Can You Have Alcohol Delivered to a Hotel in London?

Yes. Drinks House 247 delivers alcohol to hotels across London 24 hours a day, usually within 30 to 45 minutes inside the M25. Give the guest's full name, the hotel and the room number. The driver hands the order to the guest or to reception, and whoever receives it must be 18 or over and may be asked for ID.

Hotels are one of the most common delivery addresses in London. Visitors arrive late, want a bottle in the room without paying minibar prices, or someone wants to send champagne to a friend celebrating in town. It works, but a hotel is not a front door, so a few details decide whether the order reaches the right person quickly.

What details do you need to give?

Treat the order like a letter to someone in a large building. The driver can only hand over what the address makes clear.

• The guest's full name, exactly as it appears on the booking. Reception looks up guests by name, not by room number alone.
• The hotel's name and full street address, including the postcode. London has several hotels with near-identical names, and some chains run two properties on the same street.
• The room number, if you know it. It helps, but the name matters more.
• A mobile number for the guest, so the driver can call if reception cannot find the booking.
• Any delivery note, such as "leave with concierge" or "guest arriving after 10pm".

Will the driver come up to the room?

Usually not. Many London hotels do not let delivery drivers into the lifts or corridors, for their guests' security. The normal handover is at reception or the concierge desk: either the guest comes down, or the hotel takes the order up. Some smaller hotels and serviced apartments are happy for the guest to meet the driver in the lobby, which is often the quickest option late at night.

If you are the guest, the simplest approach is to order to yourself, keep your phone on, and walk down to the lobby when the driver calls.

Can reception accept it for someone else?

This is where age checks come in. Under our Challenge 21 policy, alcohol is only handed to someone who is 18 or over, and the driver may ask for photo ID from whoever signs for it. If a member of hotel staff accepts the order on the guest's behalf, the driver has to be satisfied that the person receiving it is an adult, which in practice at a staffed reception desk is straightforward.

What a driver cannot do is leave alcohol unattended, hand it to a guest who appears to be under 18, or deliver to someone who is visibly intoxicated. If none of those apply, a hotel delivery is no harder than a home one.

How it works in different situations

Does the hotel have to allow it?

Hotels are private premises and set their own rules. Receiving a delivery for your own room is generally accepted. The rules usually tighten in public areas: bars, restaurants and function rooms may not allow drinks bought elsewhere, or may charge corkage for opening them. If you are planning anything beyond a bottle in the room, a quick call to the front desk avoids an awkward moment.

Serviced apartments and short-let buildings vary more. Some have a 24-hour concierge, some have a key-safe and nobody on site. For those, the guest needs to be available to receive the order in person.

What about timing?

Inside the M25, typical delivery is 30 to 45 minutes, day or night, 365 days a year. Two timing points are specific to hotels:

• Check-in times. Most London hotels check in from 2pm or 3pm. An order sent for a guest before they have a room can end up waiting at the desk, which is fine for spirits but not ideal for chilled champagne.
• Late-night lobbies. After midnight, many hotels run a reduced front desk. The order still gets through, but a guest who can come down to the lobby makes it faster.

Champagne takes around three hours to chill properly in a fridge, and hotel-room minibars are often too small for a full 75cl bottle. If the bottle is for drinking straight away, ask reception for an ice bucket: twenty minutes in ice and water does the job.

Sending champagne to someone's hotel room

This is the classic London gesture: a birthday, an anniversary, a proposal weekend, a colleague closing a deal. To make it land well:

1. Confirm the hotel and the booking name with someone who knows, rather than guessing.
2. Add a card message at checkout so the recipient knows who it is from.
3. Choose a time when they are likely to be in, such as early evening after check-in.
4. Consider a gift set with flutes, since hotel glassware is not always to hand in the room.

Frequently asked questions

Can you get alcohol delivered to a hotel room in London?

Yes. Give the guest's full name, the hotel's address and the room number. The order is usually handed over at reception or the concierge desk, and the recipient must be 18 or over.

Will the delivery driver bring it up to the room?

Usually not. Many London hotels do not let drivers into the lifts or corridors, so the guest meets the driver in the lobby or the hotel takes the order up.

Can hotel reception accept an alcohol delivery for a guest?

Yes, as long as the person receiving it is an adult. Under Challenge 21 the driver may ask for photo ID from whoever accepts the order.

How long does hotel delivery take in London?

Typically 30 to 45 minutes inside the M25, 24 hours a day. Orders for guests who have not yet checked in may wait at the front desk until they arrive.

Ordering to a hotel

See how London alcohol delivery works, check the areas we cover, or browse champagne gifts and champagne and flute sets for a room surprise. For ordering after dark, see late-night delivery, and more answers on our questions answered page.

Deliveries are to over-18s only under our Challenge 21 policy. Please drink responsibly.