My wife and I are going on a trip to Cancun and have never been there before.
We’ve been reading review websites and have seen that quite a few people have asked the front desk to upgrade the room.
How do we do this to be successful?
Do we just go up and be friendly and ask for an upgrade?
Should we be specific and say can you give us the deluxe room?
SHould we have a $20 bill in our hands to imply we will tip?
What if they say no, can we say, “If I give you $20 can you upgrade our room?”
I’m totally not good at this kind of stuff but it would be great if we could upgrade the hotel room from standard to deluxe or superior.
We are going on Oct 2nd.
There is no guaranteed way that I know of, but being nice really helps. When I traveled alot on business it was my standard procedure to approach the front desk with a big smile, engage in some light conversation with the clerk, and say something like “I understand your holding the best room in this hotel just for me!” (it helps with this method to check in when the front desk is not especially busy. The clerks won’t be in a mood to chit chat if they’ve got 50 other people to deal with).
It amazed my cow-orkers that often I would get a free upgrade just for taking time to be nice and then asking, even jokingly, for a better room - a mini-suite in St. Louis overlooking the arch, a three room suite in LA overlooking a movie lot, etc. Front desk clerks are just people. Treat them nicely, help their day go a little better and they’ll generally do their best to take care of you.
Much will depend on the type of place you’re staying, and how busy they are. Doctor Jackson is right on with the “be friendly” advice. Take the time to be nice to the front desk person. While I’ve never tried to upgrade to a nicer room, I have always been able to get ocean facing rooms which is really what I want. The first time I asked the front desk person when I started to check in if there was any way to get an ocean view…making sure he knew that I really wanted one. Once he was able to secure me a great room, I tipped him $20. Cheap price for a great room. The second time we emailed the hotel ahead of time, and explained that we were coming back for our anniversary, and would really like the same room. Not only wasn’t it a problem, they even delivered a bottle of champagne and fruit upon our arrival.
This was at one of the smaller resorts “Flamingo Cancun”, I don’t know that you’d have as much luck at one of the mega-resorts there. They are much more likely to be booked, and the front desk staff not as willing to bend, simply because there are so many people that come through there.
A little niceness goes a long way. The front desk advice above is spot on.
You can also phone ahead and talk to the concierge. Again, be friendly, chit chat a bit and ask if there will be any upgraded rooms available when you get there. If they are able to accomodate your request, please remeber to get the person’s name and tip them when you arrive.