Playaz

Hi,

I have just booked a hotel on www.oh-barcelona.com - the email I have
recieved from the site has stated I must provide my Passport number as
all reservations require this due to Spanish law.

Is this true? I just feel a bit wary of this, can anyone offer any
advice

Thanks

Bill Steltzer

playaz wrote:
    > Hi,
    > I have just booked a hotel on www.oh-barcelona.com - the email I have
    > recieved from the site has stated I must provide my Passport number as
    > all reservations require this due to Spanish law.
    > Is this true? I just feel a bit wary of this, can anyone offer any
    > advice
    > Thanks

I have no idea what the law says but a year ago I made several hotel
reservations for our trip into Spain and was never asked for a passport
number. In fact I've never been asked for a passport number ahead of
time in forty years of traveling to any European country. But with all
the terrorism alerts, who knows what might now be required.

Carole Allen

    >playaz wrote:
    >> Hi,
    >> I have just booked a hotel on www.oh-barcelona.com - the email I have
    >> recieved from the site has stated I must provide my Passport number as
    >> all reservations require this due to Spanish law.
    >> Is this true? I just feel a bit wary of this, can anyone offer any
    >> advice
    >> Thanks
On 27 Nov 2006 18:51:23 -0800, "Bill Steltzer" <[email protected]>
wrote:
    >I have no idea what the law says but a year ago I made several hotel
    >reservations for our trip into Spain and was never asked for a passport
    >number. In fact I've never been asked for a passport number ahead of
    >time in forty years of traveling to any European country. But with all
    >the terrorism alerts, who knows what might now be required.
Pre 9/11 we had to provide copies of our passports to book a cabin on
Superfast ferries....

The OP will have to show his passport when he registers anyway,
sooo...

David Horne

Bill Steltzer <[email protected]> wrote:

    > playaz wrote:
    > > Hi,
    > >
    > > I have just booked a hotel on www.oh-barcelona.com - the email I have
    > > recieved from the site has stated I must provide my Passport number as
    > > all reservations require this due to Spanish law.
    > >
    > > Is this true? I just feel a bit wary of this, can anyone offer any
    > > advice
    > >
    > > Thanks
    >
    > I have no idea what the law says but a year ago I made several hotel
    > reservations for our trip into Spain and was never asked for a passport
    > number.

Yes, I haven't been asked, but you will be asked for it on check-in, so
it might just be a confusion of that issue.

--
David Horne- http://www.davidhorne.net
usenet (at) davidhorne (dot) co (dot) uk
http://www.davidhorne.net/pictures.html http://soundjunction.org

Frank Hucklenbroich

Am 27 Nov 2006 14:35:39 -0800 schrieb playaz:

    > I have just booked a hotel on www.oh-barcelona.com - the email I have
    > recieved from the site has stated I must provide my Passport number as
    > all reservations require this due to Spanish law.
    >
    > Is this true?

I just know that you have to present your passport at check-in, as the
hotel has to report your presnece to the local police. Maybe the hotel
wants to spare you the fuss of filling in the form at reception, so they
ask you to e-mail the number so that they can fill in the form for you.

BtW it got nothing to do with 9/11, I think it's more of an old Spanish law
going back to the Franco-era, where the police did have an interest in
knowing who's staying where.

Regards,

Frank

Neil Williams

playaz wrote:

    > I have just booked a hotel on www.oh-barcelona.com - the email I have
    > recieved from the site has stated I must provide my Passport number as
    > all reservations require this due to Spanish law.
    > Is this true? I just feel a bit wary of this, can anyone offer any
    > advice

Dutch hotels generally do, and I believe by law they're meant to,
though the one I stay in most never bothered to ask for it, so in my
policy of reducing the risk of identity fraud by giving out personal
information only on a need to know basis I never gave it.

Similar thing applies to Austria, I think.

Neil

Tim C .

Following up to "Neil Williams" <[email protected]> :

    >Similar thing applies to Austria, I think.

It used to, definitely, but for years now I've not been asked.
You often are requested to fill out the registration form (often at the
breakfast table) but that's for the local taxes/tourist office, and you
only need to give some form of ID number - a driving licence number will do
- normally I leave that blank too.
They are really only interested in the number of people staying for
statistics and so they can allocate internal fees and charges properly.
--
Tim C.

Tim C .

I just checked, it still does apply.
All stays must be registered within 3 days - unless you are already
registered as a resident in Austria.

The hotel is responsible for the registration of guests. They may or may
not actually ask for your ID, but they "should". Luckily most places have
a fairly relaxed attitude to this.
--
Tim C.

Tim C .

Following up to Tim C. <[email protected]> :

    >I just checked, it still does apply.
    >All stays must be registered within 3 days

...and only for stays longer than three days.
--
Tim C.

David Horne

Tim C. <[email protected]> wrote:

    > Following up to "Neil Williams" <[email protected]> :
    >
    > >Similar thing applies to Austria, I think.
    >
    > It used to, definitely, but for years now I've not been asked.
    > You often are requested to fill out the registration form (often at the
    > breakfast table) but that's for the local taxes/tourist office, and you
    > only need to give some form of ID number - a driving licence number will do
    > - normally I leave that blank too.

We've had to give our passport numbers the last couple of times we
stayed in Austria (Vienna, Salzburg.)

As for Spain, you will have to give them too, though I noticed that the
hotel I stay in when in Barcelona doesn't ask for it whenever I return-
so they must keep it on file.

--
David Horne- http://www.davidhorne.net
usenet (at) davidhorne (dot) co (dot) uk
http://www.davidhorne.net/pictures.html http://soundjunction.org

Tim C .

Following up to [email protected] (David Horne, _the_
chancellor of the royal duchy of city south and deansgate) :

    >Tim C. <[email protected]> wrote:
    >> Following up to "Neil Williams" <[email protected]> :
    >>
    >> >Similar thing applies to Austria, I think.
    >>
    >> It used to, definitely, but for years now I've not been asked.
    >> You often are requested to fill out the registration form (often at the
    >> breakfast table) but that's for the local taxes/tourist office, and you
    >> only need to give some form of ID number - a driving licence number will do
    >> - normally I leave that blank too.
    >We've had to give our passport numbers the last couple of times we
    >stayed in Austria (Vienna, Salzburg.)

I had missed the bit that said only if you over 3 days in any
establishment. Until then you don't /have/ to by federal law, but they may
want it because of the tourist office data. Plus they may just demand it
out of habit or bloodymindedness


    >As for Spain, you will have to give them too, though I noticed that the
    >hotel I stay in when in Barcelona doesn't ask for it whenever I return-
    >so they must keep it on file.
--
Tim C.

David Horne

Tim C. <[email protected]> wrote:

    > Following up to [email protected] (David Horne, _the_
    > chancellor of the royal duchy of city south and deansgate) :
    >
    > >Tim C. <[email protected]> wrote:
    > >
    > >> Following up to "Neil Williams" <[email protected]> :
    > >>
    > >> >Similar thing applies to Austria, I think.
    > >>
    > >> It used to, definitely, but for years now I've not been asked.
    > >> You often are requested to fill out the registration form (often at the
    > >> breakfast table) but that's for the local taxes/tourist office, and you
    > >> only need to give some form of ID number - a driving licence number will do
    > >> - normally I leave that blank too.
    > >
    > >We've had to give our passport numbers the last couple of times we
    > >stayed in Austria (Vienna, Salzburg.)
    >
    > I had missed the bit that said only if you over 3 days in any
    > establishment. Until then you don't /have/ to by federal law, but they may
    > want it because of the tourist office data. Plus they may just demand it
    > out of habit or bloodymindedness

These were accor hotels- a few of the stays were less than 3 days. I'm
used to it, so not a big deal. In the UK, they only ask for passport
numbers if you're from abroad, but there's nothing stopping you lying on
the form! :)

--
David Horne- http://www.davidhorne.net
usenet (at) davidhorne (dot) co (dot) uk
http://www.davidhorne.net/pictures.html http://soundjunction.org

Tim C .

    >These were accor hotels- a few of the stays were less than 3 days. I'm
    >used to it, so not a big deal. In the UK, they only ask for passport
    >numbers if you're from abroad, but there's nothing stopping you lying on
    >the form! :)

true :)
They only ask if you're from abroad here as well. At least passport
numbers. Otherwise for they only want a name and some sort of Austrian
address. If they checked they might wonder why I have 25 UK citizens and a
couple of Americans living in my house. :)

--
Tim C.

Bill Steltzer

Tim C. wrote:
    > I just checked, it still does apply.
    > All stays must be registered within 3 days - unless you are already
    > registered as a resident in Austria.
    > The hotel is responsible for the registration of guests. They may or may
    > not actually ask for your ID, but they "should". Luckily most places have
    > a fairly relaxed attitude to this.
    > --
    > Tim C.

Re-reading the original post, I thought he was saying that the
registration by e-mail required him to submit his passport number at
the time he made the registration. I never heard of that.

Yes, many hotels in Europe still need to see your passport when you
check in. But I've never been asked for the number ahead of time.

Bill Steltzer

Tim C. wrote:
    > I just checked, it still does apply.
    > All stays must be registered within 3 days - unless you are already
    > registered as a resident in Austria.
    > The hotel is responsible for the registration of guests. They may or may
    > not actually ask for your ID, but they "should". Luckily most places have
    > a fairly relaxed attitude to this.
    > --
    > Tim C.

Re-reading the original post, I thought he was saying that the
registration by e-mail required him to submit his passport number at
the time he made the registration. I never heard of that.

Yes, many hotels in Europe still need to see your passport when you
check in. But I've never been asked for the number ahead of time.