Why is cleanliness so important to me when traveling? Sometime, I’ll admit, my own house isn’t as clean as I expect a hotel to be.
When I worked at L’Ermitage in Beverly Hills, which was a 5-star and 5-diamond hotel, my general manager taught me how to do the white glove test which she did to test the housekeeping staff. With a finger you swipe along the top of framed artwork or mirrors, you swipe the top of the baseboard or windowsills and see if your finger is clean or has dust on it.
I do this behind the back of every hotel sales manager when on a site visit. Cleanliness is very high on the my list of reasons why I would choose or not choose a hotel. Have you ever seen a hotel sales manager walk right by a piece of paper or something that doesn’t belong on the floor?
Traveling with prepackaged sterile wipes is an item I always have in my travel kit to clean telephones, remote control devices, and door handles in hotel rooms. Although I don’t suffer from OCD, I know what gets overlooked by housekeeping from guest to guest.
Next time you are in a hotel for a site visit, do the white glove test and you’ll know whether to keep looking or move on.
