Travel expert warns about red flag you should always look out for when checking in to hotels
It's officially spring, and it's time to start thinking about where you might want to go on holiday to this summer.
The sun is becoming more of a frequent sight, but a beach holiday may be more of your fancy, so it's time to book flights, activities and most importantly, hotels.
You may choose to travel in a group or as a lone wolf, but the priority is always to stay safe on your ventures.
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This especially applies if you're staying in a hotel, as there is one particular red flag that you have to be wary of.
If this happens to you, it's crucial that you change your room immediately, especially if you're travelling solo.
Content creator and travel writer Patrice, also known as@Patricejwill on her social media channels, posted a TikTok that sent a warning out - particularly to solo female travellers.
She has urged tourists to change their rooms if the receptionist reads your room number out loud when you're checking in.
The New York-based influencer explained: "They should never say your room number out loud,
"You might think that’s really excessive, but sometimes hotel lobbies even include people who aren’t even guests at the hotel," she said.
It does seem like a slightly awkward situation, but there is a polite way to request a room change afterwards.
"You don’t have to make a big deal out of it, you could just say 'I would just prefer that my room number isn’t announced out loud'," Patrice said.
She revealed that someone that works in the hospitality industry will realise their mistake and change your room with no issues or hesitation.
The influencer also said that this will definitely happen if it's just you checking in, it's a case of 'better safe than sorry'.
However, content creator Darlene, known as @darlene_octavia, shared her own story on TikTok, where she says she was saved by Patrice's advice.
She explains that she had checked in at a hotel when it was late and dark, and noticed an older man who seemed a 'little strange' walk in behind her.
"He looks a little bit eccentric. He hears my accent and he’s like “oh you’re from the UK," before she chatted with him briefly to be polite.
"The guy (receptionist) does what he has to do to check me in, and then he’s like okay cool, your room is 262. Like announces it, and the guy hears it," she says.
Despite her unease at the situation, she thought it would be hard to change the booking, so walked to her room, when she heard the man directing her to it, knowing that he has memorised the number.
"As luck will have it, it’s literally next door to his. So now he knows there’s a single woman in this room next door to him, and it’s not like a hotel where it’s indoors and there are cameras, it’s an outdoor inn.
"Anyone could walk in, anything could happen," she added.
Remembering Patrice's advice, she claimed that she had forgotten something and went back to reception to change her room.
It's definitely something worth remembering.
Joshua Nair