Hotel stay when not 18

[barbmouse]

Can teenagers.... 17 year olds check into a hotel without an adult? We have kids who are a group of friends going on a shopping trip to a nearby city. Do the parents just make the reservations ahead of time and then the teenagers check in on their own. Not sure how this works. Thanks if you have experience or can help!

 

[ICF]

Probably need to call the hotel directly and ask. I'm guessing it will depend on the hotel and could see where they may want an "adult" present.

 

[barbmouse]

By the way, I forgot to add these are all girls..no mixed company.

 

[JessicaR]

It depends on the hotel. I know Loews Hotels has this policy -

Age Requirements

Guests must be 21 years of age to book a hotel room and provide proper identification upon check-in.

So do many others. I would call and get the specific info where they are staying.

 

[Toad_Passenger]

I was in an Ice Hockey tournament when I was 16 and we had to stay in a hotel with a bunch of other 16/17 year olds. We were leaving later than the rest of the team and had to stay overnight since we couldn't do the whole trip in one night.

One of the parents made the reservations, but then called as well. They took the parents credit card information over the phone and held it for any damages, etc. It was really painless when we checked in. We had the parent on the phone, just in case, but her son showed his ID and it all checked out.

 

[AKL_Megs]

I'm pretty sure an ADULT will need to be there, for liability reasons. These ARE minor children.

But you MAY be able to find a "classy" place that will give a room to a bunch of minor girls who are all alone...

 

[barkley]

definatly speak with someone directly at the physical location of the hotel to see if this is even permissable. many of the chains have policies that strictly forbid adults from renting rooms for non adults esp. if the adult will not be at least be renting an adjacent room and staying on-site as well (with some it's against their policy to allow anyone under 18 to spend the night in a room without an adult above a certain age to also be present).

 

[Nik's Mom]

We just went on a vacation to Baltimore/Washington DC/Williamsburg. In all 3 locations, there was an age requirement to rent a room. I just can't remember if the age was 18 or 21.

 

[NotUrsula]

Most of the time they cannot check in unless there is someone in the party who is over 21. Gender doesn't matter -- it isn't about illicit sex; it's about noise and the complaints of other guests.

Some independent and franchise-owned motels will let you check in and prepay with cash without ID, but as a general rule, the kind of property that will allow this usually isn't the kind of property that you'd want a group of girls to stay in.

In rare cases where someone is a good customer well-known to management, there are hotels that will take an adult's assurance and credit-card guarantee over the phone to allow a minor to check in. However, I suspect that they would still balk if it were a group of minors. They are just too likely to get loud and cause other guests to complain.

 

[Mickey's Minion]

Most chains you have to be either 18 or 21 to check in.

It is one of the reasons that on most airlines it is strongly recommended that an unaccompanied minor not book the last flight of any route. If their flight was canceled or rerouted, the minor would not be able to get a hotel room.

This is from United's page:
We strongly recommend that teens who are not using our unaccompanied minor service be confirmed on flights early in the day. Unanticipated delays or cancellations due to air traffic congestion or unexpected weather such as fog, snow or thunderstorms may disrupt flight schedules and result in missed connections. If delays result in travel being completed the following day, United may not be able to offer overnight accommodations, since many hotels will not accept minors ages 17 or younger.

As others have suggested, it is best to check directly with the hotel. And do not take the front desk clerk's answer, ask to speak to a manager and get his/her name.

You wouldn't want one front desk person to tell you "no problem" only to have the manager come out when the kids get to the hotel and say "absolutely not."

 

[scrapquitler]

Can teenagers.... 17 year olds check into a hotel without an adult? We have kids who are a group of friends going on a shopping trip to a nearby city. Do the parents just make the reservations ahead of time and then the teenagers check in on their own. Not sure how this works. Thanks if you have experience or can help!

I would check with the hotel (not the main reservation number, the front desk manager of the particular property).

When DH and I were seniors in college (age 21) we went on a weekend trip and had a very hard time getting ourselves checked into the hotel in spite of being 21, having our own credit cards and id and everything...they didn't want to rent to 'underage' people. I'd guess that 17 year olds are not going to have an easy time of it.

 

[omghidanielle]

After scouring youtube for a video, I will simply have to type out my first thought when I read this thread:

Howdy do. This is Peter McCallister, the father.
I'd like a hotel room please, with an extra large bed, a TV, and
one of those little refrigerators you have to open with a key.

Credit card? You got it. ​

 

[MizTink]

me and my high school boyfriend used to go to hotels with no problem. neither one of us was 18, or had a credit card. we never had a problem.

 

[briar_rose_59]

I checked into the Hyatt at MCO when I was 18 and my flight was delayed. I did have my credit card and passport on me though. I would think that checking into a hotel at 17 would be tricky, so I'm going to agree with the others that have said to definitely call and confirm with the hotel itself, and make sure that you get confirmation from a manager and not just front desk staff. I work in a hotel right now and I can't count the number of times someone has come in wanting something that we don't offer and says so-and-so said they could when so-and-so was not in any position of authority.

 

[LadyZolt]

Renting a hotel room is a contract. Minors cannot be legally bound by contracts that they enter -- the minor can choose to nullify the contract even if he/she agreed to enter it. Most hotels won't rent to minors for this reason.

-Dorothy (LadyZolt)

 

[SandrA9810]

Is there a reason why a parent couldn't "tag along"... even if it's only for the drive there. The parent could then check into the hotel room and hang out there while the girls go do their thing. Even as connected as we are, it's still nice having some one close by just in case.

Me and kari used to go to Disney all the time by ourselves since we were 19. Technically the rule is 21, but we usually managed to find a hotel to stay at. On time we went to this rinky dink place on 192 and tried to pay with a CC, the guy asked for ID and saw that she wasn't 21. We went across the street to the then ramada hotel, checked in with a credit card and they never even asked for ID. Funny part was, it was only 5$ more (with a coupon from travel savers). It's very possible to get a hotel room. But no guarantee they'll be able to.

I know the state of florida it's 21 yrs old.

 

[Rora]

I know the state of florida it's 21 yrs old.

This isn't true. I've checked into plenty of hotels when I was 18+ but not yet 21. I've lived in FL my whole life.

OP- the age of check in is usually 21. If the hotel is located in a tourist-y area like Orlando, there will be various hotels that allow a check in age of 18 for whatever reason (mostly to accomodate international tourists). Personally, I'd call the hotel, tell them situation and see what can be done.

Good luck!

 

[*pixie*dust*]

Renting a hotel room is a contract. Minors cannot be legally bound by contracts that they enter -- the minor can choose to nullify the contract even if he/she agreed to enter it. Most hotels won't rent to minors for this reason.

-Dorothy (LadyZolt)

I agree. It is a question of contractual liability. With no adult taking legal responsibility, in theory, the place could be completely trashed and the hotel would have no recourse. Someone over 18 will have to take responsibility.

 

[luvmy3]

I agree. It is a question of contractual liability. With no adult taking legal responsibility, in theory, the place could be completely trashed and the hotel would have no recourse. Someone over 18 will have to take responsibility.

The adult renting the room and putting it on their credit card will be the one taking responsibility. I think the question is, does that person have to be present upon check-in or for the entire stay.

OP, you should call the hotel directly and ask since its obvious there is no yes/no answer to this.

 

[Sparx]

I think you should call the local hotels and check. Is the town they're visiting too far away for a parent to drive up and rent the room and then drive home in the worst case scenario?