What to know about staying at hotels during a pandemic

Wondering what it’s like to stay at a hotel during a pandemic?

I’ve stayed at quite a few hotels during COVID and each has been a unique experience. Staycations, nearcations, and full on vacations have given me the sanity break that I needed from this crazy year. If you’re finally ready to take a vacation but are still a bit apprehensive about where to go, start with a staycation at your favorite hotel or one that you’ve always wanted to try. I’m sharing my insights on three key components of a hotel stay, the check in, room experience, and amenities. 

Check in- Upon arriving at all of the hotels that I stayed at there were signs that stated that guests must wear masks at all times and that they should maintain social distancing. There were still welcome amenities offered, for example at the Condado Vanderbilt I was offered champagne (which I gladly accepted but didn’t drink until I got to my room) while my bags were being sprayed with disinfectant. Only one hotel didn’t have the front desk representative behind plexi glass and they all asked you to show your identification vs. handing it over to them.  I was also given a personal health kit with things like sanitizer and information on the changes the hotel had made at all but one of the hotels.  

Room experience- At one property there was a seal on the door that said the room had been thoroughly sanitized and that no one had entered the room since the seal was placed on the door. At the other properties I was informed at check in that there would be no daily housekeeping but I could call down for anything that I needed and most had suspended any room service or food deliveries. High touch items like pens, books, and notepads were removed from most of the hotel rooms and two of the hotels had numbers to text the concierge if you needed anything as the hotel was operating with reduced staff. 

Amenities- The amenities that were available varied significantly by the hotel. At some restaurants were completely closed and at others they were open but you had to make reservations. I was able to use the pools at the hotels that I stayed at but the hours were reduced or I had to make a reservation for a specific time and could only stay for 2 hours. All of the properties that had gyms kept them open, events like happy hours were nonexistent, and hand sanitizer was generally everywhere. At some of the larger properties that I stayed at it took longer to leave because the elevators were limited to no more than two people or a family/friend group so you often had to wait a while for a free elevator. 

The takeaway- I thought some of the hotels did a better job of not just having policies but following them and enforcing them better than others. I wanted everything to feel sanitized and spic and span and that just wasn’t the case at a couple of the properties that I stayed at. It’s also a very eerie feeling to be the only guest in a hotel lobby or not to see other people on your floor although I do think the hotels try to put guests on the same few floors when they can. If you’re going to stay at a hotel in the near future it’s important that you know exactly what the hotel is offering and what their protocols are so that you can set realistic expectations. If you’re just looking for a change of scenery then a hotel stay could be a great fit but if you want five star service and all of the amenities that come with it, you may want to wait a while.  

Don’t forget that I’m a preferred partner for hundreds of hotels all over the world. Email me or head over to the Virtuoso hotels page to start searching for your next hotel and learn about some of the amazing VIP perks that I’m able to offer!