Avoid 5 Areas Filled With Bacteria In The Hotel Room Even Though You Look Clean

Illustration of hotel rooms (Photo: Freepik/mrsipaphol)

JAKARTA - The hotel room may seem clean and shiny when it first entered. However, many hidden points in it turned out to keep bacteria and viruses in surprising numbers.

According to various studies, in addition to public places such as sinks and toilets, frequent surfaces such as TV remotes and light switches are also filled with germs.

A study from the University of Houston found that hotel rooms could contain up to 10 times more bacteria, including bacteria from human waste compared to safe limits allowed in hospitals.

"Hotel staff usually spend only about 30 minutes cleaning each room. Some missed the decorative part altogether," said Enza Laterrenia, head of homekeeping at the Canne Bianche Lifestyle Hotel, Italy, to Travel & Leisure.

Here are 5 areas that are often missed cleaning in hotel rooms according to experts and the steps that should be taken so check-in, as reported by Fox News page.

1. Dekorotative Elements

"After working in the hospitality world, the first thing I threw into the corner of the room was a decorative pillow and a decoration cloth at the foot of the bed. These items were never washed," said Maria Diego, travel adviser from San Diego, California.

Duvet sarong (thick cover) is also a place for germs to build up.

"Most hotels don't wash their duvets. They only wash bed sheets," said a former hotel employee who wrote on Reddit.

2. Flats that are often touched

Maria Diego is also careful of objects that are often touched, such as light switches, remotes, telephones, and so on. Los Angeles travel adviser Rani Cheema says hotel room calls are the thing that disgusts her the most.

"I feel disgusted by the handle. Nobody cleans it," said Cheema.

Carpets are also a source of germs. Now many luxury hotels are starting to replace them with wooden floors or carpets in small areas.

3. Bathtub

Research shows hotel bathrooms are more dirty than airplane cabins, especially on the sink table. However, the bathtub turned out to be worse. According to an investigation by WaterFilter Guru.com in 2023, hotel bathtubs can store 40 times more bacteria than toilet seats.

"I will never bathe in a hotel bathtub except in a very luxurious five-star hotel, and that's only if the bathtub is not the jacuzzi type," said Diego.

Baths in jets (jacuzzi) tend to store more bacteria and not necessarily thoroughly cleaned.

4. Forgotten and Affordable Areas

"The ceiling, curtain stems, shower heads, and other high areas are often neglected in the cleaning process," according to Enza Laterrenia.

LaDell Carter, founder of the Royal Expression Travels travel agency in Maryland, said she often finds other suspicious signs.

"If I go into the room and see the charger port next to the bed full of dust or a branded table light, it's enough to tell that the cleaning is only half-hearted," Carter told Fox News Digital.

5. Ice Cup and Ember

According to reports, hotel homekeeping staff sometimes only wipe the previous guest glass instead of replacing it with a new one.

"I personally never used a glass or cup in the room without turning it first," Carter said.

"I usually boil water in the cassava and rinse all items with hot water. This is not a matter of fear, but a matter of good habits," he added.

Ice Ember can also be a hotbed of disease. In a case of the norovirus outbreak in hotels, guests are known to vomit into ice buckets, which exacerbated the spread of the virus, according to Brian Labus, professor of epidemiology from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.

Ember ice should use protective plastic coatings. If not, you should bring your own drinking bottles and a small cool for ice cubes.

What Can Be DONE?

If you find a room in unhygienic condition, you have the right to ask the staff to clean it up again or move it to another room.

Other steps you can take during check-in:

- Get rid of decorative elements from the bed

- Lap the touch surface such as a remote and switch with disinfectant tissue

- Cup glasses and drinking utensils

- Avoid using a bathtub if you have doubts about cleanliness

- Observe the angles that are usually untouched