’Tis the season for summer travel! If you’re heading out for a holiday soon, I wish you safe and happy travels. And just in case your travel plans include a hotel stay, I thought I’d share a few helpful hotel hacks!
These brilliantly simple tips are sure to help you make the most of any hotel stay, whether that occurs the coming days or sometime down the road.
For more travel tips that will make your trip easier, be sure to check out my eBook The Getaway Guide! You can buy it in my shop, or download it for free if you’re an OGT Plus member.
9 Brilliant Hotel Hacks That Will Improve Your Stay
1. Clip The Curtains
Irked by the light coming in through that pesky gap in the curtains? Grab one of the pants hangers out of the closet. You can use the clips to clip the two curtains together and block the light more completely.
2. DIY Toothbrush Holder
Most hotel rooms don’t offer toothbrush holders, but it’s easy to make one yourself. Just turn one of the paper cups upside down, punch a hole in it, and slide your toothbrush right in!
3. Block Hallway Noise
While many hotels are nice and quiet, some are decidedly not! It can feel like the worst kind of luck to end up with a door that does nothing to block out a noisy hallway.
But there is a simple way to help dampen the noise—add some additional “soundproofing” by tucking a bath towel into the gap underneath the door.
4. Coffee Maker Cooking
Unless you’re staying in a suite or studio of some sort, your hotel room won’t offer many options for cooking. However, it will likely have a coffee maker you can use to cook a surprising variety of foods.
There’s a wide selection of foods that only require hot water to prepare, like instant noodles, oatmeal, mashed potatoes, instant rice, and more. Just fill the coffee maker’s water reservoir, and run a cycle for hot water you can use to prepare your food.
5. Instant Speakers
Wish you had a speaker to play your favorite music or podcasts? You can amplify the sound of your smartphone’s speakers by placing it in an empty glass or coffee cup.
6. Use The Shower Cap
If your hotel room amenities include a disposable shower cap, put it to good use! Even if you don’t need to protect your hair, you can wrap it around a dirty pair of shoes to protect the clothes in your suitcase.
You could also wrap the shower cap around the TV remote to protect your hands from potential germs.
7. Keep Your Cool
Have something you need to keep cool, but don’t have a mini fridge in your room? Fill the bathroom sink with ice from the ice machine to serve as a makeshift cooler.
You might have to wash your hands in the shower, but it works well in a pinch!
8. Ironing Board Innovation
It can be tricky to eat a meal or work on your computer in your room if your room doesn’t have a table. But if your room has an ironing board, you’re in luck!
Just set up the ironing board and use that as a dining table or workstation. Complete your setup with a bath towel tablecloth if you’re eating something messy.
9. Bedside Pocket
In a room with only one nightstand, one person may end up without a place to put their phone or glasses when it’s time to turn the lights out. Instead of resorting to the floor, you can use the flat sheet to fashion a storage pocket that keeps those items within reach!
Do you use any clever hotel hacks when you travel?