Example sentences
wǒ我men们zhù住zài在zhè这ge个bīn宾guǎn馆。
We stay in this hotel.
bīn宾guǎn馆zài在huǒ火chē车zhàn站páng旁biān边。
The hotel is beside the train station.
About this word
宾 is a guest, as in 宾客 and 来宾, and 馆 is an establishment or hall, the 馆 of 饭馆 (restaurant), 图书馆 (library) and 博物馆 (museum). Put together they say guest house, the ordinary word for a hotel. 馆 is a productive suffix for places, so 咖啡馆 (café) and 大使馆 (embassy) can be read on sight once you know it. In mainland usage 宾馆 often suggests an older or state-run style of hotel, while 酒店 is the more common word for a modern one and 饭店 also works.
The story behind the character
宾
宾 is a roof with a guest under it. The traditional 賓 has 宀 (a roof), 貝 (shell money, the valuables a guest brings), and a piece doing the sound. Xu Shen wrote 賓, 所敬也: the one who is honored. A guest arrives at your door with gifts, and you put him up. The simplified 宾 trimmed it down to the roof and a few strokes.
馆
馆 is 食 (food) plus 官, which carries the sound. Xu Shen wrote 館, 客舍也: a lodging house for travelers. Somewhere to sleep and, just as importantly, somewhere to eat. That is why the character has food in it and not a bed. 宾馆 is a guesthouse. 饭馆 is a restaurant. Same roof, same radical.