Minimum Age to Check In at a Hotel
How old you must be to check in at a hotel in your state: the chain’s own words, the state’s law, and the age on the hotels’ own pages.
Florida · any hotel · 18 years old
Depends on the hotel: at 18, some hotels check you in and others want 21Each hotel sets its own age. Check the hotel’s own page before you book; the chains below say where it is.
The state’s law, in its own words
Hotels we read in Florida on 2026-10-03 (minimum check-in age on the hotel’s own page)
- Crowne Plaza Orlando – Downtown (IHG): 21
- Candlewood Suites Orlando North – Winter Park (IHG): 21
- Holiday Inn Orlando North – Winter Park (IHG): 21
- Holiday Inn Resort Panama City Beach (IHG): 18
- Garner Hotel Panama City Beach (IHG): 21
- Atwell Suites Panama City Beach Southeast (IHG): 21
Read 2026-10-03: each state’s law on its legislature’s site, each chain’s own help pages, and the chains’ own hotel pages. Hotels change their rules: check the hotel’s page before you book.
A guest of 18 in Florida: every chain
| Chain | For this guest | What the chain says | Ages on its hotel pages we read |
|---|---|---|---|
| IHG | Ask the hotel | 18 to book on ihg.com; each hotel posts its own | 25 × 21, 8 × 18, 2 × none |
| Hilton | Ask the hotel | Each hotel sets its own | — |
| Marriott | Ask the hotel | Each hotel sets its own | — |
| Hyatt | Ask the hotel | Not read: its site refused us | — |
| Wyndham | Ask the hotel | Each hotel sets its own | — |
| Choice | Most hotels: no | Most hotels: 19 for a guest alone; some 21 | 4 × 21, 29 × none |
| Best Western | Ask the hotel | Each hotel states its own | — |
Quick answer: 18 at some hotels and 21 at many others: each hotel sets its own age. Of 35 IHG hotel pages we read, 25 said 21 and 8 said 18. We found no state that sets a minimum age, but 15 states have laws on minors or age at hotels; Florida’s makes hotels waive any age for active-duty military.
How to use it
Pick the state you are staying in, the guest’s age on the day of check-in and, if you know it, the hotel chain. Tick the box if the guest is on active duty and has a military ID. The answer says whether the guest can check in, who decides, and what a younger guest needs. Under it are the state’s law in its own words, the chain’s own words, where the chain shows each hotel’s age, the hotels we read in that state, and every chain side by side for the same guest.
Who sets the age: the hotel, then the state
No chain we read promises one age at every hotel. Hilton says The minimum age to book a room varies by hotel.
Marriott says The minimum age to check into a Marriott property is set by the Hotel.
Wyndham says the same as Hilton. Choice says most of its hotels want a guest alone to be 19, and some 21. IHG told its hotels in June 2026 to make the minimum 18 everywhere, as LoyaltyLobby reported, yet on October 3, 2026 most of its hotel pages we read still said 21. Hyatt’s site refused every reader we tried, so nothing about Hyatt is copied here from anyone else.
Then the state’s law. These 15 states have a law about minors or age at hotels; each was read on the state legislature’s own site (Tennessee’s and Utah’s through the Internet Archive).
| State | Law | What it lets a hotel do |
|---|---|---|
| California | Civil Code § 1865(d)(1) | Ask a parent, guardian or another responsible adult to take full liability, in writing, for a minor staying without an adult |
| Colorado | C.R.S. § 6-25-202(1) | Ask a parent, legal guardian or other responsible adult for a credit card number or a written promise to pay |
| Florida | Fla. Stat. § 509.095 | Nothing to refuse: it must waive any minimum age for an active-duty guest with a military ID |
| Iowa | Iowa Code § 137C.25A | Ask a parent or guardian to accept the cost in writing and give a credit card or pay in advance |
| Kansas | K.S.A. 36-602 | Refuse any minor, or ask a parent or legal guardian to sign and give a credit card number |
| Maine | 30-A M.R.S. § 3838(2) | Refuse anyone under 18, or take a minor with a parent’s signed note and a card or cash deposit |
| Massachusetts | M.G.L. c. 140, § 12C(a) | Ask a parent or guardian to accept liability and give a credit card |
| Michigan | MCL 427.302 | Refuse a minor who is not emancipated |
| Minnesota | Minn. Stat. § 327.73, subd. 2(b) | Ask a parent or guardian to accept liability and give a credit card |
| Missouri | RSMo § 315.069 | Ask a parent or guardian of a guest under 18 to accept the cost in writing |
| New Hampshire | RSA 354-A:17-a | Have a policy refusing guests under 21 (since June 19, 2025) |
| Pennsylvania | 48 Pa.C.S. § 1311(a)(1) | Ask the parent or legal guardian of a minor staying without them to accept the cost in writing |
| South Carolina | S.C. Code §§ 45-2-30(A)(1), 45-2-50 | Ask a parent to sign, give a credit card number and register |
| Tennessee | Tenn. Code § 68-14-602 | Ask a parent to sign and give a credit card number; no refusing a guest for age other than as that law provides |
| Utah | Utah Code § 29-2-103(1)(c), (e) | Ask a parent or legal guardian to promise in writing to pay, and to register |
Adulthood itself is 18 in every state but three, says the Defense Department’s age of majority table: 19 in Alabama and Nebraska, 21 in Mississippi. Even there the line for contracts is 18. Alabama’s law lets an 18-year-old enter into a binding contract as may be exercised by an individual of full legal age
, Nebraska’s lets one Enter into a binding contract or lease of whatever kind or nature
, and Mississippi’s sets 18 for a contract affecting property.
What the chains’ own hotel pages say
We read the minimum check-in age on 68 hotel pages on October 3, 2026, in the places young travelers go: Las Vegas, Orlando, Panama City Beach, Miami Beach, New Orleans, Nashville, Myrtle Beach, Tuscaloosa, Lincoln, Biloxi, New York, Austin, Denver and Boston. Hilton’s, Marriott’s and Hyatt’s hotel pages refused our reader, so only IHG’s and Choice’s are counted.
| Chain | Hotel pages read | Said 21 | Said 18 | No age stated |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| IHG | 35 | 25 | 8 | 2 |
| Choice | 33 | 4 | 0 | 29 |
No page we read set an age under 18 or over 21. A Choice hotel writes its own age, when it has one, under Hotel alerts, so a page with none leaves you with Choice’s own rule: 19 for a guest alone at most hotels.
Worked examples
An 18-year-old at an IHG hotel in Orlando. All three IHG hotels we read in Orlando said 21, even after IHG’s June 2026 notice. In Miami Beach, all three said 18. Same chain, same state: read the hotel’s own page.
A 16-year-old staying without a parent in Colorado. Colorado law lets the hotel ask a parent, legal guardian or other responsible adult for a credit card number or a written promise to pay for the room, the minor’s charges and any damage. Whether it takes the booking at all is the hotel’s call.
A 19-year-old soldier in Florida. With a valid military ID, Florida law makes a hotel, motel or bed and breakfast waive its minimum age for anyone on active duty in the Armed Forces, the National Guard, the Reserves or the Coast Guard.
A 19-year-old alone at a Choice hotel. Choice says most of its hotels take a guest alone from 19 and some want 21. At 18, sharing the room with someone 21 or older meets Choice’s rule for a guest of 18 or under.
Common mistakes
- Trusting “IHG is 18 everywhere”. On October 3, 2026, 25 of the 35 IHG hotel pages we read still said 21.
- Reading Alabama’s or Nebraska’s 19 as “no hotel at 18”. Both states let an 18-year-old sign a binding contract, and the Holiday Inn Express in Biloxi, Mississippi, said 18.
- Booking a Choice room for teenagers alone. When any guest is 18 or under, Choice wants one guest in the room to be 21 or older.
- Expecting the military waiver everywhere. We found it only in Florida’s law. Elsewhere it is the hotel’s choice: Best Western’s Grant Park Hotel in Chicago, for one, takes 18 with an active military ID.
- Flying a minor alone and forgetting the room: the Unaccompanied Minor Rules cover the flight, not the hotel at the other end.
More for the trip
Read how to book a hotel without overpaying for the same room, and, for a teen heading north, whether a minor can rent a hotel room in Canada. Planning spring break? Start with Texas’s party beaches or San Diego’s spring break beaches, where 21 is common at the hotels. A minor travelling without both parents may also need the Minor Travel Consent Letter.
FAQ
How old do you have to be to rent a hotel room?
It depends on the hotel: 18 at some and 21 at many others. On the 68 hotel pages we read, the minimum was 18 or 21 wherever one was stated. Hilton, Marriott and Wyndham let each hotel set it, and Choice says 19 for a guest alone at most of its hotels.
Can you get a hotel at 18?
Yes, at hotels that set 18: 8 of the 35 IHG hotel pages we read did. Many want 21, so check the hotel’s own page first. In Florida, a hotel, motel or bed and breakfast must waive its minimum age for an 18-year-old on active duty who shows a military ID.
What states can you get a hotel at 18?
All of them, at hotels that allow 18. We found no state that sets a minimum age. Kansas, Maine and Michigan let hotels refuse minors, and New Hampshire lets them refuse guests under 21. Florida makes them waive any age for active-duty military.
Which hotels allow 18 year olds to check in?
Of the pages we read on October 3, 2026, these said 18: Holiday Inn Resort Panama City Beach, Iberostar Waves Miami Beach, Iberostar Waves Berkeley Shore, Kimpton Surfcomber Hotel in Miami Beach, Holiday Inn & Suites Nashville Downtown – Broadway, Kimpton Hotel Monaco Denver, InterContinental Boston and Holiday Inn Express Biloxi – Beach Blvd.
What is the Holiday Inn check-in age?
It depends on the hotel. Holiday Inn is an IHG brand, and IHG told its hotels to make it 18 from June 19, 2026, but most IHG hotel pages we read on October 3, 2026 said 21. Each hotel’s page on ihg.com shows its “Minimum check-in age” near the top.
What is the Hilton check-in age?
Hilton’s own answer: “The minimum age to book a room varies by hotel.” On a hotel’s page, Hilton’s steps end at All Policies, then Check-in/Check-out, where “The minimum age to register will be listed.”
What is the Marriott check-in age?
Marriott’s own answer: “The minimum age to check into a Marriott property is set by the Hotel.” It adds that some locations take guests as young as 18 and others enforce a higher limit; look under Hotel Information on the hotel’s overview page.
Are there hotels for under 21?
Yes: every hotel page we read that set 18 takes guests of 18 to 20, and Choice says most of its hotels take a guest alone from 19. In New Hampshire, the law lets hotels have a policy refusing guests under 21.