The single most useful idea on this page: she answers a guest by finding the part of your library that covers their question. So each part has to make sense on its own, without the paragraphs around it.
The one rule that matters most
Write every section so it can be read alone and still answer the question completely.- Name the subject in the section itself. “Breakfast at Hotel Marina is served…”, not “It is served…”
- Never write “as mentioned above” or “see the section below”. Repeat the fact instead. Repetition is not a flaw here.
- Keep what belongs together, together. A rule, its price, its exceptions and its season live in one section. Splitting the late-checkout fee away from the late-checkout rule means a guest gets half an answer.
What belongs in the library
Everything a guest could ask about:- The hotel itself — room types, floors, capacity, what is in a room
- Times and hours — check-in, checkout, breakfast, pool, spa, restaurants, reception
- Prices — anything a guest may be charged for
- Policies — children, pets, cancellation, smoking, extra beds, visitors
- Food and drink — outlets, menus, opening hours, dietary options
- Facilities — spa, pool, gym, meeting rooms, parking, and who may use each
- Getting there — directions, distances, airport transfer, taxi
- Around the hotel — the things guests always ask about the area
- The questions your desk answers every day — the ones nobody ever wrote down
What does not belong
Behaviour. “Always try to upsell the suite” or “be extra polite with agency guests” are instructions about how she should act. They belong in Receptionist. In the library they would be treated as facts about your hotel. Anything private. Staff phone numbers, internal passwords, door and safe codes, banking details, supplier contacts, security procedures. Assume a guest could read anything in the library — because that is what it is for. Anything you are not sure about. An invented fact is worse than a missing one. She will say honestly when she doesn’t know; she cannot know when she has been told something false.How to write it
Answer first, and never bare
Restate the subject inside the answer. A guest reading “Yes.” on its own learns nothing.- ❌ “Yes, we do.”
- ✅ “Hotel Marina has a heated indoor pool, open 07:00–21:00.”
Put the condition before the answer
If something depends on availability, season or a fee, say the condition first. Otherwise the guest reads a promise and stops.- ❌ “Yes, you can have a late checkout. If rooms are available, and there is a fee.”
- ✅ “Subject to availability, late checkout until 15:00 is possible for 500 per room.”
Use your guests’ words
Head each section the way a guest would ask. Questions as headings are welcome.- ❌ “F&B Outlet Operating Parameters”
- ✅ “What time is breakfast?”
Be specific, and date what moves
- ❌ “Open until late” → ✅ “Open 09:00–18:00”
- ❌ “Close to the beach” → ✅ “400 m from the beach, about a five-minute walk”
- Prices and seasonal hours: write the period they apply to, so an old document is obvious when you find it.
One name per thing
If your restaurant is Terrace in one document and Terrace Restaurant in another and the roof restaurant in a third, pick one and use it everywhere.Say who each answer is for
If members, walk-in visitors and day guests get different answers, write all three in the same section. Otherwise she gives one group’s answer to another group.Tables
The editor has no tables, and complex ones do not survive anyway. A simple list works better:Say what you do not have
This is the one most hotels skip, and it prevents a whole class of bad conversations. If guests routinely ask for something your hotel does not offer, write that down too:When two documents disagree
Do not pick a side. If your fact sheet says the pool closes at 20:00 and your website says 21:00, one of them is wrong and you may not be the person who knows which. Find out, fix the source, then upload. Uploading both leaves her with two answers to the same question.Before you upload — a short checklist
Does each section stand alone?
Does each section stand alone?
Cover the rest of the page with your hand. Does the section still answer the question?
Is the subject named inside it?
Is the subject named inside it?
Not “it opens at 7” — “the pool opens at 7”.
Are conditions before promises?
Are conditions before promises?
Anything depending on availability, season or a fee says so first.
Would a guest recognise the headings?
Would a guest recognise the headings?
They should read like questions your guests ask, not like internal department names.
Is every number current?
Is every number current?
Prices, hours and seasons. An out-of-date number is worse than none.
Is there any behaviour in here?
Is there any behaviour in here?
Instructions about how she should act belong on the Receptionist screens.
Is there anything a guest shouldn't see?
Is there anything a guest shouldn't see?
Staff contacts, internal codes, supplier details — take them out.