Arriving early, leaving late

[misshark122]

We leave for the Cook Islands within a couple weeks! so excited! But our flight arrives at 6am and when we leave the Cooks it leaves at 11:15pm. Our hotel said that it is $150 usd to check in early, and check out late until 6 pm - after 6pm and it is a full night rate.

What would you do in this situation? Most hotels we've stayed at will let you check in early for free if the room is open....

what do you guys think? What's the airport like in Raro? Is it open air like it is in Papeete?

[Deleted]

In these type of situations, we typically just leave our bags with the belldesk and check-in/out at the regular times. On the day that you are leaving late, just make sure that you don't have any sweaty/dirty activities planned so you're not all gross on the flight back.

[livinitup]

Guaranteed for both? Yes, I'd pay an extra $150 for that. Probably.

Otherwise, will they hold your luggage and let you use the pool until/after check-in/out? Most times I have traveled, we've used the hotel, with permission, before or after our checking.

[misshark122]

So it would be an extra $300.
We'll probably end up doing it... I just think if the room is open why not let the guests stay a little longer? lol.

[steamboat185]

I would leave the bags at the front desk, but I am cheap.

For the arriving flight I wouldn't pay extra because there is a chance your flight could be delayed, plus you have to clear customs, and travel to the hotel. For me it is worth the risk that the desk clerk could get you into the room a little early without paying $150 and if they can't I would find a hammock in the shade and fall asleep.

[misshark122]

Jun 6, 2012 10:54:42 GMT -5 steamboat185 said:

I would leave the bags at the front desk, but I am cheap.

For the arriving flight I wouldn't pay extra because there is a chance your flight could be delayed, plus you have to clear customs, and travel to the hotel. For me it is worth the risk that the desk clerk could get you into the room a little early without paying $150 and if they can't I would find a hammock in the shade and fall asleep.

This is a good point.

What we will most likely do is play it by ear and see how it goes once we are there.

[winterbride1220]

I always keep a bikini in my carry on for this exact reason. although I'm a little shocked they want $300 vs. the free if and when it's available.

[GilliC]

I'm a cheapskate, so I always just plan to leave luggage at the hotel and go do something else. But when I go to drop off the bags, I always ask if it's possible to go ahead and check in. Sometimes if the room is ready I've had them just go ahead and hand over the key. Like you said, it's no loss for them. It's just hard for them to guarantee that it will be ready early if they're fully booked and someone is supposed to be checking out.

[CloudBee]

I would pay the fee. We did this at the Intercontinental in Papeete, and were so happy we did. After a long flight, I want nothing more than a quick shower, to change my clothes, and possibly lay down for even 15 mins to unwind.

I also hate flying out late, after having gone out of my way to keep myself busy all day, because we didn't have a hotel to stop and relax in.

[basilosaurus]

Let me know how it is! That's on our short list.

As for the hotel, I just go to check in and leave my bags. Most of the time, if a room's ready, they give it to me. If not, I go on my merry little way.

For check out, it depends on where I am. Sometimes I leave the bags, if the hotel's not out of the way to return to before going to the airport. Sometimes I find a luggage locker that's more convenient.

I'm way too cheap to pay that for an extra few hours. I think the most I've paid is about $60 for a day rate near an airport when I had something like 8 hours to kill after an overnight flight.

[basilosaurus]

Oh, and according to google images, the airport is a shack. HTH!