A guest with an EV now chooses accommodation partly by whether they can charge there. A charging station at a hotel or guesthouse is a booking tool, not just an add-on. How to do it in practice?
Why guests increasingly expect charging
The number of electric cars on Czech roads is growing and so are guests' expectations. An EV driver chooses accommodation partly by whether they can charge overnight. Major booking portals now offer an "EV charging" filter, so a hotel without a station may not even appear to some guests. A charging station is therefore not just an extra service but a marketing and booking tool.
For a hotel or guesthouse, charging brings three concrete benefits: it attracts a new guest segment, extends their stay (the guest waits for the car to charge) and raises the value and prestige of the place. For wellness resorts outside cities it is often a decisive argument.
How many stations and what power
Good news: for accommodation, AC charging is enough. A guest arrives in the evening and leaves in the morning, so the car sits for 10 hours or more. In that time an 11 kW wallbox delivers over 100 kWh, more than a typical battery. Fast DC stations are needlessly expensive for a hotel.
| Size of accommodation | Recommended solution | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Guesthouse up to 15 rooms | 1 to 2 points, e:car WALL 11 kW | start small, expand with demand |
| Hotel 15 to 50 rooms | 2 to 4 points, ideally dual stations | e:car WALL double splits power between two cars |
| Resort and wellness | 4+ points, some public with payment | add an e:car COLUMN pillar station |
The key is the reserved capacity. Several wallboxes at once load the connection, so choose stations with dynamic power management (Load Balance), which shares the available power between cars and does not overload the main fuse. That saves you an expensive connection upgrade.
Free, or charge for it?
Hotels take two routes. Smaller places offer charging free as a perk in the room price. Larger or publicly accessible car parks charge for it. Note: once a station is publicly accessible, the European AFIR regulation applies and requires simple card payment without registration.
Operation without the hassle
Do not want to handle payments, records and technical operation? We can take over operating the station for you – you just collect the revenue, which we pay out every month. We handle payments via nabij.to, records and any reporting. Details on the Public station operation page. Firmware updates are done remotely; installation and inspection by certified partners.
Grants for hotels and guesthouses
You can draw support for a charging station. For businesses there was the Guarantee for E-mobility programme (up to CZK 150,000 per station); for public infrastructure the Ministry of Transport opened two OPD3 calls in 2026 (70 to 80 % of costs). We keep the current overview and terms on the Charging station grants page and help choose the programme and prepare the application.
How much a guest's charge costs
The cost of a charge is lower than hoteliers fear. A guest with a 60 kWh battery who arrives at 30 % and leaves full uses about 40 kWh. At CZK 5 to 7 per kWh that is CZK 200 to 280 a night – easily absorbed into the room price or fairly charged for. Add that charging wins you a guest who would otherwise have stayed elsewhere and the payback is quick. At a paid station you set the price per kWh yourself and revenue arrives every month.
Charging as part of marketing
Do not leave the station hidden; make the most of it:
- Tick "EV charging" on booking portals (Booking, Expedia, your Google profile). It is a filter guests choose by.
- List charging on your website and in the booking confirmation. Guests value the certainty they can charge.
- Put the station on charging maps so passing drivers find you too.
- Mention it is a station from a Czech manufacturer – a detail that scores with discerning guests.
Guests who block the station
A common operational problem: a guest charges the car in two hours but leaves it at the station all day, blocking others. The fix is both organisational and technical – a clear rule ("please free the spot after charging"), enough points for the hotel's size, and at a paid station a tariff that encourages leaving after charging. At a smaller place a word at reception is enough; at a larger one it pays to add another point rather than manage disputes.
Placement and installation
- Near the parking spaces, ideally covered or lit, mindful of cable length.
- Clear signage so guests find the station and non-EVs do not block it.
- An adequate supply from the switchboard; longer runs need a thicker cable. A designer prepares the plan, a certified partner installs with an inspection.
- Headroom for the future: prepare the supply for more points than you fit now. Later expansion is then cheap.
When to consider a fast station too
There are exceptions where a DC station makes sense at accommodation: hotels by motorways and main routes where a guest stops only for lunch and needs a quick top-up, and large resorts that want to offer charging to passers-by as a paid public service. Even then AC charging for staying guests is the backbone and DC is a supplement. For the vast majority of hotels and guesthouses AC remains the right choice.
Step by step
- Estimate how many EV guests you expect and choose the number of points.
- Check the connection capacity and choose stations with dynamic power management.
- Decide whether to include charging in the price or charge for it via nabij.to.
- Find a suitable grant programme and prepare the application.
- Leave installation and inspection to a certified partner and put the station on the portals.
Common hotel mistakes
- Buying an expensive DC fast charger. For an overnight stay it is unnecessary; 11 kW AC charges the car overnight easily and costs a fraction.
- Forgetting power management. Without Load Balance several cars at once trip the fuse or force a costly connection upgrade.
- Offering ad-hoc charging from a socket. An extension lead in a car park is dangerous and unmetered. A fixed station is the answer.
- Underestimating payment at a public station. Without simple card payment you do not meet AFIR. The nabij.to portal handles it for you.
Want charging for your hotel?
We prepare a tailored design based on your car park and connection, calculate operation and grants, and connect you with a certified partner for installation.
Často kladené otázky
What charging station does a hotel need?
For accommodation an AC station at 11 kW with a Type 2 connector is enough. The guest charges overnight, so a fast DC station is needlessly expensive. Larger hotels benefit from dual stations or an e:car COLUMN pillar with payment.
Do I have to charge guests for charging?
You do not; smaller guesthouses often offer it free as a perk. But once a station is publicly accessible, under the AFIR regulation it must allow simple card payment. The nabij.to portal handles that.
How many charging points should a hotel have?
Start with 1 to 2 points at a guesthouse, 2 to 4 at a mid-size hotel, and expand with demand. More important than the count is preparing the supply for future expansion and choosing stations with dynamic power management.
Can I get a grant for a hotel charging station?
Yes. For businesses there was the Guarantee for E-mobility programme (up to CZK 150,000 per station); for public infrastructure there are 2026 OPD3 calls (70 to 80 % of costs). See our grants page for current terms and help with the application.
Who handles operation and payments?
We can take over operating the station including payments via nabij.to and records; we pay out revenue every month. Installation and inspection are by certified partners, and firmware and updates are handled remotely.