9. Putting Your Suitcase on the Bed
After a long, exhausting day of travel, hoisting your heavy luggage directly onto the pristine hotel bed to unpack feels like the most convenient option. However, take a moment to think about exactly where those small plastic wheels have been rolling all day.
Your suitcase has navigated filthy airport bathrooms, oily sidewalks, dirty train stations, and the grimy floors of public taxi cabs. Placing your luggage directly onto the white sheets transfers concentrated outside dirt, harmful bacteria, and potentially even hitchhiking bedbugs right into the exact space where you intend to sleep.
Housekeepers intensely dislike this habit because the dirt from the wheels instantly stains the freshly laundered duvet covers, forcing them to strip the bed and start the cleaning process over before you even officially settle into the room.
Instead of using the bed as a staging area, utilize the foldable wooden or metal luggage rack typically stored inside the closet. If your room lacks a dedicated luggage rack, unpack your bags on the hard surface of a desk, the bathroom tile, or the entryway floor. Keeping your luggage off the bed maintains the impeccable cleanliness of the linens for both your own comfort and the staff’s peace of mind.
12 Responses
Tips for Budget hotel staff don’t hide in the office watching on CCTV guests standing around the reception area hoping guests will check in them selves
Thank you for the helpful information about proper room etiquette when staying at a hotel/motel.
I worked as a housekeeper. I strip the beds as a guest putting pillow cases in a pile, fitted sheets in a pile, sheets in a pile and duvets. I do this because I worked with a woman who just kept all that on if it looked “clean enough”. N I loved when people did it for me. And I wipe ALL mine and my families hair out off the bathtub. Cause that was the worst
I don’t want to sleep on used sheets that someone else left body waste on
Touché
Don’t forget a tip
Be honest… they don’t want the beds stripped because they don’t always replace the sheets and definitely don’t replace the duvet covers!
That’s what I thought. So I just pile them neatly -easy to see there are no remotes, etc in the pile.
Exactly!!!
I was a hotel housekeeper while in college. So, I do follow these rules. Yes, they are helpful reminders to treat hotel staff with respect.
Great information
All good points, but I also suggest stopping by the front desk (or calling right before you depart) and telling the staff that you’ve actually left – especially if it’s very early in the morning. That way the housekeeping staff can get an earlier start on that room. Several desk clerks have said they appreciate the courtesy
After reading all the 10 Things Hotel Staff Hate I can only imagine how frustrating the staff would be since all the things are what COMMON SENCE should show in this article. I have never done any of those things and can’t imagine that there are people who would not respect some ones property. I believe most of the things is how people were raised poor parenting!