Don't Drink From Those Glasses!

[hvsteve1]

Credit Fodor's on line newsletter for posting a link to this report from Fox TV in Atlanta. Hidden cameras show that, in even the most expensive hotels, the housekeepers rinse dirty glasses in the sink and put them out for the next guest. One even handles them with the same glove she just used to clean the toilet and dries them with the last guest's dirty towel . One of the benefits of Motel 6....paper cups.

http://clipsyndicate.com/publish/video/438812?cpt=3

[dougp26364]

WOW! I would never have expected that and it's also changes my mind as to why people often end up with diarrhea when traveling. It's not the water, it's not dining out, it's the hotel room glasses.

Sort of makes me glad we own 7 timeshares and travel using those timeshares. At least I can put the glasses and plates in the dishwasher before using them and expect them to be about as clean as my own service sets at home.

I don't believe I'll ever trust hotels again. If it was only one hotel that might be different. But this was five different hotels and it really looks like SOP in my mind.

[falmouth3]

Wow. I never would have guessed! When I stay at Hampton Inns, I've been a little disappointed that they use disposable cups, sealed in plastic. Now I think I'm glad.

[T_R_Oglodyte]

Whenever possible, I try to stay in a hotel that has a refrigerator in the unit. Then I stop by a grocery store, get a six-pack of beer and stick it in the refrigerator.

That way I never have to use any of the glasses supplied by the hotel.

[AwayWeGo]

We were having dinner with friends & family at a semi-upscale (well, semi-upscale by our standards anyway) Chinese seafood restaurant at a seaside resort we all enjoy. Across the way from our table but straight ahead of where I was seated & in my direct line of vision, I saw the bartender polishing some brandy snifters by breathing onto them to make them foggy & then rubbing them shiny with his bar towel, holding them up to eye level so he could spot more places that needed polishing. I don't drink brandy -- consumed my entire lifetime capacity of alcohol by the time I was 45 -- so I am out of the loop about barware sanitation. That is, maybe high-proof brandy kills all germs & so the bartender's breath is nothing to fret about, I don't know. But if the bartender had stopped to think about it, surely he would have realized the customers shouldn't see him breathing on the glassware out there in the open. Sheesh.

One time we were having BOGO-coupon supper at a countrified hillbilly-theme restaurant in Branson MO. I swear, when the kitchen help came out to reload the buffet serving dishes, I could hear Dueling Banjos playing in the background. I don't really think the look of those folks was part of the country ambiance the place was striving for.

A friend's daughter used to work at a Wendy's fast-food restaurant. Based on her experience slinging burgers, etc., she warned, "Don't order the chili at Wendy's." I never asked her to elaborate.

Back in college days in Charlottesville VA, I had a friend who liked to say, "Remember, when you eat at Jim's be sure to punch a hole in the roll so they can't serve it again."

So it goes.

-- Alan Cole, McLean (Fairfax County), Virginia, USA.

[AwayWeGo]

Whussup with those TV commercials showing Aunt Granny -- or Mom or some super chef or Mama Mia back in the Old Country -- tasting the sauce or the soup or the stew, etc., right off the same big spoon being used to stir the soup or the sauce or the stew, & then putting the big stirring spoon back in the pot ?

Yuck !

That's supposed to make viewers want to go out & buy the stuff ?

It's more apt to make me lose my appetite entirely.

Memo To TV Food Commercial Producers : Hey, just keep it clean & sanitary, will ya ?

Give me a break.

Sheesh.

-- Alan Cole, McLean (Fairfax County), Virginia, USA.

[Transit]

Same thing goes for the items in the cupboard.Staight to the dishwasher ,who knows whats been washed and by whom.

[Marty Giggard]

Guess that is why DVC - Disney Vacation Club
provides paper plates & cups in their Studios.

Not just Hotels - Timeshares too..

Most Studios have a small partial kitchen but no dishwasher
Think about who`s cleaning those dirty dishes and glasses.

[johnmfaeth]

I never leave anything that is not sealed or tightly wrapped in the TS refrigerator for the same reason. Who knows what's growing within?

[azsunluvr]

Thanks for posting that video. I'm sick!

[billymach4]

This does not surprise me! I always use paper or plastic cups

[Lisa P]

I used to think the tiny dishwashers Wyndham has in their smallest units were odd - until we stayed in one of those units and found it so handy. Now, I see it's even more - it's healthier. Just thinking about these things makes me kind of sick. Some things it's easier not knowing!

[grest]

Wow...I have stayed at that Renaissance...this is ridiculousy unhealthy...thanks for sharing.
Connie

[pcgirl54]

Wow, I have to worry about the bedspreads and now the glasses. Thanks for posting this I would have never thought twice about drinking from the glasses before.

[djs]

On a related note, probably not a bad idea to take that little plastic bag in the ice bucket and wrap the TV remote in it (or bring your own bags for the same purpose).

[Htoo0]

Don't do a search on the perils of hotel whirlpool tubs!

[dougp26364]

Unless you guys are putting things like your bed spreads, TV remotes et....in your mouth I don't think it's going to be as big of a problem. That is unless you have a lot of open sores on your body to allow direct exposure to bacteria and viruses. Unlike you skin which protects you from most things, your mouth is one big mucus membrane that will not only absorb bugs but with it being warm and moist give them a great place to grow. Touching the remote or sleeping on sheets with intact skin is not nearly the risk of drinking from a glass not properly sanitized before it's next use.

Now the whirlpool tub can be a different matter. There are differnt types of fungus that, when allowed to be cultured in a warm moist enviroment such as may be provided by a whirlpool tub could be a problem.

So just to recap, don't drink from the glasses, don't sleep on the sheets, don't touch the remote, wipe down everything, don't take a bath and, I bet if you swabbed the shower head you probably won't want to take a shower either.

I think I'll just stick with not putting my mouth on someone else's glass and suffer through the rest. Not sleeping, sitting, laying down or taking a shower or bath is stretching it just a bit to far for me.

[abc31]

This is absolutely true!! As a former hotel manager at major hotel chains including The Grand Hyatt New York, I can attest to the fact that the glasses are not washed. I have been warning my friends for years about this. Not only are they not washed, they are often wiped dry with the same towel used for cleaning bathtubs. I have seen people use those glasses for everything from a toothbush holder to a place to soak their dirty panties and they still are just rinsed and wiped.

Also, I would encourage you to be very patient when waiting to check into your room. There are times when guests check out late or you have a very busy checkin and the housekeepers can't get the rooms ready on time. The more you scream at the desk clerks, the more pressure will be put on the housekeepers, and the more corners will be cut when cleaning your room. It is very easy to just dry the tub and counter tops and make it look clean. The sheets sometimes don't look so bad and can just be tucked in a little tighter and pass for clean sheets. And believe me, they will do this to put a smile on your face and keep you from complaining that it took to long to get your room. I am in no way saying that this is hotel policy. I'm just saying that I know that it it done.

[AwayWeGo]

Originally Posted by abc31

The sheets sometimes don't look so bad and can just be tucked in a little tighter and pass for clean sheets.

So, just to avoid that risk for the next person checking in, as I'm getting ready to leave should I put all the sheets, etc., in the tub & turn on the water ?

-- Alan Cole, McLean (Fairfax County), Virginia, USA.

[abc31]

Originally Posted by AwayWeGo

So, just to avoid that risk for the next person checking in, as I'm getting ready to leave should I put all the sheets, etc., in the tub & turn on the water ?

-- Alan Cole, McLean (Fairfax County), Virginia, USA.

I think that would be very considerate of you.

[AwayWeGo]

Originally Posted by Htoo0

Don't do a search on the perils of hotel whirlpool tubs!

No matter how nice & clean & elegant the resort is, we never use the in-suite jacuzzi as-is. First, we fill up the whirlpool tub with tap water & run the jets for several minutes, then drain it all out before refilling it & using it ourselves. (The solution to pollution is dilution.)

We also go for that TV-remote-inside-baggie trick. Can't hurt, might help.

And now, after all these TUG-BBS warnings, I suppose from now on we'll run all timeshare dishes, etc. through the dishwasher before using'm ourselves, & will wash & rinse those things the old fashioned way before use when we stay in dishwasherless mini-suites.

Sheesh.

-- Alan Cole, McLean (Fairfax County), Virginia, USA.

[CSB]

Now that I think about it, how could they wash the glasses properly in a hotel? It would be very costly and time consuming for the staff to replace each glass with a new one, and where would they wash the dirty one besides the sink? The only way would be to wash the sink first, change gloves, take out the disk washing liquid, clean the glass and dry it with a clean dish cloth. Put away the dish cloth, change back to the other gloves and continue cleaning the room. This is a lot of extra work.

I didn't think that it was so bad that one hotel sprayed the glasses with a disinfectant. As long as the glass was well rinsed, and dryed, the disinfectant would not be ingested. We do not drink the soap that we use to wash our dishes!

From now on, I bring my own bottled water.

[AwayWeGo]

Originally Posted by CSB

Now that I think about it, how could they wash the glasses properly in a hotel?

What's wrong with bringing each kitchen- or minikitchen-equipped suite a new supply of freshly washed-sterilized dishes each time the room is made up for the next occupant? Or if it's a plain-vanilla hotel room, just with freshly washed-sterilized glasses?

The staff can get'm off a hallway cart brought up by service elevator for that purpose from down in the basement R.A.L.P.H.* area that's equipped with commercial dishwashers. Shux, the staff people wash & dry the linens down in the R.A.L.P.H. area & deliver those by cart**, so why not freshly washed-sterilized dishes also?

-- Alan Cole, McLean (Fairfax County), Virginia, USA.

* R.A.L.P.H. = Repairs And Laundry Plus Housekeeping.
** Or by golf cart at timeshare resorts.

[IreneLF]

OK call me anal but before I use anything in any timeshare kitchen, the entire contents of the cupboard goes into the d/w, and I do two loads... all silverware and big utensils too.

I also use the whirlpool in smugglers, but not before i wash it out, fill it up, run it for a while, drain etc.

Thanks for posting the glases /hotel thing -- YUK and I would not have really thought of it being this way........

[Lisa P]

We don't bother to rewash anything in timeshares unless either the cupboard or the contents appear unclean. It's easier to use the dishwasher than handwash so we figure the previous occupants or housekeeping used it and that's good enough. After all, we eat off dishes at all our friends' homes without worry.

We just look in the water in the filled inroom jacuzzi to see that the jets don't appear to shoot out any grime before adding anything or getting in. If there's ANY gunk , we add plenty of dishwasher detergent and let it run for a while before draining, rinsing and refilling the tub, though that usually kills the appeal. I suppose we should be more thorough but it hasn't caused a problem so far.

We're fine with using a hot tub, so long as there's a strong chlorine smell and no visible haze in the water or foam in the bubbles, which completely grosses me out!

Perhaps if any of us had poor immunity or a bad experience with getting infections while on vacation, we would become more hesitant. We usually aren't too bothered by all the "what ifs" otherwise.

But the dirty drinking glasses in hotel rooms really makes me sick. SO MANY people who travel get ill - between the pressurized airplane air, changes in environment and diet, stress suppressed immunity - frankly, I don't want to drink from a glass that an unknown stranger (or strangers, over recent weeks) has drunk from. Ewww!!! I'm comforting myself right now with the thought that most bacteria and viruses on hard surfaces are killed when they dry out or are exposed to friction/rubbing.