If you consider yourself a tidy person, everything probably has its place at home. You know exactly where to put your clean and dirty clothes, leftovers go straight into the fridge, and towels hang on shelves and over shower doors. If you have children, their toys are (hopefully) put away on shelves and in baskets every night before bed.
When you stay in a hotel, it’s difficult to keep your room clean. And while cleaning services exist for this reason—hotel employees want you to relax and not have to think about cleaning while you’re on vacation!—it’s normal to feel a little self-conscious when you’re wondering what exactly they notice when they clean your hotel room.
To find out, we asked experts from the hospitality and housekeeping industries. Here’s what they had to say:
Some employees pay attention to a guest’s sustainability behavior.
Housekeeping isn’t necessarily about judging the pile of dirty laundry in the corner, but according to our experts, housekeepers definitely pay attention to your sustainability habits.
Examples include “things like discarded plastic used for toiletries, water bottles and plastic tableware, as well as Styrofoam cups and stacks of bath towels (but that’s certainly not all),” says Andy De Silva, CEO of Hotel Emporium, a hotel service that produces toiletries for hotels.
Fortunately, it’s relatively easy to make more environmentally friendly choices when on vacation – and De Silva believes hotels themselves could do a better job of encouraging this choice.
“Simple changes can be made, such as refilling paper cups in rooms, using dispensers and eco-friendly packaging for amenities, and encouraging reuse of towels,” he said. “Even simple signs in the bathroom encouraging water conservation are a good start. Ultimately, adopting a sustainable operating approach is something that housekeeping and guests will notice and appreciate.”
You also notice when you have garbage all above the room – but not for the reason you think.
A few belongings left here and there are not a problem. However, excessive garbage or leaving the room completely untidy will put the staff under time pressure.
“When I see how much trash people leave in their room, it catches my eye because then I know I’m going to have a hard time cleaning the room. Trash everywhere, toothpaste in the sink, a ring on the bathtub. All of this means I have to put more pressure on myself to get everything cleaned in a timely manner,” Kim Randall, a housekeeper at the Hilton Baltimore Inner Harbor, told HuffPost.
You notice when personal electronic devices are in the way or you misplace the hotel’s devices.
“I try to make guests’ stay as comfortable as possible without worrying about invading their privacy, so I always notice when people leave their computers on their beds,” Randall said. “I don’t want to touch your stuff, but I do want to make your bed nice.”
According to Mary D’Argenis-Fernandez, founder and CEO of MDA Hospitality Solutions, a company that trains hotel staff, they are constantly paying attention to the remote control because it is easily lost.
“This small, hard-to-find device is bound to get lost between sheets, behind the bed, under the bed or somewhere in the most hidden corners of the room,” she said. “Falling asleep with the TV on can mean a scavenger hunt for the maid the next day. Putting the remote on the nightstand or where you found it when you checked in will save the maid valuable time.”
Housekeeping also makes an effort to keep your personal items in places where you can see them so you don’t leave them behind. “A phone charger cord, a child’s favorite stuffed animal, or jewelry are just a few of our favorite items that we inadvertently leave behind,” explained D’Aregnis-Fernandez. “If a housekeeper finds them (after the guest checks out), they make every effort to locate those items and promptly take them to the hotel’s Lost and Found office.”
Some people notice whether you tip or not.
And last but not least, although it is certainly not required, housekeeping will notice whether you tip or not.
“Although it’s not the first thing a maid looks for when entering a room, a tip is a nice way to say thank you for making your room look as if no one had ever stayed there,” said D’Aregnis-Fernandez. “Examples of kind gestures from the maid include acknowledging the amenities you enjoyed, creating towel art to surprise your children, or making sure you’re comfortable. So next time you’re in a hotel room, use the notepad and pen next to the phone as an opportunity to leave a thank you note and a few extra dollars.”
Most importantly, the experts interviewed want you to understand that the cleaning staff in a hotel are not judging you and your family when they clean your room. First and foremost, they are concerned with making sure they do their job!
With that in mind, you can go a long way toward keeping everyone happy by adopting more sustainable travel habits, keeping an eye on the remote control and your personal belongings, and leaving a tip.
