How hotels made check-in times later and cashed in

Hotels are chipping away at guest stays in favour of charging extra for early check-ins and late check-outs, a Which? investigation has found.

Before the pandemic, rooms used to be available from lunchtime. But this was pushed back to 3pm or even 4pm to allow for extra cleaning to stop the spread of Covid. 

When life returned to normal, hoteliers clung on to late check-ins. 

This article first appeared in full in the May edition of Which? Travel magazine

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Hotel check-in times: Hilton, Marriott, Premier Inn and Travelodge compared

The worst example we found at a major chain was Macdonald Hotels and Resorts, a brand with 30 luxury hotels, nine self-catering accommodation resorts and 17 spas. 

It tells guests not to arrive until 5pm, and promptly turfs them out at 10am the next morning. When we asked Macdonald why, it told us that a 5pm check-in is reserved for its self-catering apartments, where larger spaces and longer stays require more thorough cleaning. 

But nowhere on its website is this made sufficiently clear. What is clear, is that if you want to check in at 3pm or sleep until midday, Macdonald charges an extra £29. 

*Monday to Friday 2pm. Saturday and Sunday 4pm.

These are the best UK hotel chains, as rated by guests. For overseas trips, see which international hotel chains came out on top

Hotel early check-in and late check-out fees

Macdonald’s reasoning that shorter check-in and check-out times are needed to clean rooms has some validity. Many workers have left the hospitality industry in recent years, meaning fewer housekeeping staff available. The challenge is even greater for boutique or independently run hotels with a smaller roster of staff. 

But you do wonder how hard hotels are trying to fix the issue when early check-in – something we once enjoyed for free – is now an upselling opportunity. And it can be quite the money spinner. For example, if you plan to arrive before 3pm at Sofitel Heathrow Airport hotel, you can add early check-in at the booking stage – but it will cost you an extra £90. 

The cost of staying beyond 12pm the next day is an even more eye-watering £120. Pre-book online and it’s a flat fee regardless of whether you want an hour or a whole afternoon. You can contact Sofitel directly to negotiate – we were quoted £20 for every additional hour when we did this.

Mercure hotels charges £10 for every hour you want to access your room before 3pm, so an 11am check-in would set you back £40. Across hundreds of hotels and hundreds of thousands of room sales every year, the earnings are likely to be significant – and that’s on top of any savings made from employing fewer cleaning staff. 

Empty rooms: an upselling opportunity for hotels

‘Just sit back and count the money,’ is the advice from HotelFlex – a technology company designed to help hoteliers upsell those free hours. It promises a 4% increase in profits. 

Using automation, it predicts the departure and arrival time of guests, so hotels can better target sales of early check-ins and late check-outs. 

It’s likely why you’re now bombarded with texts and emails from your hotel asking what your arrival time is. The later you arrive, the bigger the potential profit for hotels.

One hotel room, sold twice

It appears that some hotels are cashing in by selling rooms twice within 24 hours. One property in London St Pancras offers day-only bookings between 10.30am and 3.30pm costing £70. That timing is convenient given its 10am check-out and 4pm check-in each day, and that it takes around 30 minutes to clean the average hotel room.

The listing is advertised on Dayuse, a Booking.com style website for guests who want to book a room for a few hours in the afternoon rather than overnight. Operating in 23 countries, the platform invites guests to spend ‘quality time’ with their loved ones or enjoy the hotel pool or spa during the day. 

A day booking could be handy if you have a long stopover or need to kill time before a late flight. But this convenience doesn’t come cheap. Take the Elmbank York Tapestry Collection by Hilton. When we checked, an overnight stay there was £180 – cheaper than a day slot (8am-2pm or 9am-6pm) for £185. That means you’re paying up to £30.80 an hour to enjoy the hotel by day (versus £3.85 an hour overnight).

If hotels sell the room overnight and again in the day, while flogging early check-in/late check-out, they will quickly make a lot more money from guests. 

3 ways to get into your hotel early for free 

1. Ask on arrival

Many receptionists are still willing to let guests head to the room early without paying if it’s available. And if not, only then is it worth considering paying the extra fee. 

2. Join hotel loyalty schemes

Members of Marriott Bonvoy’s free-to-join Ambassador Elite programme can check in to hotels at 9am on arrival day and check out as late as 9pm. 

3. Check your credit card perks

American Express Platinum cardholders can secure rooms from 12pm at participating hotels, including Four Seasons and Hilton hotels worldwide.

Jo Rhodes, Which? senior researcher, says:

Hotels are increasingly adopting a Ryanair approach to services: stripping back the basics and offering them as chargeable extras, whether it’s early check-in, breakfast or even a room with a window. It’s in hoteliers’ interests to have guests arrive as late as possible, which is impractical and annoying for many holidaymakers, especially those on shorter breaks. It doesn’t just mean less time in the room, but also less time to enjoy other amenities such as the swimming pool, sauna or spa. None of which adds up to a relaxing break. 

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