If You Do That in a Hotel, You’ll Shock the Staff

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.

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!

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!

Sometimes your hotel room’s way bigger than you expected. If there are two beds, but you’re traveling alone, maybe don’t use both of them. That’ll just add a bunch of unnecessary work for the hotel staff. Even though room service includes cleaning, it’s polite to do some basic tidying up yourself before you leave.

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!

Yeah, bugs might be a real issue! Even the best hotels with the best staff can be powerless against those little guys. Put your luggage in the bathtub first — it’s the cleanest place in the room! Then check the place over for bugs — if you don’t see any, start unpacking!

So, no bugs, but what about mold? The most common way for mold to get into a hotel room is if you chuck your wet towel on the bed and go out for the day. You might get back to an interesting-smelling room! If you’re going to be traveling a lot, and plan on using the same hotel chain more than once, don’t try to trick the hotel into thinking you never drank that soda from the minibar.

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! 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!

If you love sleeping on a thick pillow, ask the front desk for an extra one. Don’t even think about moving that cushion from the couch. Chances are, it’s never really been washed. Saying thank you is always polite, but a nice tip would go down even better!

It’s not that polite to leave your room service tip on the last day of your stay: different people might’ve been cleaning your room, so only tipping the last one’s kind of unfair. If you decide to leave your tip on the very last day, leave a note along with it to make sure they share it with their coworkers.

You can also tip the parking valets when you drop off and pick up your car. And in general, don’t be shy, you can tip a door-person, a porter... those small tips can add up, and they’ll be really grateful for any extra cash.

Taking reusable items from your hotel room as a souvenir is a big no-no, though it’s ok to grab those shampoos, conditioners, lotions, soap, combs, and sewing kits... that stuff can save you in an emergency. Leave those towels, glasses, and dishes behind for the next guest.

If your room has the bathrobe of your dreams, you can always go to the front desk and ask if you can buy one. If you try to take one with you without asking for permission, chances are, your credit card’s gonna be charged for it later.

By the way, don’t dry hotel towels out on the balcony! If you end up saying goodbye to one of them just because the wind took it away (or was it some shady neighbor?), you’ll be the one who’s gonna pay for it. They’re just plain white towels, but they can be pretty pricey!

Don’t be too shy to call down to the front desk and ask for a late checkout. It’s probably not a big deal for the hotel, but it might make all the difference to you! Hotels know you might be more likely to choose them again or leave a nice tip if they give you a few extra hours in your room. If they say no... well, at least you tried.

One thing you can do to help the staff out when you leave is to air out your room. That small step is one of the most time-consuming things they have to do, and they have to clean the rooms really fast. Just leave the windows open to freshen the room up a bit. If it’s really hot outside, you can even leave the air conditioning on, just don’t do both at the same time!

Leave the TV remote on the desk, any cutlery on the table, and all the chairs back in their places. It’ll save housekeeping a lot of time, they’re already in a huge rush. Imagine cleaning hundreds of rooms every single day!

Accidents can happen anywhere, and it’s OK if you accidentally drop a glass and it breaks. But don’t try to get away with it, give the front desk a call. They probably won’t even charge you for such a minor accident. Plus, management might think the housekeeping staff broke it, and they might make them pay for a replacement!

Never turn down a chance to join your hotel’s reward program. It’s usually free, and you can get it after your first stay. If you travel a lot, try to choose those big chain hotels that give you bonuses every time you book. You could get bumped up to a suite, get better Wi-Fi, a free gym pass... or even a free night!

Beware of steamy showers! If you accidentally release all that water vapor into your room at the same time, you might trigger the hotel’s fire alarm! They keep those things extra sensitive just to be on the safe side. So make sure you keep the door shut next time you steam up the place.

If you’re traveling with a pet, let the hotel know about it beforehand. Pet policies can differ from one hotel to another. And if you have a more unusual pet, better double... double-check. It might be a pet-friendly hotel, but you probably can’t show up with your pet peacock. If they say no, they’ll usually be able to tell you about another hotel nearby.

Trying to hide your little furry friend isn’t the best idea: dogs can be super noisy, so can cats... so can peacocks! You’re going to be looking at a hefty fine if they catch you!

Booking etiquette is a bit different now than it used to be. You used to have to confirm your stay at some hotels by writing them a letter! Nowadays, just make sure you have all your booking info handy on your phone, that’ll make the front desk people pretty happy. If it’s a big hotel, they might have hundreds of people checking in, in the span of a few hours!

The front desk staff is usually super busy managing guests, deliveries, events, emergencies, a random peacock running through the lobby... and so forth. Just a nugget of advice: don’t disturb them with every minor question you might have. Check out that booklet that’s normally hanging out on the bedside table. The answer’s most likely in there. Enjoy your stay.