From Gerald Erichsen,
Your Guide to Spanish Language.
FREE Newsletter. Sign Up Now!

Where do travelers usually spent more time than any other single place? In their hotel, of course.

And if they're in a Spanish-speaking country and not sleeping, the hotel is as good a place as any to practice Spanish — either when looking for a place to spend the night or in getting the services you need. Learn these words before you'll depart and they'll help make your stay a bit easier:

el alojamiento — lodging
el balneario — spa, resort
el baño — bathroom
el bungalow — bungalow
el bar — bar, café
el café — coffeeshop
la caja de seguridad — safe
la cama — bed
la cama de matrimonio — double bed
la cama de monja — single bed
el conserje — concierge
la convención — convention
la cuenta — the bill
la disco, la discoteca — discotheque
el estacionamiento — parking
el gimnasio — gymnasium
la habitación — room, unit
la habitación sencilla — single room
la habitación doble — double room
la habitación triple — triple room
el hielo — ice
al hospedaje — lodging
el hotel — hotel
el hotelero, la hotelera — hotel-keeper
el huésped, la húspueda — guest, host
de lujo — deluxe
el motel — motel
la pensión — guesthouses, bed-and-breakfast
la piscina — swimming pool
el piso — floor
el piso bajo — ground floor
la posada — inn
la propina — tip
la reserva, la reservación — reservation
el restaurante — restaurant
el servicio de habitaciones, el servicio en cuarto — room service
el salón de convenciones — convention hall
la suite — suite
la tarifa — cost
la ubicación — location
la vista — view
la vista al mar — sea or ocean view

Vocabulary notes:

Spanglish: It isn't unusual, particularly at upper-end hotels, to see English words used to describe certain facilities or services. Thus, for example, terms such as "spa," "brunch" or "concierge" — even "room service" — might be used instead of the Spanish equivalent, partly because the Spanish words also have broader meanings or aren't universally used.

El huésped, la huéspeda: This word is unusual because it can mean two opposites in English, either "host" or "guest," depending on the context. Perhaps a suitably ambiguous translation out of context would be "inn person."

La disco: Most words ending in o are masculine, but la disco is one of the exceptions. That's because it is a short form of la discoteca, which also is feminine. A word that follows the same pattern is la foto (the photo), because it is a short form of la fotografía (the photograph).