At check-out, every hotel guest receives a folio: the itemised record of their stay, with each night’s room charge and tax, every restaurant bill or spa treatment signed to the room, and the payment that settled the account. Business travellers need it for expenses; leisure guests check it for mistakes. A well-designed folio also leaves a final impression of the hotel itself. This Hotel Guest Folio Template does both, with a centred gold crest, a brass room key hanging from the top edge and a clean, dated ledger of charges and credits.
Hotels, Inns and Bed & Breakfasts
It suits independent and boutique hotels, inns, bed and breakfasts, guest houses, resorts without a property management system and serviced apartments. It also works for hotels that want a more elegant folio than their system prints, for weddings, VIP guests or group bookings. The sample shows The Harbourside Hotel billing a couple for a three-night stay in a harbour-view king room.
A Crest, a Hotel Name and a Key
At the top centre, a thin gold ring holds a large serif monogram H beneath a small gold crown, the kind of crest found on hotel stationery. THE HARBOURSIDE HOTEL is spaced out beneath it in Cinzel capitals, with the address, phone, and front desk email in small grey text. In the top-right corner, a gold ring hangs on a short cord from the edge of the page, carrying a burgundy diamond key fob with the room number 412, like the old-fashioned keys still handed out by some grand hotels.
A double gold rule separates the letterhead from Guest Folio. The guest block sits beside the folio number, confirmation number, and print date. A stay strip records room, room type, arrival, departure, nights and rate. The folio itself lists date, description, charges and credits, followed by the totals, a thank-you line and the guest signature, with a navy footer edged in gold.
Reading a Hotel Folio
Guests often find folios confusing because charges and credits appear in the same list. This guide explains the typical lines:
The Sample Stay
Three nights at $289 plus 9% room tax, dinner at the Harbour Grill, a couples massage at the spa, three nights of valet parking, and a mini bar charge add up to $1,471.13. The guest’s Visa card was charged the same amount at check-out, shown as a credit, so the balance is $0.00. A folio with a zero balance is also a receipt, which is exactly what business guests need.
Updating the Key Fob
The room number and the word ROOM on the key fob are text boxes over the burgundy diamond, so change them for each guest. The cord, ring, and diamond are grouped, so you can recolour the fob to match your hotel’s colours or remove the key entirely for a simpler layout.
Editing the Folio Lines
The stay strip, folio ledger and totals are editor tables. Double-click them or use Edit Table Data; add lines for longer stays with + Add Row and trim with – Remove Last. The figures are typed rather than calculated, so check that total charges, total credits, and the balance agree. Many property systems can export a folio as CSV, which Import CSV will place into the ledger.
Taxes and Resort Fees
Lodging taxes differ by city, county, and state, and some are charged per night rather than as a percentage. Show each tax as its own line with its rate, as the sample does. If your hotel charges a resort or destination fee, list it separately on each night so guests can see exactly what they are paying for.
Group Bookings and Direct Billing
For weddings and corporate groups, the company or couple may pay for rooms while guests pay their own extras. Create a master folio for the group payer and individual folios for each guest’s incidentals, and use the Guest block to name the payer. Direct-bill accounts can carry the company’s purchase order number in the confirmation field.
Changing the Hotel’s Look
Navy and gold suit a classic hotel. A seaside inn might prefer teal and sand; a city boutique hotel black and brass. Change the crest ring and crown, the rules, the ledger header, and the footer together. The monogram letter is plain text, so type your own initial.
Printing at the Front Desk
The folio is laid out for letter-size paper. Print it on bright white or cream paper at check-out, or email it to the guest’s address on file, which many travellers now prefer. Keep a copy with the night audit records.
Handling Folio Disputes at Check-Out
If a guest questions a charge, the dated ledger makes it easy to find: check the outlet’s signed bill for restaurant charges, the mini bar record, or the parking log. Remove or adjust incorrect charges with a separate credit line, such as Mini bar adjustment, rather than deleting the original line, so the audit trail stays complete.
Incidental Holds and Deposits
Most hotels place a hold on the guest’s card at check-in to cover incidentals such as dining or damage. The hold is not a charge, and it is released after check-out, although banks can take several days to lift it. Explaining this on the folio or in the check-out email prevents confused calls from guests who see a pending amount on their statement.
Guest Folio FAQs
Is a folio the same as an invoice?
A folio is the running account of a stay. Once settled, it serves as the guest’s invoice and receipt.
Can I show a deposit paid at booking?
Yes. Add it as a credit line dated the day it was paid.
Do I need the guest’s signature?
It is optional, but it is useful when charges were signed to the room during the stay.
