Gross things hotels do to save money that you don't know about

A nice hotel room

During the last eight years, I spent a lot of time in hotels around the world, mostly in Europe and North America. From budget stays to 4-star experiences, I've seen the good and the bad. Obviously, the higher the price, the more comfort you are met with. But even high-end venues are not exempt from corner-cutting and money-saving tricks. I'm not putting this on housekeeping because they do what they have to in order to be efficient. Here are the things I've learned across years of great and gross hotel stays, so you can be prepared for your next trip.

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How the cups are washed

Let's start with one of the biggest issues I've seen, and most hotels are guilty of this. Yes, that 4-star room that cost you a few hundred dollars/ euros, cannot get it together to wash the cups properly. Notice the housekeeping carts in the morning- are there any racks for clean and dirty cups and glasses? If not, that means that housekeeping rinses out the coffee cup with water and their bare hands and then dries it with a towel.

From clues to actually witnessing the process, I can assure you this is how it's done. Even when I was in the room, they still took the cups to the bathroom, rubbed them under water, dried them, and put them back. I could've done that myself, but I had asked for clean cups after not feeling well.

Now I like to either carry a reusable cup or a small bottle of dish detergent and a small sponge. I prefer the latter, as the dish detergent can be used for many things, like taking out a stain or washing a make-up sponge.

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Minimalist sheet cleaning

This is mostly a budget hotel issue. If there are no obvious stains after a one-night stay, the bed is simply made up. This saves hotels money in the long run. Unfortunately, I have laid in a bed that smelled of someone else or had hairs and obvious signs of being used. You can check if the sheets were changed by sniffing the pillows, checking for hairs, and if the normal wrinkle lines on the bedding have been smoothed down in an area. That means somebody slept there, and you can make sure you receive clean sheets before you hop in.

The more expensive hotels might also do this, but in a sneakier way- they won't change the top cover. If there's an extra sheet between you and the duvet or there's an extra layer on top, that one may have escaped the regular wash. You'll know when you dramatically crash on the bed after a long trip, only for the duvet to be smelly.

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Rarely washing the decorative pillows

I get grossed out when I walk into a room and see throw pillows on top of the clean bed. As they would get damaged faster and don't show dirt as much, they only get cleaned a few times a year. If washed after each stay, they would look washed out, with the seams and stitching coming apart.

It depends on the guests how these throw pillows are used. I'm sure that most often they end up on the floor or under someone's feet. Kids and pets would play with them and maybe chew them a little. I'm definitely not putting my face on those little pillows.

This goes for the thing across the bed- the bed scarf. It is used for unpacking, so your luggage doesn't damage the sheets. Of course, it won't be cleaned often.

As a side note, I wouldn't place mu luggage on the bed, no matter where I am.

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Not sanitizing the high touchpoints

Light switches, door handles, telephones, faucets, remote controls, thermostats- these are things that are touched often and by everyone who passes through the hotel room. They may be whipped down, but likely not sanitized.

This does sound like I'm a clean freak, but think about it. Thousands of guests, maybe they had some health issues, maybe not, maybe they handled everything with unwashed hands. You then touch those objects and then scratch your eyes, nose, mouth. It's not a very high risk of catching something, but it's a possibility, plus it's disgusting to think about it.

I usually travel with sanitizing wipes, and the first thing is to wipe down the surfaces and high touchpoints. All the tables, sink counter, desk- they are also wiped down, but not usually sanitized. I always include my phone in this, it needs a good cleaning after a long day.

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Rooms are rarely deep-cleaned

A business is successful if the operation is continuous. The hotel rooms being booked all the time means money. Shutting down rooms to deep clean means the staff's extra work will not bring in any money. So the mattresses, pillows, and comforters may not be cleaned for years, if ever.

Hundreds and thousands of people will snore and drool on them, and we'll be blissfully unaware unless we peel off the covers. I actually don't look, I would not stay in hotels so much if I would check everything I cannot clean. Some things are better left alone.

Most likely, nobody takes the time to buy descalers and clean the coffee machines, either. Or check if they developed mold from the inconsistent use. You could run the coffee machine with just water once, so it's cleaner. I do use the coffee machines sometimes, but I must wash the cups.

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The bathroom is not scrubbed

Of course, the bathroom is cleaned, but not cleaned-cleaned. The shower floor is probably sanitized, but the rest is made to look clean. When there's so little time and so much pressure to do things fast, looking clean is more important than sanitizing. The sink is wiped dry but not scrubbed, so shaving is better done without filling the sink.

If I want to have a bubble bath, I will always wash the tub first. With my trusty dish detergent and a facecloth, I give it a quick scrub and then rinse it well with hot water.

In most hotels I sanitize the toilet seat with wipes, you never know if it was done. These are steps I take to have peace of mind.

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They don't wash new bedding and towels

I know, some people don't waste time and money washing new things in their homes. Nothing that comes out of production is clean. And if you've never worked in a warehouse, well, nothing there is clean.

Each time I was forced to use new unwashed towels I was left with a layer of lint and a smell of plastic. Not fun. I want to feel fresh after a shower, not fill my nightshirt with lint. And they also smell, as do unwashed sheets. Colorful items may have a lot of ink in them, meant to come out with the first wash. Also, sheets may be treated for stains, for example. Not washing new purchases means all the production stuff is left on them.

There are some social media users that depict their vacation cleaning, pretty close to my standards. Some go even further, bringing disposable sheets and a whole cleaning kit. It's cool to see others also taking an interest in making the brief living space more sanitary and avoiding travel health issues.