I keep a log of every hotel I stay at. Recording when, where, how much, and what kind of room makes it easy to look back and useful when planning future trips. Compared to flight and rail logs, the hotel log is simple — just 13 fields.
Flight log is here; rail log is here.
1. Basic Information (3 fields)
| Field | Example | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Cumulative stay number | 23 | |
| Check-in date | 2021-11-20 | |
| Check-out date | 2021-11-21 |
2. Hotel Information (5 fields)
| Field | Example | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Country | KR | ISO 3166-1 two-letter code |
| Hotel name (local language) | 롯데호텔 서울 | |
| Hotel name (English) | Lotte Hotel Seoul | |
| Latitude | 37.5653 | |
| Longitude | 126.980979 |
Hotel names are recorded in both the local language and English to prevent inconsistencies. Country codes follow ISO 3166-1 (JP, US, KR, etc.) and are used for aggregating stays by country.
Latitude and longitude are used for plotting hotels on a map. Google’s Geocoding API is a convenient way to convert a hotel name into coordinates.
3. Stay Information (5 fields)
| Field | Example | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Room type | Superior Double Room (Main Tower) | |
| Room number | 1234 | |
| Rate | 25139 | |
| Currency | JPY | ISO 4217 currency code |
| Notes | e.g. breakfast included, good view |
Recording rate and currency separately allows accurate tracking of overseas hotel costs. Room number is useful for rebooking — when you want to confirm which room you liked.