--- title: "Aparthotel or Holiday Flat: Who Fixes the Door When It Fails" description: "An aparthotel has a front desk; a holiday flat has a manager with a phone. Who you call about a broken lock depends on which one you booked. How to tell." url: "https://locksmithbenidorm.es/blog/aparthotel-or-holiday-flat-who-fixes-the-door/" business: "Locksmith Benidorm" --- # Aparthotel or holiday flat: who fixes the door? They look the same on a booking site. When the lock fails at eleven at night, the difference between them decides who you ring. 24 September 2026 · 4 min read In 2025 Benidorm recorded 11.6 million overnight stays in hotels and 2.56 million in tourist apartments, the second figure growing fastest. On a booking site, an apartment in an aparthotel and a privately let holiday flat can look almost identical: a kitchen, a balcony, a sea view. When something goes wrong with a door, they are two very different things. ## An aparthotel is a hotel An aparthotel is a hotel establishment whose rooms happen to be apartments. It has a reception desk, staff, and usually a maintenance team. Its locks, like a hotel’s, often use cards. **If a door fails, ring reception.** They hold master access, they have somebody on duty or on call, and if they need a locksmith, they book one and take responsibility for the work. You should not have to organise anything, and you should not pay for a fault in their door. ## A holiday flat is somebody’s home, let to you A holiday flat (in Spain, a *vivienda de uso turístico*) is a private apartment rented out for short stays. There is no desk. There is an owner or a management company, and a phone number. **If a door fails, ring the host or manager.** They know the lock, may have a spare nearby, and are the ones with the authority to let a locksmith in. If you ring a locksmith directly, the first thing you will be asked is to put the host on the phone, because a locksmith cannot open a private flat on a guest’s word alone. ## How to tell which you have booked - **Is there a reception desk** you walked past when you arrived? Aparthotel. - **Did you collect the keys from a lock box, an office down the road or a person who met you?** Holiday flat. - **Does the booking name a hotel, with a star rating?** Aparthotel. Does it name a person or a small agency? Holiday flat. ## Who pays for what A broken lock is the property’s problem, not yours, in both cases. Keys that you lost, or a door you shut with the keys inside, are generally yours. Ask before any work starts, and get the host’s or reception’s agreement in writing if you can: a WhatsApp message counts. ## Save the number on the first day The one thing that turns a night-time lockout in a holiday flat into a short delay is having the host’s number saved before you need it, not buried in an email you cannot open without the Wi-Fi you are now locked away from. For hotels and aparthotels, [the hotel page](https://locksmithbenidorm.es/hotel-locksmith-benidorm/) explains how their side of it works. ## For holiday flat managers How a manager can set things up so that a guest locked out at night is let in quickly and properly. [Read more](https://locksmithbenidorm.es/holiday-apartment-locksmith-benidorm/) ## Need hands on the door rather than advice? Ring, or send a photo of the lock and your location on WhatsApp. Open 24 hours · 7 days [+34 678 583 290](tel:+34678583290) [WhatsApp](https://wa.me/34678583290?text=Hi%2C%20I%20need%20a%20locksmith%20in%20Benidorm.%20The%20building%2C%20floor%20and%20door%20are%3A)