5 Ways to Detect Hidden Cameras in Any Place You Stay

Hotel star ratings aren’t always reliable as the rating systems vary between countries. In Italy, for example, a hotel can be given 5 stars just for having a 24-hour reception desk, receptionists that speak 3 languages.

Instead of using stars, look at ratings or reviews instead. Booking late can also get you the best deals. If your stay is not urgent, try booking a room on the day of the stay. If the hotel isn’t full, you’ll likely get a discount. Hotel managers reduce room rates last minute to fill them.

It’s also usually better to book directly with the hotel. Third-party websites are often given worse rooms or whatever is left over. Hotels are also likely to offer a reduced rate if you book directly. This is because third-party sites charge the hotel a fee.

Once you’re at the check-in desk, it’s likely that the hotel staff already recognize you. Many hotels, especially higher-end ones, will do a little research on their guest’s social media. While this seems a bit creepy, it’s only so that they can see who you are to make your stay more comfortable.

If your key has a magnetic strip on it, make sure not to put it near your cell phone or wallet. A strong magnet like the one in your phone can erase your key card meaning that you won’t be able to get into your room. Now you’re all checked in, let’s head up to your room.

They’re watching you when you’re in the bedroom and when you’re in the bathroom. No, I’m not talking about your three-year-old kids. Uh, uh. One of the last things you think about when going on vacation is if the room you’re staying in has hidden cameras planted all over the place. For starters, look in the most obvious spots in your hotel room to see if you can find any hidden cameras. According to some experts, if you can’t find anything in plain sight, then using your smartphone is enough for a basic sweep.

Every camera has a lens, and all lenses reflect light. So, a quick way to check for hidden cameras is to close all the curtains in the room and turn off the lights. Use your phone’s flashlight to point it at potential places or objects a hidden camera might be at.

One of the apparent spots is the smoke detector on the ceiling. Grab a chair and point the light straight at it and try to see if there’s any red or blue light reflected. You’ll have to do it slowly since the light needs to strike the lens at the correct angle for you to see a reflection. Even a painting in the room can be a potential nest for a hidden camera. Other objects can be lamps, a hole in the wall, or somewhere inside the closet.

Another creepy place is the bathroom mirror. This one is tricky to spot, so you’ll have to be patient when inspecting it. You can also use your phone camera to spot surveillance cameras that spy on you at night. These secret cameras emit infrared lights that the human eye can’t see so that they can work at night. You’ll also have to turn off the lights and put the camera in selfie mode.

The rear-facing camera on most smartphones has an infrared filter, but the front one doesn’t. You can try pointing a TV remote at the front-facing camera and press any of the buttons to see it yourself. If you see a bright red light on your screen, that means it’s working. All you have to do is move your camera in the dark to see if you can find a bright light around. It’ll be good to do a second sweep to make sure you didn’t miss anything.

One of the best things you can do is download an app that shows you what devices are currently connected to the Wi-Fi you’re using. It can show what smartphone, laptop, smart TV, and in the worst case, hidden cameras are connected. A radio frequency scanner can detect a wireless camera in the room even if it’s connected to its own Wi-Fi. It might be challenging, though, because of many wireless devices over-crowding the airwaves. You can pick up random signals even if you turn off all your devices and any wireless emitting signals.

Another technique you can use is turning off the Wi-Fi when you enter the hotel room. Most of the cameras are hooked up to Wi-Fi, so they won’t be functioning anymore. If you get a call from reception saying that the Wi-Fi is down in the room, that might be a red flag. There’s no reason for them to know if the Wi-Fi was purposefully turned off. It could mean that the cameras are on the local Wi-Fi. When you connect to your hotel room Wi-Fi for the first time, be careful about sharing your personal data.

Now, how about the room in general? If you’re not happy with it, you can easily request a change. If there are other available rooms, the manager will be happy to help. Once you are settled in, you’ll want to head into the bathroom to check out all those samples. But while you might think you’re being sneaky by grabbing the free shampoos, hotels actually want you to take them. The items contain the hotel’s logo, so you’re basically giving them free advertising if you put them in your home.

The robes and towels are a different story, though. Many hotels are now adding radio-frequency chips so that they can track stolen items. Toothpaste is one item you probably won’t find in the hotel room’s bathroom. For budget hotels, it’s often too expensive to order as it’s classified as a medical supply. For luxury hotels, it’s the opposite: they often can’t find a toothpaste manufacturer that’s fancy enough to be present in their rooms.

You may also notice a seemingly random phone next to the toilet. But it’s actually a requirement from the AAA for hotels to receive a 4-diamond rating. It does also act as a safety feature. If you slip on the wet floor or get stuck in the bathroom for some reason, you can easily call for help.

Now you’re ready to kick back on the bed and rent a movie. But don’t try to be sneaky and claim you clicked on it by accident, so you don’t have to pay. The workers at the hotel’s front desk can actually see how long you watched a movie. So if you clicked out after a few seconds, they’ll believe you, but not if you watched it till the end.

Fancy a drink while you watch your movie? Make sure to check the seals on those mini-bar drinks. Sneaky guests often drink from the bottles and refill them with water. This way they waive the fee, and you may be charged if housekeeping hadn’t noticed. Yeah, a can of soda might cost you double what you’d pay at the gas station, but you don’t want to get put on the hotel’s naughty list!

Carefully arranging your used towels isn’t the best thing to do in a hotel. You’re just not helping. The general rule is: dump them somewhere like the bathroom floor or in the bathtub. Then the staff can see that they need to change the towels. If you keep them all nice and folded, the staff may just get it wrong and leave them as they are, thinking that they’re still fresh!

You’re on a low-budget trip, and you brought along some appliances, so you can cook right there in the hotel. Not a big deal, but if there’s only one outlet and you wanna boil some eggs in your electric kettle... maybe don’t. First, you never know what capacity the outlet has. It might even set off the hotel’s fire alarm. Just stick to sandwiches or something.

Pick up any paper lying around, wipe up that coffee you spilled on the floor... Don’t make the bed though: the staff’s gonna replace the sheets no matter what. Plus, if you make the bed right after you get up, you’re just actually just creating a lovely dark environment for tiny dust mites!

Always look for hotels that include breakfast. It’s usually way more expensive to have breakfast at a nearby restaurant, plus you most likely wouldn’t know where to go! Much better to hit the hotel’s breakfast buffet, coffee, cheese, ham, toast, fruit... If you play your cards right, you’ll be too full for lunch!

Of course, you can boil water for some ramen noodles, but if you feel like a slice of fresh, crusty toast, never try to make it with an iron. Sounds crazy, but some people have even tried heating up their frozen pizza with a hairdryer. What happened? They ended up having to go look for another hotel and an actual restaurant!

This one sounds hilarious, but still: no one should ever be boiling their socks or any other item of clothing in the kettle that comes in the hotel room. Some hotel managers claim to have seen it happen. Just send your clothes off to the hotel’s cleaning service people!