5 Things to Look for When Booking a Meeting Room at a Hotel

When looking for the right venue for your meeting, as a minimum you need to consider the location, budget and size of the meeting. But none of those factors will matter when you and the hotel management of your choice fails in taking care of the details that count.

There are multiple points at which an event can go awry. Consider these real-life and very common issues: Wrong time/date communicated. Miscalculated the traffic around the venue. Miscommunicated facilities and technology. Unbelievable hidden fees. You name it and if it can go wrong it will.

Meeting at Tahko - Break by Sokos Hotels
photo credit: Visit Lakeland / Flickr

With that said, here are 5 things to look for when booking a meeting room at a hotel:

1. Timing

Having a meeting or a seminar on the right date. The day and time of the day are important. No, it’s not about Feng Shui (well, maybe yes to some…) it’s about accommodating your attendees and guests when suits them.

I’ve been in an event at a hotel, where there is another big event commencing at the same day and time. When this happens the hotel can be too packed and getting in and out of meeting rooms is stressful.

Make sure that you let the hotel management know about your concerns and discuss them before you sign the booking agreement. A good hotel will advise when to book, not try to squeeze you in to make money.

2. Facilities and amenities

A list of facilities and amenities is fine, but you need to make sure that the list covers everything. Is the whiteboard included? Is water provided? How about the sound system – is it provided? If so, what quality is it? Discussing this in detail helps eliminate the hassle of knowing what you will and won’t get – and saving any future anxiety.

3. Price lists and the hidden extras

Be sure you know all of the prices and what’s included in them. Also, make sure whether there will be extra charges and be sure the conditions and amounts are well listed in your booking agreement.

Harbourview meeting room at InterContinental Hong Kong
photo credit: InterContinental Hong Kong / Flickr

4. Accommodations

If your meeting or event ends late at night or spans over a couple of days, you may need to discuss booking hotel rooms for your attendees or guests. Communicate this with your speakers, attendees or guests and make sure that there are enough rooms for everyone.

5. Booking confirmation

Don’t underestimate your booking confirmation. There are stories of how meetings, seminars or expos never happened because there was a miscommunication in the event date and time.

When you book, make sure that the hotel’s website uses a reliable room booking software system like meetings maker. A simple web form just doesn’t cut it – it’s unreliable and chances are, you’ll need to confirm and reconfirm your booking.

Takeaway

Booking a meeting room seems a simple activity. However, doing it wrong can jeopardize the whole event. Use the tips found in this post to make sure that you can make the most of your booking.