Pension (lodging)

A pension in the village of Gosau, Upper Austria

A pension (UK: /ˈpɒ̃sjɒ̃/, US: /pɒnˈsjoʊn/;[1] French: [pɑ̃sjɔ̃] ⓘ)[2] is a type of guest house or boarding house. This term is typically used in Continental European countries, in areas of North Africa and the Middle East that formerly had large European expatriate populations, and in some parts of South America, such as Brazil and Paraguay. Pensions can also be found in South Korea, Japan, and the Philippines.

In contrast to bed and breakfasts, more usual in Anglosphere nations, pensions typically offer not only breakfast, but also lunch, dinner, and sometimes even tea. Rather than paying for the room and each meal separately, guests select a plan that either comprises overnight accommodation, breakfast, lunch, and dinner ("full pension"[3] / "full board"[4]), or the preceding minus lunch ("half board / demi-pension"[5] / "half pension"[6]).

These small businesses may offer special rates for travellers staying longer than a week, may be located in historic buildings, can be family-run, and are generally cheaper than other lodgings, such as hotels, although they offer more limited services.

  1. ^ Wells, John C. (2008). Longman Pronunciation Dictionary (3rd ed.). Longman. ISBN 978-1-4058-8118-0.
  2. ^ "pension2". Oxford Dictionaries. Archived from the original on 2 February 2017. Retrieved 24 January 2017.
  3. ^ "Full Pension". See The Globe – Travel Glossary. Retrieved 30 March 2012.
  4. ^ "full board". Collins Dictionary. Retrieved 26 January 2017.
  5. ^ "half board/demi-pension". Collins. Retrieved 26 January 2017.
  6. ^ "Define Half Pension". Travel Industry Dictionary. Retrieved 30 March 2012.