Hotel Honesty Test: What People Steal
I just stayed in two hotels in the past week. Two. And I would like the record to show I stole nothing. Nothing. Even though one hotel had some pretty…
Entering the room. Man opening a door to his room in the hotel with access card
I just stayed in two hotels in the past week. Two. And I would like the record to show I stole nothing. Nothing. Even though one hotel had some pretty cool books and a vase that was absolutely not nailed down. The trust! I respected it.
Yet, we are committing light hotel crime.
There is a clear rule with hotels. You can take the tiny shampoo bottles. That’s it. That’s the contract. Everything else is just visiting your room temporarily. And yet, according to hotel workers, people treat hotel rooms like a free-for-all IKEA with no exits.
Someone asked a bunch of hotel employees what goes missing the most, and the list is wild. At the top? Towels. A shocking 88% of hotel workers say towels disappear regularly. Not by accident. On purpose. Folded. Packed. Smuggled out like contraband.
Next up are bathrobes. No. Even at fancy spa hotels. Especially at fancy spa hotels. That robe is not a souvenir. It is a trap.
Then there are hangers. Which explains why so many hotels use those weird hangers that feel like they were designed by a dominatrix. Turns out, that’s because people kept taking them. Hangers. From a hotel. Bold behavior.
People also steal toiletries that are obviously permanent fixtures. If the shampoo is bolted to the wall, that’s not a suggestion. They are hoping you leave it. Same goes for blankets and pillows, which somehow still go missing. Thirty-six percent steal blankets. Thirty-two make pillows vanish. Pro tip: if you want a pillow, buy a new one, preferrably one without the drool of 500 strangers.
Hair dryers also disappear. So do pens. Which I did not even know were off-limits. Apparently they are. Dishes go missing too, including glasses and silverware. And yes, people steal the remote control. Twelve percent of hotel workers say it happens all the time. Why? To watch TV at home and feel powerful?
And that’s not even the weirdest stuff. Hotel workers have seen light bulbs, toilet paper, lamps, irons, can openers, and even trash cans go missing. Trash cans.
Meanwhile, I walked past an unsecured vase and some excellent books and took nothing. Not even a pen. You’re welcome, hospitality industry.
