The pre-opening checklist for a new independent hotel
Ninety days of decisions, in the order they actually need making.
Opening a hotel is a sequence problem. Rate structure has to exist before channel contracts, channel contracts before mapping, mapping before the first bookable date. Get the order wrong and you spend the last fortnight redoing work.
Ninety to sixty days out
Decide your room types and how they differ in a way a guest can see. Set a base rate and the derived plans that hang off it. Register with the local tourist authority and find out what the police return requires, because that shapes your registration form.
Sixty to thirty days out
Sign the OTA contracts, map every room type and rate plan, and open a small allocation to prove the connection works. Take a real test booking on each channel. Configure deposits, cancellation policies and tax rules before the first live reservation, not after.
The last month
Train the team on your own data. Write the pre-arrival and post-stay messages. Assign a housekeeper to each room. Then open bookings one week before you open the doors, so the first arrivals are people you chose rather than people who found you.