15 Tips to Sleep Better at your Hotel
How to get a good sleep at a hotel
This is my 15 tips to sleep better at your hotel. Which number do you think helps the most? Let me know!
Maybe you’re exhausted from your travels or a night out, or you have to get up super early the next day…
Whatever the reason, sometimes it’s especially important to get a good night sleep.
Sometimes this can be challenging, so I’m here to share with you my 15 tips as a travel blogger who has stayed in some beautiful hotels and more rustic hotels too!
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1. Pack a clip or clothes peg
You could pack clothes pegs or a hair clip, or something like that.
It’s possible that a carabiner could work too.
You know when you’re at a hotel and you close the curtains, but there is a big gap between where the curtains close, or maybe they balloon open at the top.
If this case, I take a peg or a hair clip, then clip the curtains together to close them so the light won’t come in the room as much.
I have had to do this several times. Sometimes it’s because the curtains didn’t close well. Other times it’s because they have a gap at the top of they don’t meet exactly in the middle of the window.
2.Pack a sarong
I always pack a sarong! There are so many ways that I use them.
With so many uses for a sarong, I actually wrote a blog about this very topic!
If you would like to know the many other reasons that you should always pack a sarong, check out 17 Ways to Use a Sarong while travelling.
When I am at a hotel and the curtains are poor, I hang a sarong over top of the curtains.
Maybe they are beige curtains or they are very thin, in these cases the light shines through them very easily.
Maybe you have a combo, which I have had, they are a light colour and they don’t close completely.
This is when I pull out my sarong and drape it over the curtains.
It makes the room darker with that extra layer of cover.
I was recently staying at a hotel, and I had this problem.
There was actually a big street light and a hall lantern outside my window.
I did a test for you. I covered half of the window with a sarong, and I left the other half uncovered.
Check out the difference in the photos below!
I took a picture with the lights on, then turned off the lights so you can see the difference that 1 sarong can really make!
From my experiences, the sarong helped me to get a good sleep even with lights outside of my window.
3. Stick the curtain to the wall
Gently stick the sides of the curtains to the wall, frame or rod.
Please keep in mind to not wreck any wallpaper or paint when doing this.
I would suggest using a type of wall-safe tape that won’t take off the wallpaper or paint.
You could also use a wad of sticky tack to stick the curtain to the wall or to the other curtains.
You could use one of these 2 products to stick the curtains together where they don’t seal close, or to stay closer to the wall.
4. Eye Mask
If you don’t want to worry about the lights of the room an eye mask can help you to block out the lights.
Lights can come from so many sources in a hotel room.
- the TV
- alarm clock
- air conditioning
- tv channel box
- windows
- microwave
- coffeemaker
- peep hole
- bottom of door
- etc.
All of these little sources of light can be distracting and bright.
Using an eye mask will make sure that the lights from the hotel room won’t distract you.
Eye masks are lightweight and easy to pack in your carry-on bag.
5. Ear plugs
Maybe your hotel is close to the lobby or a common area.
I have been to some hotels that are open concept where the common area is in the middle with all the rooms around.
It can get quite noisy.
Or perhaps you just have noisy neighbours.
Ear plugs can help to block out the noises from the late night partiers to the early-rising children playing loudly.
6. Indoor slippers or socks
Maybe where you’re going it’s cold and the floors feel even colder!
Possibly there are cold tile floors…
Having some comfy socks or slippers can help to keep you warm and feeling comfortable while you have your feet on the ground.
It’s nice to keep your feet warm, especially if you get up in the middle of the night to use the washroom.
The last thing that you want is to woken up by a cold floor, then you can’t fall back asleep!
7. Comfy clothes
Packing some super comfy light weight and compact outfit is always a great idea for travelling!
I always make sure that I have comfy clothing for when on the plane, train or any other form of transportation.
I bring some warmer layers for when the air conditioning is very cold and something light and breathable for when it’s hot and humid.
8. Check the pillows
You get to your hotel and you see all these pillows on your bed!
Maybe your bed has 2, 5, or even more pillows on it.
Test them out before you go to sleep. One may be too high, too firm, too soft, and one too flat.
So, be like Goldilocks and find the one that is just right for you!
This way when it’s time to sleep, you’re not tossing and turning and switching pillows to figure out which is best for you.
It’s better to know before, rather than be flipping pillows around as you’re trying to sleep because the pillow is hurting your neck.
9. Fan
Some countries that have have hot and tropical climates have super turbo fans.
Like industrial sized and industrial speed fans!
I have had experiences in hot climates and using a fan on a high speed while I sleep. Sometimes this has caused me to wake up with a dry or sore throat and mouth.
Before you go to bed, check out the settings on the fan which direction is faster and slower.
Then figure which setting is best for you as you sleep.
Maybe your hotel does not have a fan or air conditioning. There are some options for you to keep cool and sleep better.
Maybe it it too hot for you, and this is the reason that you can’t sleep. In this case, I also have a solution.
You can get one of these portable fans that you can put on a table or somewhere to cool you at night.
They are often small and sometimes foldable and can often be charged by USB.
This one has a wrist bracelet to hold on to it. It even has a flashlight if you need to get up in the middle of the night too.
10. Air Conditioning
I like to check where the air conditioner is located and the direction that it blows.
Many air conditioners have a remote control where you can control if it blows in one direction or moves back and forth.
Does it blow directly on your face as you sleep? Test it out: which direction is in air blowing in?
Also, check out the temperature to see what you’re comfortable with.
If you arrive during the day you could test out the air conditioner to see how strong it is and how cold, or not cold, that it is.
I have had experiences where some air conditioners are so strong and I am not sure which direction to change it to so that it’s warmer. This is something that I recommend figuring out before you sleep.
11. Choose a higher floor
If you’re looking to get a quieter night sleep and you’re in a big hotel, choose a higher floor.
It is usually quieter the higher you go.
You’re further away from the streets with bars and people mingling on the streets.
Also, you will be further away from the hotel lobby, which will keep you further from the noises of guests checking in, checking out, and the other noises in the lobby.
Even if you book online, you could call the hotel and request a room on an upper floor.
I know that booking.com has an option to write in any requests, you could write a request for a room on an upper level.
12. Location in town
Be picky with your hotel location if sleep and quiet is a priority for you.
A downtown beachfront party town hotel may not be for you.
I have been there, done that! It has it perks, but also cons.
I recommend looking on google maps to check the surroundings of the hotel before you book.
Use the ‘street view’ mode. You will see the little stick person in the bottom right of the google maps screen. I have an example in the picture below.
I use street view mode to check out the environment of the neighbourhood.
On the left you can see the year of the photos that are shown. Sometimes, I have seen that there are 5 different pictures, you can see how the building has changed or not over the years.
Be sure you are checking out the most recent photo, and note if it’s not up to date too!
As you look is ‘street view’ mode, take a look at what is around the hotel.
Where is it located?
What is beside it or under it? Is there a bar on the main floor of the hotel?
Is it in a night club district, downtown or beachfront area?
I check out the cleanliness and vibe of the neighbourhood.
If sleep is a priority to you, make sure it is in a quieter neighbourhood.
Also, is it by a highway or principal road with a lot of traffic?
These factors can make a difference in the level of noise around the hotel.
13. Location in hotel
Yes, requesting to be up higher in the building can help, but there’s more to it than that.
There are other regular noises in a hotel.
You could request to be in a room that is not close to a laundry room or an ice machine.
Hearing the clinking of ice or rumbling of washing machines or dryers may also be distracting for you.
From my experiences, an important tip for getting a good sleep at a hotel is to ask for a room away from the elevator!
Ding! Hearing the bell every time the elevator arrives at the floor can be enough to keep you up, if you’re close to it.
Let alone the volume of the people that come off the elevator and are waiting for the elevator.
People arriving on red eye flights, drunk people coming back from the bar, children crying, etc…
Lastly, you could ask for a room at the end of a hall. This way you will have less neighbours around you.
There will be less people returning or leaving that have to pass by your door if you’re at the end of a hallway.
14. Check for special events
Sometimes hotels have special events like conferences, weddings, parties, and more.
I recommend calling your hotel and asking if there are any events or conferences in the hotel.
You could also ask if there is a bar attached to the hotel. If there is, is there music playing loudly. Perhaps if there is a bar below the hotel it hosts live bands or is a night club.
Is the hotel holding a convention or conference? This could make it a lot busier and noisier in the hotel.
If there is a wedding at the hotel, it could mean a lot of people partying late at night.
Before booking your hotel, you could call the hotel reception, and ask if there are any special events happening on the dates when you would like to stay at that hotel.
15. Hotel Door Lock
Sometimes people are travelling alone or feel like you want a little extra security to have more peace of mind.
Maybe you are nervous with the surroundings of the hotel or you feel that the locks are not as sufficient as you would like.
You can get a Hotel Door Lock that fits into the hotel door latch.
You could also bring door wedges and put them on the inside of your hotel door.
It will help to keep your door closed a little more securely.
Now that you have learned about how important location is...
Book your hotel in advance as the best quality hotels and locations tend to sell out. Remember to check out the location on google maps to see what is around it.
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Besides being a travel blogger, I am also a travel writer, Amazon author and an English teacher. Check out my services here!
