Do you confirm hotels?

I just sent off emails for a trip two weeks away. Got 9 out of 10 confirmations (still waiting for the hotel in Athens). The hotel in Fuessen had us arriving a day early. Got it all fixed up

Warren

Travelling with a "rigidly flexible" husband, I always confirm about a week before leaving. The one I didn't hear from in Vernazza is the one that was not available, but we got something else that was probably in the end, better. Staying mostly in B&B's I get in touch frequently before I go. I also printed up a copy of each confirmation, but have not needed it yet.

I made my reservations about six months out and all the hotels asked me to re-confirm about a month out which I will do. I have always done that anyway ~ a good general practice.

Good question, and one that will probably get a variety of responses, considering some people just "wing it" when travelling in Europe and don't pre book any accommodations. On my trips I've always pre booked, and confirmed my reservations prior to departure. While I tend to keep my daily itinerary flexible, I like to know where I'm going to lay my head at night... :)

I always phone in the initial reservation and confirm with an e-mail the week before my trip. In all of my travels, I've only been denied lodging with a confirmed reservation once. A few years back in Rothenburg odT, we arrived late in the evening during a torrential downpour to find the small hotel we booked was sold out. They had transposed a digit from my credit card number when validating the card the day before I arrived. The card was rejected & they sent an e-mail, but I didn't have access to my account…didn't receive it in time. They rebooked our room. It all worked out in the end, because the manager was nice enough to walk us across the street to a brand new apartment-style lodging in an old house…we got in no problem. Perhaps the best way to avoid this type of thing would be to phone ahead the day of arrival, but this problem has only occurred once in years of travel, so I don't worry about and don't call ahead. The confirmation e-mail before I leave the U.S. has worked in every case but one. If you're travleing with a phone, I suppose it can't hurt to phone ahead. Happy travels!

I email all my hotels about a week before I leave - just for my own peace of mind and to ask any specific questions (where to park, do you have a hairdryer, etc.).

Same as Karen, although I tend to email about a month ahead. Was a darn good thing when one of our reservations fell through and we had to re-book elsewhere.

I think it really depends on a number of factors including the time of year, and whether you're staying in a small mom & pop place or a big hotel. I doubt you'd be denied your room unless the place re-booked it, and in that case hopefully they would take you to another property as in the case of the previous poster. If they didn't try to help you/turned you away, that's the sort of thing that would make me pretty reluctant to stay at that property anyway.

Yes! I usually email about 2 weeks before I leave the US making sure that I include the dates and rates in the request. For the hotels that do respond, I take a hard copy with me for proof.

I also rely on e-mail for confirmations. If I book very early (which I often do), I confirm twice ... I'm very neurotic about such things. Definitely print out the confirmation e-mails and bring them with you. I'd also advise saving those e-mails until your trip is over. Just this spring, I ran into an issue for the first time: I'd booked, then canceled, a hotel in Perpignan. Fortunately for me, I kept the e-mail containing their response to my cancellation. Upon returning from my trip, I found a very sharp e-mail from that same hotel informing me that I had been a no-show and that I owed them one night's stay (approx. 75 euros). I was able to forward their receipt of my cancellation, resulting in an amicable close to the situation.

The few times that we've been overbooked in a hotel, the managers have delivered us to similar or higher-quality accommodations nearby, where we were charged the original price.

Yes, I confirm by email about a week before I leave. It doesn't take long and it's peace of mind, especially during the summer season. Then I print and take the confirmation with me.

I reserve using email (often months in advance). Just before the trip I use a second email to confirm. When they respond I print out the whole thing and take the print out with me. This is useful because it often includes directions, parking details, etc. We have only had one 'issue' doing it this way. That was in Positano where parking is very difficult. We had been directed to a particular garage. When we arrived they said they were full - when shown the printout, they found room for our car and transported our bags to the hotel.

I have never followed up by phone to confirm a hotel reservation. So far, I have not had a problem. For me, I'm willing to take the "risk".

When I initially make the reservation, I do make sure to get confirmation of my reservation in writing and I always take this confirmation with me. Also, if I am planning to arrive late (e.g. after 6pm), I note that on the reservation request. I typically book less than 2 months in advance.

After some bad experiences I now request an email from the hotel confirming the reservation. Even with this I have arrived and been told there was no reservation so I now reconfirm the confirmation a couple of weeks before arrival.

Whenever traveling anywhere, I like to pre-book online and bring a copy of my confirmation with me. If I do contact the hotel to make changes or ask any questions, I print that correspondence, too. If I am already on my way there and know I'm going to be late, I give them a call just to make sure I will still be able to check in.

I tend to make my reservations well in advance( months in advance to get good rates or to get into smaller budget type places I like) so I always send a reconfirming email, and keep copy of confirmation. Works for me.

A week before I go, I send an email out to all my hotels and reconfirm my arrival time. I guess a week would be enough for me to chose another hotel (although in a panic) if I got the worse case scenario email response.

I call and confirm.

Never.

Never had a problem, but now that I say that, I am sure I will encounter an issue.

Since I make all my reservations on the internet, I confirm and re-confirm using the reply feature on the confirmation message from the hotel. In cases where the first night is pre-paid, I usually don't re-confirm. It never hurts to confirm, re-confirm. I've never had a reservation "lost" using my system.

Stayed hundreds of nights on business in States and never reconfirmed...got walked or tried to a couple of times.

Don't usually reconfirm on vacation travel around the world, haven't had a problem.

ALWAYS print and bring your confirmation...needed it lots of times. Once in Africa, Abercrombie & Kent (top of the food chain) required me to take a private safari vehicle since my son was only 8. Two couples had private cars reserved. The guide had zero scheduled. I had paperwork and got mine. They didn't and did get theirs for a day or two.

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I confirm my reservations a week or two before I leave. It takes only a few seconds by e-mail, so there is no downside to doing it. Only once did I find they had lost my reservation, but I was certainly glad to find out before I left, when it could be straightened out, rather than finding out when I got there.

I always print off my confirmations. If I've booked through a 3rd party website, I confirm directly with the hotel. With the little mom and pop places, just a quick email to check in on it. We've never had a problem when we're there, but once when canceling a reservation in Madrid, I was told they had no record of us coming. Would've hated to have been turned away with our (then) 2-year-old.

We routinely confirm by email a few days in advance. Also, carry tons of printouts...a practice I hope to discontinue. Only once (over many years) encountered a problem when a London hotel did not have our room, and at 1:00 AM! No amount of paperwork would have changed it. Happily they handled it very well...we even made a few pounds.

I would agree with others that a quick email a week or two before the arrival date and a print out of the exchange and original confirmation email is quick, easy, and reassuring. Have done it even with reservations in the States.
I don't think you'll be denied your room unless there was a problem (lost reservation, etc.), but checking on the reservation ahead of time would hopefully prevent a problem once you arrive.

My husband has always made our reservations using Travelocity. Has anyone encountered confusion if trying to confirm directly with a hotel?