Is it possible to take cosmetics from your room, are there secret doors in hotels and other questions that all travelers should know the answer to?

“To buy or not to buy?” – this is the question of every self-respecting neat girl who sees miniatures of expensive cosmetics in a hotel. The author of this text is forced to confess some “sins” of a guest – if I see my favorite brand of shower gel on the bathroom shelf, I put it in my cosmetic bag, and after relaxing, I take soft slippers with me. I will wear it on the plane. True, I never thought about whether it was possible to do this. We decided to answer the most exciting questions of tourists on the eve of New Year’s travels.

Hotelier Yunis Teymurkhanly tells us whether it is worth taking slippers with you, stealing towels, and being afraid of double mirrors and secret doors. St. He transformed a 19th-century residential building on Marata Street in St. Petersburg into the five-star Helvetia Hotel, which is adored by all guests of the Northern capital.

Yunis Teymurkhanly, hotelier

What can you take with you from your hotel room?

Approximately 98% of guests use the hotel infrastructure for its intended purpose and do not take anything with them. Everything is simple with them – they are too lazy to carry anything with them on the road. But there are also what we affectionately call “vacuum cleaner” guests, who take away anything they can get their hands on: sugar, coffee capsules, water, cosmetics, dental supplies.

In conclusion, what can you take with you from your rooms? Everything in disposable packaging belongs to the guest and everyone has the right to take it.

Shampoos, shower gels and even slippers – feel free to take them, they advertise the hotel.

However, this does not mean that you can buy a bathrobe and towel with slippers. This place is already owned by the hotel.

Why are hotel minibars always so expensive?

First, because hotels know how to count money and understand what the demand is. The fact is that a snack or drink from the minibar is a so-called spontaneous purchase. When you wake up in the middle of the night and suddenly want to drink. Or have a drink. You just reach for the fridge and don’t care how much a bottle of sparkling wine or water costs. Hotels understand this very well and put a significant price difference on the contents of mini bars.

Secondly, minibars are not cheap to maintain. This is an investment in refrigerators, their maintenance, as well as the cost of minibar service personnel. This is the name of the team that keeps records, purchases and replenishes product assortments. Thirdly, the price increase in minibars consists not only of the guests’ spontaneity and desire to buy something at any price, but also of the costs incurred by the hotel. For example, marking includes the costs of expired goods. So-called brokerage and disruption – delay and beating. But most importantly, any guest who pays for the minibar usually covers the cost of a free loader or two, and this also affects the cost of purchase.

Why isn’t smoking allowed in the rooms? Even those with balconies

Smoking is prohibited in the rooms for one simple reason; This is a violation of existing legislation. About ten years ago, while there was a smoking ban in public dining halls, there was also a smoking ban in hotels. Before this, we had smoking and non-smoking rooms. But it was torture for us and the guests because, paradoxically, smokers often preferred non-smoking rooms. The balcony is part of the hotel area where smoking is prohibited. Therefore, the guest should choose a hotel that has only a smoking area.

For example, are there any practical tips on how to get a discount or room upgrade from a hotel?

A loyalty program usually applies to repeat guests who book directly on the hotel’s website, by phone or at the counter. You can learn about discounts, upgrade offers and other features when booking a room; Hotels usually host their guests directly. Third-party aggregators, as a rule, cannot offer anything like this.

A question against the background of another popular conspiracy theory on social networks: Do double mirrors really exist, or is this a myth?

Despite all kinds of conspiracy theories, double mirrors, hidden cameras, etc. They are legends. No serious hotel would do this. First, because it is illegal. The latter will completely destroy the reputation of any hotel. On the contrary, every project aims to protect its guests. For example, the hotel will never confirm a guest’s stay if the question comes from another guest or someone who is not staying at the hotel. The exception is state institutions that have the relevant documents.