| Hotel etiquette Posted by grahame at 05:16, 24th June 2026 |     |
From The BBC
What a British etiquette expert would never do in a hotel
From noisy corridors to thieving toiletries, William Hanson reveals the hotel habits that horrify him most.
People often behave differently in hotels than they do at home, and not always for the better.
Prominent British etiquette expert William Hanson, who directs The English Manner institute in Central London, puts bad hotel behaviour down to the "commercial" factor. "It's a transactional proposition, so some people wrongly feel they are entitled to behave in a way that they wouldn't at home. Whether that's leaving their room an absolute bomb site or being rude to the staff."
From noisy corridors to thieving toiletries, William Hanson reveals the hotel habits that horrify him most.
People often behave differently in hotels than they do at home, and not always for the better.
Prominent British etiquette expert William Hanson, who directs The English Manner institute in Central London, puts bad hotel behaviour down to the "commercial" factor. "It's a transactional proposition, so some people wrongly feel they are entitled to behave in a way that they wouldn't at home. Whether that's leaving their room an absolute bomb site or being rude to the staff."
Having spent a decade running a hotel, I can very much see some of what he gets at. But yet we seem to have had a charmed time for the most part. People and guests are typically lovely - especially people who visited us on business, be that as delegate for our own business or people working elsewhere it town.
I have (!!) some experience at staying in hotels too - respect the place, treat the team running the place (and other guests) humanely / as people, and if there are significant issues perhaps point them out gently. The article refers to a Faulty Towers sketch where everything goes wrong with a meal, but when Basil asks them they give a "very good, thank you" British answer.
