Towel Test FAIL

[JAMESFALLETTA]

I thought my cabin Steward on Constellation was lazy, so my wife and I devised a non-scientific test one evening. We read the "save the oceans" card regarding the towel replacement policy. It's similar to most hotels stating that in order to reduce pollution and energy use (and cost!) you can choose to reuse towels by hanging them up. Any towels left on the bathroom floor will be considered used and be replaced.

 

Now to the test of this cost cutting policy framed as an environmental initiative.

 

I placed a pin sized blue dot on the label of each towel. We used all of them for showers after returning from port. To show the Steward we understood the policy, we hung one washcloth and one towel for reuse, and left the others on the floor, 2 of which were very gently used and 1 unused so we could test the policy.

 

Sure enough, the Steward used his discretion and rehung the 3 unused/gently used towels, and added other fresh ones. I'm not sure if this is a policy, or just his initiative. Think about it, if he can save 2 towels per room per day, it would add up to much less efforton his part and big savings for Celebrity and the environment.

 

I suggest that if you use towels in the future, make them extra wet or risk drying yourself next time around with towels that may have laid on a potentially dirty floor! I'm sure the vast majority of can attendants can be trusted but we found one who couldn't.

 

I'm making no statements about the environment here and I assure you we are not normally wasteful in any degree.....just a test of a Steward who we felt was lazy and unwelcoming from the beginning.

[Wine-O]

I dislike throwing the used towels on the floor. I always tell our cabin attendant that if a towel is used, just replace it with a fresh one.

 

My main concern is the glasses in the bathroom. I always approach the Hotel Manager on each cruise and question him about changing out the used glasses. I have never seen the stateroom attendants changing out glasses in the cabins or fresh glasses by the cleaning carts in the hallway. Ever wonder about that? :)

[Happy Cruiser 6143]

I thought my cabin Steward on Constellation was lazy, so my wife and I devised a non-scientific test one evening. We read the "save the oceans" card regarding the towel replacement policy. It's similar to most hotels stating that in order to reduce pollution and energy use (and cost!) you can choose to reuse towels by hanging them up. Any towels left on the bathroom floor will be considered used and be replaced.

 

Now to the test of this cost cutting policy framed as an environmental initiative.

 

I placed a pin sized blue dot on the label of each towel. We used all of them for showers after returning from port. To show the Steward we understood the policy, we hung one washcloth and one towel for reuse, and left the others on the floor, 2 of which were very gently used and 1 unused so we could test the policy.

 

Sure enough, the Steward used his discretion and rehung the 3 unused/gently used towels, and added other fresh ones. I'm not sure if this is a policy, or just his initiative. Think about it, if he can save 2 towels per room per day, it would add up to much less efforton his part and big savings for Celebrity and the environment.

 

I suggest that if you use towels in the future, make them extra wet or risk drying yourself next time around with towels that may have laid on a potentially dirty floor! I'm sure the vast majority of can attendants can be trusted but we found one who couldn't.

 

I'm making no statements about the environment here and I assure you we are not normally wasteful in any degree.....just a test of a Steward who we felt was lazy and unwelcoming from the beginning.

 

I have never, ever had that experience on Celebrity. If we even touch a towel, it is replaced. And we don't normally throw them on the floor.

[BettyCruiser]

I dislike throwing the used towels on the floor. I always tell our cabin attendant that if a towel is used, just replace it with a fresh one.

 

My main concern is the glasses in the bathroom. I always approach the Hotel Manager on each cruise and question him about changing out the used glasses. I have never seen the stateroom attendants changing out glasses in the cabins or fresh glasses by the cleaning carts in the hallway. Ever wonder about that? :)

 

 

I don't remember which cruise I was on, but they used two different styles of glasses so that you knew the glasses were swapped out each day. I thought that was a good idea.

[MicCanberra]

Normally the our towels have been changed if they have been moved in any way (scrunched, squashed). I have even asked for additional towels on occasion and they have always been obliging.:D

[debandbruce]

Always hung our used towels up and came back to the cabin to fresh ones. Steward switched out the glasses for us without being asked, he just said, I will bring you some fresh glasses. Guess we have always lucked out with our room stewards, the service has always been great and the cabins kept very well.

[julia]

Seriously.... do you use a FRESH towel each and every day at home? We don't, and I really don't need (nor want) new towels each day of my cruise. We hang our towels back on the rack after each use, and we let the steward know we are FINE with that.

[tserface]

That wasn't the point. The point was the towels were thrown on the floor, as instructed, and the attendant hung the towels back up and presented them as new towels.

 

We use our towels at home more than one day as well, but we don't throw them on the floor.

 

Regardless of anyone's opinion about how often a towel should be used hanging up a towel that was on the floor is wrong if the policy says otherwise.

 

Tom

 

Seriously.... do you use a FRESH towel each and every day at home? We don't, and I really don't need (nor want) new towels each day of my cruise. We hang our towels back on the rack after each use, and we let the steward know we are FINE with that.

[Fixit2010]

what they need to do is get rid of the towels completely and install a giant hand dryer on the ceiling facing down to the floor. All you would have to do is move a little back and forth under it to get a blast of warm air that dried you in seconds.

[MicCanberra]

what they need to do is get rid of the towels completely and install a giant hand dryer on the ceiling facing down to the floor. All you would have to do is move a little back and forth under it to get a blast of warm air that dried you in seconds.

 

Now that would be interesting. And how do you dry the bits that are slightly hidden.:rolleyes:

[NorthCarolinaBelle]

Now that would be interesting. And how do you dry the bits that are slightly hidden.:rolleyes:

Maybe they could install an air drier on the floor, too!:rolleyes:

[uktog]

Is it me or are we starting to read a lot more posts about lazy stewards?

 

I wonder though, is it lazy or overworked as they are asked to look after more and more people

 

Actually as it is the Assistant who looks after the changing of the bathroom towels, is the benchmark recruitment level lower than it used to be??

[tteettimes]

Maybe they could install an air drier on the floor, too!:rolleyes:

 

My kinda woman :D:D:D

[cruiserone]

We just came off the Silhouette and had an amazing cabin steward (Mannino). He changed dirty towels and left the unused towels on the rack. Just as we would expect. We do leave our dirty towels in a pile on the bathroom floor and like that we can change our shower towels everyday especially since I wash my hair and use the same towel to dry my hair. We used our own judgement to decide what is dirty and what is still clean enough to hang up. He followed our lead by the second day. The glasses we kept in our cabinet and only used them to rinse after brushing teeth. Did not expect glasses to be changed.

 

Happy Sailing All.

[Sascol]

I try to be as environmentally friendly as possible. On our last two Celebrity cruises we always tried to re-hang the towels we used in the evening to use agian the next morning. Even though we hung them back up after use, they got replaced with fresh ones every time.

[npb]

We had a wet towel problem on one cruise. We do not reuse towels at home and place them on the floor as requested when cruising. Everyday after room was cleaned, we had wet towels. Complained to room steward twice and still had wet towels. He claimed dryer was not working. Went to guest relations as we thought they were being recycled without being washed. Continued to have wet towels. Finally mentioned problem to CC host. No more wet towels!

[garycarla]

We travel often and usually are just fine using the same towels for a few days. After all, we just got out of the shower and hope we are clean. Sending a damp towel to get washed is a waste of time, energy and money.

 

Sadly, even when we hang them up, they bring us clean towels, no matter what their signs say.

[ariawoman]

what they need to do is get rid of the towels completely and install a giant hand dryer on the ceiling facing down to the floor. All you would have to do is move a little back and forth under it to get a blast of warm air that dried you in seconds.

 

Somebody call Dyson! LOL.

 

Else, excellerator makes some awesome driers too hehe though I shudder to think what the body would look like being dried with an excellerator one!

[phoenix_dream]

Seriously.... do you use a FRESH towel each and every day at home? We don't, and I really don't need (nor want) new towels each day of my cruise. We hang our towels back on the rack after each use, and we let the steward know we are FINE with that.

Seriously, no we do not use a fresh towel every day at home, but part of being spoiled on the cruise for us is to have fresh towels every day. Does anyone seriously believe that not washing towels on a cruise ship is actually helping the environment? On the ship I would presume they would be using some type of desalinated sea water to do laundry, biodegradable detergent, and electricity from onboard generators. Net result to environment =nothing. More work for the staff? Yes, but that is part of what I am paying for. Does this hold true for land-based hotels? Not as much, although the cynical part of me believes the primary reason hotels do this is to save money and for advertising purposes, not because they are big defenders of the earth. Individuals who choose to re-use may, of course, actually care about the environment and believe it helps (or may just not care about re-using towels).

 

This was also not the point of the thread. I hope the OP reported this finding to the head of Housekeeping as soon as it was discovered.

[Gourmet Cooks]

The little card in the stateroom (and hotels) about conservation is totally for green-washing/marketing/fad/appearance purposes and means nothing.

 

We use a clean fresh towel everyday at home and we expect the same away from home.

 

I know it shocking but their are a huge number of people that do not believe in on the "Green" hoopla. :eek:

[SixOneTwo]

Ever use a Dyson Blade drier? THAT would be an interesting concept in "full body size."

[Sascol]

On the ship I would presume they would be using some type of desalinated sea water to do laundry, biodegradable detergent, and electricity from onboard generators. Net result to environment =nothing.

 

Quite untrue - it takes fuel to run EVERY piece if the equipment on a ship. This includes the machinery used to convert sea water into fresh water. It takes fuel to run the generators that supply power to the washers, dryers, etc. More equipment getting used direcly impacts the amount of fuel being used and all of this has an environmental impact.

[terri23]

plus, how would you know whose towel is which? :eek:

[mikechass]

I've been on several (9) cruises, and have watched those stewards run from one end of the hall just to say HI to me in the morning, scramble around to get all the dry cleaning/laundry stuff back and fill every request people have made left and right to them all while doing their daily duties.

I wasn't there, and so there fore can't be sure but I have YET to every encounter a lazy steward.

Perhaps, because its your vacation, and you wish to have every beck and call answered you are seeing him as lazy but I just can't see how that kind of statement isn't being challenged...

The fact that you took the time to scheme against this person seems like a waste of vacation time if you ask me... but since no one did, I should add that it is my two cents.

I am not trying to be harsh towards you, just more the devils advocate for these stewards who are overworked and under appreciated.

[JRJARS]

Good grief! People you are on vacation - this is how you spend your time...putting ink dots on towels - what makes for a lazy steward - he didn't come running down the hall waving at you and calling you by your name! What else did you do with your time - scope out all the stains in the carpet and smudges on the windows. Life is too short to nit pick everything - again the key word is VACATION!!