How works hotel late check out?

Sometimes hotel guest needs to have a late check out. What are the circumstances allowing guest to late check out hotel? Is it paid or free? How to get a late check out?

Is late check out hotel free?

Standard check out time hotel is usually 11 or 12. However, in many accommodation places is possible to check out later. Mostly if the guest wants to stay in the room for 1-2 hours longer, there is no problem. For staying two hours more there should be no payment, but of course, it depends on hotel policy.

If the guest would like to have a few hours late check out, the hotel will ask for extra payment for every hour longer than set free check out time.

In case guests need to stay in the room over 6 pm they will be counted as half of the daily room price (It is the price which is for this room on the day guest want to check out, not the price he/she paid for the last night. Hotel prices may change day by day).

Sometimes a guest will have to pay for another night. This may happen when the guest wants to check out after working hours of housekeeping. Some hotels do not have housekeeping employees after 10 pm, even in some cases, housekeeping works only till 6 pm or less. Therefore if the guest will check out later than housekeeping works, no one will be able to clean the room. If the room is not going to be cleaned, the hotel will not sell it. So the guest needs to pay for another night to stay late in the room.

What impacts the possibility of a late check out hotel?

First of all hotel occupancy. In case the hotel is going to be fully occupied, no one will get a late check out. The hotel needs to be sure that housekeeping will clean all the rooms needed before the next guests will check in. With full occupancy, hotel may agree to late check out from the room only if they are sure that the next guest to the same room type will come later.

Second of all housekeeping working time. As was described before, if there is no possibility to clean the room after the guest check out, he/she cannot stay longer.

Another point is the guest status. Guests who stayed in the hotel many times, are VIPs, or have a high status in the hotel chain loyalty program, have priority for late check out. Many loyalty programs include late check out as a bonus, then the hotel needs to agree if the guest wants to stay longer (how long depends on status he/she has).

Last but not least is the type of room. Some room types are not allowed to late check out, because of a few reasons. Mainly if there is only one or few of this kind of room in a certain hotel, the manager does not allow the possibility of late check out there. In case surprisingly someone will make a reservation for this room, the hotel will have no possibility to check in him/her there. As the room will be not free, not cleaned on time or there is no other room which can be given instead that one to the guest.