zdcatc12

I stayed at the HI KoP, PA last night. I had an appointment this morning that I wasn't sure how long it was going to last. My plan was to take my belongings and if it finished early, return to my room until noon.

When I left, I did not put the DND sign on the door, in case that I didn't return. I ended up returning at 1030. I went to my room, and my digital key still opened the door and I saw that the room had been turned over already. I had not checked out and my key still opened the door. I suppose that I could have went back into the room until check-out time, but I didn't want to mess the room up.

I went to the front desk and the clerk stated that if housekeeping sees that there are no belongings in the room, they go ahead and clean it, whether check-out has been done or not.

After talking with the clerk, about five minutes later, I received the folio email with the check out time listed as the time that I talked to the desk and not sooner.

It seems like if housekeeping is going to "autoclean" if no one is in the room, they should at least wait until check-out time to start doing that. Am I wrong for thinking that this is not the way that this hould be done?

Schnit

If you put the DND sign up I would say this is on them and have fun messing it up

Since you did not put up the DND sign, I do not fault that. Most people do not physically check out anymore, they just leave. The hotel knocks, if you cleaned out they assume you are gone and clean.

The Road Goes On Forever

In the current industry environment, housekeepers are under a good bit of pressure to get the rooms done and get off the clock. If they see you leave a room, and it looks like you've got your stuff with you, chances are they'll start stripping the room assuming you're gone. This happens all the time before the officially posted check out time.

zdcatc12

Nobody saw me leave the room. I left before housekeeping started cleaning.

Schnit

Often by 9am they come knocking if they know it's check out day, so this doesn't surprise me

the810

Definitely hotel's fault. There's no requirement for you to keep stuff in the room to keep using it. But on the other hand, no damage was done, since your key kept working. I'd just continue to use the room and leave it to the hotel to deal with their own mess when someone checks in later and the room isn't cleaned.

notquiteaff

I often leave very early, to catch a flight or hit the road. I don’t always visit the front desk to check out. I don’t always check out in the chain’s app because it sometimes doesn’t work.

It seems reasonable that if the room looks vacated, the cleaners are going to do their thing. Not very common (in the big picture) that the guest will come back, so waiting until noon is a waste of time. Those of us who like it when a room is available way before checkin time will appreciate it.

indufan

I find it reasonable that they cleaned it and I would find it reasonable for you to mess it up again.

royalbrett

I have left a note in the room (that is obvious so it can easily be seen) that says I will be back in the room by a certain time and please do not clean the room before checkout time. It has worked so far.

:D!

I agree.

Come to think of it, this may explain the few times I've checked in to a room that "hasn't been cleaned".

craigthemif

Many guests leave without checking out - saves time for everybody. Cleaning staff prioritises those rooms that are being checked out that day, to ensure that they are clean for the next night's arrivals. (many of whom appreciate a room well before the official check-in time) When cleaning staff finds an empty room with no belongings, the base assumption is that the guest has left. None of this is something that should be done differently.

If you think there's even a small chance of returning, you leave a DND sign out. At 12:01pm they will knock on the door and enter your room to clean. Don't worry about that.

"Fault" is too strong of a word. You retained access to your room the whole time. You could have done things a bit differently, though, and now you know...

the810

I suspect it varies by property but this is not the case at hotels where I'm familiar with internal procedures. The policy generally is that even if a room is supposed to be checked out, if there's a DND you must contact front desk first to verify whether a late checkout haven't been arranged (perhaps in the meantime since your paperwork was printed) and at most of those hotels, even if it wasn't, front desk must first call the room to enquire about guest's status before authorising housekeeping to enter.

Ignoring DND sign is generally considered a huge no-no and when it needs to be done, it comes with a lot of precautions.

The Road Goes On Forever

The DND process is actually very, very simple. Let's say checkout is 11am and room 101 does not have a confirmed late checkout with hotel X. At 11am, DND on the door or not, 101's door is getting knocked on by the housekeeping manager/supervisor. If there is no answer, they'll call the desk to ask if 101 added on a late checkout or something that they're unaware of. Usually but not always, they'll ask the desk to give the room a call. If no one answers the phone, they're knocking again/going to open the door, period. Also fwiw, the desk is not authorizing anyone to do anything. It's actually quite the opposite. Housekeeping will tell the desk that they are not going to start cleaning any more rooms past, fill in the blank with a time, and that if 101 is still occupied or if they can't gain access until past that time, you're charging them for another night. Now with that said, there are a million tiny variations based on hotel size, size of the staff/how present management is but overall, that's how it is. There's no mystical process nor are there lots of precautions. It's very cut and dry.

the810

I merely described how it works at properties I'm familiar with from my own experience. I'm aware it may be different elsewhere but the statement that housekeeping will walk in at noon, no matter what, is simply not the case in my experience.

jerry a. laska

Why not leave a sign on the door knob that is easily seen and obvious that the hotel provides instead of a note? Isn’t the DND on the door more obvious than a note you’ve placed somewhere obvious in the room?