Grand Hotel Birmingham

Hotels don’t take payments in a single, simple moment. A stay can involve a booking deposit, pre-authorisation, incidental charges, final checkout and sometimes adjustments afterwards. Add food and drinks, events and other on-site services, and the payment picture becomes even more layered.

The most challenging part of hotel payments is that it’s rarely just one transaction, explains Matty Carter, the hotel’s operations manager: “You’re managing stages, pre-authorisations, changes, cancellations, plus everything that happens during the stay. You also have virtual credit cards coming from online travel agencies, plus the ongoing need to reduce fraud and secure data across multiple systems.”

In a busy hotel, even small friction points can multiply quickly, especially at peak check-in and check-out times. They can affect staff time, reconciliation and the quality of service guests receive.

Elavon provides an integrated approach to payment processing, helping the hotel manage payments across different parts of its operation.

“Elavon is with our guests every step of the way, from check-in to ordering drinks at the bar, from ordering food in the restaurant to room service in the bedrooms,” says Lee. “It really does have that omnichannel presence.”

For an international hotel, payment choice also means giving guests clear information about currency, helping them understand the options available before deciding how they want to pay. Currency conversion can also generate additional rebate revenue for the business.

“Giving guests the option to pay in their own currency with Dynamic Currency Conversion offers security and trust,” Matty says. “It’s about transparency. Guests want to feel confident that they understand what they’re paying. And if our guest is happy, then we’re happy.”

“With Elavon’s support to reconcile the international payments in different currencies, it’s actually a really seamless task for our team to now undertake,” adds Matty. “It takes all the guesswork out.”

Security is equally important. Guests place their trust in the hotel when booking, paying and sharing their personal information, making payment protection part of the hotel’s wider reputation.

“Payment security is a huge priority for us,” Lee says. “We comply with all legislation, and we have internal procedures and policies to keep our staff and guests’ data safe. With Elavon, we can rest easy knowing we’ve got the highest standards of payments protection.”