5 Top Tips For Selecting Your Travel Hotel

By Chioma Iwunze Ibiam

Whether you’re traveling for business or leisure, journeying away from home is an amazing way to experience life and rediscover yourself. But travelling can be both physically and mentally exhausting especially when the trip is a long one. In fact, it’s easy to get overwhelmed in the beginning, especially when you haven’t travelled in a long time.

For the uninitiated, traveling seems simple. Pick a destination, choose a date, pack your bags and, go. Right? Wrong.

Every experienced traveler will tell you that need to do some research and make plans before you step out of your home. Proper planning will save you a lot of stress.

Whether you’re travelling for business or leisure, it helps to avoid common mistakes that can mar your travel experience.

To make your travel experience a memorable one, here are the top five hotel travel tips you should note.

1. RESEARCH

It is important to research about the accommodation before you travel. This step shouldn’t take much of time and it may even save you a lot of money and energy.

Whether you’re travelling to a country in Asia or North America, your choice of accommodation is guaranteed to shape your travel experience. And by accommodation I mean: the neighborhood, the hotel and even the room. When I want a relaxed and serene environment, I settle for the best hotels and resorts around.

To conduct a good research, explore as many good guidebooks as you can. Read through the detailed reviews of different places to stay on offer. There are also many websites dedicated to the provision of thorough analysis of travel information.

2. SAFETY.

Safety should be the most important factor to consider when traveling. One can afford to compromise on other things, but your security should be at the top of your list.

I recommend avoiding high crime areas or quarters. Be careful of flaunting your assets especially when you’re in poor neighborhoods.

Those of us, who’ve had the misfortune of losing our luggage during travel, know how devastating it can be. So make sure your eyes are on your luggage at all times if you don’t want it to be snatched.

From the moment you walk into that hotel lobby, always ensure your luggage is nearby.

It is easy to get distracted in a busy hotel lobby and alert thieves can make the most of every good opportunity to steal from you.

3. BE HEALTH CONSCIOUS

Whenever I am in Wisconsin, I always prefer to stay at the cleanest hotel and resort I know: it is called the Wisconsin Dells Waterpark Hotels,

When you have travelled as much as I have, you’ll understand my reasons for being picky. Believe it or not, some hotel rooms are so unimaginably filthy, that one wonders why they are in the hospitality business. That’s why I stick to hotels I’m comfortable with. If I’m travelling to a new place, I ask my friends or check the guidebook for recommendations.

Before I move into my room, I try to avoid bacteria by making sure the room is properly cleaned.

Before you start thinking of the toilet, start with the TV remote control unit. Studies have shown that TV remote controls have one of the highest levels of bacteria in hotel accommodations.

Sometimes, lurking in every hotel mattress, pillow and cushion are human hair, body secretions, skin cells fungi, bacteria, dust, pollen, insect parts, pollen, and other harmful substances. A neat hotel will get rid of these.

If you are allergic to chemicals and other dangerous elements, you may consider traveling with your own impervious covers and pillows.

I also recommend that you wipe down all door handles and knobs including the doorways and bathrooms, phone, TV remote, and refrigerator.

4. TRAVEL LIGHT

Ever heard the saying, ‘He, who must travel happy, must travel light’? It’s very true. Most people prefer to travel with many clothes because they want to take a little leave from laundry. I’ll advise you to choose a top-notch hotel that provides laundry services.

Apart from making your journey easier, traveling light saves you the cost of checking bags and transportation to and from your hotel room.

If, however, you must travel with a lot of your clothing, you may do well to find out your laundry options before you go. Look for hotels that offer laundry services.

5. DON’T BE SCARED TO MAKE REASONABLE REQUESTS.

Most hotels offer many free treats to their customers The hotel management is in business and will want you to patronize them on your next visit.

They are therefore eager to please travelers. The treats on offer are as varied as our tastes. Don’t assume that what is not offered is not available. So be willing to ask for anything that will make your stay more enjoyable.