Early disembarkation but late hotel check-in

I'm planning a 4-day stay in London next year. It's between EB and WB TAs and private car transfer between the Southampton pier and central London are booked. (To much luggage for easy train travel as I adore formal nights!:D)

However the cruise line hotel packages for this voyage are sold out so I'm on my own to book accommodation. It looks like the usual check-in time in the UK is 1500 but the ship will disembark early or mid morning. Is it possible to arrange an earlier check-in without having to book a fifth night? In the US this can often be worked out by calling the hotel directly but is this a usual practice in the UK? I've got a gap of about 5 or 6 hours otherwise. I'm sure others have had this problem too.

Depends on the "class" of hotel. If it is a budget chain, then if they do allow it, there will be a charge.

If it is a normal hotel just ask when you arrive. Even if they say no, they will still have somewhere secure to leave your luggage.

In 4 and 5 star hotels we have always been given a room in which to shower and rest if our suite was not ready. Can't say how this would be handled in lesser stared hotels. You could just call and ask the hotel directly.

Most hotels will not be too difficult about giving you a room a little earlier, providing they have free clean rooms. And that is exactly the problem: most hotels have a check-out time of 12:00, and then the room still has to be cleaned, thus the guaranteed time of 15:00 when the room should be ready. Most cleaning staff do not even start before 9 am, because there is so little to do otherwise.

You could ring the night before, and ask if they are very empty, and tell them you will be arriving early. If they are full, you are just so out of luck. Hotels will have a place to store your luggage, but they cannot make miracles happen.

If you want to be certain that your room is ready at your arrival time, you do not have any other option than to also book the room the night before. If you do that, make sure you tell the hotel you will only be arriving in the morning, otherwise you go no-show and they might sell the room for the following days.

I wouldn't envisage this as being a problem. We have often arrived earlier than 15.00 hrs and we have been allocated a room which has been prepared early or we have waited with a coffee or left the luggage and had a little stroll while the room is sorted out. Not worth booking an extra night. By the time you get up to London and taken to your hotel it won't be very short of check in time anyway.

The last passengers will probably be off the ship by 9.30, so you'll be in central London well before mid-day.

Check-in times at most hotels are a guaranteed time, if your room is ready when you arrive you can normally use the room straight away. If not, every hotel I've known will happily store luggage securely until you return.

JB :)

Most hotels will store your bags until the room is ready ..just go do some sightseeing while you wait

Thank you for all of the replies. I think I'll book the four nights, ask for my luggage to be stored, then start to take in the sights. The advantage to arriving by ship is that one isn't jet lagged with the body in a different time zone.

Thank you for all of the replies. I think I'll book the four nights, ask for my luggage to be stored, then start to take in the sights. The advantage to arriving by ship is that one isn't jet lagged with the body in a different time zone.

Definitely the way to go. If your room is ready, they will give it to you. If not, leave the bags behind (take your valuables with you) and go explore the sights. I do this all the time.

Thank you for all of the replies. I think I'll book the four nights, ask for my luggage to be stored, then start to take in the sights. The advantage to arriving by ship is that one isn't jet lagged with the body in a different time zone.

That's what we do as well. :)

LuLu