Ask About Hotel Security

Before making reservations at hotels, make sure that the places you'll be staying are in safe neighborhoods and provide dedicated hotel security staff to look after the safety of their guests. It's a good idea to call the hotels where you are considering staying to ask them about their hotel security services. Not only should every hotel you visit provide around the clock front desk clerks and doormen, but a full security staff should be on duty at all times to assist guests, prevent thefts, maintain hotel safety requirements, and respond to any medical emergencies.

Good hotels have several protections in place to safeguard their guests' privacy. First, the front desk staff should not give out a guest's room number to anyone, no matter what the circumstance. Also, the front desk should not transfer any phone call to a guest's room unless the person asks for the guest by first and last name. These measures are safeguards against scamming and theft. They also protect guests' personal safety by ensuring that the only people that are able to contact them are people that they know. Before booking your hotels, call ahead to make sure that these policies are in place.

Also make sure that the hotels where you'll be staying have a system to keep all of your personal information and credit card records strictly confidential. The only people who should be able to access this information are hotel reservations agents and billing specialists. Make sure that safes are available for storing your valuables, and that every hotel room is equipped with a deadbolt or chain lock in addition to the regular lock.

Additionally, ask what type of room keys the hotels use. The safest form of room access is via key cards, which are electronically programmed to open a certain room. If you lose one of the key cards, that card can be de-activated so that no one who finds it can enter the room. The key cards also do not have the room number printed on them, another measure that ensures that no one else can access the room except the paid guest.

After every check-out, the hotel erases all the key cards used, so that if a guest walks out with a card after checking out, he or she can no longer access the room they stayed in. If the hotels you'll be staying in use regular keys, make sure that you keep an eye on it at all times.