This Simple Bit Of Clothing Etiquette Goes A Long Way With Hotel Staff
If you're someone who travels frequently, you likely spend a significant amount of time in hotels. One major benefit of staying in a hotel is that housekeeping will keep your room sparkling clean throughout your stay, but as you might be able to guess, one of the worst things you can do when staying in a hotel is leaving your dirty laundry all over the place.
No one should have to sidestep or, even worse, handle your dirty underwear. It's unsanitary and uncomfortable. Hotel policies vary when it comes to housekeeping, and some hotels require their staff members to clean your room no matter what. Others don't allow housekeeping to touch any personal belongings. Either way, when you leave your dirty clothing tossed carelessly all over your room, you're making their jobs more difficult. Hotel staff really appreciate it when you keep your dirty laundry tidy — especially your dirty undergarments.
Housekeeping shouldn't have to handle your dirty laundry
When you're staying at a hotel and living out of a suitcase, the laundry situation can quickly get out of control. If you're getting ready for a day of exploring or a night out on the town, you might try on various outfits and think it's fine to leave the rest spread out on your bed, or draped over a chair. While no one is going to kick you out of a hotel for doing that, you may annoy the housekeeping staff.
Some guests don't realize that high-end hotels require their housekeeping staff to keep the rooms impeccably clean. After a stay in a luxury hotel in Toronto, one guest, who posted in the r/askhotels subreddit, was shocked that hotel employees picked up their personal belongings that had been left all over the bathroom. They were particularly disturbed that a member of the housekeeping staff picked their dirty underwear up off the floor and placed them on the towel shelf. "I feel bad being grossed out because it feels like they really tried to go the extra mile, but all it seemed so weird," they wrote on Reddit. "And the idea of them touching my used underwear and then going to make the bed in the next room for another person, touching their pillow etc, seems so unhygienic!"
They're not wrong — it is unhygienic. But it's not housekeeping's fault — hotel staff should never have to deal with your dirty clothes unless the hotel offers laundry services. Instead of leaving your dirty clothes in a pile, pack a lightweight laundry bag to put your dirty clothes in. Place the dirty laundry bag out of the way so that housekeeping has access to the areas they are required to clean.
Your mess could prohibit housekeeping from performing their duties
Aside from being unsanitary, your dirty laundry could make it difficult for members of the housekeeping staff to do their jobs properly. In the r/askhotels subreddit, people who claimed to manage hotel properties offered some great information to potential hotel guests. "Our housekeepers are not allowed to touch a guest's belongings," one user wrote. "They will have to work around them. If there are items on the bed, they will not change your bedding so it is important to move your things to one side of the room if you wish your room serviced for the day. Otherwise, you'll have to make do with the minimal (fresh towels, garbage disposed, replenished coffee and new paper cups)."
If you leave piles of clothes and toiletries all over various surfaces in your room, don't be surprised if you return to the same mess you left. Keeping the surfaces clear allows staff to ensure your room looks lovely when you return. If you are someone who gets messy when staying in hotel rooms, or you have an issue with staff touching your belongings, it may be best to ask the front desk to withhold housekeeping until you leave. You can also place the "Do Not Disturb" sign on your door to let housekeeping know you don't need your room cleaned during your stay. It's really not okay to leave your hotel room messy, but it happens. You can even go the extra mile to leave housekeeping with a nice tip (if that's a common practice in your country) and maybe even a kind note — it could seriously make your housekeeper's entire day.