What to Expect at a Luxury Hotel If You Have Never Stayed in One
Arrival, tipping, dress codes, room service and the etiquette questions people are too embarrassed to ask.
7 min read
The worry before a first upmarket stay is almost never the price. It is the fear of getting something wrong in front of people who do this every day.
Here is what actually happens, so none of it is unfamiliar.
Arrival
Somebody will greet you at the door and offer to take your bag. You can say yes or no, both are completely normal.
Check in may happen at a desk or sitting down with a drink. It takes a few minutes, they take a card for incidentals, and someone shows you to the room and explains how things work. It is fine to ask questions during that walkthrough. That is what it is for.
Tipping, the question nobody asks aloud
Practice varies enormously by country, and the hotel will not correct you.
In the United States and much of the Caribbean, tipping porters, housekeeping and bar staff is expected. In much of Europe and Japan it is minimal or not done at all. Look it up for the specific country before you arrive, keep some small notes for porters if it applies, and stop worrying about it.
Dress codes
Very few hotels have a code outside of specific restaurants, and where one exists it will be stated on the website.
Smart casual, which is the usual phrase, means trousers or a dress and shoes that are not trainers. Nobody expects black tie. Nobody is looking at your suitcase either.
- Check restaurant dress codes on the hotel website
- One presentable outfit is usually enough
- Pool and spa areas have their own rules, often posted
- Comfort matters more than formality almost everywhere
Asking for things
This is the part first timers underuse. The staff at a good hotel are an extraordinary resource and answering requests is literally the job.
Ask them to book a restaurant, arrange a taxi, recommend a walk, find a pharmacy, sort a late checkout. Concierges take genuine professional pride in solving unusual requests, and a polite question is never an imposition.
Room service and minibars
Room service is expensive, usually with a service charge and a delivery charge on top of already high prices. That is fine occasionally and worth knowing in advance.
Minibars vary from free soft drinks to items that cost more than a meal. Check the price card before opening anything. Some modern minibars charge automatically when an item is lifted.
What is included
Ask at check in what is included, because it is often more than you assume. Breakfast, the spa, bicycles, a wine hour, a shuttle into town, a guided walk.
People frequently pay for things at the end of a stay that were sitting there free the whole time.
In short
A good hotel is designed so that you do not have to know anything in advance.
Arrive, ask questions freely, and let the place do what it is built to do.
