Let's settle this burning question-- how many towels per day is normal?

[Laura2592]

After spending another 2 plus hours behind my cleaners doing laundry for a recent guest  (cleaners had already done a load and just aren't paid enough to sit through more) I am flummoxed by the absolute scope of variation when it comes to towel usage.  We have two bathrooms and place two towels per person in each of the various towel varieties (4 bath, 4 hand and 2 washcloth, so 10 total towels per bathroom.) We also have a closet where there are extra sheets and towels that we stock just in case. I think there are another 2-4 bath towels in there depending on the stay.

Most guests don't break into the extra linens but some do. I have had couples stay for 5 or so nights and use one towel a piece the whole time. I have had single people stay for a weekend and use not only ALL the bathroom towels but also use the backup linens.  A recent group was a 3 night couple stay and all the towels in the place were used as well as all beds slept in. 

What is "normal" for towel usage, per person? How many towels do you supply? Are we leaving too many available? Is there a way to make guests aware of towel norms (perhaps with a catchy towel use poem?) Are there cultural aspects to this? Or is this simply something guests don't think about? It takes forever to dry towels in our dryer and lengthens turnover considerably. 

[Robin4]

@Laura2592 

Laura, if it looks like it's available, guests will use it.

You are more generous than most  hosts. I offer guests one bath towel, one hand towel and one face washer each and I show them where a second set is stored if they feel the need to use a back-up!

I have a dozen sets of towels, hand towels and face washers......but there is no way on Gods earth I would put them out there where the guest could stumble across them! I have learned the hard way.

* 

I like to provide every guest with a block of Lindts chocolate and I do manage to buy them at a good price every couple of months, so on those occasions I have a stock-up!

I had this one guest find her way into my restock cupboard and there was at that point 26 blocks of chocolate waiting for incoming guests. I have to give this guest credit for not being a complete pig.....she left me with 15..........

I had another one waltz off with 8 cakes of Dove moisturising soap......

I have the situation where they will go out for the day and the evening but wind the Air conditioning up to 92f in the middle of winter so they will have a nice comfy environment to come back to. 

Laura, if guests can abuse what you offer, they will, they are paying and they feel it is their right!!

Give them access to 2 sets of towels each without an option of any more and they will be happy with that!

Just don't let them know there is another dozen in a closet somewhere, they won't pay you extra to maintain them.....but by God, they will use them!!

Cheers.........Rob 

[Basha0]

Rob, I promise it wasn’t me eating your Lindt chocolate!  I am known to eat 2 squares with my coffee ever morning. I used to live next to the Lindt factory in Zurich and if we could smell the chocolate we knew it was going to rain due to the humidity.

Sorry, not exactly on topic

[Robin4]

@Basha0 

If it was you.......I would remember!

I thought about giving all these little extras away because they seem to bring out the nasty side of human nature.

I offer a cheese plate for each incoming guest, even one nighters. I can do it by negotiating arrangements with the local supermarkets for cheeses that are getting near the end of their shelf life......but guests don't know that. I turn on what looks like a $35 cheese plate all in their manufacturers sealed wrappers and many guests will open every cheese, take one small wedge and then move on to the next, as much as to say...."well you provided it so I might as well sample it"....all they do is waste a lot of thought and attention.

I am coming around to feel it is not worth going out of your way for guests, ultimately they don't appreciate it and, if it is there, you provide it.......they will abuse it!

I am on the third massage motor in the guest bed. I had hoped they would just use it and appreciate it, they don't! They try to put the bed tilt fully upright with the massage function running....and they burn out the motor. I am not going to replace another motor....when this one stops working I will remove the massage function from the listing description and they can just sleep in a bed like everyone else!

Going that extra yard for your guests is just not worth it!

Cheers.......Rob

[Mike-And-Jane0]

Not sure I care what is normal. We give each guest 1 bath towel plus a hand towel in each bathroom. Only the ABBA tribute band asked for 2 extras for the girls to do their hair. Other than that no complaints whatsoever.

[Lenore22]

One towel set each plus an extra is sufficient and I know a number of hosts who lock away their extra stashes by installing locks on a few cupboards. (The cleaners can still access them easily) it usually only takes 1 guest like the ones @Robin4  describes.

Speaking as a mom, I can tell you that towel usage norms can vary widely even within the same family! Tired of constantly washing linens, I purchased 2 color-coded towel sets for each member of our family several years ago.  And each child was in charge of washing/maintaining their own towels. 1 child was like my husband and I: using one towel set for several days and then switching to to the other set while the other was being washed. 1 of my children probably uses 1 every other or every 2 days  And the youngest uses 1 towel...  maybe 2 (she has long hair) with every shower! All I can say is thank goodness they do their own laundry!

[Laura2592]

@Lenore22 occasionally I have guests that do a load of laundry before they leave. What a treat! 

[Jessica-and-Henry0]

@Laura2592 

I have a memo in the guest bathroom saying that we normally provide 1 bath + 2 hand towels per week, but to please let us know if you need more.

Still, when the weather gets warmer we usually end up providing clean towels (or rather, removing used towels) every 5 days or so because Seoul can get pretty humid during the summer and many people (myself included) end up needing to take 2 short showers every day..... and we don't want our towels to get stinky 😆

[Lenore22]

Good point.  During a crazy heat wave in Barcelona one year, I ended up needing to take AT LEAST 2 showers/day.  And with that level of humidity, the towels never dry in time.  This would surely depend on location.

[Jessica-and-Henry0]

@Lenore22 

Exactly~ imagine what it would have been like if you only had 1 towel to last you an entire week while you were in Barcelona 😱😱😱

[Helen350]

ONE PER WEEK! - But I guess it all depends on how much you charge per night....

 (because I'm only prepared to do ONE load of laundry per booking; 1 set of bedding & 2 towels can all fit in ONE load! - With 2x caps of household disinfectant, so they don't end up smelly, @Jessica-and-Henry0 )

@Laura2592 

[Jessica-and-Henry0]

@Helen350 

The humidity levels in Korea are unbelievable in the summer.....(usually between 80~90%) even laundry hung to dry will sometimes get stinky because it won't dry quickly enough due to the humidity. We often have to turn on fans and/or the dehumidifier when we line dry in our enclosed balcony or indoors (dryers are not common in Korean homes yet).

So a wet towel in the bathroom, even if it is hung properly can end up being stinky very quickly. 

It has nothing to do with disinfectant - which we also add when doing laundry. 

[Helen350]

@Jessica-and-Henry0  Yes we can have the same in the UK; last week we had 92-97% humidity for several days! - 67% at the mo &  my sheets are drying outside for the 6th day in a row! (Lots of 1-nighters!) 🙂

[Jessica-and-Henry0]

@Helen350 

Our minimum stay is 3 nights (sometimes 5) in between long-term stays which are at least 1 month long. For a 1 night stay I'm sure 1 towel is sufficient 😄

[Helen350]

@Jessica-and-Henry0 If they stayed a whole week they'd only get ONE towel, at my prices! 🙂