There is nothing worse than getting to your hotel and wanting to catch up on some emails, get a good nights sleep or grab something quick to eat and finding out you can’t. Picking the right hotel for what you need is key to a successful business trip and these are our top 5 things to check before you book and if you don’t have a choice, how to minimise the impact on your trip.
WiFi – only a few years ago you had to pay extortionate amounts for access to the hotel’s internet, you needed a cable to do it and had to buy a specific amount of data. Now, WiFi is often free (or relatively cheap) and unlimited but the key really is the reliability and strength. Check the reviews online, does anyone mention poor internet? If they do, speak to the hotel and find out why some customers have had issues. It might have been a temporary issue or it might affect some of the hotel more than others (if that’s the case, request a room in the area where it is more reliable!).
Location – often people think about the location of the hotel in terms of the distance to the airport/office/city centre but another element to think about is what surrounds the hotel. Is it on a noisy road or near loud nightlife? Is there building work nearby or is it under the flight path? Sleep can be a precious commodity when travelling and the last thing you need is to be kept awake or woken early. You could check with the hotel directly and make sure you have a room that is furthest from the noise.
Food – You might arrive at your destination in the middle of the night and because of the time difference, you’re absolutely starving. You go to order room service and find out it stops at 10 pm and breakfast is hours away! Check on the hotel’s website what their restaurant and room service hours are and if they aren’t 24/7, make sure you have some food with you to snack on and keep you going until breakfast.
Safety – This applies whether you are travelling for business or leisure but feeling safe in your hotel room is not a luxury, it’s an absolute minimum. Having a safe, having a secure door and windows, a phone in your room and a contact number that is manned 24/7 as well as key card activated lifts are all things to check for. If you are going to a country or area that has a high crime rate, check reviews of the hotel to see how safe other customers felt. For other tips on staying safe while travelling, check out our blog.
An iron – If you need to wear a shirt or suit while you are away, the likelihood is that is has got a little crumpled while travelling. Not having an iron (and ironing board) in the room can be really frustrating and means you could have to go to work looking like you’ve feel travelling for days. Most hotels provide them or offer them on request so check with them and if you know they don’t provide one at all, take a travel iron and if you know they have them on request, either request it when you book or when you check in.
The smallest things can make a big difference when you are only away for a few days so it really is worth taking a little bit of time before you travel to ensure you’ll have everything you need when you arrive.
