<p>While it’s still over a week away, I’m trying to give my daughters options for driving home for Christmas break. They’re going to play the drive home cautiously, and although it can be done in one day (we’ve done it every time when with them), this will be the first time they’ve done it together, the two of them. If they hit the road, well-rested and can make it in one shot, then good for them. If they hit bad weather, or get tired, I want them to have options to stay a night in a hotel. However, I know that many hotels have minimum ages for their registered guests. Since we wouldn’t know until that day (or even with a couple of hours notice), it doesn’t make sense to plan ahead and make a reservation somewhere.</p>
<p>D1 is 21 years old, but I’ve heard some places don’t allow the guest checking in to be under 25. Does anyone have any experience with this? Is it a specific chain policy or individual location policy?</p>
<p>With a 21 year old they should be fine. I’ve heard of some city (maybe state?) regulations about this, and then some hotel chains have their own policies. I’ve never heard of a 25+ though. I don’t think they’ll have a problem.</p>
<p>My son and some youth group friends took a road trip after senior year and we learned that 1) many require 21 on paper/web, but don’t ask, 2) if asked (in one case I"d emailed to inquire about one place) a phone call to a parent (or the email from me) was sufficient. We actually sent them with an explanatory letter from the minister (since it was a co-ed group in a car with liberal-sentiment bumperstickers driving through a very conservative stretch of country and we thought they might get hassled because they were sleeping in shared rooms.) They never needed the letter or a call and stayed in five different motels in the course of the trip–and no one was over 18. So my guess is your daughters will have no difficulty, especially since one is 21.</p>
<p>I’ve heard 21 as well and have heard kids using the
“don’t ask don’t tell” plan with success. Rental car agencies these days don’t rent to people under 25, however. Maybe that’s where the higher number came from.</p>
<p>schmoomcgoo - yes, I definitely know about 25 for the rental cars, but am wondering how prevalent it is for hotel rooms. If it’s just an occasional place that has this policy, then I won’t worry because there’s always another place down the road. What’s nice is she has GPS in her car and it will allow them to look for a place on the way - then she can call me with a name, and I can call and make the reservation for them. I hope the under 25 policy is more rare than common.</p>
<p>When dd was traveling to see colleges, figuring that a flight might be canceled and she would need to stay overnight, we called hotels near those airports. They said their minimum age was 18. This was both in the US and Canada.</p>
<p>We got the same information from Orbitz and other similar services.</p>
<p>We’ve done this a number of times - I’ve always had good luck with making the reservation myself online and then phoning the hotel front desk the day before to explain the situation (I ask for the manager if the person answering the phone seems at all sketchy/unreliable). The first time we did this was for my then 19 y/o - she said she was treated like a princess, received a free upgrade to a deluxe room and felt very secure the entire time. I always ask for a room near an elevator (not at the end of a long hallway) in a wing that’s well-occupied. </p>
<p>Your situation seems a bit different in that you may not know until a few hours before they check in whether or not your girls will be stopping for the night. I’d still try to figure out where they might stop and call a likely hotel - you can usually cancel the reservation by 4 PM without penalty. FWIW, we’ve always had good stays at Marriotts and Hiltons (all brands, even the low-end ones). If you join their member reward programs, I think they’re likelier to try to make you happy!</p>
<p>When we travel during the holidays we always get 2 side-by-side rooms so our man size sons can each have their own bed. The hotel we usually stay in requires the occupant to be 18. It is a beach hotel but is very desolate at Christmas. They have never asked for any proof of age. I think we started doing this when S’s were 17 and 14 but no questions were ever asked.</p>
<p>Never heard of 25 age limit either.
Most hotels have a 21-age for check in. But its not hard to find hotels that allow 18-year olds to check in.</p>
<p>im 16, and im goin to vermont this january with friends, only of whom is even 17, and only one has a full senior license(17 in NY). i didnt think it would be a problem, but now im second guessing myself. Im sure if we drive for 6 hours and asked for a place to stay we would be fine though. Anyway, we could just rough it and sleep in the car</p>
<p>Thanks for posting that. I don’t blame Florida or other locations where kids tend to go to get wasted over Spring Break, for having the 25 age limit.</p>
<p>glschneck,
don’t plan on sleeping in your car in Vermont, in January. That is asking for trouble.
Why not make plans ahead of time, make a few phonecalls etc. Are you only spending 1 night in Vermont?</p>
<p>I’m kind of wondering this too. My ex boyfriend and I may be going to see a band in NYC over Christmas break and will probably get a hotel for the night. He’s 18 and I’m 17. Shouldn’t be a huge problem, right?</p>
<p>teri, I don’t think the girls will have a problem. If so, they can always call you and I’m sure after speaking to you, the hotel would be fine with them staying there. My girls have travelled all over, on their own or with each other or friends, since they were in mid-teens, and never had this be an issue. </p>
<p>runforfun, it depends where you’re planning to stay. It may be a ‘huge problem’ if you want a hotel in the city itself. Hotels in the city are at a premium, both in availability and in price, over the holidays. Planning on getting one without a reservation is not what you want to do.</p>
<p>Ditto chocoholic’s advice not to plan on sleeping in a car in VT in January!</p>
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