Contemporarily Craptastic

[TrainsOfDisney]

Now finding child in the room alone usually says call the Orange county sheriff's department. (And then comes a strong conversation with the parents get to have with a legal authority)

Umm…. It’s illegal to leave a child alone in a hotel room? I learned a lot when my parents did that as a kid…. HBO and all. Now kids can just google haha.

 

[Disone]

Umm…. It’s illegal to leave a child alone in a hotel room? I learned a lot when my parents did that as a kid…. HBO and all. Now kids can just google haha.

lol.... Very sure can. And they sure are!

Leaving children alone in your hotel room falls in a grey area legally but it's certainly not a good idea to do so. Depending on how old they are and how long the parents have left them alone, also the circumstances in which they were discovered, could really get the parents in legal trouble. If they are 12 years old and parents are down the hall at the hotel lobby, probably not a big deal. If they are 4 years old and the parents are at Epcot....

 

[DisneyHead123]

My guess is that the most common things they find are drug paraphernalia followed by guests who have had medical emergencies. I can see why in 2025 room checks probably make sense from a responsibility and liability standpoint.

 

[JMcMahonEsq]

I've never stayed at a Universal hotel and I've never had a room check at a Hilton or Marriott. Most of them haven't even brought back daily housekeeping.

Then either you are a liar or never stayed at a marriot in a major city. Marriott’s in NYC, Philly, and Boston all have the policy that a room check will occur. Marriot will conduct a wellness/room check despite a DND sign after 3 days for extended stays. Hilton’s policy is even more strict and since 2018 they will enter a room for a wellness check if a room has the no service sign for more than 24 hours.

 

[TrainsOfDisney]

Then either you are a liar or never stayed at a marriot in a major city.

You can’t possibly know what actually occurs at every single hotel property- maybe there is a written policy that is inconsistently followed, but my experience is that room checks are extremely rare - even in big cities.

 

[Tom P.]

We are not nearly as frequent travelers as some of you here, but we travel several times a year. We have literally never had a room check done when we were in the room, even when there was no daily housekeeping (which is most hotels now) and we kept the "do not disturb" sign up (which we do often because we are night owls and sleep late). Certainly doing one every day seems way outside the norm.

Now, maybe they were doing them when we were out of the room. But, if so, they were respecting the "do not disturb" sign and were timing it so as not to bother us. Which is fine. If we're out and about, come in and check the room all you like. However, unless there is a really unusual situation -- like someone never leaving their room for several days with no explanation -- then I would find it very intrusive for a room check to be done while we are there. And especially if we were in the middle of doing something private like sleeping or bathing or... er... y'know.

I realize these companies have armies of lawyers telling them that they have to do this stuff to protect themselves from liability. However, it really is mostly "security theater" and -- again, barring extremely unusual circumstances -- there's no reason it can't be done at times that do not disturb the guests. Just because my family happens to be a bunch of night owls doesn't mean that we should be subject to a stranger walking into our room at 8 a.m. each day.

 

[Disone]

Now, maybe they were doing them when we were out of the room. But, if so, they were respecting the "do not disturb" sign and were timing it so as not to bother us. Which is fine. If we're out and about, come in and check the room all you like.

That's exactly how it works the vast majority of the time. And yes it can be intrusive. In the case of the resorts I work at in they don't do that though. They leave you a voice message asking permission of when to is a good time to come and inspect the room. In the case of being sick on the room, then yes it is fairly intrusive to have someone come in and just check your room for a moment or two. But again it's just to make sure everything is all good and nothing unusual about the room. And you're absolutely correct there's an army of lawyers telling the companies what they can and cannot do. You have a well thought out post. Really enjoyed reading it.

 

[Ayla]

We are not nearly as frequent travelers as some of you here, but we travel several times a year. We have literally never had a room check done when we were in the room, even when there was no daily housekeeping (which is most hotels now) and we kept the "do not disturb" sign up (which we do often because we are night owls and sleep late). Certainly doing one every day seems way outside the norm.

Now, maybe they were doing them when we were out of the room. But, if so, they were respecting the "do not disturb" sign and were timing it so as not to bother us. Which is fine. If we're out and about, come in and check the room all you like. However, unless there is a really unusual situation -- like someone never leaving their room for several days with no explanation -- then I would find it very intrusive for a room check to be done while we are there. And especially if we were in the middle of doing something private like sleeping or bathing or... er... y'know.

I realize these companies have armies of lawyers telling them that they have to do this stuff to protect themselves from liability. However, it really is mostly "security theater" and -- again, barring extremely unusual circumstances -- there's no reason it can't be done at times that do not disturb the guests. Just because my family happens to be a bunch of night owls doesn't mean that we should be subject to a stranger walking into our room at 8 a.m. each day.

Sadly, most hotels have not returned to daily housekeeping (including Disney). It is either every other day or every second day. If they were truly concerned about making sure every room was checked daily (psst, they aren't), they'd return to daily housekeeping.

 

[Disone]

Then either you are a liar or never stayed at a marriot in a major city. Marriott’s in NYC, Philly, and Boston all have the policy that a room check will occur. Marriot will conduct a wellness/room check despite a DND sign after 3 days for extended stays. Hilton’s policy is even more strict and since 2018 they will enter a room for a wellness check if a room has the no service sign for more than 24 hours.

I think they just don't understand that the majority of the time the room inspection occurs during that late morning / afternoon time period when the hotel guest.... when they are out of the room. Also if they do get housekeeping service then that counts.

However I've noticed the op posted once and is now gone. #katiebug #unwatch

 

[JMcMahonEsq]

I think they just don't understand that the majority of the time the room inspection occurs during that late morning / afternoon time period when the hotel guest.... when they are out of the room. Also if they do get housekeeping service then that counts.

However I've noticed the op posted once and is now gone. #katiebug #unwatch

That could be accurate. I might have jumped the gun on the post saying it never happens and they know other hotels don't do it, as opposed to them not understanding it can happen and you wouldn't even be aware of it.

 

[Yellow Shoes]

I completely understand your frustration, especially while trying to rest. We stay at a lot of hotels at all price levels and Disney is the only place that has this ridiculous policy.

I hope you feel better soon. It stinks to be sick on vacation.

First off, I don't think Disney is the only hotel chain with this policy.
BUT even if it is, the policy is clearly stated in your reservation documents. If it bothers you, stay somewhere else.