Hotel Guests Lose Sleep

Since I travel a lot I get a bit picky about my hotel room. Not only is the size of the bed important for a good night sleep, the noise inside as well as outside the room is equally important. Location, location, location if the room is next to the elevator you will hear the mechanics all night. If the room is at the end of hall next to the stairwell you can imagine how many times you will hear the door slam in the morning. Having a room in the middle of the hallway you might be listening to children run up and down the hall all night. Then there is the lead foot that stays up all hours in the morning stomping overhead. So where is the best room location? I prefer to be a the end of the hall, away from the elevator, across from the stairwell on the top floor. If you are lucky enough to get an upgrade, such as with Hilton Honors or Priority Points, you might get a bigger room with some additional amenities with all the comforts of home, but in a bad location. So you have to make a decision, amenities or a little noise.

[caption id="attachment_1604" align="alignright" width="309" caption="Hotel Guest Lose Sleep with Noisy Neighbors"][/caption]

But what if all the noise is coming from inside the room. It drives me crazy when you have the air conditioner on and the fan never shuts off. Don’t you think when the room gets to your desired temperature it should shut off for awhile? Yes a fan does drown out the noise from a snoring neighbor or an amorous couple, but isn’t there a better way? USA Today reported that the Crowne Plaza Hotel has a snoring monitor that patrols the hallways in some of its British hotels and is trying out snore-absorption rooms in properties throughout Europe. The use of the snore monitor actively goes around the hotel’s quiet zones to ensure guests remain undisturbed and it is an effective way to make sure everyone can sleep easy. If a guest is too loud, they will contact the front desk to call the room and give solutions for toning down the noise. The monitor may knock on their door as a last resort.

Hotels know that their business customers need a good night sleep so they can get up early to go to meetings in the morning. Hotels also know that they are the ones that give them the most repeat business and if they demand something they make their comfort a top priority. In 2011 J.D. Power and Associates North America Hotel Guest Satisfaction Index Study reported that noise was the top hotel complaint that beat out smells, bad web connections and rude hotel staff. Besides snoring and amorous couples; slamming doors, housekeeping staff, leaking faucets and revving trucks were also among the noise complaints.

What can you do to lesson the noise? Try rolling a towel at the bottom of the door or bring some ear plugs to block out the sound. If it is a mechanical sound like a dripping faucet call maintenance or ask to change rooms. If your in an upgraded room next to the elevator or have an over zealous air conditioner/heating unit or mini-fridge try some white noise, sleep-inducing music or mp3/CDs of beach waves or a rain shower.

One of my worst experiences was when I had a room with a balcony over the indoor pool. At first I thought it was great while I was having a steak dinner as I watched everyone enjoying their swim. But when it came to sleeping I tossed and turned waiting for the pool to close as I listened to the kids yelling below. Have you stayed in a hotel that had a loud party down the hall? No matter what you do or complain about because a paid party especially a wedding party brings in a lot more money to the Hotel than you ever could. So maybe the best thing to do is get up and put on your party clothes. Can you say ”Wedding Crasher?”

The content provided in Hotel Guests Lose Sleep is for information purposes only, intended to raise the awareness of different solutions for you or your families sleep problems and should not be considered medical advice. For medical diagnosis and treatment, please see your qualified health-care professional.