10 Steps to clean a hotel room in under 30 Minutes

With a maximum average of 30 minutes to turnaround a hotel bedroom, housekeeping staff seriously have their work cut out. From guests who turn the room inside out, to visitors who decide to throw a party, there’s no telling what you’ll walk into as you turn the handle. However, in most typical circumstances it is possible to be in and out in under 30 minutes with the right training and equipment.

10 Steps to Clean a Hotel Room

Enter the room following your hotel’s standard procedure. Most companies will have a mandatory two-knock, two-announcement rule. This is where housekeepers must knock twice and say “housekeeping” and upon entering the room again announce themselves once more in case the guest didn’t hear them from outside the room.

1. Strip the beds. Once inside always start the cleaning process by stripping the sheets. This enables you to use the dirty fitted sheet as a package for the rest of the items, helping to keep everything together and contained.

2. Inspect the bed for any damage or stains and smooth out the mattress. Make the bed following your hotel standards and ensure that once complete all sheets, covers and pillows are thoroughly checked for stains, tears and any hairs.

3. Make some space by removing the dirty linen and any rubbish from the room. Always make sure to check all visible surfaces for rubbish not forgetting inside the drawers.

4. Next – dust. The room should always be well dusted from the top of the highest piece of furniture or fitting to the bottom of every chair. Don’t forget window sills, lamp shades and any hanging artwork.

5. Wipe down all hard surfaces. We thoroughly recommend using a colour co-ordinated cleaning system to prevent cross contamination. A clean set of cleaning cloths should be used for each room.
It is important not to forget to sanitise high contact areas/items such as the remote control, light switches, door handles and telephones paying particular attention to any devices in the bathroom area.

6. Special attention should be paid to the cleaning of the bathroom including toilet seats and handles. From the showerhead to the floor all traces of the previous guest must be removed, especially any hair! Chrome is to be shined so no watermarks show, change the shower curtain if dirty and replace towels.

7. Make sure all other items provided by the hotel are replaced. This includes personal care products through to tea/coffee facilities, laundry bags, do not disturb signs, notebooks and guest guides. Always make sure fresh glassware and mugs are used and that any clocks are set to the correct time with the alarm off.

8. Check all pillows, throws and curtains are in excellent looking condition and in the correct configuration.

9. Always vacuum last and once finished in the room vacuum out the door. As you vacuum check the carpet for any damage or stains. Remove any spots from food, drink or makeup using carpet and upholstery wipes. Vacuuming is so important as it helps to maintain hotel carpets, prevent the build-up of dust and if done correctly will lift carpet pile.

10. Once complete, leave the room with a neutral odour and at a balanced temperature.