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Towels are one of the most frequently pilfered items from hotels (Photo: RussellStreet / Flickr)
Be honest: Have you ever taken something from your hotel room that belonged to the hotel, not to you?
(Those little toiletries in the bathroom don’t count; everybody takes those.)
According to a new Hotels.com survey, it’s fairly common for guests to steal things — usually things of seemingly nominal value, like stationery and slippers — when they check out. And some nationalities are more likely to do so than others.
The survey found travelers from Argentina were the most likely to do so, with 73 percent admitting to it. Singapore was second at 71 percent and Spain third at 70 percent. The U.S. made it into the top 10 nationalities, but just barely, with 53 percent of Americans admitting to the practice. Also in the top 10 were Germans, Irish, Russians, Mexicans, Italians and Japanese.
What are the most frequently pilfered items from hotels? Books (yes, even Bibles), framed art, cutlery, hot water kettles, batteries, light bulbs and linens.
Nationalities most likely to steal from hotel rooms:
- Argentina – 73%
- Singapore – 71%
- Spain – 70%
- Germany – 68%
- Ireland – 67%
- Russia – 59%
- Mexico – 59%
- Italy – 57%
- Japan – 56%
- USA – 53%
Americans are most likely to walk away with stationery, room keys and magazines or books from the hotel room.
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AG says
July 2, 2015 at 4:15 pmWhen I read this story the first thing I remembered were the bottles of L’Occitane lotion provided by Traders Hotel in Manila that I swiped… LOL. I told hotel management about it too because I wanted the name of the brand as they were in unmarked bottles.
bbinsf says
June 9, 2015 at 12:32 pmtaking a magazine is “stealing”? Taking a room key is more like absentmindedness than stealing…
JD says
June 8, 2015 at 6:00 pmIs the “stationary” the notepads by the phone. I don’t know if that’s “stealing,” but not sure why you’d want those. I always figured the pens were intended to be taken as free advertising for the hotels.
2ruse says
June 8, 2015 at 5:43 pmsince when is taking the stationery or slippers ‘pilfering’? I also grew up being told that the Gideon Society was happy to replace hotel Bibles (haven’t seen a Bible in a hotel room for a long time in any case)
Chris McGinnis says
June 8, 2015 at 5:06 pmThanks, Natalie! I was in a hotel in Las Vegas once that provided a menu stating the cost of every item in the room– not sure if it was there to sell the stuff, or as a warning about what you’d be charged if the item ‘disappeared.” –chris
Dan Leifker says
June 8, 2015 at 5:05 pmI read once in a travel forum that the pages from the Gideon Bibles make good “emergency rolling paper.” I can guess what that means, and I don’t think that’s very considerate of other guests.
A long time ago I got stuck in a really ratty little motel that actually had the television set bolted to the wall with a padlock that could have come from Fort Knox. That really made me feel like an esteemed guest. Another motel used a really slimy liquid soap dispenser in the shower to save money from people taking all the bars of individually wrapped soap.
But I don’t think thefts are limited to hotels. My mom once worked as a housekeeper for a casino on the Nevada state line that got busloads of elderly tourists from southern California. They’d lose all their money gambling, get angry, and retaliate by stealing rolls of toilet paper from the rest rooms. What a strange way to get even with a casino.
Natalie DiScala says
June 8, 2015 at 4:59 pmI definitely swipe the toiletries (shampoo/conditioner/body lotion) if it’s a brand I really like, like L’Occitane. Taking framed art is pretty nuts but I can top that. I was told by someone in the hotel industry that they’ve had guests steal the sheets off the bed AND CUT OUT THE CARPET from the room!
Chris McGinnis says
June 8, 2015 at 1:54 pmLOL– you know Holiday Inn did a clever “Towel Amnesty” program a few years ago and got back a lot of vintage towels. http://www.sfgate.com/news/article/Hotel-wants-towel-thieves-to-come-clean-Holiday-2559626.php -chris
Haggie says
June 8, 2015 at 1:50 pmCorrected Headline: “Which Country Openly Admits To Stealing From Hotel Rooms In An Informal Online Survey”
I’m not a statistician, but I stayed at a Holiday Inn Express last night…
Jon says
June 8, 2015 at 1:29 pmNot surprised at all considering Argentina bans or highly taxes almost all imports including things like towels. Even crap towels are $50 a piece in Argentina. So paying for an expensive hotel and getting nice towels could work out to be a discount for Argentines