Hospitality Industry: cleanliness in hotels of different types of "stardom"

When you get your room key, you may not suspect that you expect there. Visually clean room on closer examination it may be completely different from what appeared in the photograph. To protect yourself, find out what surfaces in hotel rooms are the most contaminated.

If you go on a business trip or traveling with his family, one possible option would be to accommodate a hotel. You can pre-select the number of stars will be there, in the room of the class you will be living on a bed to sleep, what will be the view from the window. However, another important factor will always be out of your control zone. Completely unknown how many actually germs will be lurking in your room.

Check for cleanliness

To explore this issue online portal team Travelmath together with laboratory EmLab P & K held a special study to help figure out how different Contamination of hotel rooms in different types of "stardom".

A special group of fighters for the purity was sent to nine different class hotels from three to five stars to collect 36 prototypes of the four basic positions:

• cleanliness countertop sink in the bathroom;
• purity desktop;
• purity remote from the television;
• purity handset.

These things are traditionally considered to be the dirtiest hotel rooms, because it is they accumulate the most germs. To learn Contamination of selected objects, experiment participants used special devices, allowing to assess what is the amount of bacteria, molds, yeasts and cultures is necessary per square centimeter surface. Everything is measured in CFU.

CFU (colony forming unit) - standard indicator indicating the number of colony forming bacteria in 1 ml of medium.

rooms are also tested for the presence of different types of bacteria:

• bacilli and cocci;
• Yeast and Gram-positive rods (bacteria that cause infectious skin disease and pneumonia);
• Gram-negative bacilli (bacteria that cause respiratory and other infections).

All samples were taken in the room immediately after entry, ie after a standard cleaning, which makes the maid before settling new guests.

The research results have been impressive, and quite unexpected. Consider and explain them below.

Spoiler: to the panel from the TV better do not touch!

results of the study

The test results showed that conventional hotel rooms to order dirtier than our apartments, public institutions and certain types of transport. They also found that the rooms in the three-star hotel is much cleaner than in the four- and five-star despite all the amenities that offer the latest.

The number in the three-star hotel. These numbers are the most popular among tourists due to the optimal ratio "price - quality". There is a minimum set of facilities: bathroom, TV, refrigerator, air conditioning and TV, and free Internet access. Provides services is rather limited.

• The dirtiest surface - countertop sink in bathroom. But what is interesting: it was about eight times cleaner than the worktop in a four-room, and three times cleaner than in a five star.
• Very clean surface turned out to be the desktop.
• More than anything, the test subjects were found bacteria that cause respiratory diseases and gastrointestinal disorders.

The number in the four-star hotel. Rooms with a high level of comfort. In addition to the standard set of options are also always present bath amenities, bathrobes, countless towels and dear to the heart, but it is absolutely unnecessary items such as interior decoration pads.

• The dirtiest surface - countertop sink in bathroom.
• The most clean surface - phone.
• Most gram-positive organisms were found (cocci and rods), which cause skin and respiratory diseases, as well as fungal infections.

The number in the five-star hotel. Unlike these rooms from four star rather shaky. Typically, the view from the windows of the apartment offers a wonderful, service laundry rooms, and flowers in vases are always fresh.

• The dirtiest surface was at the controls of the TV, the purest - the phone.
• It was found many Gram-positive cocci, which excite the purulent inflammation, as well as gram-negative bacteria. They provoke respiratory diseases and digestive disorders.

How to live with all this knowledge

Bacteria, viruses and parasites are everywhere, but most of them are in different public places. It should take into account the number of people who managed to live in hotel rooms before settling your back, and realize that even with the most careful cleaning there will not be pure as well as in your home.

But do not forget that the number of bacteria varies not only depending on the class of the hotel, but also in various areas of the room. Even if bacteria in the room a lot of scary, it does not mean that you necessarily something sick, but a risk nonetheless exists.

In general, room for addition exists to reduce the amount of bacteria and dust together with the dirt. But the rub lies in the fact that the means by which the maids disinfect surfaces (cloths, mops, gloves) are not individual, and intended only for the cleaning of rooms. Therefore, harmful microorganisms and using them to wander.

If you read everything that is written above, and now do not want to go anywhere, leave a panic. Do not immediately frightened, there is good news: most surfaces, which accumulate microbes, can be disinfected. Many types of bacteria is not harmful to health, but to be safe still does not hurt.

If you do not trust the staff hospitality or just really care about your health, be sure to take it with you on a journey antibacterial wipes or sprays, and then use them as needed. And yet, avoid the dirtiest places in the room, disinfect those surfaces that seem questionable, and wash your hands often. You've been dreaming about such a vacation, right?

hand washing reduces the risk of respiratory infections by 16%.

Small life hacking: TV remote disinfection is not necessary. Before use, you can simply place it in a transparent plastic bag.

Good and safe holiday!