DeepUnderground

Wow, this is surprising in Indonesia!

uanj

Yes, it was a first for me. At 3 pm people seemed to materialize from nowhere and it took a good half hour to check in. Having only used the Regent and Shangri-La in Jakarta before I was very surprised.

DeepUnderground

I've stayed in Jakarta three times so far this year, and got immediate check in each time, even at 8am. Quarantine might have had something to do with it though

uanj

That's good. My experience was pre-covid, hotels making guests hang out in the lobby during a pandemic would not be good!

Stay safe down there, the situation is not looking so good at the moment.

DeepUnderground

Yes when you check into hotel quarantine on arrival to the country, straight from the airport to the basement, check details, private elevator from basement to quarantine floors!

pinniped

I've occasionally seen a resort that will have a small fee for early access to all of the amenities. You arrive at 8AM and can use the pools, spa, etc. until your room is ready.

For a standard non-resort Hilton to attempt to charge guests extra on an 11AM arrival is beyond ridiculous. If the room isn't ready, fine. It's not expected. But if it is, the guest should be able to check in. That's the way it's always been at every regular Hilton, Marriott, etc. business hotel I've stayed in.

I used to stay in the same Marriott in London, adjacent to our office, when I worked there. I'd usually walk in at 8AM or so, just looking to drop my bag before going to the office. The front desk would usually offer me the choice of a room right then - whatever they had empty from the night before - or waiting until the afternoon to get an upgraded room type. I never expected anything, but would occasionally take the early check-in. There was never a charge for this - it was just basic hospitality and didn't cost the hotel anything. No extra housekeeping was done to the room.

MSPeconomist

Traditionally some luxury hotels offer this, especially in cities with 24 hour airports. Raffles in Singapore did it for their elites when they were an independent small chain. Human AmEx PTS/CTS travel agents can be willing to request this for clients and I would expect it as a service by Virtuoso, Prive, etc. agents.

Starwood and then Bonvoy have Your24 for top tier elites, in principle at all properties, but it must be requested by an Ambassador now and is subject to availability/approval by the hotel, so many requests are denied, seemingly needlessly.

nd2010

I think all hotels should allow you to stay for 24 hours after you check in

writerguyfl

Back in my days of working at the Front Desk, this scenario is one that we absolutely would have avoided. It does cost the hotel less to clean a "stayover" room. Plus, it's just a hassle for everyone without any real benefit to force a guest to switch rooms.

I can see two explanations. First, the hotel management is unnecessarily strict about enforcing their policies. Second, the hotel is purposely "punishing" a guest they don't want to ever return. It could be a passive-aggressive attempt to "fire" the guest without having to confront him.

Super Mario

The 3 pm check in can often be the biggest bummer in a hotel experience. Between early flights, and just wanting to start your trip, it's brutal. Thankfully, my elite statuses have been pretty good with that.

With that said, if the posted policy is 3 pm, it's crazy to expect to get in just because. I wonder why people don't want to work in hospitality anymore. There absolutely are consequences if they are giving away all of the rooms as people walk in. Imagine having elite status and a room is not available because someone else thinks they should get it. Elites also get less choice if the rooms are all taken. If you want it, you should have to pay for it. Half of a day is excessive for a few hours though.

Eastbay1K

I almost sort of want to somewhat agree with you (and wonder how much more conditional I could be with my comment). But note that most rooms in the major hotels are already blocked for particular guests, only to be shifted around as issues arise during the day. If my blocked room is clean and ready at 10 am, and it going to be held for me until my 3 pm check in time, it is absurd that I can't get the room "for no additional cost" at noon, should I arrive at noon.

fastflyer

The discrepancy arises because many business guests customarily arrive at 5pm, 7pm, 9pm, or even midnight. So on the rare occasion where travelers arrive in town at Noon, why not accommodate the guest?

What may be happening post-COVID, is that business travel is down, and tourism travel is up, resulting in more daytime arrivals and fewer late evening arrivals.

Scots_Al

For me, I can see a case for a charge if you want, in advance, to guarantee early check-in. But otherwise, if the room�s ready, it�s ready. If it�s not, it�s not.

GUWonder

A bunch of hotels in India, elsewhere in Asia, and some in South America would grant me free early check-in at or after 8/9am in the morning and then frequently grant me late checkout for free as late as 6-8pm. Many of those same properties have become much more miserly with early check-in and late check-out in more recent years, and it also happens that the service has become less personalized and hospitable at such properties than it used to be for me.

Whenever my bookings come with an invitation to get early check-in for a fee, I refuse to sign up for that as I don’t want to encourage this kind of practice. I find a “you are just what you pay this time” approach too transactional for my own personal good and comfort and contrary to the hospitality business being hospitable.

BenjaminAbruzzo

So, I would like to place a Hotel's perspective two years later.

There is a set check-in time of 3pm and a set check-out time of 11am. We schedule the number of housekeepers based on occupancy projections the night before, which use these arrival and departure limits. If a person arrives earlier, the staff needs to make a number of adjustments for other guests who have actually paid for the privilege to arrive early or have loyalty memberships that award them free early arrival or a specific room for a fee. When a guest stays later, it causes the staff to scramble to not overbook and decline check-in to another guaranteed guest.

At our hotel, we let people know when they book on the phone or online about the extra fees. It is up to the guest to choose to pay them or remain within the restrictions. We made them simple:
- Between 3pm and 11am, no fee.
- A couple of hours early or late, free when politely asked for, so don't act rude or entitled (there's your trip hack of the day... many things can be had when you are polite and not a jerk).
- Any check-ins between morning change of staff and before late check-out time are charged a fee. This is partly because of the rooms, as explained, and it's because the staff are focusing on the free breakfast, which is only for those who stayed the night before and not the early check-ins (though you people still try and get an extra perk you are not allowed while the staff reallocates to get another room ready for you).
- The extra late fee is charged if you wait past check-in time to leave, forcing the housekeeping staff to wait while not getting paid or getting paid to wait (they are paid by the hour and by the room) and forcing the front desk agents to tell the next person their room isn't ready at 3pm because of a late check-out.
- If you come in too early or too late, you might be required to pay for a full night, depending on the staffing schedules.

So, no, you should not get an automatic free early check-in any more than you get a free extra burger at McDonald's (yes, it is the same thing, unless you are fine checking into a dirty room with people not yet ready to check out). A room is only good to rent when it is vacant.

This being said loyalty has its perks. If you have a membership in a loyalty program, you get some extra benefits. If you always stay at a particular hotel and get to know the staff and pay for the reservation to the hotel over to a website, you will most likely get the same room you request by number, have it ready early, and get extra time at check out.

TL;DR
- Read the rules or ask the agent on the phone... be prepared.
- Be polite and do not demand free stuff.
- Join a loyalty program or be a loyal and regular guest.
- Understand that every other person is trying to get the same extra time as you and without the rules, you won't get a clean room, swift and polite service, or any form of discount (your rates might just go up).