1. © 2011, Educational Institute
Courtesy of Jumeirah International
GROUP RESERVATION

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Competencies for
Guestrooms
1. Describe the ways in which meeting attendees make
reservations at the hotel that will host their meeting.
2. Identify factors that hotel staff take into account
when assigning rooms to meeting attendees and
managing room blocks, and describe the importance
of good check-in/check-out procedures.
3. Describe how computerization facilitates front office
guest service.

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Importance of Effective
Communication
• The hotel sales manager must get the details of the
meeting to the reservations department as soon as the
contract is signed, and these details must be entered
into the computerized reservations system as soon as
possible. Otherwise, attendees will call the hotel to
make a reservation and find that the reservations
department has no record of the meeting.
• Meeting planner should be instructed to tell delegates
to indicate that they are attending the convention when
making their reservation. This is essential in order to
credit individual reservations to the group.
(continued)

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Importance of Effective
Communication
• Meeting planner should be asked to provide a list of
VIPs to the hotel so that such individuals can be
provided with high-end guestrooms.
(continued)

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Reservation Systems
• Postal reply/fax response cards
• Toll-free phone numbers: public or group-specific
• Hotel Internet site reservations
• Rooming lists
• Convention center housing bureaus
• Third-party housing companies

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Characteristics of Reservation
Management Procedures
• Postal reply/fax response cards—an effective form is
essential. Form must be concise and simple, yet solicit all
necessary information.
• Toll-free phone numbers, public or group-specific—
attendees must be instructed to indicate that they are
attending a meeting when calling to make a reservation.
• Hotel Internet site reservations—must create a special page
on firm’s website dedicated to the event and that enables
attendees to book at convention rates using a passcode.
(continued)

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Characteristics of Reservation
Management Procedures
• Rooming lists—reservations are not made with the hotel, but
with the housing staff at the planner’s headquarters. Planner
prepares the rooming list from the reservations received and
sends it to the hotel prior to a cutoff date. CSM should
encourage use of rooming lists because it reduces the load on
the hotel’s reservation department.
• Convention center housing bureaus—handles reservations for
citywide conventions involving multiple hotels. CVBs must
perform efficiently or chaos will ensue.
• Third-party housing companies—firms that use high
technology to make housing arrangements for groups. Often
used for citywide conventions.
(continued)

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Rate Structures
Kinds of Rates
• Rack rate: rarely used for meetings
• Run-of-the-house rates: common for small groups
• Split rates: rates based on room types
• Discounted rates: common for large groups
(continued)

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Rate Structures
Factors in Determining Rate Structures
• Season
• Days of the week
• Group size
• Length of stay
• Type(s) of room(s) they will use
• Number of guests per room
• Known attendance
• Difficulties with group’s past conventions
(continued)

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Complimentary Arrangements
Comp Rooms
• Usually one room for every 50 room nights
• One suite for every 100 guestrooms
• Rooming lists should specify who will
occupy them
Other Concessions
• Complimentary cocktail parties
• Complimentary limo service
• Complimentary meeting space
• Offers vary among properties

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Room Types and
Release and Confirmation Dates
Room Types
• Singles
• Doubles
• Twins
• Suites
Release and Confirmation Dates
• Also called “cutoff dates”
• Usually 30 days before meeting
• Room block based on group history
• Adjust reservation records periodically
• Communicate regularly with planner

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The Group’s Historical Performance
Tips
• No-shows result in significant revenue loss
• Discuss no-show patterns with planner before
releasing space
• Size of room block should be based on group history,
not planner’s claims
• Hotel and planner should re-examine the block size
on several intermediate dates and readjust the number
if necessary
• Hotel should communicate regularly with planner
and adjust room allotments along the way
(continued)

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The Group’s Historical Performance
Researching a Group’s History
• Send standard letter of inquiry to previous host(s)
• Obtain planner’s feedback on meetings held between
booking date and the event your property will host
• Attend group’s next meeting as observer
(continued)
(continued)

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The Group’s Historical Performance
Release Dates (Cutoff)
• The contract should specify a date when guestrooms
will be confirmed or released back to the hotel
• Cutoff date is normally 30 days prior to convention
start date
• After cutoff, rooms are accepted on a space-available
basis
Booking Pace Reports
• Weekly pick-up reports provided by hotel
(continued)

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Arrival/Departure Pattern
• Most conventions will have some early arrivals and
early departures
• Major arrival/major departure should be indicated in
the resume
• Extra staffing may be required
• A hospitality area may need to be set up for early
check-ins

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Problems with Guestroom Usage
and Reservations
No-Shows
• Usually the result of attendees making
multiple reservations
• Combat with deposits, 30-day cutoffs,
and guaranteed reservations
• Mitigated by walk-in business
• Resorts have little walk-in business
(continued)

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Problems with Guestroom Usage
and Reservations
Early Departures
• Answered with early departure fees
Underdepartures
• Answered with offer of new contract
or with eviction
Overbooking
• “Walking” guests to other hotels
• Plan ahead for overbooking
(continued)

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Guestroom Attrition
• “Attrition” refers to under-performance
• If actual guestrooms used are significantly less than
the rooms blocked, hotels may charge attrition fees
• Attrition fees are charged to the group, not the
individual attendee
• Hotels typically allow for some slippage (20 percent)
(continued)

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Guestroom Attrition
Booking Outside the Block
• Attendees who book guestrooms at hotels other than
those specified by the meeting planner, or book rooms
within the specified hotels, but not as part of the
convention group
Room Audits
• To fight attrition, hotels have implemented room block
auditing services
(continued)

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Check-In and Check-Out
Procedures
Check-In Procedures
• Preregistration
• Key packets made in advance
• Special receiving desks for large groups
Check-Out Procedures
• Flexible check-out times
• Luggage waiting area

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Applications of Information
Technology
Reservations
• One-time entry of data; permits
preregistration by e-mail
Registration and Room Assignments
• Preprinted registration cards given
to delegates when they arrive,
which they review and sign
• Check-in and check-out can be
expedited through the use of self
check-in, check-out terminals
(continued)
Courtesy of Fairmont Hotels & Resorts

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Applications of Information
Technology
Check-Out and Billing
• Point-of-sale (POS) terminals
Reports and Analysis Applications
• Data are often used to generate
reports such as booking activity by
market segment
(continued)