# American hotels have bibles. What quirks do other nations' hotels have? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [April 18, 2011, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-hotels-have-bibles-what-quirks-do-other-nations-hotels-have/578852 "2011-04-18T16:25:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![Kobal2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kobal2/32/20_2.png) [@Kobal2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kobal2)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2011, 1:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-hotels-have-bibles-what-quirks-do-other-nations-hotels-have/578852/101 "2011-04-21T01:03:44Z")
> [@Snickers](#): > > When I stayed in a small hotel in France in 1994, it was customary to leave the key to the room at the front desk when you went out. Then when you came back in, you requested your key from the front desk again. I’m not certain what happened if you stayed out late. Presumably the front desk was manned at all times, but I really don’t know. I was on a high school trip, so we were chaperoned and supervised. Depends on the hotel, really. Some keep a night receptionist on staff (which is a rather low-stress job, all things considered), others have a curfew which is typically around midnight-1AM. Better get back early, or you’ll get locked out until the first staffers arrive around 6AM, and is that ever fun. Mom-and-pop operations often rig the doorbell to ring in their bedrooms so that they can wake up and open the door for you, but if you do it every night they’ll understandably get grumpy with you. That said, not all hotels still bother with the whole “hand over your key” rigamarole (which, BTW, is meant to prevent clients from making a double of their room key to come back later and rob the next client with ; and as a side benefit also cuts the costs of having new room keys made when clients lose theirs outside the hotel). As for other French oddities mentioned in the thread, double triggered toilets and lights on timers are both bog standard features of our homes, not a specifically “hotel” thing - turns out being all ecological and whatnot also saves on utilities bills :). Well, the timers are really only used in shared areas of apartment complexes, parking lots, offices and such, not in the living areas. Pain in the arse when the light goes out in the stairwell when you’re halfway up a floor, too - but posh places are often rigged with motion detector switches to remedy that problem. The MDs probably use just as much electricity as just leaving the damn lights on but heh 😛 ---
**Author:** ![SmartAlecCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/67e7ee/32.png) [@SmartAlecCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SmartAlecCat)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2011, 2:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-hotels-have-bibles-what-quirks-do-other-nations-hotels-have/578852/102 "2011-04-21T02:02:56Z")
> [@Kobal2](#): > > As for other French oddities mentioned in the thread, double triggered toilets and lights on timers are both bog standard features of our homes, not a specifically “hotel” thing - turns out being all ecological and whatnot also saves on utilities bills :). We’ve seen more bidets in France than elsewhere – not sure if that was just the ones we stayed at or if it was a more general thing. ---
**Author:** ![Raguleader](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/258eb7/32.png) [@Raguleader](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Raguleader)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2011, 4:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-hotels-have-bibles-what-quirks-do-other-nations-hotels-have/578852/103 "2011-04-21T04:26:03Z")
> [@EinsteinsHund](#): > > I think you’re on the right track. “shrunk” = “Schrank” = “wardrobe”. > > I thought for a moment that the outlandishness of duvets and wardrobes in a hotel room was another one of those odd cultural differences between Germany and America, so thanks for clearing that impression. I’ve stayed in an on-base hotel in Texas that had a metal wall locker mounted to the wall in the corner instead of a closet. Even had a place where you could attach a padlock if you wanted to keep your stuff secure when the cleaning lady came by. Every other Lodging/Billeting place I visited had closets, as I recall, so that must have just been a weirdness with that particular base. ---
**Author:** ![Raguleader](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/258eb7/32.png) [@Raguleader](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Raguleader)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2011, 4:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-hotels-have-bibles-what-quirks-do-other-nations-hotels-have/578852/104 "2011-04-21T04:28:02Z")
> [@Kobal2](#): > > As for other French oddities mentioned in the thread, double triggered toilets and lights on timers are both bog standard features of our homes, not a specifically “hotel” thing - turns out being all ecological and whatnot also saves on utilities bills :). I saw the same kind of toilet in a newly renovated dormitory at a base I was at a few years back. I thought it was kinda neat, actually. ---
**Author:** ![Wendell\_Wagner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8491ac/32.png) [@Wendell\_Wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wendell_Wagner)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2011, 10:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-hotels-have-bibles-what-quirks-do-other-nations-hotels-have/578852/105 "2011-04-21T10:35:41Z")
EinsteinsHund writes: \> I thought for a moment that the outlandishness of duvets and wardrobes in a \> hotel room was another one of those odd cultural differences between \> Germany and America, so thanks for clearing that impression. Let me just note that “duvet” is more of a British term than an American one. The American term might be (I think) something like “comforter” or “quilt.” Also, wardrobes are rarer in the U.S. than in the U.K. They are called “wardrobes,” in so far as they exist, but they aren’t common. ---
**Author:** ![EinsteinsHund](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/einsteinshund/32/8400_2.png) [@EinsteinsHund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EinsteinsHund)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2011, 11:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-hotels-have-bibles-what-quirks-do-other-nations-hotels-have/578852/106 "2011-04-21T11:28:24Z")
> [@Wendell\_Wagner](#): > > EinsteinsHund writes: > > \> I thought for a moment that the outlandishness of duvets and wardrobes in a > \> hotel room was another one of those odd cultural differences between > \> Germany and America, so thanks for clearing that impression. > > Let me just note that “duvet” is more of a British term than an American one. The American term might be (I think) something like “comforter” or “quilt.” Also, wardrobes are rarer in the U.S. than in the U.K. They are called “wardrobes,” in so far as they exist, but they aren’t common. Thanks for the info. Does that mean that in fact, duvets/comforters and wardrobes are unusual bedroom items in the U.S., in hotel rooms as well as in private homes? ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2011, 11:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-hotels-have-bibles-what-quirks-do-other-nations-hotels-have/578852/107 "2011-04-21T11:33:16Z")
Wardrobes are very rare in homes but slightly more common in hotel rooms. Comforters are ubiquitous in homes but nearly nonexistent in hotel rooms. ---
**Author:** ![Wendell\_Wagner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8491ac/32.png) [@Wendell\_Wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wendell_Wagner)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2011, 11:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-hotels-have-bibles-what-quirks-do-other-nations-hotels-have/578852/108 "2011-04-21T11:33:59Z")
Comforters/duvets/quilts/whatevers are reasonably common in American homes. It’s wardrobes that are somewhat rare in the U.S. Sometimes older houses have them, but today nearly every house will just have walk-in closets. ---
**Author:** ![Michael\_of\_Lucan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/dbc845/32.png) [@Michael\_of\_Lucan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Michael_of_Lucan)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2011, 12:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-hotels-have-bibles-what-quirks-do-other-nations-hotels-have/578852/109 "2011-04-21T12:19:54Z")
Most Irish hotels have built in wardrobes/closets - like most modern houses. However, I note that up-market hotels like to have free-standing wardrobes - particularly where the hotel is a conversion of an old building. They want to give you the feeling of staying with friends in an old-fashioned house. My wife and I share a hatred of many things in hotels, all round the world - - Shower curtains. We prefer the glass wall system. I agree that some of them are too small, but most are fine. - Blankets. When duvets exist, why would anyone choose to be clamped in tight blankets? - Hot rooms. The first thing we do is turn the heating down from Death Valley to normal. My wife also hates hard beds. It seems impossible to get a mattress which is not hard like a doctor’s couch. I can sleep on most hotel beds, but she has to put spare pillows and other bedding under her to get to sleep. Otherwise, she spends the day with a sore back. You would think that softness would be offered as an option. ---
**Author:** ![AK84](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/85e7bf/32.png) [@AK84](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AK84)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2011, 1:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-hotels-have-bibles-what-quirks-do-other-nations-hotels-have/578852/110 "2011-04-21T13:01:47Z")
> [@alphaboi867](#): > > I’ve heard hotels in Islamic countries usually have some kind of arrow or design in the floor pointing toward Mecca. They do _not_ just keep copies of the Koran in the nightstand where a non-Muslim could potentialy defile it. Patently untrue. The Qibla arrow you see more often, but it is far more common to simply ask room service and have them give some weird imprecise reply like, facing the window, at an angle. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2011, 1:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-hotels-have-bibles-what-quirks-do-other-nations-hotels-have/578852/111 "2011-04-21T13:38:27Z")
> [@Michael\_of\_Lucan](#): > > Most Irish hotels have built in wardrobes/closets This kind of confuses the issue, because in this thread we are _distinguishing_ between wardrobes and closets. American homes have closets, not wardrobes. > [@](#): > > My wife and I share a hatred of many things in hotels, all round the world - I disagree with all your hatreds, except the hot rooms one. Shower curtains work much better than any kind of sliding or swinging door system, which causes much more water to be spilled outside the tub. I find most mattresses in hotels to be way too soft for my comfort. I feel like I’m lying on a trampoline on most of them, the way they bounce around. ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2011, 2:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-hotels-have-bibles-what-quirks-do-other-nations-hotels-have/578852/112 "2011-04-21T14:04:55Z")
> [@Michael\_of\_Lucan](#): > > My wife also hates hard beds. She’s never complained about my futon. :d&r: ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2011, 2:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-hotels-have-bibles-what-quirks-do-other-nations-hotels-have/578852/113 "2011-04-21T14:49:58Z")
> [@lukeinva](#): > > German hotels only make up the bed half way, ie. there is no top sheet or blanket. Instead you get a big feathery comforter. They also don’t have closets. Closets are considered rooms and rooms are taxed. So the Germans use a “shrunk” instead (basically a big cabinet or armoire). Also, the last German hotel I stayed in the pillows were so small I rolled up my coat for a pillow. My brother recently moved to Germany for a few years (work related). None of the apartments he looked at had closets, either. He kept turning down what he was shown, eventually giving in and buying a few wardrobes. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2011, 3:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-hotels-have-bibles-what-quirks-do-other-nations-hotels-have/578852/114 "2011-04-21T15:04:12Z")
In addition to having wardrobes instead of closets, I get the impression that in Europe the kitchen cabinetry isn’t built in but instead is removable. So that when you move into a new house, you bring your own. And you can see that in the stuff they sell at IKEA. It’s all freestanding cabinets on four legs. Whereas American kitchen cabinets are scribed and screwed to the floor. ---
**Author:** ![Corner\_Case](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/corner_case/32/234_2.png) [@Corner\_Case](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Corner_Case)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2011, 3:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-hotels-have-bibles-what-quirks-do-other-nations-hotels-have/578852/115 "2011-04-21T15:05:42Z")
“buying a few wardrobes”? How many does one need? Some very minor American hotel distinctions:[ul][_]Hangars in the closets that end in a ball instead of a ‘J’ hook. There’s no use in stealing them since they wouldn’t work at home.[_]Chain hotel beds usually have a firm mattress with a bottom sheet, top sheet, and thin insulating blanket, all tightly tucked in, then a thinish comforter.[_]A/C/Heater units have a cold-to-hot dial or Low/Medium/High temperature and Low/Medium/High buttons for fan speed. No matter what, it’s too cold or too hot and the noise is annoying. Especially when it kicks on and off and you hear the water condensation.[_]Carpets are a thin curly tight-weave nap. It would be scary to contemplate the dirt and spills that must be in them.[/ul] ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2011, 3:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-hotels-have-bibles-what-quirks-do-other-nations-hotels-have/578852/116 "2011-04-21T15:38:28Z")
> [@Corner\_Case](#): > > “buying a few wardrobes”? How many does one need? I haven’t been to Germany to visit him, but I’m guessing one for him and one for his wife? ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2011, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-hotels-have-bibles-what-quirks-do-other-nations-hotels-have/578852/117 "2011-04-21T15:42:45Z")
> [@Corner\_Case](#): > > “buying a few wardrobes”? How many does one need? In an apartment with no closets, I’d imagine one would need at least one wardrobe for every room and two for each bedroom. ---
**Author:** ![Michael\_of\_Lucan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/dbc845/32.png) [@Michael\_of\_Lucan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Michael_of_Lucan)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2011, 4:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-hotels-have-bibles-what-quirks-do-other-nations-hotels-have/578852/118 "2011-04-21T16:32:21Z")
> [@acsenray](#): > > This kind of confuses the issue, because in this thread we are _distinguishing_ between wardrobes and closets. American homes have closets, not wardrobes. This is a difference which exists largely in the Amerenglish language. In English-speaking countries (sorry. that should be in _other_ English-speaking countries :D) where you hang your clothes is a wardrobe - whether it is built in or free-standing. We speak of “built-in wardrobes”. A closet is another word for cupboard (or alternatively a press in ireland), which may or may not be for clothes. It includes any alcove with doors or free standing furniture item. However, if it is a cupboard or closet designed for clothes, it becomes a wardrobe. That’s why I referred to wardrobe/closet, in deference to the known USAian dialect difference. ---
**Author:** ![Lukeinva](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lukeinva/32/17872_2.png) [@Lukeinva](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lukeinva)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2011, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-hotels-have-bibles-what-quirks-do-other-nations-hotels-have/578852/119 "2011-04-21T16:45:37Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > My brother recently moved to Germany for a few years (work related). None of the apartments he looked at had closets, either. He kept turning down what he was shown, eventually giving in and buying a few wardrobes. The reason German homes don’t have closets is because of taxes. The more rooms the more tax. Obviously some closets would be ridiculously small to be a room but it is what it is. Having lived there for five years one could definitely see a German family setting up a closet as a babies room, or even a childs room. Germans are famous for their, um, frugality. (My bad on the spelling as was corrected above, the correct spelling is schrank - thanks.) ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2011, 4:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-hotels-have-bibles-what-quirks-do-other-nations-hotels-have/578852/120 "2011-04-21T16:50:03Z")
> [@Michael\_of\_Lucan](#): > > That’s why I referred to wardrobe/closet, in deference to the known USAian dialect difference. But it didn’t clarify the issue, because your use of the phrase “built in wardrobe/closet” didn’t imply to me that you were using two terms for the same thing but were referring to two different things as a group – either a closet, or a free-standing wardrobe that had been fixed or attached to the walls (in other words, not something that was integral to the construction of the building but rather something that had been built and attached to the walls later). So it still sounded to me like you were talking about two different things. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-hotels-have-bibles-what-quirks-do-other-nations-hotels-have/578852.md?page=5) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-hotels-have-bibles-what-quirks-do-other-nations-hotels-have/578852.md?page=7)