Checking Into a Hotel
Checking into a hotel · a free Spanish immersion capsule
Useful sentences · 10
Phrases you'll actually use today. Tap Explain for the why behind each one.
Buenos días, tengo una reserva a nombre de García.
Good morning, I have a reservation under the name García.
Literal Good days, I have a reservation in name of García.
A standard and polite way to introduce yourself at a hotel reception desk.
- 'Tengo' is the first-person singular of 'tener' (to have).
- 'A nombre de' means 'under the name of' and is used for reservations.
¿Me podría dar una habitación con vista al mar?
Could you give me a room with a sea view?
Literal Me could give a room with view to the sea?
Uses 'podría' (conditional of poder) to make a polite request.
- 'Podría' is the conditional tense of 'poder', used for polite requests.
- 'Me' is an indirect object pronoun meaning 'to me' or 'for me'.
Me gustaría hacer el check-in, por favor.
I would like to check in, please.
Literal To me would please to do the check-in, please.
'Me gustaría' is a very polite and common way to express a wish or request.
- 'Me gustaría' is the conditional of 'gustar', meaning 'I would like'.
- The infinitive follows directly: 'me gustaría + infinitive'.
¿A qué hora es el desayuno?
What time is breakfast?
Literal At what hour is the breakfast?
A practical question for any hotel stay, asking about meal schedules.
- '¿A qué hora?' means 'at what time?' and is used to ask about schedules.
- 'Es' is the third-person singular of 'ser', used for fixed facts like times.
¿Podría traerme más toallas, por favor?
Could you bring me more towels, please?
Literal Could bring-to-me more towels, please?
Combines 'podría' with an infinitive and indirect object pronoun for a service request.
- 'Traerme' combines 'traer' (to bring) with 'me' (to me) as an enclitic pronoun.
- 'Más' means 'more' and precedes the noun.
La habitación no tiene agua caliente.
The room doesn't have hot water.
Literal The room not has water hot.
Used to report a problem to hotel staff. Adjectives like 'caliente' follow the noun in Spanish.
- 'No tiene' is the negative form of 'tener' in third person.
- Adjectives in Spanish generally follow the noun: 'agua caliente', not 'caliente agua'.
¿Cuál es la contraseña del WiFi?
What is the WiFi password?
Literal Which is the password of the WiFi?
A very common question in hotels. '¿Cuál es?' is used when choosing from options or asking for specific information.
- '¿Cuál?' means 'which/what' and is used before 'es' when asking for specific information.
- 'Contraseña' is the Spanish word for password.
¿Me podría recomendar un buen restaurante cerca?
Could you recommend a good restaurant nearby?
Literal Me could recommend a good restaurant nearby?
Uses 'podría' again for a polite request, this time asking for a local recommendation.
- 'Recomendar' (to recommend) takes an indirect object pronoun 'me' before the verb.
- 'Cerca' means 'nearby' or 'close by' and comes after the noun.
Me gustaría cambiar de habitación si es posible.
I would like to change rooms if possible.
Literal To me would please to change of room if it is possible.
A polite way to request a room change, using 'si es posible' to soften the request.
- 'Si es posible' (if it is possible) is a common softening phrase for requests.
- 'Cambiar de + noun' means 'to change' something, like rooms or plans.
¿A qué hora debo dejar la habitación mañana?
What time do I have to check out tomorrow?
Literal At what hour must I leave the room tomorrow?
Asks about checkout time using 'deber' (must/should) to express obligation.
- 'Debo' is the first-person singular of 'deber' (must/should), expressing obligation.
- 'Dejar' means 'to leave' in the sense of vacating a place.
New words · 10
Themed vocabulary, each with an example you can borrow.
la reserva
the reservation
Tengo una reserva para dos noches.
I have a reservation for two nights.
Also 'la reservación' in Latin America.
la habitación
the room
La habitación es muy cómoda.
The room is very comfortable.
podría
could (you) / would you
¿Podría ayudarme, por favor?
Could you help me, please?
Conditional of 'poder'; use for polite requests.
me gustaría
I would like
Me gustaría una mesa para dos.
I would like a table for two.
Conditional of 'gustar'; softer and more polite than 'quiero'.
el desayuno
breakfast
El desayuno está incluido.
Breakfast is included.
la toalla
the towel
Necesito más toallas, por favor.
I need more towels, please.
la contraseña
the password
¿Cuál es la contraseña del WiFi?
What is the WiFi password?
recomendar
to recommend
¿Puede recomendar un buen café?
Can you recommend a good café?
cerca
nearby / close
Hay una farmacia cerca del hotel.
There is a pharmacy near the hotel.
dejar
to leave / to vacate
Debo dejar la habitación a las doce.
I must leave the room at noon.
Here 'dejar' means to vacate/leave a place, not to abandon someone.
Short reading
A tiny story stitched from today's words. Translation is hidden, tap to peek.
Laura llegó al hotel después de un largo viaje. En la recepción, dijo: 'Buenas tardes, tengo una reserva a nombre de Martínez.' La recepcionista sonrió y le preguntó si prefería una habitación con vista al jardín o al mar. Laura respondió: 'Me gustaría una habitación tranquila, si es posible.' Después de recibir su llave, Laura preguntó: '¿Podría recomendarme un restaurante cerca para cenar?' La recepcionista le recomendó un lugar típico a dos calles del hotel. Laura agradeció y subió a instalarse en su habitación.
Sentence by sentence
tengo una reserva a nombre de Martínez
I have a reservation under the name Martínez
'A nombre de' is the standard phrase for giving the name a reservation is under.
me gustaría una habitación tranquila, si es posible
I would like a quiet room, if possible
'Me gustaría' expresses a polite wish; 'si es posible' softens the request further.
¿Podría recomendarme un restaurante cerca?
Could you recommend a restaurant nearby?
'Podría' + infinitive forms a polite request; 'me' is the indirect object pronoun attached to the infinitive.
subió a instalarse en su habitación
went up to settle into her room
'Instalarse' is a reflexive verb meaning to settle in or get settled. 'Subió a' means 'went up to'.
Pattern of the day
One grammar move, explained once, that unlocks dozens of sentences.
Polite Requests with 'podría' and 'me gustaría'
In Spanish, you can make polite requests using the conditional tense. 'Podría' (could you) and 'me gustaría' (I would like) are the two most useful hotel phrases. Use 'podría + infinitive' to ask someone to do something, and 'me gustaría + infinitive/noun' to express what you want.
¿Podría + [infinitive] + [noun/complement]? | Me gustaría + [infinitive/noun] + [si es posible]
¿Podría traerme una almohada extra?
Could you bring me an extra pillow?
Me gustaría hacer el check-in ahora.
I would like to check in now.
¿Podría llamarme un taxi, por favor?
Could you call me a taxi, please?
Me gustaría una habitación más tranquila.
I would like a quieter room.
Mini practice · 5
Low-pressure, never graded. Just enough to make it stick.
Could you recommend a good restaurant nearby?
Hint Use 'podría' for polite requests and structure it as a question.
Me gustaría hacer el check-in, por favor.
Hint 'Me gustaría' is a polite way to express what you want or prefer.
Buenos días, tengo una _____ a nombre de García.
Hint This word refers to your booking at the hotel.
How would you politely ask for more towels?
Rewrite this more politely: 'Quiero una habitación con vista al mar.'
Hint Transform the demand into a polite question using the patterns from this lesson.
That’s today’s phraseberry.
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