GYK

It must be something about Philly. I stayed at a Philly HIlton and asked for late checkout and got the same answer about needing to get out or they will charge me. This despite my brining up the Gold Benefit and that other major hotels would give up to 4pm. Basically they said no, and were quite rude about it.

I did mention to Hilton Guest Assistance, but heard nothing back.

Eastbay1K

The crock is either there's the room or there is not. Not "its not available because we are full despite your "benefit" unless you pay $." In response to one of the above replies, whenever I have asked for late checkout at any other time than day of departure, I'm told to check on the day of departure.

Westcoaster

I'm going to timidly jump in here and recount an experience my family had at a Hilton resort. We had 2 adjoining rooms pre-blocked for us but couldn't get in them at the 4 p.m. check-in time because the guy who had them didn't check out until after 5 p.m. He had asked for 2 p.m. checkout but had stayed later. The manager told me that he was going to have to pay housekeeping staff to stay and clean the rooms after their normal shift. So at least in this case there was a good reason to charge the guy extra. (And no, there weren't 2 other adjoining rooms available so we waited.)

I actually am in favor of hotels that are pretty full charging HH members to stay past 1 or 2 p.m. Especially if it encourages guests to leave so that I'll have a nice room available when I get there. It doesn't really bother me if I can't get late checkout, but it does annoy me if I can't check in when I get there. Just a different slant.

TrojanHorse

Taking this one step further, I call up and say that my three colleagues and I have to stay in town an extra night and are looking for four rooms (of similar type that I'm in) and if they say they have availability I go down to the desk, and question them about the Honors late check out policy and then ask them about availability and if I still have an issue I speak with the manager and tell him what I just did, never fails

doc

Sad to have to resort to this!

Ken hAAmer

If you have internet access in your room, then just use Travelocity or some other reservations engine (even the hotel chain's own) to check availability. Saves having to extract the info from the hotel staff.

MarshKing

Is this a new HHonors Gold benefit? I just tried looking at the HHonors website, and couldn't find any mention of it. I know that Starwood has a 4pm checkout for SPG Gold/Plat. members, but I never knew HHonors has the same type of perk...

Where is this documented? The next time I stay at a Hilton or Doubletree, it would be nice to have something in writing to show to the front desk agent when I request a late checkout.

cat333

http://www.hilton.com/hhonors/benefits/membership.html
Late check-out upon request: If you need extra time in your room, call the front desk. We’ll do everything possible to accommodate your request.

Nothing noting level on this -- and vague enought to avoid if they want to.

Sylvest941

Is there a better chance to get a late check-out at check-in or calling on the morning of departure???

Steve M

When they say "we're full" to a late checkout request, they're not necessarily saying that the hotel is full that night. Most hotels have a daily budget of late checkouts that they can give out. The computer keeps track of this, and when they run out of the late checkout allotment, they start denying requests.

This is mostly a housekeeping issue. Here's an extreme example: The hotel is 90% booked for the following night, and had 100% occupancy the previous night, and half of those people are leaving today. If all of them requested a 3pm checkout, then 40% of all rooms in the hotel would need to be cleaned after 3pm. The housekeeping staff simply isn't set up to do this. Plus, even if they did allow this, people for the next night will start arriving before their rooms are ready, creating problems for them, even though the hotel is not full that night.

I know it's never fun to not get a late checkout when you need it, but I understand why there have to be some limits on them.

In one situation, at a Hampton Inn, I needed a late checkout, but they didn't have any left (it was the last day of a convention, and I imagine that most people in the hotel wanted late checkout). They were not sold out for the following night, so I just told them that I'd be staying an extra day (and was willing to pay for it). I ended up checking out around 5pm, and they only charging me a "day charge" for the extra time in the room, which was about half the regular nightly rate. So, even though they didn't have a specific policy in place to pay extra for a late checkout, I was able to get it done anyway.

debo_nair

someone just mentioned early checkin. How about late checkin. Like i said in previosu threads I will be checking at Capitol Hilton DC june 28 - 30. I will be arriving at 11.10 pm ay BWI. Baggage claim and taxi trip would take 1 hr approx..so i guess i will be checking in at close to 1 am june 29 morning...does Capitol H have 24 hr frontdesk? i guess most hotels do right?

steveda

Haven't had any experience with this particular hotel, but arrived at the EWR hilton at 2am saturday morning. My room key was waiting at reception for me (spoke to the hotel earlier in the day, and asked for this). So long as you let the hotel know that you'll be arriving late, your room will be fine, and you may get some nice treatment

ST

One of the supposed benefits of being a Hilton HHonors member is:

"Late check-out upon request: If you need extra time in your room, call the front desk. We'll do everything possible to accommodate your request."

However, I never have any luck with this. Every time I ask, I'm always told that it's just not possible. The front desk staff tell me the same thing every time -- the need me out by noon so they can clean up the room for the next guest. At my most recent stay, at the new Embassy Suites in Sacramento, I asked for another 30 minutes to an hour of time so we could swim in the hotel pool and not feel rushed and was told absolutely not. Should I be more demanding, is there somebody else I should be asking besides the front desk staff, any other suggestions?

svpii

I don't know if it has anything to do with elite level, but I very rarely have any difficulty when I request a late check-out. Particularly if I just want an hour or so.. At the homewood suites in BUF, they let us stay in the room until 4pm so my husband (who had just had knee surgery in BUF) could keep his leg elevated until it was nearer boarding time. But I've asked for 1-2pm check out times on several occasions, and sometimes they grumble a little, but I sweetly point out that they can't clean every room at once and how much better my life would be if I could just have an extra couple of hours..

auh2o

As I posted on the same thread in Starwood, I don't ask. I just keep the "Do not disturb sign up" and check out at 4:00PM. I have never been asked to pay for another day.