Every year – Royal Holiday members go – and go back – to not just new hotels – but to their favorite locations too.
What makes a location your favorite? Often it’s the style of accommodations you choose. As much as anything else a particular location offers, it can come right down to the style of hotel, resort, condo or apartment hotel. Here’s what Royal Holiday travelers choose from.
1. All-Inclusive Resorts, Condo-Style Apartments or Lodging-Only Hotels
Some really popular locations will offer more than one type of accommodation but most locations offer just one style accommodation based on how travelers are likely to visit that city or region.
a) All-Inclusive: Designed for the totally carefree holiday – the all-inclusive resort is especially appropriate for parties of multi-generational travelers – those with kids and/or seniors. An all-inclusive resort gives families the freedom to eat and drink – all the time and anytime – when ever anyone chooses, without changing money, without reaching for money and without worrying about coordinating eating times, meeting times or snack times.
b) Condo style resorts and Apartment Hotels: The condo style resort gives couples or smaller parties a lot more freedom. Often coupled with a rental car, the vacation condo will let you set up a homebase – often they will require a minimum stay of some 7 days. But you will get more room, a kitchen or kitchenette, and access to a super market, with the expectation that you’ll be just a little more independent. Apartmement style hotels are more common in larger cities or European capital cities where guests are a bit more cost concious, but still expect the freedom of visiting a condo resort.
c) Lodging Only: A “European Plan” hotel will offer just the traditional hotel-style lodging. Royal Holiday maintains occupancy in a few locations where demand is extremely high, and where guests are prepared to “go it alone” for meals, and to generally to tour a city independently. Because they can be among the least expensive options, “Lodging only” hotels allow more members to travel to more locations, but without the restrictions or expense of more ample accommodations.
2. Availability based on Hotel Type
Accommodation types can also be classified according to the agreements the club maintains with the hotel or resort management. This is important because it can indicate the likelihood of availability in a given location.
a) Club Resorts: Royal Holiday maintains long term occupany rights with a number of Hotels and Resorts in the US and in the Caribbean. These include all of the Park Royal Hotels & Resorts in Mexico, Argentina and in Puerto Rico.
b) Secured: Including many of the Condominium style resorts across the United States and some All-Inclusive resorts in the Caribbean, the Club also has long term access to some of the most popular resorts where demand is consistently high. Outside of the Club Resorts, these offer your best chances for booking a vacation, nearly year round.
c) Non-secured: The Club also has agreements to offer a certain number of rooms in some hard to get locations. If they aren’t booked by Club members within a set time frame, the hotel will fill them with other guests. This is one big reason that lower demand locations need to be booked further in advance.
d) On-Request: Very competitive, the hotels in some locations are booked only by the Club when a members requests them. Essentially, Members compete with the general public for the reservation, even though our rates are generally best. Often reservations need to be made about one year in advance because these are the most high demand locations with the fewest reservations available.
3. Seasons & Advance Booking
All of the above can affect when you should book. a) Seasons: Season vary with the type of hotel and especially with the region you’re planning on booking. Ski locations have High Seasons in the Winter – but guess what? So do the Beach locations. Sometimes high demand seasons will even mean that the Club can offer fewer rooms because the hotels there will make fewer rooms available to the Club. The Club works to keep the website up to date so that you have an idea of the advance booking time, which can range from three to six months and even up to a year.
b) Advance Booking: Because Royal Holiday travelers are going every year, it’s best to try to know – in advance – the booking conditions of the place you’re hoping to visit. That’s pretty easy when you’re going to the same place each year – but it’s even more important if you will be planning to visit somewhere new.
Extra Fees ?
Finally, don’t forget, some high demand, and very competitive locations require the payment of a surcharge – only if and when you visit. Among these types of hotels are The Manhattan Club and The Roosevelt Hotel in New York, St. Marks London and the Palazzo al Velabro in Rome, among others.
Importantly, that let’s the Club keep prices low – for all members – at all of the most popular locations that all member are far more likely to visit.
The Resort Guide, and the Royal Holiday website, are kept continually up to date to provide you with information on the few locations where surcharges are necessary. There’s also a ton of information on where to go, how long to stay and what you can do when you’re there.
Don’t forget! Member Services is also well prepared to answer your questions about the type of hotel you’re visiting, what you can expect and how long in advance you should book. They’ll be happy to hear from you.