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Paying more doesn't always get you a cleaner hotel room


For most people, especially women, not having to wash the dishes, laundry and do other household chores, when staying n a hotel is as appealing as the trip itself. Fair enough, but simply assuming that the hotel room will be clean may not be always the case.

 

Admittedly, germs are bound to be everywhere. However, none of us want to share a room with them - especially if it can be avoided. Some time ago, a test was carried out on an average double-bedded room at three types of lodgings, a major chain hotel, a luxury hotel and a bed & breakfast provider. Samples from each room were collected in sterile swabs and sent to a testing facility for analysis.

 

The results revealed that most of the items in these rooms came up clean. Unfortunately a few results did validate one’s worst fears. It also confirmed that paying more doesn’t always guarantee you a more sanitary stay.

 

What the tests discovered.

 

Room Key: The key card from the major chain hotel was clean. In the Luxury hotel, two kinds of bacteria were found in the key card. What this tells us is that in this hotel, while the intention to recycle the plastic key card is laudable, the effort is negated by the failure to sanitise the used card. The B & B operation used a metal key which was home to three different types of bacteria, including staphaureus – a pathogen that can cause many infections from sinusitis to pneumonia. A metal key has crevices in which germs can hibernate. Bacteria also live long here, unlike on plastic surfaces, and plastic cards may be replaced more frequently. The good news is that with the advent of technology enabling key/card- less room entry, the dangers of using a germ-filled key/card will be a thing of the past.

 

Shower door/curtain: Only minute levels of bacteria were found on the shower curtain used by the major chain hotel. In the Luxury hotel room, the glass door showed a moderate growth of Rhodotorula Glutinus. While this is a strain of yeast that one need not worry about, it is an indication that the door was probably pretty dirty. The problem is that yeast thrives in a humid environment, attracting other harmful organisms to feed on. The shower curtain used at the B & B had six kinds of gems, among them Alcaligenes xylosoxidans – a particularly virulent bacterium that could cause anyone with a cut who rubs against it. Alarmingly, it can cause a spectrum of diseases including blood poisoning in a person with a weakened immune system. Obviously, this shower curtain hasn’t been cleaned in a very long time.

 

Toilet Seat: The toilets in all three categories of hotels had a moderate growth of two kind of bacterium including Candida albicans, the classic agent of yeast infections, and in kids, thrush.

 

Bedspread: A little bit of very common bacteria was found in the major chain hotel. The bedspread in the luxury hotel had four kinds of germs, most notably Staphaureus and yeast – Rhodotorula glutinous. Six kinds of bacteria were found in the B & B hotel room, indicating that this particular bedspread hasn’t been cleaned in quite a while.

 

Towels: The samples from the major chain and luxury hotel came back perfectly clean and free of germs. However, a heavy growth of Acinetobacter anitratus, which can cause vignettes and infect cuts, was found in the B & B room. Two possible explanations are that the laundering of towels leaves much to be desired and / or that the towels are stored in a humid closet, allowing bacteria to survive.

 

Pillowcase: The findings of the sample from the major chain came back as perfectly clean – guests in this hotel can rest easy. In the case of the luxury hotel, the pillowcase was soiled with three kinds of bacteria, including yeast-Candida albicans. Either this pillowcase was not changed between guests , or the houseman/maid had the germs on his/her fingers. Two kinds of bacteria were found in the pillowcase from the B & B – both were harmless.

 

Carpet / Rug: Only a small amount of bacteria (harmless) was discovered in the rooms of the major chain and luxury hotels. The B & B room on the other hand was a breeding ground for four kinds of bacteria including Clostridium perfrigens, which can get into a cut or sctratch and cause gas gangrene – a potentially fatel tissue-eating infection. One way this common organism could have got into the room is through someone’s  footwear.

 

Telephone; The  one in the major chain hotel  was virtually germ-free. In the luxury hotel, three kinds of bacteria – all were normal skin flora. However, there presence confirms that the telephone was not wiped clean after the last guest checked out. The B & B escaped the test as there was no telephone in the room.

 

Ilzaf Keefahs – writes on hospitality related matters that he is passionate about, and likes to share his views with hoteliers and customers alike.



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