Staying in a Houston Hotel

[RiveraRa]

I do not have my CHL but I know that in TX you are allowed to carry concealed in your car even without it. I have also heard that if you are staying in a hotel you are allowed to carry in your room because that becomes your temporary place of residence. With that in mind I have a few questions...

I will be traveling to Houston at the end of the month and staying at the Marriott Houston Hobby Airport. Are you allowed to carry concealed while in the lobby checking in? Or do I need to leave it in the car until I am checked in and ready to walk straight to my room. Im also guessing that you are only allowed to carry in your room and to/from you car. Not while eating breakfast in the lobby or anywhere like that.

Do yall trust the safes that are in your hotel rooms and the staff that work at the hotels? Since I dont have my CHL I would have to leave it in my room (or the car) while I am out. Which would you trust more? Room or car?

Any other thoughts, comments, suggestions, precautions, etc that you might have? Thank you!

[agbullet2k1]

IANAL, etc., but I believe the intent of the law is to carry from point A (room) to point B (car) as directly as possible, without stopping somewhere or taking a detour. As for room safes, I've never used them, so I can't comment. Lockboxes behind the front desk are probably better, but I'd caution against letting the staff know what you're putting in there.

[seamusTX]

You can carry a handgun without a CHL while traveling (PC 46.15). If you are coming from another city to stay at a hotel in Houston, there is no question that you are traveling. However, some Harris County law enforcement are in the habit of arresting first and sorting things out at the station.

- Jim

[smyrna]

Do yourself a favor and get your CHL.

I, like you, found myself asking the same questions because my job requires me to travel extensively. After a while of carrying under the radar, I simply decided the smart thing to do was to get my CHL. Now I carry more places than I ever thought about carrying...and more importantly, I don't worry near as much because I KNOW I am legal.

IMO, your car (assuming you drove to the hotel) is a better safe than the room or hotel lockbox.

[Venus Pax]

Some hotel safes allow you to set your own combination.

[RiveraRa]

I will be driving from the Austin area to Houston. And believe me, I can not wait to get my CHL. I just need to save up a little bit of $$ first.
As far as the safe goes, It sounds like keeping it in the car might be the best idea.

As far as the Harris county LEOs...I heard that is no longer true. It mostly happened during the reign of an old DA that has now been replaced. Can anyone confirm? Also, if I do get pulled over for speeding or something like that, Am I required to inform the LEO? Thank you!

[KC5AV]

Without your CHL, you are not required to identify that you are armed. Just drive the speed limit, and you shouldn't have to worry about it.

[seamusTX]

I have heard mixed stories on Harris County LEOs, ranging from they don't care any longer to asking every driver whether he is armed. I don't know what's really going on.

In addition to driving the speed limit, make sure your license plate is not obscured and your tags are up-to-date.

- Jim

[SD4]

I believe you are legal to carry from your car to your room but no place else. Once you leave the room, even to walk down the hall to the ice machine, you are no longer in your own domain. As far as safes in the room, I have never worried much about leaving valuables in them. As someone else stated, many (most?) now allow you to set your own combo or allow you to use a card (credit card/drivers license) in leiu of the combo. Set it to your card, and it will only open when that card is swiped. I would feel much more at ease going that route than leaving it in the car.

[kd5zex]

Do not put much faith in the hotel safes, they have override codes which at minimum the owner/manager of the hotel have. The closet safe is better than leaving it in the nightstand though. If you are real concerned about it I would put it in some sort of a container and ask the front desk to store it in their safe.

ETA: Just for good measure I leave a tip for the housekeeping staff regularly, and I have never had my stuff tampered with or rifled through (to my knowledge, YMMV).

[Rokyudai]

The firearm should remain in the car until you are ready to go to your room.

Hotel room safes vary from place to place. I have seen some that I could pry open with a butter knife and some that I wouldn't mind having in my own house.

If it is one that you can program and you judge it to be fairly secure, use it.

I would personally leave the Do Not Disturb sign on the Door and/or call the maid service and ask them to cancel it. You should be able to do this with no problem. If you need mini toiletries, you can always have someone run them up to you.


(Hokey Idea)
You can also slip a cardboard match in between the door and frame...if it's on the floor when you return...someone might have come in.

-Rok

[smyrna]

I would personally leave the Do Not Disturb sign on the Door ...If you need mini toiletries, you can always have someone run them up to you.

Excellent suggestion. I do this just about everytime I stay at a hotel just because I don't like other people having access to my stuff.

[RiveraRa]

The canceling room service/DND sign idea is a good one.

I was actually just able to review my schedule for this conference and it doesn't look like I will actually be leaving anything in the room very long anyway. A few hours the first night but I will be checking out in the morning anyways since the conference goes later than check out.

And as for carrying concealed in the car w/o license...I think I will print up a copy of the 2007 HB1815 Motorist Protection Act just in case. But I dont plan on speeding or having any out of date stickers or the like. Thanks everyone!