Sometimes when you’re on vacation, you might not be in the mood to try some new food. You might be too tired to go to a restaurant. Or the food choices are simply too overwhelming. At times like these, you might be craving something simple. You might want a pizza.
But can you get pizza delivery to a hotel? Are there any problems you might run into? And what can you do to work around these problems? Read more to find out!
Are food deliveries allowed at hotels?
The short answer is yes.
These days, there are very few hotels that will get in the way of guests ordering outside food into their properties. But it is up to each hotel to decide whether they will allow food deliveries on their property. It never hurts to ask!
As hotels are private properties, staff have every right to ban your order from entering the hotel completely. So, remember to ask the hotel if they accept deliveries. And whether you need to pick up the order from the front desk or you can have it delivered to your room. Be prepared if you know you will want to order pizza during your stay at the hotel.
Why are deliveries banned from some hotels?
Hotels with Dining Options
In the past, many high-end hotels rejected any deliveries of food to their hotels. Simply because they have dining options and room service available for guests. And these are ways the hotel can make some quick profit.
This is why even today, hotels with restaurants or room service will be more reluctant to allow food deliveries to their properties. Because they want their guests to enjoy the services they have to offer instead of others. This is becoming less and less the case, though. And you will find whether the hotel has food options available for guests or not, they won’t care if you decide to get food delivery.
Safety
The main concern for hotels when it comes to food delivery is the safety of their guests. Some hotels might allow food deliveries, but they might ask the driver to drop off your order at the front desk. This is to avoid any accidents from happening by letting a non-guest into strictly guest-only areas of the hotel.
Since the pandemic, the health and safety of hotel guests and staff are even more the concern of policymakers at the hotel. Some hotels might not allow food deliveries to their properties at all. This is to reduce the interaction of guests and staff with people they cannot be sure are not infected with Covid.
Is pizza delivery the best option?
There are several reasons you might consider ordering pizza, or any food at a hotel. Maybe the hotel is in a remote area without in-hotel dining options or quick transportation to more populated parts of the region. Maybe the room service menu doesn’t sound appealing to you.
If you’re thinking of getting Domino’s or Pizza Hut delivered to your hotel – to be very honest, we don’t think it’s the best option. Simply because you’re on vacation! There must be something nearby that’s local and special. Something you have to try at least once on your trip. You will find many restaurants and food places are keen to open near hotels to accept hungry travelers like you. So, you won’t have to walk too far to find a local hidden gem.
But we understand how tiring a vacation can be. Especially if you’ve just come back from a full day of sightseeing and activities. Maybe you’re tired out from a day on the beach. Or an intensive ski session in the mountains. In these cases, food deliveries can seem like the best option to get food in your stomach fast and without problems.
The Quickest Option…?
Deliveries are usually the quickest and easiest option when it comes to food. But this might not always be the case.
Food deliveries, as fast as they can be when you’re at home, might take a while for the food to get to you when you’re on vacation. Drivers will have to find the hotel, get past reception, and find their room before the food gets into their hands. This whole process might take up more time than if you had just walked across the street to a local restaurant.
Can you get pizza delivered to a hotel?
Once again, the answer is yes. You can get a pizza delivered to a hotel.
But you might find it easier to order pizza through large delivery platforms than directly from the store. This goes back to the safety of guests. Larger platforms have more trustworthy drivers. Because these platforms have more to lose. They also have many people to find responsible if something goes wrong. So, if you’re ordering from a small store with their drivers, there’s a high chance you will have to pick up the order from reception.
What about room service pizza?
If you want to avoid running into problems with delivery drivers, you can always check the food options at the hotel. Your hotel might offer pizza on their room service menu. Or they might even have a pizza restaurant in the establishment that offers room deliveries. This can be a better way to get a pizza delivery.
How can you order?
There are a few ways you can get pizza delivery to a hotel. Your best bet is ordering from large delivery platforms, but hotels may also allow deliveries from small businesses.
GrubHub
If you are in the US, GrubHub is now a partner with many high-end hotel chains. It first partnered with Hyatt Centric in 2016. Hyatt offers its guests the option to order from a list of selected restaurants in the area. As an alternative to the Hyatt Centric room service menu.
GrubHub also works with IHG hotels. Guests can order food through the IHG app, and GrubHub completes the deliveries. Members of the IHG Rewards Club can even earn points from ordering deliveries using GrubHub to their hotels.
Since GrubHub is a partner of many high-end hotel chains, their drivers are more likely to be let into guest-only areas. Meaning you can enjoy the typical door-to-door service of food delivery even on vacation.
If you are elsewhere in the world, you can consider using Just Eat – the platform GrubHub is a subsidiary of.
DoorDash
This is another option for food deliveries. Their drivers will deliver to your hotel room if the hotel permits. And delivery services are available as long as the restaurant you’re ordering from is open. They also offer deliveries on holidays.
UberEATS
Uber may be the best option for food deliveries on vacation. As its services are not restricted to certain countries like GrubHub or DoorDash. You will find many countries in the world have an UberEATS delivery service of their own.
There is one thing to look out for when using Uber though. It is that their drivers might not deliver your order to your hotel room. Uber tells their drivers to drop orders off at the front desk or reception of a hotel. This is to keep their delivery drivers safe and to save time between each delivery. But many drivers are happy to make the exception and take the food up to you if the hotel lets them.
If you want to know if Uber can offer you door-to-door food delivery, you can ask your driver directly after you’ve placed your order in the app.
Things to Keep in Mind
Now that you know you can get pizza delivery to a hotel, there are a few things to keep in mind.
Before You Order
You might want to check if your hotel has a preferred delivery service. Or even a partner like GrubHub with Hyatt and IHG. Ordering off a partner delivery service might get you certain privileges. Like shorter delivery times, special deals, and more restaurant options to choose from.
Keep Your Driver in the Loop
When you order, make sure to give extra instructions to the driver. Let them know you are staying at a hotel. And if you don’t want to make the trip down to reception to get your order, remember to ask to have your order delivered to your room.
Be Patient
Keep in mind it might take the driver a few minutes to get from the lobby to your room. Staff at the reception will probably want to ask a few questions to verify their identity before letting them access guestrooms.
Final words
We hope this has helped you decide what to eat on your vacation! Now you know everything you need to know when it comes to getting a pizza delivery to a hotel. And remember, if you’re unsure about something related to food deliveries, ask the hotel. There will always be staff in the hotel to answer your questions.
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