Over 20 Clever Hotel Tips That Enhanced Our Travel Experience

Hotel Wi-Fi Isn’t As Secure As You Imagine

Using hotel WIFI is risky. These networks prioritize accessibility and often lack security measures. This makes users vulnerable to malware, ransomware, hacking, and identity theft. This vulnerability exists because when a user connects to the hotel WIFI, their information is shared across the network without encryption, making it easy for others to access.

Additionally, there is nothing stopping a cybercriminal from directly accessing your laptop or mobile devices. If you’re unable to use your mobile network, security specialists advise enabling your device’s firewall and using a VPN when connecting to the hotel’s network.

It Is Okay To Bag The Items In Your Hotel Room

If you have seen the TV show Friends, you might recall the episode titled “The One With Rachel’s Dream,” where Ross and Chandler stayed at a hotel in Vermont and packed up everything in their room. We’re not suggesting that you take everything from a hotel room.

It’s perfectly fine to take minor items such as shampoo, mouthwash, body lotion, or conditioner with you. These are generally intended for guests to take, and the hotel won’t mind if you do. However, do not take towels, as that’s not appropriate!

No Light

If you’re one of those individuals who can’t sleep with any lights on, regardless of how dim, you might struggle to get some rest in cities like New York, Hong Kong, and Miami. Not getting enough sleep could make you irritable and put you in a bad mood. That’s not something you’d want on your vacation.

Luckily, there’s a trick to prevent light from coming into your room through the windows. Simply remove a pants hanger from your closet and use the clips to keep the curtains together. This tip can also be useful when you return home from your vacation.

Nicer Room

Tipping the front desk staff won’t always result in complimentary upgrades or a better room, and sometimes they might not accept your tip. So, what should you do if the room you receive from the hotel doesn’t meet your expectations?

Request to see other rooms at the hotel. It’s straightforward. Typically, hotels aim to fill their least desirable rooms initially. Based on your arrival time, you might be fortunate enough to find a room that fits your preferences at no additional cost.

Improvise With The Shower Cap

Although a shower cap is quite useful, it’s often one of the least used items in a hotel room. Why is that? Because many people don’t understand its importance. You can apply several hotel tips and tricks simply by using a shower cap. For instance, you can avoid getting your clothes dirty by placing your shoes in the shower cap before packing.

Even if you pack your clothes next to the shoes, they still stay clean. An unrelated use for the magic shower cap is for food storage; you can use it as a plastic wrap to cover leftovers and store them for later consumption.

Plastic vs Germs

A hotel room remote control is one of the last things you’d want to touch with your bare hands. Unlike the bedsheets and pillowcases, it’s rarely cleaned by the housekeeping staff and is passed from one guest to another.

There are two items you can use to prevent direct contact with this “germ petri dish.” The first is the plastic ice bucket bag, if the hotel supplies one. The other is a shower cap, which you can find in the bathroom. You can wrap either of these around the remote control to keep your hands free from germs.

No Key Card Needed?

In many modern hotels, you must leave your room key card in the slot for the electricity to remain on in your room. This feature helps hotels lower energy usage and cut costs. However, it can be inconvenient if you want to continue charging your devices or keep your room cool continuously.

You don’t have to stay in the room. You can’t leave your key card in the slot and leave unless you want to risk getting robbed. But here’s a tip: any card of the same size can power your room if you insert it into the key card slot. Why does this work, you might wonder. It’s because the card just presses a switch at the bottom of the slot to keep the electricity on.

Corner Rooms Rule

Have you ever heard about the corner room? In office buildings, corner hotel rooms are typically larger and often have better views and bigger bathrooms. This makes the corner room akin to an upgrade, but for the same price.

When you check in, ask for a corner room. With any luck, the hotel may fulfill your request. However, some hotels are aware of the difference between a regular room and a corner room, including all the drawbacks of the latter, and may charge you extra. Still, we believe it’s worth trying.

Not A Single Drop

Have you ever packed your toiletries in your bag, only to find out later that they’ve leaked all over your bag, clothes, books, and even shoes? That can surely spoil your day.

Luckily, there’s a simple trick to avoid that issue. Grab a small plastic bag, fully unscrew the cap of your soap or shampoo bottle, cover the opening with the bag, and then screw the cap back on. This way, you’ve stopped any potential leaks from your toiletries.

Be Creative With The Doors

After a long and perhaps thrilling day, you finally settled comfortably on your hotel bed. But just before you went to sleep, you decided to grab a cold drink. You looked around and couldn’t find a bottle opener. What should you do now?

You don’t need to go ask the receptionist for a bottle opener. Don’t stress about it. Your door closer can function just like a bottle opener. We’re not sure if the door closer will appreciate it, but if you’re too bored to use a lighter or a table edge, why not give it a try?

Towels Will Block It All

The summer and Christmas seasons are among the busiest holiday times of the year. If you’re traveling during these times, it might be challenging to find some peace and quiet in your hotel room.

You can reduce noise by placing a towel in the gap under the door. This will make your room somewhat more soundproof and significantly decrease the light coming in from the hallway.

Stop It From Closing

It’s convenient not to always have to manually close your hotel room door since it closes automatically thanks to its sturdiness. However, this can become an issue when you’re entering your room with a lot of luggage. If there’s no door stopper available and the door is near a closet, keeping it open won’t be difficult.

Open the closet and take one of the hangers to keep your room door open by hooking it onto the latch or top lock. This will hold the door open while you take your time bringing in your luggage.

Staying For Longer, Saving Some Money

Do you plan to stay for over a week? Contact hotels ahead of time before finalizing your reservation. Inform the hotel of the duration of your intended stay and inquire about potential room discounts.

It has been proven that hotels tend to offer discounts to guests planning extended stays. This is because it’s more convenient and cost-effective for hotels to retain an existing guest rather than attracting a new one. Be prepared to contact several hotels to find the best offer.

No Advice

It’s completely acceptable to inquire with the hotel owner or staff about the best restaurants, shopping spots, and entertainment deals, particularly if you’re unfamiliar with the city. However, doing your own research is always advisable.

Why? Because what they view as the best might not truly be the best. They might just be suggesting places where they receive commissions for bringing in new customers. So, feel free to ask them for suggestions, but always verify the information by conducting your own research.

Humidify

Is the air in your room feeling a bit dry? This is often due to having the radiator or air conditioner set to the highest setting—unless it’s due to the weather. It’s usually the AC or radiator. And you might not want to lower it.

You can humidify your room by using a damp towel. Position the luggage rack in front of the radiator or air conditioner and hang the towel over it. Ensure the towel is wrung out well to prevent soaking the floor.

The Front Desk Is Your Friend

Most people typically only interact with the hotel front desk during check-in and check-out. This is because they are unaware of how valuable the front desk staff can be as a resource.

If you forget any items you use regularly, you can contact the front desk and inquire. It’s likely they have what you need. This could include a phone charger, hair straightener, or nail clipper. You can also request plates and dishes if you’ve brought food, or extra pillows and blankets.

Hygiene Matters

A common error many people commit upon entering their hotel room is putting their luggage directly on the bed. This is a big mistake and can make your hotel stay very uncomfortable. This applies even if you place it on the bedspread instead of the sheets.

Why not do it? Because if there are bed bugs in your luggage, they could easily transfer to your bed. You definitely don’t want to experience sleeping on a bed that’s infested with bedbugs.

Transfer Miles

It is always advisable to book your flight using universal miles. This is because, when you book with miles, the airline or travel agency gives you points as a reward. This is highly beneficial for you and also advantageous for the company.

You can use those points to book a hotel at a reduced price or even for free by redeeming and transferring them. Transferring reward points for hotel bookings is simple when airlines or travel agencies that offer flight and hotel reservations are involved.

Breakfast Butter Advice

When booking a hotel room, breakfast is nearly always included. However, more often than not, the butter served with breakfast is too hard to spread easily. Some people prefer it this way, while others prefer it to be spreadable.

How can you achieve the smooth butter spread you paid for and deserve? You can soften the butter by placing it on top of the toaster while you toast your bread. This will melt the butter, making it warm and perfect for a delicious spread.

Remember To Tip

There’s a saying, “money makes the world go round,” which is often true, and hotels are no exception. As per Ovolo Hotels, when checking in, you can try slipping a $15 or $20 tip with your card and inquire if any room upgrades are available.

Observe the outcome. Even giving a small tip to the front desk staff or the bellhop can result in receiving the hotel’s best services and gain access to facilities that you might not otherwise be able to use.

Keep The Hotel Staff Informed

Informing the hotel about any special event you are celebrating during your stay might result in receiving something special from them. Whether it’s a birthday, honeymoon, anniversary, or christening, it doesn’t matter.

Inform the hotel ahead of time, and they might surprise you with chocolates or champagne in your room or possibly offer a complimentary upgrade. So, if you’re celebrating a special occasion during your stay, keep this tip in mind to treat yourself to something special.

It’s OK To Complain A Bit (But Only A Bit)

If you feel the services provided by the hotel are not up to their highest standards, you can file a complaint with the hotel manager. It might be that the room wasn’t cleaned properly, your beds weren’t made, or there was no hot water in your room.

If you were not satisfied with the services, speak to the manager politely and respectfully to voice your complaint and offer constructive feedback. Depending on the hotel, they may offer you compensation in the form of a discount or an upgrade. Your feedback can also assist the hotel in enhancing the quality of its services.

A Simple Tip For Avoiding Bed Bugs

You can never be too cautious about hotel rooms. Since you don’t live there, you have no idea what kind of insects or pests the room might have. The general guideline for hotel rooms, particularly the budget ones, is to avoid hotel beddings.

Bring your own bedding and set the hotel’s bedspread aside. If that’s not possible, read online reviews of the hotel to see comments about the room conditions. After evaluating the reviews, determine whether to proceed with this hotel or look for a different one.

Fix Your Foggy Mirror

It’s frustrating when you’re attempting to use the mirror and it continually fogs up. This might happen when you want to shave, style your hair, or put on makeup. A quick method to defog the mirror is to spread shaving cream over it or rub it with a bar of soap, then wipe it clean with a dry cloth.

This will eliminate the condensation and ensure the mirror stays clear for a few weeks. If you own a hairdryer, you can also use it to swiftly remove fog from the mirror. Set the hairdryer to a low heat setting and direct it toward the mirror for optimal results.

Keep Your “Do Not Disturb” Sign On The Door

The “Do Not Disturb” sign has various uses beyond the “obvious” one. Leaving the sign on your door can lead people to believe you are in the room, even if you’re not. Things aren’t always as evident as they seem.

It can stop people from invading your privacy, block the housekeeper, and discourage thieves from entering your room to steal your belongings. Overall, the “Do Not Disturb” sign helps keep your personal space secure and ensures peace and quiet.

Be On A Lookout For Better Hotel Deals

When planning a hotel stay, it’s important to remain flexible with your choices. With diligent searching, you might discover hotel deals that are significantly better than the initial one you spotted. Numerous hotel deals and booking websites are available online. Utilize them to obtain free perks or affordable, even complimentary, hotel rooms.

Even after reserving a hotel, you can continue your search. As long as you haven’t checked in yet, hotels are typically open to providing a refund. Therefore, if you come across a better offer, you can request a refund. If you don’t find a better option, you can stick with your current booking. Either way, you won’t be at a loss.

Cooking In Your Hotel Room

When traveling on a budget, you’ll seek methods to reduce your spending on food. Luckily, items like ramen or instant noodles, or bread and eggs are quite affordable. However, the challenge lies in how to cook them. Two readily available tools that can be used for cooking are a coffee pot and an iron.

You can cook your ramen using the coffee pot by boiling water in it and then adding the ramen. An iron is also useful for cooking eggs and heating up English muffins. Just place a piece of tin foil on the hot iron and cook your eggs on top of it.

Are There Bonuses?

Hotel credit cards can provide access to upgrades and benefits typically reserved for top-tier guests. These cards can be obtained by request, and hotels often offer incentives for using them for purchases.

You can receive substantial welcome bonuses, automatic elite status, and exclusive VIP benefits, such as free room upgrades and late checkout. Travel expert Matt Kepnes, who has been exploring the world since 2006, believes that hotel credit cards are valuable. Therefore, consider trying it to cut down on hotel expenses.

Take Care Of Your Valuables

When staying in a hotel, you should refrain from leaving your valuables, like mobile devices, laptops, wallets, or keys, in your room when you go out. Many people have experienced returning to their rooms only to find their valuables gone.

Being in such a situation can be disheartening. Try your best to avoid it. Whenever you leave your room, take your valuables with you, and if possible, secure your luggage with padlocks.

Notifications For Discounts

Browsing through numerous hotel booking sites to monitor price trends can be a cumbersome task. Technology has now removed the need for such repetitive actions. You no longer have to do all that just to stay updated on prices.

Simply register for updates on the booking website or enable notifications on the mobile app. This way, you’ll receive push notifications on your phone or emails whenever there is a decrease or increase in room prices. The site will also inform you about various discounts and limited-time offers.

Divide One Bed Into Two

Sharing a bed can be quite troublesome when staying in a hotel with your family. Children often resist sharing their bed and are ready to argue with their siblings over who gets more space. Additionally, if your partner tends to move around a lot, it might keep you from sleeping well.

You can resolve all these issues by splitting the bed evenly yourself. Grab a few pillows and use them to create a partition. If you don’t have enough pillows in the room, you can contact the front desk and ask for additional ones.

Anti-Wrinkle Method

Does your shirt or dress need ironing? You can easily take care of that by going to the front desk to borrow an iron if you don’t have one. But if you don’t have time to iron your clothes, a quick solution for a wrinkled shirt or dress is to steam it in the shower.

Before taking a shower, hang the piece of clothing near the shower, turn up the water temperature, and let the steam build up. Leave it for a few minutes, and the wrinkles will naturally relax. You can achieve the same effect with a hairdryer by moving it up and down the clothing. A steamer can also work. Just call downstairs to request a steamer.

Charge Your Phone With The TV Set

When you visit certain places, you may encounter sockets that are completely different from those you have at home. If you didn’t bring an adapter for your phone charger, your phone could run out of battery quickly, disconnecting you from the internet.

Luckily, most modern televisions are equipped with USB ports on the side or back, allowing you to charge your phone. Simply connect your phone to the TV using your phone’s charging cable. This should save you from having to purchase an adapter.

Be Environmentally Friendly

Experts suggest that when you go on international trips, you should always bring a water bottle with you. In certain countries, the cost of water can be higher than what you are used to paying at home. Bringing a water bottle can help you avoid these additional expenses.

Bring along your water bottle and refill it at a water cooler when it runs out. Additionally, having a water bottle with you reduces your carbon footprint and helps prevent environmental pollution because you won’t need to purchase plastic bottled water.

The Perfect Time To Pack

It can be annoying when you start unpacking in your hotel room and realize you’ve forgotten some important items at home. The general guideline for traveling is to pack the night before. Create a list of the things you’ll need and check them off as you pack.

If you decide to pack on the day of your trip, there’s a good chance you’ll forget a couple of items. Furthermore, packing the night before helps you stay organized, remain calm, and ensures you are on time for your flight, bus, or train.

Laundry Trick

Using the hotel’s laundry service can be quite costly and may disrupt your budget. If you run out of clean clothes and urgently need some, you can wash them in your bathroom sink or tub. It’s not very convenient, but it’s certainly better than having nothing.

Block the drain with coins and plastic, fill the sink or tub with warm water and soap, and hand wash the clothes. This might be inconvenient, but it saves you money and helps you stick to your budget.

Look for Business Hotels

As you may already be aware, various types of hotels exist, each providing services that cater specifically to its guests. For instance, business hotels typically include free Wi-Fi in their pricing packages because their primary guests are business professionals.

Still, a standard hotel might not, as it mainly caters to guests who are merely passing through. No matter what type of traveler you are, travel experts advise booking a business hotel to access deals that you might not receive at a regular hotel.

Avoid Extra Fees When Paying By Card

Here’s a crucial travel tip: always make sure to be charged in the local currency. Why? Paying in a foreign currency often leads service providers to add a percentage to your bill, increasing the total amount you owe.

Additionally, your bank may charge you a fee ranging from 1-5% to convert your money into the local currency. Ultimately, you could end up spending twice as much as if you were originally charged in the local currency. These fees apply when booking flights and hotels, as well as dining at restaurants.

Feedback Matters

It’s advisable to speak with the hotel manager if you had a poor stay at their hotel. As reported by Wise Bread, a guest once emailed the hotel manager regarding her initial experience at their hotel.

Since then, she has regularly received upgrades to the king suite whenever she stays there. Informing the manager about your experience could lead to future perks and upgrades. However, be cautious not to overdo this approach, as no one appreciates the ‘Karen attitude’ that involves excessive complaining and makes you appear entitled. Remain as courteous as possible.

Look for Price Guarantees on Booking Sites

Many travelers often disregard the best price guarantee offers due to numerous loopholes. However, learning how these guarantees function could help you achieve up to a 50% discount on your reservations. It is likely you will need to conduct some research before booking your tickets.

Typically, you should reserve a room through a hotel booking website. Then, find another booking site offering the same benefits at a lower cost and submit your claim to the first website. They will review and confirm your claim, providing you with the difference as a discount.

Offer To Give The Hotel A Good Review

Informing the hotel of your plan to write a review after your stay could encourage them to provide exceptional service. At check-in, inquire with the front desk if they are listed on TripAdvisor and express your intention to share your experience.

This could potentially motivate the hotel staff to provide you with an upgrade or additional perks that you’ll really appreciate. However, make sure they don’t perceive it as a tactic to get a discount, because that shouldn’t be the case.

Binge-Watch Your Favorite Shows On The Hotel TV

If you’re missing your favorite TV shows and want to watch them on a larger screen, you can connect your devices to the hotel TV and stream them. Make sure the hotel TV has an HDMI port and that the room has WIFI access.

Access your Netflix account on your laptop, tablet, or smartphone, and link it to the TV with an HDMI cable. This way, you can begin enjoying your favorite series on a larger screen. If you lack an HDMI cable, you can request one from the front desk, as there’s a good possibility they have some available.

Book Everything In Advance

Many individuals often go straight to the hotel and check in without making a reservation beforehand. They miss out on discounts and benefits by doing this. It’s advisable to book your hotel along with your ticket when traveling.

Numerous booking platforms provide excellent deals for reservations made through them, which you might not receive if you book at the front desk. Ovolo Hotels suggests that it’s preferable to book directly on the hotel’s website or by contacting the hotel directly. This way, you may obtain better offers or benefits than if using a third-party service.

Put the Pressing Iron to Use

If you intend to take our suggestion of preparing your own meals rather than relying on the hotel’s room service, you can utilize various appliances in your hotel room as cooking tools. All you need is a little creativity to approach this uniquely and save some cash.

One handy trick involves using an ironing machine. Put a piece of aluminum foil on it, then use it to toast bread and heat up your food. It’s fast, effective, and, let’s be honest, pretty funny. However, be cautious because it’s still an electronic device.

Ask for Dishware

Do you intend to have snacks or takeaways while staying at the hotel to save money? However, you might also be thinking about how you’ll eat those snacks without dishware.

You can contact the front desk to request cutlery and dishes. They’ll bring everything you need from the hotel restaurant directly to your room quickly. It’s far more convenient than eating your pasta from a plastic container.

Make Use of Virtual Private Network

When searching for affordable flights or hotel discounts, the top suggestion is to use a virtual private network (VPN). It’s something that’s fairly simple to accomplish, even if you’re not tech-savvy; you don’t need to be a computer expert to do it.

Websites use cookies to monitor what users do online. If they see that you are frequently searching for hotels, they may raise the prices of their offers. However, by using a VPN, you can conceal your identity, stopping websites from tracking your activities.

The Closer to The Airport, The Better

If you have an early flight, staying at a hotel near the airport could be very convenient. It can be quite expensive, but sometimes it’s the only viable option unless you’re prepared to sleep for hours on the airport floor.

Remaining near the airport could let you sleep more and give you plenty of time to organize your luggage without hurrying. Additionally, hotels near the airport are sometimes more affordable, which could help you save on transportation costs.

Don’t Be Reckless

Using the “Do Not Disturb” sign alone is insufficient. You should also lock your hotel room door. Although the sign may discourage people from entering, it might not deter the cleaning staff, particularly during their cleaning hours.

Locking the room from the inside would prevent any attempts to enter. If the door has an actual keyhole instead of those card systems commonly used nowadays, the simplest solution is to leave the key in the keyhole from the outside.

Room Service

Frequently using room service can significantly impact your budget, if you’re not aware. We all know how costly room service can be for our finances. Naturally, we understand that it was not included when we booked the room.

Take the initiative and visit the hotel’s restaurant to place your meal order yourself. If your research shows the hotel lacks a restaurant, bring simple meals you can prepare in your room. We’re not suggesting you stop using room service altogether, but rather that you use it judiciously.

A Paper Cup For Your Toothbrushes

It is always anticipated that the hotel will have tidied up after a guest before a new one arrives. However, can you fully trust that the housekeepers have done their utmost, particularly in the bathroom? Most hotels don’t supply a toothbrush, and you likely wouldn’t want to put something in your mouth from a place where cleanliness is uncertain.

To prevent this, take a paper or plastic cup, make a hole in the bottom, and turn it upside down to serve as a toothbrush holder. This way, you can keep your toothbrush from touching bathroom surfaces and maintain its cleanliness.