9 Things To Expect When Going To A Luxury Hotel For The First Time

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Wondering what to expect when you go to a luxury hotel for the first time? In this post I’ll discuss a few things I experienced during my first time going to a luxury hotel.

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Romance, luxury and overall just relaxing, getting away from your daily routines, those words come to my mind when I think about 4- and 5-star hotels.

Until recently, I hadn’t been to one. If you haven’t either, but you’ve been wondering if a luxury hotel is worth it, this post is for you. You’re about to find out what you could expect when you go to a luxury hotel for the first time, along with some tips from my experience to get the most out of your little getaway.

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Choose a city you won’t want to explore much

Usually I stay in the cheapest (yet livable) hotel rooms, because I won’t be spending much time there anyway. I had never been in a more than 3-star hotel before, so to avoid the temptation to want to go out and explore our surroundings, I chose a city I had been to before.

You didn’t book this hotel as a roof over your head. Look at it like an experience.

Depending on your preferences, while booking a hotel that’s a little further away might feel more like a vacation, you can also book a hotel that’s nearby. It’s not about the location, but the inside that matters most. You’ll save on transportation costs to make the trip overall less expensive.

The experience starts at the entrance

The excitement I felt when we left the car garage and the doors to a golden, mirrored elevator opened was honestly worth it all to me already. It felt like entering a new, exciting world I had never seen before.

The feeling of feeling important really added to the experience as well. The staff was overall extremely polite and helpful and the decoration immediately felt expensive.

Enjoy extra romantic vibes

Obviously, this one only applies if you go with your partner, which was the case in my situation.

The best thing about the specific room I booked was quite simply that it’s not just your standard double room. All the parts of the room were open and connected, giving a spacious, but still a cozy vibe.

Keep in mind, my fiancé and I currently live in a small student dorm together, so anything that’s even just a little bigger feels so extravagant to us.

While just a standard double room usually does the trick, the feeling of luxury adds another romantic dimension to your stay.

You don’t have to wear formal clothes if you don’t want to

When I was packing I made sure to bring my fanciest outfits. My pointy high heels, my chic bag and some pretty make-up products.

I love that stuff.

Pretending I’m much more elegant than I really am (I’m pretty clumsy), sometimes going a little over the top… I love it. So naturally, when we booked the hotel, I had some assumptions about what the other guests were going to be dressed like. But those assumptions were wrong.

Turns out luxury hotel guest are just people too.

For example, when we had dinner there was a lady with a messy bun on top of her head, looking like she just rolled out her bed (as she should). Meanwhile I was struggling to walk to my table in my fancy high heels.

They are ‘sit shoes’. It’s a real thing, look it up.

I even got my fiancé to wear a button up, something he would have preferred not to wear.

Around us nobody had a napkin on their lap, people were drinking pints at the bar and absolutely no one seemed to be bothered by the elegant decoration and the high prices on the menu.

The next day when we were having breakfast in the breakfast room when a few people came walking in on slippers and comfy pants. I was baffled.

So if you’re not like me and don’t enjoy dressing to the moons from time to time, don’t worry! You can just roll up in some sneakers, some jeans and a comfy big T-shirt and no one will bat an eye.

Big bath to relax

When I booked, I looked through the pictures of the rooms. My fiancé and I both love baths, but we don’t have one at home. So obviously, we requested the room with the biggest, round bath. What we didn’t expect was for the water pressure to be so low, it took around 2.5 to 3 hours to completely fill the bath… That’s not really the best surprise at midnight.

Learn from my mistake and check the pressure ahead of time!

Kitchen

Though it wasn’t the reason we booked this specific room, the kitchen ended up being a nice add on. There was an electric stove, a microwave, a water heater and coffee machine, all the kitchen utensils you could need and even a dishwasher. I especially liked the last one, because to me there is about nothing as luxurious as not needing to do the dishes. We had a nice, quiet, romantic dinner with some soup and bread.

How such an environment can make such a simple dinner so special.

I wouldn’t recommend cooking a highly scented dish though. Even though there was an extractor hood, since the room is so open, the smell goes everywhere quite quickly and will most likely stay there for the rest of your stay.

This is also a way to keep your expenses low. While I would recommend to go to the restaurant in the hotel (for the experience), the prices can be quite high. Warming a simple meal, or quickly go to the snack bar around the corner are great low-budget options.

Breakfast

Last, but not least, the breakfast was great. Breakfast buffets always do the trick for me to be honest. I love it. A tea and an orange juice, side by side, and then a bowl of cereal and several croissants… I could get used to that.

There was a cold buffet, with a variety of bread, buns and pastries, all the toppings (including salmon) and they even served plant based milk. That one got me really excited, I must say. The warm buffet had several choices, eggs, pancakes, beans, all made to order. You didn’t even have to wait for it, the lovely staff would bring it to your table when it was done.

If I tell you I got my money’s worth, I really did. I left the table absolutely stuffed both days.

If breakfast is something you know you want with your stay, book it in advance. You’re most likely given a discount that way.

Just book it

Nobody prepared me for the nervousness I felt when I finally transferred the non-refundable money on booking.com. I just wanted everything to be perfect. It’s not like I can afford to do this regularly.

But honestly, if it fits your budget, just book it.

Don’t spend too much time worrying if you really got the best deal, if you got the best possible room, etc. While I would always recommend doing a little research, don’t let nerves cloud your experience.

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At the end of the day, this little getaway was worth everything we spent on it. We really got to spend uninterrupted quality time, relax and do whatever we wanted to do.

I’m not saying you have to break the bank to connect with your partner, but to us this was an extraordinary experience we just wanted to have at least once, but I do feel like we will do this again in the future.

If you want to know some of the best ways to get the most out of your stay at a luxury hotel, all while on a budget, you might like this post!

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