You're listening to Business English Pop, the Business English podcast for professionals on the move.
Arriving at a hotel after a long, hard day of travel, you need to do one last thing before you can take a hot shower and relax in front of the TV.
You need to check in.
That means registering for the room by filling out any necessary forms and giving the hotel your credit card number.
Checking into hotels is another important part of travel, whether it's for business or for pleasure.
This episode follows on from BEP 78, in which Sarah Johnson called to reserve a room at the Majestic Hotel in New York.
Sarah has now arrived, and she is ready to begin her stay.
In this episode, we will focus on phrases and vocabulary both for checking in and for inquiring about hotel services.
Whilst checking in
In the listening Paul at reception helps Sarah register for the room.
Pay attention to the language Sarah uses.
As you listen, try to answer the following questions.
You can check back in a couple of days on our website, www.businessenglishpod.com, for the answers.
2.
What do guests need to bring with them to the fitness centre?
How does Sarah pay for her room deposit?
Good afternoon, madam.
Can I help you?
Good afternoon.
My name is Johnson.
I'd like to check in, please.
Yes, of course.
I have a reservation.
All right.
Just a moment.
Ah, here it is.
Sarah Johnson.
Is that right?
Yes.
It's one of our business suites with a balcony facing the courtyard.
Non-smoking?
Yes.
We've got you on a non-smoking floor.
Good.
And staying three nights?
Right.
Could you please just fill out this registration card?
Yes, of course.
Do I fill in my home address?
Yes, please.
Do you also have our dinner reservation?
Yes, you've got a table for two in our Skyview restaurant for dinner at 8 o'clock.
That's great.
Have you stayed at the Majestic before, madam?
Yes, but it's been a while.
How do we get to the restaurant?
Just take the elevator to the fifth floor and turn right.
There'll be a host there to welcome you.
Great, thank you.
And how about the fitness center?
It's on the sixth floor.
Be sure to bring your room key.
You'll need it to get in.
Thanks.
Oh, and can we get an extra key?
My husband will need one.
Yes, of course.
Great, thanks.
You're welcome.
Now, I'll just need to get you a deposit.
Here's my credit card.
Thanks.
Um, when is checkout?
Our plane's not till 5 p.m. on Saturday.
Checkout's at noon, but just call down if you need a little extra time.
It's usually not a problem.
Thanks.
Okay.
Your room is 832.
It's on the 8th floor.
Here are your keys.
Thank you.
You're welcome.
Is there anything else I can get for you, madam?
No, that's great.
Well, just give us a call if we can be of assistance.
I will.
What's your name?
It's Paul.
Thanks, Paul.
You've been very helpful.
My pleasure, ma'am.
Bye.
So how did the dialogue begin?
The first thing Sarah needs to do is to show that she would like to check in and indicate that she has a reservation.
How does she do this?
Good afternoon, madam.
Can I help you?
Good afternoon.
My name is Johnson.
I'd like to check in, please.
Yes, of course.
I have a reservation.
Sarah says, I'd like to check in, please.
And, I have a reservation.
Let's listen to more examples.
Hi there.
My family name's Smith.
We have a reservation.
Hi.
We booked a room online for the 15th through the 20th.
My last name is Weaver.
Good afternoon.
My name is Fred Hill.
We should be in your system.
We reserved a room for today.
Luckily, Paul finds a reservation with no problem.
All right.
Just a moment.
Ah, here it is.
Sarah Johnson.
Is that right?
Yes.
However, what can you do if someone does not find your reservation?
Try these examples.
Are you quite sure?
Perhaps my name was spelled incorrectly.
It's Winokur.
W-I-N-N-A-K-E-R.
There must be some mistake.
I'm quite sure we have a reservation.
I spoke to Tony two nights ago.
Obviously, it's always a good idea to make a record of who you speak to, a point that we'll come back to later.
The next thing that happens is Paul confirms all of Sarah's room information with her.
It's one of our business suites, with a balcony facing the courtyard.
Non-smoking?
Yes.
We've got you on a non-smoking floor.
Good.
And staying three nights?
Right.
As we learned in the episode on making a reservation BEP 78 if there is some mistake, be firm but be polite.
Fix the error.
Emphasize the correct information by putting it last.
For example...
It's one of our business suites.
Non-smoking.
Sorry about that.
Actually, I wanted a smoking room.
Or... Yes, here it is.
Staying for four nights.
Oops, that's a mistake.
Instead of four nights, it should be five.
Back in the dialogue, what is the next thing that happens?
Paul asks Sarah to fill out a registration card.
That is a form with her name, contact information and, in some cases, passport number and other information.
Sarah asks a clarifying question about which address she needs to put on the card.
Could you please just fill out this registration card?
Yes, of course.
Do I fill in my home address?
Yes, please.
During registration, it's often necessary to ask clarifying questions.
Depending on the country and the hotel, these registration forms can ask all types of different information.
I live in this country.
Do I really need to fill in my visa number and port of entry?
Is it alright if I just put down my email address for contact information?
Any help fill this out for me?
Here's my passport.
Visa number is the number printed on your visa if you need one to enter a country.
Port of entry means the place you entered a country, usually the airport or train station you arrived at.
While Sarah is filling out the registration card, she has a couple of questions for Paul.
Do you also have our dinner reservation?
Yes.
You've got a table for two in our Skyview restaurant for dinner at 8 o'clock.
That's great.
Have you stayed at the Majestic before, madam?
Yes, but it's been a while.
How do we get to the restaurant?
When we first arrive at a hotel, we often don't know where everything is.
What are the types of places do we need to ask the location of?
Let's practice some more phrases and vocabulary.
I have a quick question.
Can you tell me where the business center is?
Where do we find the bar?
I'd love to take a swim.
Could you tell me where to find the swimming pool?
Please give me directions to the ocean conference room.
Is there a hair salon on the premises?
Do you have an exchange bureau?
On the premises means anywhere in the building.
It's a slightly formal expression.
An exchange bureau is where you can have money changed into a different currency.
Now let's listen again to Paul giving Sarah directions to the restaurant.
She also wants to know the location of another hotel facility.
What is it?
Just take the elevator to the fifth floor and turn right.
There'll be a host there to welcome you.
Great, thank you.
And how about the fitness center?
It's on the sixth floor.
Be sure to bring your room key.
You'll need it to get in.
When Paul mentions that they need their room key to get into the fitness center, it reminds Sarah of an extra request she has.
Thanks.
Oh, and can we get an extra key?
My husband will need one.
Yes, of course.
Great, thanks.
You're welcome.
There are, of course, many types of extra requests that we might need to make when checking into a hotel.
Let's go over a few more examples.
Can you book a wake-up call for me tomorrow at 7 a.m.?
Oh, and one more thing.
I'd like to have a bottle of gin, ice, and some tonic sent up to the room.
Is it possible to have an extra roll-away bed for our child?
A roll-away bed is a small bed on wheels that can be used to house extra guests in a room.
A wake-up call is a telephone call in the morning to wake you up, like an alarm clock.
Also, in the second example, notice the passive verb form for having someone do something.
I'd like to have a bottle of gin sent up to the room.
The sentence pattern is, I'd like to have something done.
As we saw in the third and fourth examples, you can also say, is it possible to have something done?
And can you have something done?
Now there's just one last thing Sarah needs to do.
She needs to pay for the room.
I'll just need to get your deposit.
Here's my credit card.
Thanks.
Deposit refers to the money you pay in advance.
It usually includes the price of the room, plus an extra sum to pay for anything we might take or damage.
Before she goes up to her room, Sarah has just one more question for Paul.
Um, when is checkout?
Our plane's not till 5pm on Saturday.
Checkout's at noon, but just call down if you need a little extra time.
It's usually not a problem.
Thanks.
When is the checkout time?
That is the time when you have to leave the hotel, is one common question guests have.
Other queries you might have include questions about the hotel services and about the city you're visiting.
How does your dry cleaning service work?
How late can I order dinner with room service?
Can the hotel help me book an airplane ticket?
I'd love to take a tour of the city.
Do you have any guide services you recommend?
Where is a good place to shop in the neighborhood?
Are there any restaurants you recommend nearby?
Now Sarah just needs to get her keys, then she can go up to her room.
Okay.
Your room is 832.
It's on the 8th floor.
Here are your keys.
Thank you.
You're welcome.
Is there anything else I can get for you, madam?
No, that's great.
Well, just give us a call if we can be of assistance.
I will.
What's your name?
It's Paul.
Asking for staff's name is a great way to ensure that you get good service.
As we talked about before, it's good to keep a record of who you talk to in case you have problems later.
What are some polite ways to ask for staff's names?
Thank you.
May I know your name?
Can I just get your name, please?
And don't forget to compliment people who have been helpful.
Not only is it a good thing to do, but it may help ensure you get better service.
Thanks, Paul.
You've been very helpful.
My pleasure.
Bye.
Here are some other ways to thank and compliment hotel staff.
You've helped so much.
Thank you.
I really appreciate your help.
Thank you so much for your help.
That was a great suggestion.
Thanks very much.
Now, before we finish off today, it's your turn to practice.
Imagine that you have just arrived at a hotel.
You have some questions about what services the hotel offers and about where things are located.
According to the cues, practice asking questions.
For example, if you hear where fitness center, you can say can you tell me where the fitness center is?
If you hear when checkout, you can say, could you tell me what time exactly checkout is?
Be sure to be polite by using such request forms as can you tell me?
Could you tell me?
Would it be possible to?
And so on.
You can also use the passive verb form we studied.
I'd like to.
Can you, or is it possible to have something done?
Are you ready?
Let's give it a try.
Where?
Swimming pool.
Book waker call.
Where?
Ocean conference room.
Bring fresh flowers up to the room.
Put extra roll-away bed in our room.
How did you do?
Let's listen to some example answers.
Answer Could you tell me where to find the swimming pool?
Answer Can you book a wake-up call for me for 7am?
Where?
Ocean Conference Room.
Answer.
Could you please give me directions to the Ocean Conference Room?
Bring fresh flowers up to the room.
Answer.
Is it possible to have some fresh flowers brought up to the room?
Put extra roll-away bed in our room.
Answer.
Can you have someone put an extra roll-away bed in the room?
Remember that there are many possible answers to each question.
It's good to try the practice again, this time use different language to build fluency.
As a premium member, you have access to all these and a wide variety of online listening and language practice exercises.
You'll find all that at www.businessenglishpod.com.
Thanks for listening.
Bye for now.
Premium members can access detailed study notes and the new phrase cast to practice all the useful language we featured today.
