Inattentive parents, hallway hell-raisers and in-room revelers top the list of hotel etiquette behaviors that irritate hotel guests, according to a recent study.
This was among the many findings in the 2016 Expedia Hotel Etiquette study, which is based on a survey of 1,018 Americans who stayed in a hotel at least once in the past two years. The study focused on the features and amenities that Americans prioritize when booking a hotel, as well as behaviors that they find most aggravating.
Seventy-two percent of those surveyed said that they are irritated by inattentive parents, followed by hallway hell-raisers (69 percent), in-room revelers (59 percent), complainers (53 percent), bickerers (35 percent), the loudly amorous (29 percent), poolside partiers (28 percent), hot tub canoodlers (22 percent), business bar boozers (17 percent) and elevator chatterboxes (9 percent).
In terms of their own temptations to misbehave, 24 percent admit to taking hotel toiletries home with them, 11 percent have let multiple people sleep in their room without notifying the hotel and 10 percent have taken items from their room without permission.
Americans are divided on tipping. Among those who tip, the most-tipped hotel employees are the housekeeper (46 percent), followed by the room service attendant (40 percent). Others receiving tips are the valet (30 percent) porter (20 percent) and concierge (10 percent). Thirty percent of participants said they don’t tip anyone.
Price was identified by 73 percent of respondents as “very important” when booking a hotel, followed by complimentary Wi-Fi (63 percent), location (61 percent), reviews (43 percent) and parking options (38 percent). Perhaps surprising to many, ability to earn hotel rewards points and the hotel brand itself were considered very important by only 20 percent and 18 percent of participants, respectively.
Wi-Fi was also selected by 88 percent of respondents as a “very/somewhat important” hotel amenity, and 97 percent think that it should be provided at no charge. Rounding out the top four are an in-room fridge (81 percent), complimentary toiletries (80 percent) and a pool (59 percent).
Expedia commissioned the hotel etiquette study and it was executed by GfK, an independent global market research company.
