Hotel interview questions and answers for managers

What are hotel interview questions?

Hotel interview questions are designed to see if candidates can handle the daily demands of hospitality work and provide great guest experiences. 

Whether it’s a front desk, housekeeping, or management role, questions often revolve around customer service, problem-solving, and teamwork. You might be asked things like, “How would you handle an upset guest?” or “Can you give an example of a time you worked with a team under pressure?” These questions help interviewers assess whether you’re a good fit for the fast-paced, guest-focused environment of a hotel.

Why are hotel interview questions important for managers?

Hotel interview questions are essential for small hotel owners because they help identify candidates who will uphold the quality of service your property is known for. Asking the right questions during interviews allows you to gauge how well someone can handle guest interactions, solve problems on the spot, and work smoothly with your team. In a small hotel, every employee plays a crucial role in delivering a positive guest experience, so it’s important to hire people who are both skilled and aligned with your property’s values.

Hotel interview questions for different roles

Different positions require different skills, so asking targeted questions helps you assess whether the candidate can meet the demands of the role and fit into your team.

Hotel general manager interview questions

• Q1: How have you successfully increased a hotel’s occupancy or revenue in the past?
• Q2: Describe a time when you had to resolve a major conflict between staff or with a guest. What was the outcome?
• Q3: How do you balance operational efficiency with maintaining high guest satisfaction?
• Q4: What strategies do you use to keep employees motivated, especially during busy or difficult times?
• Q5: Can you share an example of how you implemented a successful cost-saving initiative without compromising service quality?

Hotel manager interview questions

• Q1: How do you handle staff scheduling to ensure the hotel runs smoothly during peak seasons?
• Q2: What systems or tools have you used to manage hotel operations, and how have they improved efficiency?
• Q3: How do you approach training new staff to ensure they meet hotel standards?
• Q4: Describe a time when you had to deal with a difficult guest situation. How did you handle it?
• Q5: What methods do you use to gather guest feedback and implement improvements?

Hotel assistant manager interview question

• Q1: How do you support the hotel manager in daily operations while also managing your own tasks?
• Q2: What’s your approach to managing a team and handling any conflicts that arise?
• Q3: How do you prioritise tasks when managing guest requests, staff issues, and operational duties?
• Q4: Can you share an example of how you’ve improved guest satisfaction in a previous role?
• Q5: How do you stay organised and ensure smooth communication between different hotel departments?

Hotel front desk interview questions

• Q1: How do you handle a situation where a guest is unhappy with their room or the service?
• Q2: How do you manage multiple tasks, such as checking in guests, answering phones, and handling special requests?
• Q3: Can you describe a time when you went above and beyond for a guest?
• Q4: What experience do you have with hotel booking systems and software?
• Q5: How do you stay calm and professional during peak check-in or check-out times?

Hotel housekeeping interview questions

• Q1: How do you manage your time to ensure all rooms are cleaned and prepared on schedule?
• Q2: How would you handle a situation where a guest is dissatisfied with the cleanliness of their room?
• Q3: What steps do you take to maintain high cleaning standards, even when the hotel is fully booked?
• Q4: How do you ensure you’re following safety and sanitation protocols while cleaning rooms?
• Q5: Can you describe a time when you identified an issue in a guest room (like a broken fixture) and how you addressed it?

Hotel interview process with questions and answersSometimes, hiring staff for your small hotel or B&B feels like handing over your baby to a stranger. There’s a lot at stake but support is often needed if you want to succeed, so it can be hard to find the right questions to ask in an interview.

Here, you will uncover how to get to the heart of the matter and identify the right front desk staff by using a simple conversational format. This includes sample front desk interview questions and Do’s and Don’ts.

1. Be clear about why you need hotel front desk staff

Your intention in hiring the right person is one of the most important factors you can get right from the start. Many hotel operators get pulled into the perceived need to find someone experienced in using a specific system. In reality, hotel management systems nowadays are designed for ease of use. As long as you hire the person with the right mindset, any good system can be learned in a short amount of time.

To hire the right front desk team, instead focus on matching up your story with theirs: so first, get clear on your own story and values. Then, consider what a team member to complement your current setup might bring to the table. It may be something as simple as your morning team handling checkouts requiring a receptionist who is bubbly and outgoing. 

You want to also enter the interview with the intention to learn about their goals and motivations. Once you have hired the right person, retaining them will be important. That task is easier when you hire people whose goals and motivations fit with yours.

With those aspects clear in your mind, selecting the right questions and conversation openers is easy.

2. Open the conversation

Many people arrive at an interview nervous. Ideally, for you to learn the most about them, you are able to open the conversation and put them at ease. This may include you having a few sentences up your sleeve that convey more about your hotel or yourself. 

Consider the following statements and questions and how they may fit with your approach:

• This is just a candid chat. On my part, I would like to briefly share our story and background as a hotel and then I would love to learn about your story and also have time for you to ask questions at the end. How does that sound? “Great!” – [insert brief hotel story & values]
• For me personally, outside this work I enjoy [insert activities or story] because it is what fills up my energy, so I never pour from an empty cup. What fills your cup?
• I know we are the ones looking for a team member, but at the same time, I would love to know what makes you consider joining our team. Tell me about your ideal next role / what you are looking for / what is important to you. 

3. Talk about their current role

In the past it was common practice to ask very direct questions about someone’s experience, which were not always successful at capturing what you needed to know. For example, someone may have responded to “Do you have experience handling checkouts?” with a simple “No.” because there was no clear opportunity to add they were working in a larger hotel that was doing contactless checkouts. By asking open-ended questions you create flexibility to ask follow-up questions, and ultimately learn more of what you need to know. 

Here are sample front desk interview questions to use once the conversation has been opened:

• Tell me about your current role: what parts do you enjoy most and which could you do without?
• Can you describe a normal day in your current role?
• What might make you consider leaving your current role? (This question has become particularly relevant in a job market where talent has many options.)

4. Ask about specific experiences then close the interview

Now that you know about their background, values, experience and what matters to them, it is time to get into role-specific questions. By asking specific hotel receptionist interview questions at this stage (and not in the beginning), you already know about their general experience and personality for context. This is the time to distinguish at a level of experience with tasks, systems or handling difficult situations, as is relevant to the role.

• Tell me how you have (or would, if they have no experience) handle(d) a situation such as: you are talking to an important guest on the phone and another guest walks up to the front desk.
• How would you handle a guest request that you cannot solve?
• How would you describe your level of experience with [insert task or system]. 
• What are your questions for me?

After using Little Hotelier, we saw an increase in bookings compared to never using the system. I highly recommend property owners to try Little Hotelier and they will know that it’s really good!

Maneerat Wiriyarat,

Owner

Long N Joy Samui Apartment Service

Read more

How to evaluate responses to hotel interview questions

Evaluating responses is easy when you are clear about what you are looking for. Using the conversational structure above, you will have learned about the candidate in three ways:

• Opening the conversation: who are they as a person? What is important to them as a person? Can I generally see them as part of the team?
• Talking about their current role: what brings them joy or frustrates them? Is there something they are proud of doing? And how does that fit with what the role offers? Can they see themselves here?
• Questions around specific experience and close: do they fit specific task-based or behavioural criteria? What would I have to teach? And most importantly: their questions indicate what else matters to them in a work environment.

Approach this with an open mind: a well-rounded understanding of the candidate will help you weigh up potential weak spots with strengths and coachability. There may be parts of their personality or experience that align with your hotel but not the role; perhaps they are a fit for another position. 

Best practices for creating hotel front desk interview questions

As you prepare for the hotel interview, remember the following best practices to keep you on track.

Do

• Do open the conversation with a brief overview, so they know what to expect. 
• Do learn about the person first, their experience second.
• Do a quick online search in addition to their CV: note down any interesting fact you would like to know more about.
• Do prepare a few sentences to open the conversation with what there is to know about your hotel and show your values.
• Do distinguish between skills that can or cannot be taught before asking about them.

Don’t

• Don’t expect the candidate to just “tell you about themselves” without offering a few words first. 
• Don’t get lost in the detail of asking extremely specific questions.
• Don’t be too rigid with questions, and consider adapting for people who do not yet have a hotel background.
• Don’t forget to leave time and ask for their questions at the end.