Forget miniature toiletries – hotel guests are upping the stakes when it comes to the ‘freebies’ they snaffle after a night away with TVs, shower heads and even mattresses considered fair game by some.
A survey of more than 1,000 hoteliers asked them both the most common and unusual things they found missing after check-out. The overwhelming majority of hotels reported guests stealing towels (77.5%), with bathrobes (65.1%) and hangers (49.3%) also popular among pilferers.
No surprises there – and British guests are apparently the least adventurous when it comes to what they remove from their rooms.
However, some hoteliers reported luxury mattresses among the items to have disappeared.
If you’re wondering how the heck you’d remove such an unwieldy item without getting caught, the hoteliers concerned said it tends to happen in the middle of the night with the guilty guests using an elevator leading directly to underground parking... and a quick getaway.
Room by room, here are some of the other items “borrowed” by guests, according to the survey conducted by spa review site Wellness Heaven. And as you’ll see, they range from the bulky to the downright brazen.
Ballsy in the bedroom
Coffeemakers go missing at 6.9% of hotels, according to the research, with holidaymakers looking to bring a taste of their travels back home. Or not wanting to stump up for their own Nespresso. What would Clooney say?
Meanwhile, in a hotel in England, a guest unceremoniously removed the room numbers from his door. “We didn’t notice until the next guest could not find his room,” the hotel director said.
Tablet computers – referred to as “SuitePads” in the high-priced room categories – are stolen 8.2 times more frequently in 5-star hotels than 4-star hotels, according to the research. Money doesn’t necessarily buy you morals.
Steals from the spa
A hotel owner from Germany reported how the stereo system of the spa area disappeared. Thieves had apparently dismantled the entire sound equipment overnight and loaded it in their car before they left.
In a hotel near Salzburg, the wooden benches from a sauna were stolen. The “private sauna” was located on the terrace of a spa suite. It was only when a subsequent guest criticised the absence of the benches (“Where should I sit in the sauna? I can’t relax while standing”) that the hotelier noticed the theft.
Light-fingered in the lobby
A hotelier from Italy said: “Once I walked through the lobby, I noticed that something was missing, and soon after I learned that three unknown men in overalls had taken away the grand piano, and it never reappeared, of course.”
The management of a resort in the Maldives said they buy new flower arrangements several times a week to replace the missing ones.
And in a hotel in France, a guest was caught trying to steal a stuffed boar’s head . At a later date, he did receive this trophy: friends bought the precious piece from the hotel and gave it to him as a wedding gift.
Bathroom swipes
A Berlin hotel said “highly skilled craftsmanship” was required of those guests who managed to steal bathroom fixtures, including a shower head, a hydromassage shower, a toilet seat, a drainpipe and even an entire sink.
Finally... sure, toilet paper is included in your stay, people, but a number of hotels reported visitors stocking up far beyond the needs of their trip.