Greater flexibility: Longer stays will enhance customer experience as guests will not feel rushed to leave early or waste time waiting to check in.
PETALING JAYA: An extended hotel stay will allow guests to have a more relaxing traveling experience and better flexibility when planning trips, say members of the public.
Housewife Nur Adilah Faizal, 33, said the proposed longer hotel stay would be particularly helpful for parents with young children.
“As parents, we not only have to pack our own bags and prepare ourselves to check out, but we also have to do the same for our children.
“This can be very time-consuming, especially for parents like me who have a nine-month-old baby.
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“The extended stay – even if it’s just an extra one hour – would go a very long way in making life easier for us,” said the mother of three from Johor.
Nur Adilah, who considers herself a frequent hotel guest, said the longer stay would make vacations more enjoyable and less stressful for everyone, especially those traveling with children and the elderly.“I hope that hotels will consider the proposal,” she added.
Echoing a similar sentiment is businessman Tan Choo Oo, 65, who thinks that such a move will allow guests to have more control over their time.
“It can be difficult to plan a trip when you have to rush back to the hotel by noon, especially in cities with heavy traffic congestion.
“To avoid getting charged extra for late check-out, many people, including myself, would opt to check out early so that we do not have to stress ourselves going back to the hotel.
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“This is a waste for guests as they would have to check out even earlier than the 11am or noon deadline,” said Tan, who is also based in Johor Baru.
“I hope the government will either make it compulsory for hotels to allow 23-hour stays or give incentives for them to do so on their own,” he added.
Service engineer Ahmad Saiful, who travels at least twice per week, said short work trips are especially tiring.
“If there’s an earlier check-in time, I would at least have time to shower or take a quick nap before heading to work. If I have to check out early, I would have to rest in the car before travelling again,” said the 24-year-old from Kuala Lumpur, who, however, fears that should such a policy be enforced, the hotel rates will increase.
Technical marketing engineer Lee Jian Xian said it would be ideal to check in early, especially if he has booked a room in a five-star hotel for a vacation.
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“It will be nice to enjoy the hotel facilities with family or drop off my luggage and freshen up before heading out,” he said, suggesting a 2pm check-in time and a check-out time of 12pm.
However, he does not mind the current check-in and check-out times for work travel.
Federation of Malaysian Consumers Associations (Fomca) chief executive officer Dr Saravanan Thambirajah said many travellers, particularly those on short or business trips, find the rigid check-in and check-out times inconvenient.
“The proposal for 23-hour hotel stays is a refreshing idea, especially in today’s tourism landscape where guests increasingly expect greater flexibility,” he said.
Longer stays, he added, are also great value for money and will enhance customer experience as guests will not feel rushed to leave early or waste time waiting to check in.
The current practice, Saravanan pointed out, limits the time that guests can take to rest and enjoy hotel amenities after a long travel.
“This can create unnecessary stress, reducing the overall satisfaction of the stay. Travellers with tight schedules will often feel they don’t get the full value of their bookings,” he said.
Saravanan noted, however, while this proposal benefits consumers, there is a need for hotels to optimise staffing and operational efficiency.
“Collaboration with the Human Resources and Home Ministries to address staffing shortages is crucial to ensure that offering 23-hour stays doesn’t place undue strain on employees or compromise service quality,” he said, adding that a communication of the new policies to guests will be essential to manage expectations and ensure smooth implementation.
Johor Consumers Movement Association chairman Md Salleh Sadijo said extending hotel stays is the right move.
“It is definitely a good thing for consumers as they are able to get better value for their money.
“I hope that the government and relevant industry players will work towards turning the idea into a reality,” he said.
