your worries and ask for assistance.
Tip 5 – Feel the Feelings
Are you celebrating your birthday? anniversary? engagement? Be sure to tell this at the reception and ask them for the best room they can offer you. Who would say “no” to a just married couple or a birthday kid, right?
An Something Else…
This might not be exactly relevant to everybody, but our personal tip on getting a hotel room upgrade is writing a letter to a hotel beforehand saying that we are bloggers and will be on our content assignment, which is true to every single bit. In this case if hotel wants to show their best sides they will offer us a good room.
Are you planning your trip? Feel free to check out our post library – maybe you’ll find something helpful there.
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