Do You Always Follow Hotel Rules?

[Madi100]

One of the biggests debates I've seen on these boards is putting more people in a room than Disney allows.

So, when you are at a non-Disney hotel do you still follow the four people to a room and adults pay extra?

We have four people in our family, so it's usually not an issue. Last time we went to WDW we had six people, and we didn't even consider one room. But, if we are going to spend the night someplace we have no problem putting four adults in a room and not paying extra for that. Is the big flame JUST for Disney hotels or is it across the board?

 

[sha_lyn]

I always follow the rules, why wouldn't I? We pay for extra adults, tell the kids correct ages, get a bigger room if needed etc.

 

[debster812]

An occupancy rule is an occupancy rule no matter where you are. I view this as one of the 'never to be broken by me' rules, but I am colored by my dad being a firefighter. It's not just how many people you can cram into a room, but how quickly ALL of the people in the entire hotel can safely exit the building in case of any type of evacuation.

I would not go over the maximum allowed in any hotel, Disney or not. (then again, I also don't like to stay over the 3rd or 4th floor for evac reasons either)

 

[Kimberle]

As there are only 3 of us, it's not a problem. I also don't go to a hotel to cook. You can ask me again when Brittany turns 18, kay.

 

[suzannen]

I'm with debster812 on this one. My husband's company sells and installs fire safety equipment in hotels and many of the occupancy rules are there for your and the other guests' safety, so we'd never break that rule.

But, probably another strong reason for me is, I can't STAND sharing one bathroom with that many adults!

 

[monkeyboy]

I always thought "no running naked in the halls' was more of a suggestion than a rule

 

[Figment]

nope.

 

[tiggersmom2]

But, probably another strong reason for me is, I can't STAND sharing one bathroom with that many adults!

Me either! I also like to watch what *I* want to watch on TV.........4 adults in one room would not be an option for me!

 

[piglet too]

OK, venture out here, not knowing if what I have done is wrong or not. When booking a room through the likes of Expedia, I am often told that I can not have one room for me, my DH and our three kids. If that is where we need to stay, I just say we have two kids. I always figured that since our youngest is under 3 and slept in a pack n play, it was no biggie. If I go through the hotel direct, I tell them it is three kids, give the ages, and they always have said it was no problem. (this is even if the online places tell me I can't do it) Now that sh eno longer uses the pack n play to sleep in on trips, I am not sure what we will do. I guess we will just find a place that will provide a cot or has a suite with enough beds/sofa sleeper for all five of us, as I really do not want to have to get another room just for the kids.

 

[sha_lyn]

I guess part of me is just paranoid. As others said the occupancy rules are set for our protection. Local codes set them, not the hotels.
If I lied about how many was in the room, I would worry about what could happen.
If the building caught on fire or a natural disaster hit. They would only be looking for the people report as occupying the room. If something were to happen, say we had a complaint, were robbed etc. How would we explain reporting stolen belongings of someone that was not suppose to be occupying the room. How could someone who was not in the room "legit" have a leg to stand on if they were wronged or injurred through fault of the hotel?

 

[I_Know_You2!]

At the Hyatt last weekend the rulebook stated that it was due to fire regulations, but then went on to say that for $15 you could add an additional (5th) person to the room! Yeah...right! Huh? It didn't make any sense to me!

 

[philaround]

Maximum occupency. as a general rule, is not determined by anyone connected with the hotel. This is the responsibility of the local fire marshall following the local, state, and federal regulations. If, god forbid, there should be a fire, or some other kind of disaster, the recue people need to know how many people are in the rooms and which rooms they are in. Should you have more people in your room then the hotel knows about they may be left under the rubble to suffocate or bleed to death because no one is looking for them.

Please remember, this is not a hotel trying to get more money from you. It is an attempt to prevent a possible tragedy.

 

[philaround]

At the Hyatt last weekend the rulebook stated that it was due to fire regulations, but then went on to say that for $15 you could add an additional (5th) person to the room! Yeah...right! Huh? It didn't make any sense to me!

Most hotels post a room rate that clearly states per person, based on double occupency. Now that does not mean the room can hold only 2 people. The fire marshall determines how many people can safely stay in each room.
Now as to extra charges for extra people, the overhead to run the hotel is figured on the double occupency level. Obviously the more people in a room the higher the expense to maintain that room. Longer time to clean, more beds to make, more dirty towels that have to be laundered. I can't see how anyone can fault a hotel for trying to recoup these extra expenses. Without this ability the availabilty of special rates at any hotel or resort become less
likely.

 

[tar heel]

When we go somewhere to spend a few days, we typically book a suite hotel that sleeps six for our five people.

When we're stopping at an interstate hotel while we're traveling, we put all 5 of us in one room. Often, we're not even asked how many people. When I'm asked, I tell the truth. I'm the person who goes in and gets the reservation, and I always say we're traveling with the family and need two beds and nonsmoking. I am rarely asked the kids' ages. If I were I would say that one is over 18, but I don't volunteer the information. We used to get rollaways a lot, but usually don't if there's an extra charge and we're just there for one night.

At Disney, we've rented two rooms and we've also paid the extra adult fee.

 

[WDWFAN9]

This is a sincere question -- do you really think in an emergency situation that the fire department is going to know how many people are in a room? Maybe in a body recovery, but surely not in a rescue. There have been many times when we have been in WDW with extended family and we have had a lot of people in one room. Not to sleep, we didn't go over that limit, but just everyone gathering in a room, such as when we were celebrating a birthday and opening presents. We probably had 12 people in a CBR room for a short amount of time. I remember reading on this board a while ago that occupancy had something to do with square feet and the number of beds. If Disney allowed 5 in a room there had to be "real" space for 5 to sleep. That makes more sense to me than the emergency situation explanation.

 

[GIOny]

At the Hyatt last weekend the rulebook stated that it was due to fire regulations, but then went on to say that for $15 you could add an additional (5th) person to the room! Yeah...right! Huh? It didn't make any sense to me!

Your right, I've seen that in many hotels also. Even when there are 4 of us in a room, I don't get why they want to charge me more for a child that is 19 as opposed to 17. What's the difference? How can they really justify that extra charge?

 

[kasar]

My mother likes to "just squeeze in". That's why, when we travel, I'll pick up the tab for the hotel. I always tell them the right number and they give us a room that accomodates everyone.

A question for those with 5 - if you don't get a rollaway, what's the sleeping arrangements? One on the floor? 3 in one bed? Just curious.

 

[Kermit]

If they were rescuing people, they wouldn't stop until someone in your group said that everyone in that room was accounted for.

Most occupancy rules have more to do with the room in the exit corridors and stairways than in the actual room. They have to be wide enough to accomodate everyone if the building catches on fire while every single room is filled with the maximum allowable number of people. The reason babies frequently don't count is because an adult would hold them in an emergency situation, and an adult carrying a baby doesn't take up much more space than one without a baby.

We do follow the rules. It's not because I think we'd die if we had too many people in our room, but it's more because I have to live with myself for the rest of my life, and I like myself better when I follow rules.

 

[BethR]

At the Hyatt last weekend the rulebook stated that it was due to fire regulations, but then went on to say that for $15 you could add an additional (5th) person to the room! Yeah...right! Huh? It didn't make any sense to me!

Doesn't make sense to me either. I can't understand how the maximum occupancy can change IF you pay $15 extra dollars!

 

[Tigger_Magic]

Our family is fortunate -- only 4 of us, so we usually fit in just fine. We follow the rules because it's the right thing to do and we're setting an example for two young ones.