Disinfecting your room?

[PTMary]

I'm hoping that you're not saying you cleaned the room yourself.

 

I think it shows that in re-cleaning the hard surfaces in the cabin, that dirt was left behind. Gross. :p

 

I must be a slob. I have never cleaned my room either on the first day or during the cruise. Never felt the need to. I also take pictures of the interesting places I visit and the fun things I do on vacation, not pictures of cleaning cloths I have used. I must have pretty low standards.

 

I have to admit that I am in awe of that poster's attention to detail. She took a photo of her dirty cloth and saved it so she could someday post it on a cruise discussion website. Now that is what I call being prepared! :D

Edited June 9, 2015 by PTMary

[poconut]

I don't disinfect the room, but I carry wipes with me, and I give the remote a quick clean and the phone. Like another poster, I also check for bed bugs.

[cbr663]

I'm hoping that you're not saying you cleaned the room yourself.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

No, we did not clean the room. We called the Concierge who had the cabin attendant and the HD come and inspect the suite. We were asked to leave the cabin while they cleaned it for us. When we returned, they asked us to inspect it. They missed the soiled bedskirt and the stained chairs were still there. I requested then that they replace the bedskirt and chairs. So, we left again and returned for another inspection, only to find previous passenger clothing in the closet. The room attendant grabbed the clothing from my hands and as it was now nearing time for muster, I gave them the okay on the room and we left for the muster drill.

 

From that point onward, we now travel prepared.

[cbr663]

I think it shows that in re-cleaning the hard surfaces in the cabin, that dirt was left behind. Gross. :p

 

I think that you are right, and I am guessing that it also shows how cross contamination can happen when cleaning.

 

For the record, as I am sure the cruise line was mind my stating, our last cruise was on the Celebrity Reflection and the towel was just wet after our exercise. It was the cleanest cabin we have ever seen. Two thumbs up for Celebrity.

 

BTW: I didn't take the picture to share on a website. I took it to share with my friends and family who also travel and cruise a lot. We compare pics now.

Edited June 9, 2015 by cbr663

[CanadianDee]

No, we did not clean the room. We called the Concierge who had the cabin attendant and the HD come and inspect the suite. We were asked to leave the cabin while they cleaned it for us. When we returned, they asked us to inspect it. They missed the soiled bedskirt and the stained chairs were still there. I requested then that they replace the bedskirt and chairs. So, we left again and returned for another inspection, only to find previous passenger clothing in the closet. The room attendant grabbed the clothing from my hands and as it was now nearing time for muster, I gave them the okay on the room and we left for the muster drill.

 

From that point onward, we now travel prepared.

 

Omigosh. Ok, this would truly have me doing the same things you're doing.

 

In a post further down you mention you're just off the Celebrity Reflection. That's our next sail. :-) Glad to hear it "passed muster". :)

[boating girl]

My husband and I NEVER disinfect any hotel room, cabin, etc....when we travel. It would be the very last thing we would think of after check-in. Happy to say we have never become ill during or after a trip.

 

Which proves what? All four of us have never been sick, even though we take very different actions when we travel. So which is actually the better approach?

 

I say relax, don't worry about it. The chances of you catching something will be in the public areas of the ship, hotel, taxi, bus, train, plane, subway, restaurants, and from doors, tables, chairs, railings, counter tops, etc.

 

I prefer to enjoy my vacations, not obsess about catching something while on them. But if taking all those precautions makes you feel better, nothing wrong with doing them - as long as you realize that it is a waste of time and trouble.

 

FYI: I work in a hospital, so know quite a bit about the things to be aware of and what to do to avoid them. Disinfecting my room is pretty low on that list.

 

Still curious. What do you do in the hospital?

[donaldsc]

We take the time to disinfect our cabin. It takes just minutes to do and it makes us feel better. Here is an after picture of a white face cloth that we used on one cruise. I have crudely removed the background pictures so as not to identify the cruise line.

 

I recently took a cruise and when we boarded, the toilet seat was slightly soiled. I told the cabin attendant, he apologized and took care of it.

 

Perhaps I should have also taken a picture of it and posted it on CC. I just did not think of it at the time.

 

DON

[PTMary]

Still curious. What do you do in the hospital?

 

Keep wondering. You haven't given me any worthwhile reason why I should tell you.

Edited June 9, 2015 by PTMary

[sail7seas]

Americans seem to love their sprays, their wipes, their pads, and most especially those ineffective hand jells.

 

Is it the adverts or the media that does this to the population?

 

 

The whole population? All 319 million of us? A bit of a generalization. :D

 

[Hlitner]

We have oft posted on CC that DW and I are not germophobic and could care less about things like wiping down a cabin. We also have posted that wipes and hand sanitizers are not very effective against Noro (which is best prevented by washing hands with soap and water). So now we spotted this post here on CC which is fascinating:

http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-wales-33054489

 

Of course we understand that no article or scientific fact will help germophobes with their phobia/obsession. But it is interesting to try and separate fact from pure speculation.

 

Hank

[SantaFeFan]

Of course we understand that no article or scientific fact will help germophobes with their phobia/obsession. But it is interesting to try and separate fact from pure speculation.

 

Hank

 

It's kind of like trying to push a rope uphill. ;)

Edited June 9, 2015 by SantaFeFan

[cbr663]

Perhaps Canadians are more concerned of this issue because it has been in the media in recent years. The consumer news show Marketplace has conducted undercover investigations of numerous hotels and hotel rooms and the results were alarming. C.difficile and MRSA were found with all the hotels tested containing superbugs.

 

You can check out the findings here: http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/hotel-room-tests-uncover-high-levels-of-contamination-1.1160859

 

The original testing was in 2012. When they went back in 2013 things improved only marginally.

[donaldsc]

We have oft posted on CC that DW and I are not germophobic and could care less about things like wiping down a cabin. We also have posted that wipes and hand sanitizers are not very effective against Noro (which is best prevented by washing hands with soap and water). So now we spotted this post here on CC which is fascinating:

http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-wales-33054489

 

Of course we understand that no article or scientific fact will help germophobes with their phobia/obsession. But it is interesting to try and separate fact from pure speculation.

 

Hank

 

Sounds like they are reusing wet wipes. I would have thought that they were one use products.

 

DON

[dsrdsrdsr]

Perhaps Canadians are more concerned of this issue because it has been in the media in recent years. The consumer news show Marketplace has conducted undercover investigations of numerous hotels and hotel rooms and the results were alarming. C.difficile and MRSA were found with all the hotels tested containing superbugs.

 

You can check out the findings here: http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/hotel-room-tests-uncover-high-levels-of-contamination-1.1160859

 

The original testing was in 2012. When they went back in 2013 things improved only marginally.

 

Link doesn't work for me. (It wants me to install something ob the computer to read it.) Does it say how the results are compared with private homes?

[cbr663]

Yes, it did speak to comparing the results in a private home. It states that if they tested some homes, they would also find high readings. The difference, they stated, between a private home and a hotel or cruise cabin is history.

 

We know who has been in our homes and we know their general condition. The example they provide is that if someone has a cold or flu in our home, we won't drink out of their cup. But, in a hotel, we are at the mercy of management. We don't know the history of who has been there and we don't know if the person who last used that glass had a cold and we don't know if that glass is now sanitized.

 

The worst offenders in a hotel room: the bed comforter, the remote control and the bathroom faucets. So, while washing your hands is a great idea, turning off that faucet after washing them, not a great idea.

 

You can find full hotel findings from 2013 here: http://www.cbc.ca/marketplace/blog/full-hotel-test-results-2013

 

Here is a link of common myths and misconceptions on where bacteria are found: http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/bacteria-myths-and-misconceptions-1.1117630

[CanadianDee]

Link doesn't work for me. (It wants me to install something ob the computer to read it.) Does it say how the results are compared with private homes?

 

From the article:

"Bacteria are common in homes but hotels pose a greater threat because the germs come from thousands of strangers, said Warriner.

 

"In a hotel, you've absolutely got no sort of notion of a history," he said.

 

Warriner was shocked at the high levels of contamination revealed in the tests.

 

Edited to Add: I probably won't wipe down anything more than the TV remote in our next hotel room/cruise room, but that's me. If someone wants to do more (or less), I can certainly understand that. No reason to dismiss their choices.

Edited June 10, 2015 by CanadianDee

[boating girl]

Keep wondering. You haven't given me any worthwhile reason why I should tell you.

 

Don't need to wonder....you're a PT epidemiologist or an Infection Control PT.

[PTMary]

Don't need to wonder....you're a PT epidemiologist or an Infection Control PT.

 

You are starting to worry me. You are acting too much like a stalker with this obsession you have about what I do for a living.

[boating girl]

You are starting to worry me. You are acting too much like a stalker with this obsession you have about what I do for a living.

 

It was a joke. Sorry. I posted twice, once in response to you. Done. Lighten up.

[BlueRiband]

I wouldn't book on a line where their staterooms required disinfection.

 

Let's say you surgically scrub your cabin. What are you going to do about public areas? :confused:

[nobog]

I wouldn't book on a line where their staterooms required disinfection.

 

Let's say you surgically scrub your cabin. What are you going to do about public areas? :confused:

 

Nothing. But you reduce your odds of getting sick.

 

JK

[SantaFeFan]

Nothing. But you reduce your odds of getting sick.

 

JK

 

By about a .5%. ;)

 

It's in the public areas where you get exposed to viruses, especially those in the air from people coughing or even breathing while roaming around the ship with an illness. It's usually not touching things that will get you sick. It's breathing in germs that are in the air you are breathing. If someone is insistent on protecting themselves, disinfecting their room will be barely a blip on the germ radar. They also need to always wear a protective mask of some kind.

 

 

And for maximum protection: :D

 

Edited June 10, 2015 by SantaFeFan

[gertieginsc]

I am the original poster of this thread.

 

It has been interesting to follow along and read the comments.......lots of opinions.

 

Thank you all.

 

 

Gertieginsc

[wassup4565]

Here's what I picture: a person who was staying in our cabin mere hours before we move in had a nasty sneezing cold and a runny nose. I know the cabin steward has about four hours to turn around all his or her cabins. It takes me about five minutes to run wipes over all the drawer handles and pulls, phone handset, doorknobs, TV remote, and balcony chair arms. This is, after all, the room we're going to live in for the next several days.

 

Do I think I can get rid of every risk? No. Do I think I am reducing the risk of picking up stray residue from the previous person's cold? Yes. Is that worth five minutes of my time? Yes. Could I accomplish the same thing with a bucket, some cleaner, and a rag? Yes, but all I have is wipes. And sometimes those wipes look kinda grey and unsavoury when they've done their job.

 

Please, I am not phobic, or a compulsive cleaner, nor am I a fool. But if there's a small chance I can avoid getting that previous traveller's sneezy cold, I'll take it.

[perditax]

No dog in this fight, as I am neither a germophobe nor an experienced cruiser. However, I do love my google, and this product claims to kill Noro, and even quotes those stats about the uselessness of alcohol wipes.

 

http://www.zylast.com/TheScience.aspx

 

Not affiliated. I believe you can buy it on amazon for about ten bucks.