Staying in a hotel is definitely different than being at home. At home, you’re the master of your castle. In a hotel, you never know how the management takes care of the rooms. And there’s always the mystery behind what the previous guest might have been doing. Don’t know about you, Pandas, but I, personally, try not to dwell on that too much, or I would probably never stay in a hotel again.
And some answers to this Redditor’s question might make me do exactly that. The netizen Traditional_Dirt_788 asked: “What is an immediate red flag in hotels?” And the commenters came through with flying colors. People shared all kinds of disturbing stuff, from blood on the walls to bullet holes covered with tape.
#1
Your Uber driver asking “you sure?” as you pull ip to the hotel.
Image source: MayonnaiseFarm, cottonbro studio (not the actual photo)
#2
Read the google reviews before you book and see if the owners/managers respond kindly (if at all). If they attack the negative reviewers at all – stay away
Image source: islandsimian, Kampus Production (not the actual photo)
#3
This only applies to larger hotels:
When all employees are really young. Not a single employee over the age of 20-23 in view.
This in my experience means that who ever is managing the hotel is only hiring the cheapest possible employees, that generally don’t know their rights. In every occasion like this, service has been completely absent.
Image source: azthal, cottonbro studio (not the actual photo)
#4
Little dark-brown spots near the top of the bed, below the mattress on in mattress seams. These mean bedbugs.
Image source: KarlSethMoran, Due-Block2360 (not the actual photo)
#5
Overly aggressive air fresheners. If you get to the hotel and the room has a strong air freshener smell they are trying to mask bad smells like mold, sewage, or worse.
Image source: Im_not_matt, Erik Mclean (not the actual photo)
#6
I worked at Booking (dot com) about a decade++ ago and our data scientists always said: “Avoid hotels with a rating lower than 8.3”.
It was some kind of conclusive point of no return or something. They knew something that they couldn’t share, but I’ve always applied this rule since that day, and I’ve never been disappointed. And I’ve traveled a LOOOOOT.
Red flag: rating lower than 8.3 on Booking.
Image source: mahade, Web Summit (not the actual photo)
#7
An easy red flag is when you’re looking a place over online and there are absolutely no photos of the exterior or street / neighborhood, just generic-looking photos of beds and the breakfast room.
Image source: AnotherPint, Pixabay (not the actual photo)
#8
Bullet holes in the rooms walls covered with tape.
Image source: Brujo-Bailando, Mom_of_zameer (not the actual photo)
#9
This is true for restaurants as well, actually: check behind the toilet to see how well they clean there. It’s a really great indicator for how they handle the cleanliness of other not-so-immediately-visible surfaces. If it’s grungy, probably a lot of other things are neglected, too.
Image source: putafinenoseonit, Liliana Drew (not the actual photo)
#10
I went to a travelodge last month and when checking in someone came up to reception in front of us and we overheard “I don’t like to complain, but there is a used condom in our room”. Immediate red flag!
Image source: Wikmeister, cottonbro studio (not the actual photo)
#11
I’m not a frequent traveler, but I have worked in hotels for around 15 years, several of those years as a supervisor. I am also a travel agent in addition to my other job
When you go to a hotel, put your bags down in the bathroom on the tile. Do not just put your bags on the bed!!!!! Or the carpet. Or the couch. Stop it. **bathroom tile.**
Take your phone flashlight and inspect the following things:
* the mattress seam. Make sure you really, really look for any black/dark red spots
* The baseboard/headboard. Again, flashlight, look for any black or dark red spots.
* Check the couch for the same. Look under the cushion. Look at the back of the couch.
* anything else with a seam – check it. The curtain is an easy place to check since you can just walk right up to it. Check the bottom of the curtain – if you see any dirt, that’s a red flag.
Don’t just haphazardly look. Get up close. Don’t rely on the lamp in the room, or natural light in the room. You really do need to use the flashlight on your phone.
This takes around 5-10 minutes, but it’s worth it. A good sign is if the sheets and everything are stark white and there’s no marks, even better if there is a protective cover around the mattress.
Before you check in, call the hotel and tell them you have dust allergies and you will need the room deep cleaned with all new sheets, all new comforters. They will have to accommodate your request and they will have to have freshly cleaned everything.
Bring a tiny thing of dawn dish soap. If you’re going to use any cups etc in the room, you can clean it. If there are disposable cups in the room, there should be plastic on it.
Lastly, do not expect an early check in. Early check in means that the staff are going to scramble to get your room clean faster. Not only can this disrupt workflow, and stall other rooms being cleaned in time, but it can also lead to a haphazardly cleaned room. Know the check in time and plan accordingly.
I just want to stress that hotel rooms are not gross because the staff are lazy, or because the hotel isn’t nice. It’s not going to matter how much you paid to stay there – because the issue isn’t the hotel, the issue is other guests. They are trifling. They want their rooms cleaned right this second, and they bring bugs with them. Often times, the bugs are not anyone’s fault, you never know when someone picked up bedbugs in their suitcase while they are at the airport. To avoid problems, check the room for black/dark red spots, and do not contribute to the problem of rushing hotel staff.
When you leave, put all your clothes in a plastic bag, and tie it. You want it closed. When you get home, dump it directly into a washing machine.
Image source: Legitimate_Net3101, Pixabay (not the actual photo)
#12
Announcing room number at check in
Image source: Grounded_Slab0, Andrea Piacquadio (not the actual photo)
#13
Bloodstains on the wall. They tried to get rid of bed bugs, failed, so previous guests were smashing them by hand. They did not bother clean the wall.
Image source: Krek_Tavis, labrujajaja (not the actual photo)
#14
Did a job up in Blythe (UK) a while ago. We asked the customer where to stay and their nearest recommendation was about 20 miles away. We said “really?” and they said “yes, really.” A guy from another company also working on the project stayed in a hotel in Newcastle. He collected his key and went to his room to find the door had been kicked off the hinges. He called reception and told them this. They misheard (to be fair he was from somewhere near Fort William) and said, “Oh, can’t you make the key work?” “No, the door is lying in the middle of the room and the hinges have been torn off the wall.” “Oh, no worries, come back down and we’ll give you another room.” Like this was perfectly normal.
Image source: Conscious-Ball8373, 8footpenguin (not the actual photo)
#15
When the Uber driver looks at my girlfriend and I and asks if we’ll be OK.
Happened to us in St Louis. We didn’t even stay for 10 minutes before getting the hell out.
Image source: RougeGunner00
#16
I have a good one: front desk (or someone with access to it) stole my credit card details less than 1 hour after checking in.
Image source: granoladeer
#17
Stayed at a hostel in Granada Spain one time that in their description on some hostel website said ‘420 friendly, bring your iPod, and no fat people’.
We were so curious that we went anyway, and apparently it was because the building was so old the doors, stairways, and shower just couldnt accomodate larger set people that had come in the past.
It was actually a cool hostel, although weird at the same time. Lots of stories about that place.
Image source: Powerful_Artist
#18
Bullet proof glass around reception office.
Image source: deligonca, PRL Glass Systems, Inc. (not the actual photo)
#19
The smell of poor ventilation, the moment you enter the hotel.
Image source: MAXRRR, TWP inc.(not the actual photo)
#20
In thousands of hotel nights I only once checked into a hotel where I was asked at the front desk to leave a cash deposit to be issued a TV remote control. I figured that was not a good sign and it turned out I was right.
Image source: username-_redacted, Karolina Grabowska (not the actual photo)
#21
Door that won’t lock properly.
Image source: moistcornbred, ngiq2501 (not the actual photo)
#22
I’m ambassador for Marriott, travel probably more than everyone here
The only thing that is 1-1 and is true every time is the smell. Like if the lobby/hallway smells like a*s/mildew/bad, 100% chance the room is a*s too
Image source: Yarundana_IMA_KOKODE
#23
If the room smells like a gas leak. I had a hotel room that was the “last one available” while passing through a different state. I opened the door and could smell the gas. The heater was also set to over 80 degrees. The room just felt like a swamp. I laid down on the bed and instantly began to feel sleepy. I wasn’t sleepy before entering that room. I just could not stay there with that smell. I checked out immediately and asked for a refund. Being female and traveling alone, the manager hassled me over refunding my money. He was foreign with a heavy Indian accent and asked me where my husband was. I reminded him that I checked in alone, and was traveling alone. He asked to speak to with whomever I was staying. I explained again that I was staying alone. I had to threaten to call the fire department about the gas leak before he would refund my money.
Image source: DragonTangram88
#24
When the wall ac unit is making horrible noise and you pull the filter and it has so much dirt and hair on it that it looks like a cat died in there.
Image source: Mr-Warmth
#25
Mold and mildew smell.
Image source: Lazy_Guard9187, onlyravenclawyouknow (not the actual photo)
#26
When you walk into the reception for the first time and a man is shouting “THIS IS THE WORST F*****G HOTEL I’VE EVER STAYED IN!” before storming out.
Image source: steve3000daddy, Mikhail Nilov (not the actual photo)
#27
The cockroach smell – its a musty, powdery smell
Image source: qoj178
#28
I checked into a hostel in Marrakesh and at the same time a guest came in to complain to the guy that their gold chain was stolen while they were in the shower.
Image source: IIMsmartII, Duygu Kamar (not the actual photo)
#29
I used to travel internationally A LOT for work, so I have quite a few hotel horror stories.
Anyway, the most immediate red flag was when I checked in and asked what time breakfast was served:
“Breakfast starts at 9am”
“9am? That’s pretty late. I have meetings in town before then.”
“Oh, do you want it now?”
It was around 8pm at the time. It didn’t get any better from there. There were hookers in the lobby and the bed smelled so bad that I slept on a hard wooden chair.
Image source: cold_italian_pizza, cottonbro studio (not the actual photo)
#30
No wifi. It’s 2024, wifi should be present in any hotel and free for those staying at the hotel. I don’t get why I need to pay for 24 hours.
Image source: sicaxav
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