Inspired... Not washing blankets at resorts??

[ryan840]

yeah, so would I... but we can't let them know!

 

[metta4]

ugh..i need to stop reading this post!!!!

I was just thinking I would ask for 2 extra sheets to put on the floor for my kids to play on vs having them play directly on the floor. My kids will be 1.5 and just turning 3 at the time of the trip so I am sure they will be spending plenty of time on the floor...

 

[Got Quattro?]

you are all nuts.

If you do not expose your body to some germs, you will never build up an immunity to it.

There are certain things that just can't be helped and the hotel industry has not changed in 50 years.

Believe me, if there was an actual health risk, and people were actually getting sick.....maid service and the cists involved would be way different.

so, just chill out, and stop over reacting. Let your kids be kids, and they will be fine.

 

[ryan840]

ugh..i need to stop reading this post!!!!

I was just thinking I would ask for 2 extra sheets to put on the floor for my kids to play on vs having them play directly on the floor. My kids will be 1.5 and just turning 3 at the time of the trip so I am sure they will be spending plenty of time on the floor...

To be honest, the floor is the least of my worries for my son, who will be 21 mos- as long as it's vacuumed. The everyday germs don't bother me that much, we have to be exposed to them sometime, or we won't build immunities. I'll just try to keep his hands clean. Of course, once I actually see the floor, I might change my mind

 

[ryan840]

accidentally unsubscribed

 

[sarahg311@hotmail.co]

I don't think we are all nuts or overreacting about this. Just think about it.....your beds comforter has other peoples BODY FLUIDS on it!!! GROSS!!! I'm not just talking about blood either. The first thing I do when I check into a hotel I remove the top comforter and call housekeeping and request extra sheets and pillowcases. I put an extra pillowcase on the pillow because lets be honest the pillows aren't washed either. I know a lot of people drool so all I can say is.....YUCK!!! If this makes me paranoid that's fine by me!!!

Sarah....have a great day!!

 

[akghutton]

Years ago, I heard on the Today Show about hotels in general not being able to wash comforters after every guest's stay. Ever since then, the first thing I do when we get into a hotel room is take the comforter off the bed and put it in the closet, so my kids don't lay on it.

So, at least you don't have to worry about my family's "ick" on the comforters, as we don't use them

 

[hegs65]

Okay, why on earth did I EVER read these posts! I am so grossed out right now! I guess I am going to have to pack another suitcase with linens and cleaning supplies! This just makes my skin crawl-ewwwww!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
And to the person who said to chill- I don't think so pal! This is just plain nasty! Common everyday germs okay maybe but bodily fluids? No way!!!!!
This totally skeeves me out. Do you think they will notice me walking to the laundry machine to wash the blankets and spread?
EWWWW EWWWW EWWWW!!!!

 

[BettyCv]

Not only am I going to ask for a full bedding change the minute I get there, but I am also going to ask that housekeeping does nothing more than empty trash and leave new towels during our stay. Hopefully, they will go along with this. I plan to wipe everything down when I get there, and I don't want someone wiping over my clean areas with a rag they used on someone else's bathroom. And to send the "you NEED to expose yourself to germs" people right over the edge, if I decide I really want to unpack from my suitcases, I will line the dresser drawers with Glad Press-n-Seal. I don't want my clean clothes in a drawer where someone else has thrown their dirty underwear (tell me it doesn't happen!). I figure we'll be exposed to plenty of germs at the parks. We don't need to add body fluids (or worse) to the mix.

Betty

 

[DAWGPOUNDAJ]

you are all nuts.

If you do not expose your body to some germs, you will never build up an immunity to it.

There are certain things that just can't be helped and the hotel industry has not changed in 50 years.

Believe me, if there was an actual health risk, and people were actually getting sick.....maid service and the cists involved would be way different.

so, just chill out, and stop over reacting. Let your kids be kids, and they will be fine.

LOL Trust me were not all "nuts" but just cautious. Your right, you DO need to be exposed to germs, I do it every week while I volunteer in the ICU. Do I get sick from it? Quite a bit actually, particularly when lovely little buggers come in that the doctors have not figured out yet! Do I recover? Of course! Do I go back in? You bet! I'm not going to let a little thing like a week long 103 degree fever stop me from doing what I love! Thats the same thing here. No one is going to stop going on vaction, and no one is trying to prevent complete exposure to bacteria or viruses, but most of us would just rather avoid permanent diseases like Heptatis B which CAN be gotten from a hotel toilet seat. The problem is, having worked at hotels in a variety of settings, I know that there are things that CAN be changed. Would it be more profitable for the hotel industry to do so? Not at all. But would it destroy the industry? No, they would still make quite a profit despite the extra precautions, but they would simply make less of one. The industry simply has been too lazy and too busy penny pinching to make certain changes, like providing many MANY boxes of latex gloves for their housekeepers to be able to change their gloves frequently. I think that is the point we are all trying to make. A lot of people find these thigns to be common knowledge b/c they have heard it before, but many as this thread shows, have not. It's just a matter of letting people know that so they are not pulling a possibly lice infected hotel bed spread towards their face.

Kids will be kids, people will go on vacation, but there is a health risk. Not an epidemic one that will be plastered all over the 8 o'clock news though. But did you ever wonder why certain strains of Hepatitis are all over the place now? It is NOT just b/c of certain "private" practices of individuals. A huge problem right now in clinics is people contracting hepatitis and going "Oh my, I haven't done "anything" and have no idea where I got it from!" Will the doctors be able to trace it back to that hotel toilet seat or fluid stained bedspread? Very, VERY doubtful! But had they recently been on vacation thats a very likely culprit, unfortunately b/c of the very nature of certain diseases their origin and spread is VERY hard to trace. Thats why we all try to educate each other to help each others families and children avoid taking extra risks.

 

[SuBeat]

I'm just sitting shaking my head, imagining all of you changing sheets and sterilizing your rooms while you are on VACATION. Relax. Fold down or remove the comforter. Keep some flip flops handy if the floor is an issue. If there are any bigger problems, call housekeeping.

Let's just hope 20/20 doesn't decide to do a story on the microbes found in theme parks. Just imagine the long lines as we all scrub down our logs on Splash Mountain.

 

[Luigi's Girl]

Another scary thought. Do they have their germ infested gloves on when they place your new clean towels on the racks?

 

[gypsydoodlebug]

Bet Mousekeeping is going to wonder why there are so many clumsy people "spilling" things on the bedspreads after this thread!!

 

[DAWGPOUNDAJ]

I'm just sitting shaking my head, imagining all of you changing sheets and sterilizing your rooms while you are on VACATION. Relax. Fold down or remove the comforter. Keep some flip flops handy if the floor is an issue. If there are any bigger problems, call housekeeping.

Let's just hope 20/20 doesn't decide to do a story on the microbes found in theme parks. Just imagine the long lines as we all scrub down our logs on Splash Mountain.

lol I admit the image of all of us going around with spray bottles is a rather amusing image, but the microbes outside are not really what people are worried about. At the parks people do not have certain bodily fluids on railings or the logs besides saliva maybe. But in your room thats an entirely different story. We all teach our kids to be careful in public restrooms yes? This is the same thing. We all get too comfortable in our rooms b/c it becomes our home for the week, and many forget to keep in perspective that were staying in yet another public restroom.

Another scary thought. Do they have their germ infested gloves on when they place your new clean towels on the racks?

No, they train people to take their gloves off then.

 

[minmate]

I actually pull the comforters off and put them aside, in drawer, the bottom of the closet or something. But my question is, whatever germs are on the comforter will travel to the sheets too, b/c they are in contact with each other... so do you ask for all new sheets too or just spray it all with lysol?

As for vaccuuming, my dad was staying in a very nice hotel near me and we found THREE pills on the carpet... we found out they were anti-depressant pills from someone who had stayed there before. What made this worse was one of my dd's found one and gave it to the other one and told her it was an m&m -- she put it in her mouth but spit it out right away... THANK GOD!!! (This was a suite and the kids are 5 and 6... you should be able to let a 5 and 6 year old walk into the next room for 30 seconds alone!!!) -- THANK GOD she spit it out and told us... THANK GOD it was the 5 and 6 yo and not the 2 and 3 yos! Needless to say, first thing we always say when we go to a hotel is, "Ok, everyone check for pills!!!" Kind of a joke, but came out of a serious and gross situation!

 

[sarahg311@hotmail.co]

Another thing I recommend is buying some of the disposable toilet seat covers for the theme parks bathrooms. (I'm thinking Disney already provides them) At times like this I'm kinda glad I have boys!! Also that was a great tip about flip-flops to wear in your room....we do this all the time.

 

[MommyBoo!]

Say they were excited and bouncing around and spilled something or say one of them had an "accident".

We actually did accidentally spill chocolate milk on the sheets and comforter at the Poly. It took them days to change the sheets and they never changed the comforter. The housekeeping manager was totally useless. This is one of the reasons that we will never stay at the Poly again. I read a trip report from someone else who stayed there at the same time and they also had mousekeeping problems; they were probably staying in the same section as us. I know others have had wonderful mousekeepers there.

 

[addlema]

This certainly makes me think.. I would love to hear from a CM about bathroom washing routines..

The beds I already think about, and always bring my own pillow (pre drooled on)...

 

[mickeyminnie]

if you actually did a swab test on common surfaces you would be totally grossed out about what would grow and the probably origins.

But guess what!

You are exposed to them everyday, the majority are not pathogens, and for most people the normal flora of your body will out compete what you come in contact with. If that doesn't work then the bodies immune system takes over, and if that doesn't work fast enough or well enough then you may be getting sick. And this is everyday people, the atm machine, the keyboards, the door knobs, the fast food counters, the handrails, the bus seat, the desks in classrooms, all over the whole entire world are germs and skin flakes and hair and what have you from other people.

Then antimicrobial movement is actully a problem because when you use antimicrobial products all the time 2 things happen, you wipe out all the good normal bacteria you have and are used to, allowing an opportunity for opportunistic infections, and the continual exposure to antimicrobial products increases the chances of resistance developing.

Your risk is much higher of contracting a food borne illness, but that is another topic

 

[ndmommy]

I am always amazed by these threads. I can't believe that so many people didn't know that the blankets and comforters are not washed between guests. I worked in a motel as a maid for a summer job in college 15 years ago. Sheets and pillowcases were always changed, but blankets were washed on a schedule. My mom remembers her mother always removing the comforter off the motel bed. That would have been in the 50's and 60's.

I can honestly say that cleaning rooms was one of the most tiring jobs I have ever done. I found it harder than being a waitress. They want you to clean the room well, but you have to do it within a certain time limit. I would actually have supervisors timing me periodically while I was cleaning the room. As a result of having this job, I do a few things to try and make the maids job easier. I throw away all garbage and don't leave cans, bottles, cups, and wrappers laying all around. I always put all my towels in a pile and strip the sheets and put them in another pile before I leave. I also always take the soaps and shampoos out of shower and throw them away. I hated having to reach in and clean out that wet, slimy, mushy bar of soap. We were not allowed to use gloves. Not sure the reasoning behind that one.