Hotels and Privacy

[rah]

There are some high end hotels that try to keep prostitutes out and some of the methods may violate privacy. But they're not doing it because it's illegal.

 

[Manfred Belheim]

I'd actually prefer if we could have MORE privacy in hotels. Like maybe don't give every staff member a key to my room and have them rooting around in there every day would be nice.

 

[rah]

So you don't care if your room ever gets cleaned while you're there?
That's the type of economical thing might get owners to make an accommodation. With electronic keys that type of arraignment wouldn't be that difficult.

 

[Lexicus]

I'd actually prefer if we could have MORE privacy in hotels. Like maybe don't give every staff member a key to my room and have them rooting around in there every day would be nice.

Do the hotels you stay at typically not have "do not disturb" signs to put on the doors?

 

[Manfred Belheim]

So you don't care if your room ever gets cleaned while you're there?

Why would I? I don't change my bed on a daily basis at home and it's not like there's much else to do. I think it's a small price to pay for knowing no-one's been wandering around in my room while I was out.

 

[Lexicus]

Again, at every hotel I've ever been to there has been a "do not disturb" sign that you can hang on the door, which will stop the staff from going into your room

 

[Manfred Belheim]

Like maybe don't give every staff member a key to my room

 

[Lexicus]

So basically, you're saying you don't trust hotel staff not to actually just rob your room when you're not in it?

 

[Manfred Belheim]

I'm saying it would be nice to not have to trust them in the first place.

Also bear in mind this is just my response in a thread specifically about reducing privacy in hotels.

 

[Lexicus]

I'm saying it would be nice to not have to trust them in the first place.

How would that even work? Housekeeping needs room keys to go in and clean rooms.

I probably shouldn't even bring it up but you don't tip housekeeping, do you?

 

[Timsup2nothin]

Just a minor interruption to this theater of the absurd...

Whether staff has keys or not, a do not disturb sign will in fact keep them out of your room. A room rummager is not going to risk the confrontation and check to see if the room isn't occupied, they are going to rummage another room. The level of paranoia required to ignore this reality and be concerned about availability of keys is pretty funny.

 

[rah]

With electronic keys, it's quite easy to be flexible and limit access to rooms.
And if they offered a reduced rate for those forgoing daily cleaning, win win.

And I've had my room robbed while a do not disturb sign was hanging on the door (granted it was only once in 40 years of business travelling so not a major issue) and staff robbing rooms is not that uncommon. So limiting access to rooms might increase piece of mind.

And if you ask, yes, I tip unless the service is awful. And I usually tip well so it really has to be awful before I don't.

 

[Manfred Belheim]

How would that even work? Housekeeping needs room keys to go in and clean rooms.

Is this a joke? Are you just doing that thing where you're pretending to be obtuse again?

I probably shouldn't even bring it up but you don't tip housekeeping, do you?

I didn't even know that was a thing. I'm not American. But also given that I'm most likely not even in the building at the time they're around I don't even know how that would even work.

 

[Timsup2nothin]

And I've had my room robbed while a do not disturb sign was hanging on the door ...

Well, but you are Rah. The room rummager probably recognized you as a high enough score to make it worth their while to watch for you to leave.

More seriously, the exception to the rule is that there are serious room rummagers who will get a business traveler occasionally because business travelers provide extra opportunity. Known to be a lone occupant, may stay for extended period including weekdays with a schedule easily predicted after minimal observation...or even better announce their schedule when they check in, ie "I'm here for the such and such conference" or through consistent wake up calls.

Practical defense measures: bring your own clock. If you are there for a conference of some kind and they know it (like you used it to get a discount rate) make sure at check in they know that you intend to also have a good time and expect your attendance at the conference to be spotty. If you have a car, ask a couple staff people about cab companies "just in case you feel the need to leave your car and catch a cab back;" there's enough drinkers in the world that the message will be clear and the rummagers will know your car is not a sure indicator of your whereabouts.

I'm actually not paranoia driven, I just enjoy conversing with hotel staff (and most anyone else) and don't mind being a little bit manipulative.

 

[Manfred Belheim]

And I've had my room robbed while a do not disturb sign was hanging on the door (granted it was only once in 40 years of business travelling so not a major issue) and staff robbing rooms is not that uncommon. So limiting access to rooms might increase piece of mind.

So have I actually, but that's not even really the point. They might just want to go in and prance around in my underwear for all I know. Or you know, just be nosey. I've also stayed in plenty of places where the room has a safe that the regular staff don't have a key to so... the fact that that's even provided as an option would seem to suggest there's a reason for it.

 

[Manfred Belheim]

Practical defense measures: bring your own clock. If you are there for a conference of some kind and they know it (like you used it to get a discount rate) make sure at check in they know that you intend to also have a good time and expect your attendance at the conference to be spotty. If you have a car, ask a couple staff people about cab companies "just in case you feel the need to leave your car and catch a cab back;" there's enough drinkers in the world that the message will be clear and the rummagers will know your car is not a sure indicator of your whereabouts.

How does this gel with your "level of paranoia" comment from just above? You're now suggesting creating a fake unpredictable schedule to deter room rummagers. Somehow this is reasonable, but suggesting that the staff just don't have a key in the first place is ridiculous? Hmm.

Also, I will again reiterate that I just brought this up as a comment in a thread specifically about reducing privacy in hotels.

 

[Timsup2nothin]

So have I actually, but that's not even really the point. They might just want to go in and prance around in my underwear for all I know. Or you know, just be nosey. I've also stayed in plenty of places where the room has a safe that the regular staff don't have a key to so... the fact that that's even provided as an option would seem to suggest there's a reason for it.

There was a stretch of my life where I regularly stayed in hotels and carried large amounts of cash that I couldn't report as stolen if it disappeared. I figured that I was the reason rooms had safes, and I appreciated them.

 

[Timsup2nothin]

How does this gel with your "level of paranoia" comment from just above? You're now suggesting creating a fake unpredictable schedule to deter room rummagers. Somehow this is reasonable, but suggesting that the staff just don't have a key in the first place is ridiculous? Hmm.

Also, I will again reiterate that I just brought this up as a comment in a thread specifically about reducing privacy in hotels.

Your habit of asking questions that have already been addressed in the post you are quoting while clipping those answers out of the quote is really annoying. Did you know that?

 

[Lexicus]

Is this a joke?

No. Like, whether you want housekeeping to have access or not, they need to be able to get access because their job is cleaning rooms. Like, you wanting hotel staff to not have access to your room suggests to me that you just literally don't understand how hotels work. Particularly nowadays when afaik pretty much all hotel room keys are just electronic cards rather than actual metal keys. That's why you use the "do not disturb" sign so they don't actually use that access to go in.

But also given that I'm most likely not even in the building at the time they're around I don't even know how that would even work.

You just leave cash out in your room and they pick it up when they come to clean it, it's that simple

There was a stretch of my life where I regularly stayed in hotels and carried large amounts of cash that I couldn't report as stolen if it disappeared. I figured that I was the reason rooms had safes, and I appreciated them.

My friend and I theorized it was to allow police officers to lock up their guns. I imagine there are all kinds of uses for a safe like that.

 

[Timsup2nothin]

My friend and I theorized it was to allow police officers to lock up their guns. I imagine there are all kinds of uses for a safe like that.

An equally valid use. Cops and robbers make the world go round.