You are responsible for 30 people's experience. Here is how to make that light.
Every group has one person the others trust to get it right, and if you are reading this, it is probably you. The pressure is real: elders who need to be near the lifts, families who need connecting rooms, and a group chat that expects answers. The good news is that the hotel side of a group trip comes down to five decisions, and none of them requires you to deal with a hotel desk in another time zone. That is our job.
The five steps, in order
| Step | What you do | What we do |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Confirm headcount and room mix | Collect firm numbers before requesting quotes: how many people, how many rooms, and the mix of doubles, triples, quads and any connecting rooms for families. | Advise and prepare options |
| 2. Choose your date window | Agree one primary date window and one backup with your group. | Advise and prepare options |
| 3. Request a group hold | Send us your headcount, room mix and dates in one message. | Everything with the hotel |
| 4. Collect the rooming list | Once your group approves the option, collect names as they appear on passports and room pairings. | Everything with the hotel |
| 5. Confirm the meal plan | Decide breakfast or half board for the block, and during Ramadan whether the group wants iftar and suhoor arranged. | Advise and prepare options |
| 6. Send the final manifest | 30 days before arrival you confirm the final list. | Everything with the hotel |
1. Confirm headcount and room mix
Collect firm numbers before requesting quotes: how many people, how many rooms, and the mix of doubles, triples, quads and any connecting rooms for families. Soft numbers produce soft quotes; firm numbers produce terms you can put in front of your group.
2. Choose your date window
Agree one primary date window and one backup with your group. Ramadan and school holidays need 9 to 12 months of lead time for large blocks; regular months need 3 to 6. Flexibility of even three days can change what is available for a 20-room block.
3. Request a group hold
Send us your headcount, room mix and dates in one message. We request block availability and group terms across the Clock Tower hotels for your window and send you live options to compare, usually two hotels side by side.
4. Collect the rooming list
Once your group approves the option, collect names as they appear on passports and room pairings. You send us one list; we handle the hotel side entirely, including changes.
5. Confirm the meal plan
Decide breakfast or half board for the block, and during Ramadan whether the group wants iftar and suhoor arranged. One decision for the whole block keeps the price clean and the mornings simple.
6. Send the final manifest
30 days before arrival you confirm the final list. After that, your consultant manages late changes case by case with the hotel, and coordinates arrival timing so check-in is staggered, not chaotic.
Not sure what is realistic for your dates?
Send your expected group size and window and we will tell you honestly what is available, what the lead time looks like, and how the terms work, before you promise anything to your group.
Ask Us on WhatsAppThe mistakes that cost groups the most
Three patterns cause almost every group headache we see. First, requesting quotes with soft numbers, which produces terms that change when the real numbers arrive. Second, leaving Ramadan blocks later than nine months, when contiguous rooms are already gone. Third, collecting the rooming list informally in a group chat, which guarantees spelling mismatches with passports at check-in. Each one is avoidable with the sequence above.
Organiser Questions, Answered
On the hotel side: confirm headcount and room mix, agree a date window, approve the quote, collect the rooming list and confirm the final manifest 30 days out. Everything between those steps, including hotel communication and changes, is handled by your Meliora consultant.
We treat 5 rooms as the starting point for group handling, and 10+ rooms is where block terms and adjacent-floor requests come into their own. Below 5 rooms, our extended family bookings service is usually the better fit.
Organiser terms are curated per group and depend on the size of the block and the season. Tell us your expected group size when you enquire and we will set the organiser terms out clearly in your quote before you commit to anything.
After you have approved the quote and terms, not before. Collect names exactly as they appear on passports, together with room pairings. We provide a simple format so the list arrives clean the first time.
Changes happen in every group. Your consultant manages reductions and name changes with the hotel case by case, and the earlier we know, the more flexibility exists. The 30-day final manifest is the key date to hold your group to.
Yes. We send quotes formatted so you can forward them straight to your group chat, with real room photos and clear inclusions, so you are never translating hotel jargon for forty people.
Why book your Clock Tower stay with Meliora Escapes
- Meliora Escapes is a Dubai based luxury travel consultancy serving guests across the Gulf, the UK and beyond.
- We send real room and view photos before you pay, so you know exactly which view category you are booking.
- No hidden fees. The price we quote is the price you pay.
- A named consultant handles your booking from enquiry to check-in, reachable on WhatsApp in your time zone.