Rules and features of hotel booking

Rules and features that you should consider when booking a hotel in Belarus:

Main sections:

1. How to choose a hotel
2. The duration of stay
3. Booking
4. Currency exchange
5. Documents for check-in a hotel
6. Visa-free entry to the Republic of Belarus
7. Insurance
8. How to get to the hotel
9. What you need to know about staying in a hotel
10. To ensure order in the hotel and safety of guests, in the hotel it is prohibited
11. Mobile communication and Internet
12. What to do after returning from hotel
13. Additional Information

1. How to choose a hotel:

• Read the descriptions, see the photos of hotels in Belarus.
• Use the Select rooms wizard to select the most suitable hotel for the desired dates.
• Please pay attention to the list of services provided in the hotel for free or for an additional fee.
• If you are traveling with children, look for information on discounts for children, on the possibility of providing an extra bed in the room. Hotels in Belarus usually take children under 8 years free of charge without providing a separate bed and breakfast. An extra set of bed linen and breakfast are surcharge.
• If you have decided to bring your favorite pet, do not forget to check information about the possibility of accommodating it in a hotel. Some hotels in Belarus accept guests with pets under certain conditions, for more details see the section Accommodation in hotels of Belarus with pets.

2. The duration of stay:

• In the hotels of Minsk, Brest, Kobrin, Vitebsk and Polotsk, especially at the height of the tourist season and during the holidays (New Year's, May's, mass events - the Slavonic Bazaar, festivals, championships, etc.), there is no possibility to extend the hotel room reservation, in this regard, think beforehand about the optimal quantity of days for you to stay.
• When booking a room, remember: for accommodation before the check-in time / or eviction after the check-out time, a half of the day is paid extra.

3. Booking:

• You have the choice of where to book a room - at the hotel or at tourist enterprises. Please remember that the booking of rooms in travel agencies with prepayment for accommodation gives you certain guarantee of settling in the chosen and paid category of room. You will be sure that when you come to rest, you do not have to wait for free rooms or urgently search for another hotel. The prepayment for your accommodation serves as a guarantee that the rooms will not be idle. And most importantly, in the event of any force majeure you will have someone to turn to.
• The booking process is carried out on the website belhotel.by through a standard application form. The procedure for booking and payment to hotels in Belarus is described in detail in the section Booking Rules
• You can book a room at any time, but the earlier you do it, the more chances you have (especially in a period of high demand) to choose the necessary accommodation.

4. Currency exchange

• Due to the fact that currency rates are constantly changing, it is difficult to determine which rate will be more profitable on the date of arrival in Belarus. Follow financial news.
• It is more profitable to change Russian rubles in the Republic of Belarus at currency exchange points. In Russia, the course is usually lower than in Belarus. You need to present a passport for currency exchange.
• ATMs located on the territory of the Republic of Belarus issue Belarusian rubles, US dollars and euros.

5. Documents for check-in a hotel:

• Upon arrival you should contact the administrator for registration. Upon registration you must show the following documents: passport, in its absence - one of the following documents: a residence permit, a refugee certificate, a military card, a birth certificate for children under the age of sixteen years. Also, you might need a booking confirmation (the document that is loaded on your application page after payment).
• When planning your trip well in advance it is recommended to ensure the availability of passports’ copies of all participants, travel tickets (air, railway, bus) and other documents. They are useful in case of loss of the original, as well as in other situations that may arise in the host country. Keep copies separate from the originals.
• We recommend you read the information about the Republic of Belarus. You can found more information about the country in the section Information about Belarus (geographical location, nature and the rules of entry into the Republic of Belarus, customs regulations, currency control, population, culture, language, transport, cuisine, etc.).

6. Visa-free entry to the Republic of Belarus:

In 2017 and 2019, Decrees of the President of the Republic of Belarus №8 from 09.01.2017 and № 300 from 07.08.2019 «About the establishment of a visa-free entry and exit procedure for foreign citizens» were issued, according to which citizens of about 80 states can visit the Republic of Belarus without a visa if certain conditions are met. Visa-free regime is valid for foreign citizens in the following cases:

1. Provided to entry into the Republic of Belarus through the National Airport Minsk;
   Visa-free regime with a stay in Belarus up to 30 days extends to citizens of 74 states, including all the countries of the European Union. The main requirement of visa-free regime is entry and exit the Republic of Belarus only through the National Airport Minsk.
   You can see more information about visa-free entry rules in Belarus through the National Airport Minsk here.
2. When you visit tourist and recreational area «Brest - Grodno»;
   Visa-free entry to the territory of tourist and recriational zone «Brest - Grodno» permits for people to visit Belarus for a period of up to 15 days with tourism goals and applies to citizens of 73 countries. Tourist and recriational zone «Brest - Grodno» includes Brest c., Brest, Zhabinka, Kamenets, Pruzhany districts of the Brest region, Grodno c., Berestovitsa, Volkovysk, Voronovo, Grodno, Lida, Svisloch, Schuchin districts of the Grodno region.
   Read more about visa-free entry rules for visiting tourist and recriational zone «Brest - Grodno» you can here.

In other cases and subject to the stay of foreign citizens in the territory of the Republic of Belarus, it is necessary to obtain a Belarusian visa for a longer period of time. More information about visa regime for entry to Belarus you can see on the Internet portal belarus-online.by/visafree.

7. Insurance:

• Republic of Belarus has introduced compulsory health insurance for foreign citizens and stateless persons temporarily residing in the Republic of Belarus, in the case of the provision of emergency medical assistance in the state medical institutions in case of sudden illness or accident.
• You can make a medical insurance policy at any checkpoint on the borders of Belarus, as well as at airports and railway stations, where the points of Belarusian insurance companies work.
• The cost of insurance depends on the number of days of stay and some conditions.
• The medical insurance is not required for:
  - citizens of countries with which there are international treaties that govern the provision of free emergency medical services (citizens of Russian Federation);
  - citizens of the states - participants of the CIS for whom the emergency medical care is provided free of charge in accordance with the Agreement on the provision of medical care to citizens of states - participants of Commonwealth of Independent States, signed in Moscow on 27 March 1997 (Armenia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Ukraine).
• According to international travel practice we recommend for citizens who are not subject to compulsory health insurance to conclude a contract of voluntary health insurance. The policy of the insurance company offers a wider range of services than is prescribed in the agreement of our countries. In addition to paying for medical expenses, the cover includes the medical transportation of the insured to the place of emergency aid or medical evacuation after medical assistance for further treatment in the nearest medical institution on the territory of the country of residence.

8. How to get to the hotel:

• Choose the official transporter, licensed for road transport of passengers to travel to the hotel and back.
• For the convenience of our customers the Belarusian tour operator Automated tourism technologies created an online system of ordering transfer between Belarusian stations/airports and hotels available on the Internet portal www.beltransfer.by.

9. What you need to know about staying in a hotel:

• In most hotels the checkout time is 12:00 local time. On the day of arrival the accommodation to rooms is implemented after 14:00.
• The distribution of rooms is a responsibility of the receptionist of the hotel.
• It is recommended to take your room key at the reception, and in case of loss to notify the administration.
• Upon arrival at the hotel you should be familiar with the fire evacuation plan, terms of elevator and electrical appliances using.
• In case of breakdown or malfunction of sanitary devices, electric lighting and appliances you should address to the manager on duty.
• Guests are required to provide access to the room of the hotel staff for the production of the current cleaning in accordance with the standards of the hotel operation.
• Unauthorized persons can stay in the room only at the invitation of a Guest from 7:00 to 23:00 with the consent of the administrator. Guests are responsible for the timely care of the invited persons and their compliance with the rules of hotel accommodation. When the invited person stay in the room after 23:00 he must pay his accommodation at the hotel according to the price list.
• You should take care of the furniture, equipment and other objects in a hotel. The Guest is liable for damage caused to a hotel, as well as for the damage caused by persons who have visited the hotel for guests’ invitation.
• The hotel’s administration is not responsible for the loss of valuables, money and documents left in the room. Search forgotten things being on your own and at your own expense
• Children under 7 years stay for free in same room with parents without additional bed. Parents are responsible for their actions and safety.
• Breakfast submission (if there is a cafe / restaurant) is carried out at a set time.
• Observance of silence in the hotel after the set time is compulsory for all.
• Smoking in the hotels is allowed in specially designated areas.
• You must leave your room before 12:00 and pay for additional services (telephone, mini-bar, order food and drinks in the room, etc.) on the day of departure.
• Guests who wish to extend their stay at the hotel should notify the administrator no later than 2 hours before the eviction.

10. To ensure order in the hotel and safety of guests, in the hotel it is prohibited:

• to violate the rules of fire safety and the rules of using electrical devices;
• to disrespect the staff and other guests;
• to noise and commit acts that violate the living conditions of other citizens;
• to appear in public places in a drunken state;
• to store in a room bulky things, inflammable and explosive materials and objects, weapons, drugs;
• to keep in the room the animals and birds without the administrator's permission.

11. Mobile communication and Internet:

• For citizens of the Russian Federation who have a Russian SIM card, in Belarus, you need to open a roaming service for calls to Russia. For non-residents of the Republic of Belarus, mobile operators offer the following rates:
  - Operator МТС offers a tariff «Guest»;
  - Operator A1 offers a tariff «Hi»;
  - Operator life:) offers a tariff «Plain».
• Some hotels have high-speed Wi-Fi access points; you can see the list of such hotels here. The hotels are located in the 3G / 2G coverage area of the network of Belarusian mobile operators, and in some 4G networks are also available, therefore the opportunity to use the services is provided everywhere mobile Internet using a mobile phone or portable modem.

12. What to do after returning from hotel:

• fill out a form on your application page
• leave a comment on the forum forum.belhotel.by

13. Additional Information:

Consular Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Belarus: 220030, Minsk, ul. K. Marx, 37A, telephone: 8017-222-26-65, Fax: +375 17 222 26 63.

Emergency telephones in the Republic of Belarus:

• MES – 101
• Police – 102;
• Emergency – 103;
• Emergency gas service – 104.

In the article FAQ You can see the answers to frequently asked questions.

We wish you a wonderful weather, unforgettable rest and excellent mood!