Booking in advance refers to reserving a hotel room, restaurant table, or space in the banquet hall for a specified time in the future through a mutual agreement between the guest and hotel. Advance bookings can be made verbally over the telephone or through written communications like mail, fax, email, or third-party reservation systems. Reservations come from various sources like individual travelers, companies, airlines, governments, or non-governmental organizations reserving rooms for their purposes. Reservations can be tentative if a guest is unsure of their plans or confirmed when agreed upon in writing by both the guest and hotel.

2. DEFINITION Booking in advance. In context of hotel industry, we mean advance booking of room, of tables in restaurant & banquet hall. It is a mutual agreement between the guest & the hotel in which the guest hires accommodation from the hotel at a given time.

5. Modes

6. VERBAL MODES The following are the verbal modes in which a reservation request reaches a hotel: TELEPHONE Prospective guests may telephone the hotel directly. This is the most common method of direct reservation communication

8. WRITTEN MODES The following are the written modes in which a reservation request reaches a hotel: MAIL Written request for reservation are common for group, tour, & convention business. Generally, mail request are sent directly to the reservation department of the destination property.

9. TELEX, CABLE, FAX, E-MAIL & OTHER Telex is often used to communicate the international reservation request. Cable, fax & other methods of communication account for a small proportion of total reservation transactions.

11. SOURCES OF RESERVATION

12. Reservation by FIT Here FIT means Free Individual Travelers. When a person individually visit a room & books it in advance then there source is FIT.

13. Reservation by COMPANY When room reservation is done by any company for its employee then it is know as reservation by company.

14. Reservation by AIRLINES When an airlines company reserves room for its employee or its passenger, then it is known as reservation by airlines.

15. Reservation by GOVT. When a reservation is done by any public sector company, state govt., centre govt., then it is known as reservation by govt.

16. Reservation by NGO Here NGO stands for Non Govt. Organization such as UNO (United Nation Organization) & they reserves room for there own purpose.

17. TYPES OF RESERVATION

18. TENTATIVE RESERVATION This type of reservation is made by the guest when he is not sure about his plan. This type of reservation is cancelled after 1-2 days. Room is not reserved till hotel authority gets in written about the reservation of guest.

19. CONFIRMED RESERVATION Most of the reservations made at hotels are treated as confirmed reservations. A room reservation is treated as confirmed when a request comes in writing (fax, telephone, e-mail, telegram, voucher, CRS, etc). And is also replied in writing confirming the desired accommodation at a specified price.

20. A person holding confirmed reservation has a right to get the reserved accommodation. Hotel must provide the desired accommodation to the prospective guest holding confirmed reservation provided he checks in either before 6 p.m. (cancellation hour) or before the specified check-in time.

28. Reservation form Reservation form is important & base document for any reservation system. Hotel design own form based on need. This is a sort of check list of information that must be collected from guest before making any booking by hotel. In case of written mode, the request may come in various forms & styles such as letter, telex, fax,etc.

29. The reservation assistant should transfer all information needed for making reservation from letter, telex, etc. In case of verbal request which may be through a telephone call or a personal contact, this form becomes essential. This is an easy reference document and acts as checklist to reservation assistant.

30. Name Number Of Person Date Address/company ARRIVAL Flt. No Type Of Accommodation Time Booked By Address DEPARTURE Date Date Of Booking Time Letter/Tel/Telex/No. Phone Personal Confirmed W.l. Deposit Recd: Cash Cheque No. Spl. Remarks Billing Instructions Initial(reservation assistant) No. R. (J) Arrival G.R. (optional)