Originally Posted by writerguyfl

In all the hotels I've worked in or known about, there is a clear demarcation when it comes to operations. If the guest is not arriving today, the Reservations Department is responsible. On the day of arrival and through check-out, the Front Desk takes control.

The reason for this set-up is fairly obvious to anyone who has ever had to wait for a Front Desk agent to hang up the phone.

My best guess is that Central Reservations personnel have been instructed not to call the Front Desk because those people don't really have "official" authority to change reservations. In any hotel, there are only a few people (Reservations Supervisor, Reservations Manager, Revenue Manager) who are authorized to override rate and stay controls. Those people usually work standard business hours.

Just because hotels are open 24/7 does not mean that everything can be done 24/7. But, we seem to live in a "now, now, now" society where people no longer want to wait for anything.

Anyway, that's an insider perspective from a former Revenue Manager.