🏨 Hotels & Hostels - Hoteles y hostales

Aa ⏱ ≈ 16 minutes

Beginner Spanish · Hotels and accommodation

At the Hotel in Spanish

Hotel Spanish becomes much easier when you learn the language in the order you are likely to use it: arrive with a reservation, ask about your room and services, make polite requests, and explain a simple problem.

Your next small win: check in with a reservation, ask about hotel services, make a polite request with ¿Podría...?, and report a common room problem.

Start with the essentials

Core Hotel Vocabulary

These words cover the places and items you are most likely to mention during a hotel stay.

hotel
Hotel
recepción
Reception desk
habitación
Room
reserva
Reservation
tarjeta de acceso
Key card / access card
equipaje
Luggage

Name four hotel words

Say “hotel, room, reservation, and luggage” in Spanish.

Room types and amenities
habitación individual
Single room
habitación doble
Double room
baño privado
Private bathroom
wifi
Wi-Fi
desayuno incluido
Breakfast included
servicio de limpieza
Housekeeping service

Arrive at reception

Checking In

A few complete phrases can handle most of a basic hotel check-in.

Tengo una reserva.
I have a reservation.
Tengo una reserva para dos noches.
I have a reservation for two nights.
Tengo una reserva a nombre de García.
I have a reservation under the name García.
Aquí tiene mi pasaporte.
Here is my passport.
¿A qué hora está disponible la habitación?
What time is the room available?

Useful chunk: a nombre de means “under the name of” when talking about a reservation.

Checking in

A
Buenas tardes. Tengo una reserva para dos noches.
Good afternoon. I have a reservation for two nights.
B
Perfecto. ¿A nombre de quién está la reserva?
Perfect. Under what name is the reservation?
A
A nombre de Laura Martín.
Under the name Laura Martín.

Check in

Say that you have a reservation for two nights under the name García.

Ask for what you need

Polite Requests and Hotel Services

Use ¿Podría...? for a polite request. Use ¿Hay...? to ask whether something is available.

Use ¿Podría...? for polite requests

¿Podría darme la tarjeta de acceso, por favor?
Could you give me the key card, please?
¿Podría llamar a un taxi para mañana?
Could you call a taxi for tomorrow?
¿Podría recomendarme un restaurante cercano?
Could you recommend a nearby restaurant?

Use ¿Hay...? for availability

¿Hay una caja fuerte en la habitación?
Is there a safe in the room?
¿Hay aparcamiento cerca del hotel?
Is there parking near the hotel?

Two useful patterns: ¿Podría...? asks someone politely to do something. ¿Hay...? asks whether something exists or is available.

Asking about breakfast

A
Disculpe, ¿a qué hora se sirve el desayuno?
Excuse me, what time is breakfast served?
B
De siete a diez de la mañana, en la planta baja.
From seven to ten in the morning, on the ground floor.
A
Muchas gracias.
Thank you very much.

Ask two hotel questions

Politely ask for the key card, then ask what time breakfast is served.

Hotel, hostal, and albergue

Hotel is used much like the English word.

Hostal often refers to a smaller, budget-oriented accommodation with private rooms, especially in Spain.

Albergue can refer to hostel-style or shared accommodation depending on context.

Buscamos un hostal económico cerca de la estación.
We are looking for an affordable guesthouse near the station.

Explain a simple problem

Problems in the Room

Short direct sentences are often enough to explain what you need at reception.

El aire acondicionado no funciona.
The air conditioning is not working.
No hay agua caliente en la ducha.
There is no hot water in the shower.
Hay mucho ruido en el pasillo.
There is a lot of noise in the hallway.
Necesito toallas limpias, por favor.
I need clean towels, please.

Useful language: use no funciona when something is not working, no hay when something is missing, and necesito when saying what you need.

Report two problems

Say that the air conditioning does not work and that you need clean towels.

Your turn · 8 quick questions

Practice: At the Hotel

Choose the answer that best fits each situation. Focus on checking in, polite requests, hotel services, breakfast, and common room problems.

Audio uses your device's Spanish text-to-speech voice. Listen to each hotel phrase, then practice moving from check-in to requests and simple room problems.