Starwood hotels used to offer points to guests who skipped housekeeping. They called it ‘make a green choice’ as though this benefited the environment in some way, but they were really paying you in points because it reduced their housekeeping expense.
Many hotels hate 4 p.m. late check-out because that drives up housekeeping expense. It spreads checkouts over a longer period of time. They need to keep more housekeepers on longer. It isn’t just that it may be hard to accommodate check-ins when people haven’t checked out of their rooms yet.
But another problem hotels face is simply not knowing when people have checked out of their rooms. In the United States there’s really no reason why most guests actually ‘check out’ and bother to tell the hotel.
- There is a strong emphasis on convenience and efficiency. Many hotels allow guests to check out remotely via phone, app, or just by leaving because it’s understood that guests may want to depart quickly without formalities. This practice aligns with the cultural expectation of convenience and the “self-service” mentality that is prevalent in the U.S.
- The U.S. hotel industry often uses more automated systems, allowing charges to be finalized without the need for in-person interaction. Credit cards on file can be billed automatically for any remaining charges, reducing the need for a formal checkout process.
In Asia you’re expected to check out in person most of the time. Sure, you already gave them your credit card but they will want it again. But in the U.S. you just leave when you’re done.
Housekeeping may come knocking on a door to see if someone is still occupying a room, but that’s a time-consuming and laborious process and doesn’t flag the moment that a guest leaves for most-efficient scheduling of housekeeping staff.
The Westin Princeville Ocean Resort Villas (timeshare) has an approach that both,
- Encourages people to leave early (more time to turn rooms when housekeeping have gaps in their workload)
- Encourages people to tell the hotel that they’ve left.
It’s simple: bonus points for checking out early and letting the hotel know you’ve done so.
Hat tip to R.A. who notes that “They also send you a text when their housekeeping is finished with your room. Wish everyone did that.”
More hotels should do both of these things.
Both Westin Ka’anapali Ocean Resort Villas and Westin Ka’anapali Ocean Resort Villas North on Maui do the same thing.
Hotels absolutely should not text me. At all. Never.
Obnoxious intrusive practice.
Checking out allows one to review the bill and correct any mistakes on the spot.
What if a person is not an active Bonvoy member? They should offer a roll of toilet paper or a newspaper.
With that kind of approach, we can expect them to be bounced from Bonvoy for violating the brand’s “lack of service standards”.
I always swing by the front desk and say room XXXX I am out of here. I also let Housekeeping know if they are near my room.
Interesting insight! Hotels offering incentives for early checkouts make sense to reduce costs and streamline operations. It’s a win-win for guests and hotels, enhancing convenience and efficiency.
8:30 am is too early – specially for a resort
I use online checkout on the Bonvoy app, but still swing by the desk to drop.off the.key cards. Some hotels have well-placed keyboard drop boxes.
One thing I’d like to see is a way to report room issues on the App, upon checkout, without having to visit or call the desk.
Stayed at Marriott Renaissance Center Detroit and never received housekeeping. Went downstairs and they gave me a bag of towels (no coffee or cups or clean glasses). Day 3 went on app to request housekeeping. Came back that night, nothing was done. Got the bag of towels. Never had housekeeping the whole stay. Housekeeping said they came by at 8 am but we had a Do Not Disturb on the door. Yes, because it was 8 am. We left by 9. Usually they do the turn-around rooms first to prep for next arrivals and do stay-over rooms by early afternoon. Here, they played Gotcha by going to rooms with signs on the door and skipping them completely. They threw some miles at us and that was that.
I would love bonus points for checking out early. Early risers here so we are out the door and onto the next place. I too always check out to tell hotel we are gone so I can get a paper bill (sorry I track every penny to my credit card) I have found extra charges in the past (movies – never turned on TV, RoomBar – touched something to put medication in Refrigerator). I also tell housekeeping if they are on the floor so they can turn the room.
I have had hotels that don’t check rooms two days later if they are not busy. I have hotels that let you leave the hotel card, and they check which room it is; I have hotels that email and text you at 8 pm or 6 am to see when you are thinking about checking out, and I have hotels that start knocking at 9 am to see if you are there.
Personally, I think I will check out at the desk if not busy, but leaving the card is easy in the lobby. I am still not used to texting or emailing because I often arrive at my destination when I respond.
Or, for places where one pays for the optional breakfast, offer free breakfast if you check out before breakfast service is over.
Checking out early in the morning deprives guests of a significant percentage of what they pay for (hours in a room). If check-in is at 4pm and check-out is at 12 noon, checking out before 8:30 am seems like it would be worth more points than what is being offered, unless the guest is already planning on leaving early.
@Lissa – what were you expecting? It’s Detroit.
Did you think you were in Palm Beach?
I also like to return the card key because I have no use for it and don’t want to create more plastic waste.
Since vacation club don’t allow most of the elite benefits how are people getting late checkout?
I just booked for one night using the Ritz Carlton Visa free night for some variety while house sitting for a friend on the south side. I’m Marriott Gold
1000 points for possibly 3.5+ hours of rent I already paid? I always ask for late check out, don’t get it often, but with SPG Plat 4pm for me was automatic. I’m just not leaving early, unless I have to, and I rarely do.
Ritz Carlton Laguna Niguel offered 10k points to me if I left by 9am like 8 years ago. I took them on that eagerly.
It is common protocol to walk by the front desk and either drop your room key with them or in a nearby box on the way out. It usually only takes a few seconds. It really helps the hotel, especially the housekeepers.