Must-Clean Items In Your Hotel Room

Items to clean in your hotel room

Summer is one of the most popular times for vacations. It’s a time to get away from the craziness of the end of the school year and relax with family.

Whether you choose a traditional hotel for your getaway, or an Airbnb, you may not be thinking about how clean the room is that you will call home for a few days. While major hotel chains have a standard protocol of cleaning, the price of your room, location or even the hotel brand does not necessarily mean a sanitary haven.

We’ve got some easy tricks and tips to keep in mind the next time you are headed on a vacation – and it can all be done in just about five minutes or so before you unpack.

What Cleaning Supplies to Bring

Relax, you won’t need to bring all your own cleaning supplies. We recommend bringing some Clorox wipes, a few large ziploc bags, a small container of dishwashing liquid and plastic disposable gloves.

Where to Start on Your Hotel Room Cleaning

You don’t have the luxury of knowing who was last in your room or when it was necessarily cleaned, so give the room a quick look over to determine the areas that you, or your things, will be touching.

The Hotel Bed

If that luxurious bed has throw pillows galore, ditch them.  Decorative pillows are rarely, if ever, laundered by the housekeeping staff.   Just place them in a corner or on an extra chair that won’t be used.  It’s also recommended to put an extra blanket (check in the closet for a clean one in plastic) on top of the comforter or duvet cover, as those are also washed infrequently.

High Touch Areas Around Your RoomPerson opening a door handle into a hotel room

Get out that pack of Clorox wipes and give these places a quick rub – places where prior guests likely touched that may/may not have been cleaned by the staff.  This includes: door handle, door lock, light switches, hotel room phone (because who doesn’t love room service), bedside table light switch and flat surface, alarm clock, mini-bar handle, in room menus or activity guides, ice buckets, coffeemaker, closet door handle, hangers  and even that “privacy please” door hanging sign.

Wipe Off the TV Remote

Most hotels have their remotes in plastic covers these days.  You might want to either wipe that cover down, or remove the remote and put it in one of the zip lock bags you brought from home.

Rinse Glassware

If you think you are going to use the glasses or coffee mugs on your travel, you might want to give them a quick wash with the dishwashing soap you brought from home.  Or safe yourself the headache of feeling like you’re doing dishes and bring your favorite mug or tumbler from home.

BathroomHotel bathroom items to clean

These spaces are normally very clean when you first walk in, but it can’t hurt to give the faucets and toilet handle a quick wipe with your cloth. You may opt to keep your toiletries in your bag during your stay, or, get a clean towel and lay on the counter before unpacking your belongings. Don’t forget the hairdryer handle – a quick wipe with your Clorox disinfecting wipe will do the trick.

Carpet

If your hotel room is carpeted, you can rest assured that it has been vacuumed before your arrival.  However, if you are in an unusually humid climate, you may want to consider wearing flip flops or slippers when walking in the room.

Don’t Forget the Gas Pump

Traveling back home by car after vacation?  How many times have you pumped gas and then gotten back in your car, opened that bag of chips you just bought and started snacking? Here’s a great tip. Keep a travel sized hand sanitizer in your car and give your hand a quick rub with the sanitizer before doing anything else. Hero tip: you can use this hack all year long!

While You’re Away, Call Home Clean Heroes

Give yourself another treat while you’re vacationing and schedule Home Clean Heroes to clean your home while you are gone. What better way to extend your vacation for a few days than to be welcomed home to a clean abode? Then, you can spend time planning your next getaway. Give us a call at 844-439-4376 to schedule your next out of town clean!