Overall, most travelers feel safe when staying at hotels but a new survey from Carlson Wagonlit Travel (CWT) says that many U.S. travelers would sacrifice their sense of safety to continue earning loyalty points.
Specifically, three in 10 travelers around the world responded that they were happy to sacrifice safety for hotel loyalty and rewards incentives according to research commissioned by CWT. Travelers in the U.S. are most likely to do so of all travelers in the Americas region (47 percent), followed by Brazilians (41 percent) and travelers from Canada (34 percent).
Business travelers were even more willing to give up a feeling of safety in order to earn points. Forty-seven percent of U.S. travelers traveling for work said they would choose points over personal safety. That was the highest percentage in the Americas region.
"Clearly, travelers are very focused on their hotel loyalty points-they will go to great lengths to get those benefits," said David Falter, president, RoomIt by CWT.
This definitely is something that travel managers need to monitor.
"The challenge for travel managers is to ensure people don't go off-program in search of points," Falter pointed out. "The safety of travelers should be the top priority in any travel program."
What makes travelers feel unsafe in hotels? Just one-third of business travelers from the U.S. expressed concerns about safety at hotels but that was more than travelers from Canada (25 percent) and travelers from Mexico (23 percent).
Disruptive guests were the most common cause for feeling unsafe among U.S. business travelers-46 percent, but nearly half of U.S. travelers were also concerned about an intruder breaking into the room (44 percent).
Globally, the most common safety issue revolved around privacy. Two in five travelers were concerned about their room keys or information being given to the wrong person. This was a concern of about 37 percent of business travelers from the U.S.
There are many ways to ensure you stay safe at a hotel. Many travelers noted that they keep their doors locked and take their room keys out of folders that hold them and display the room number.
Falter noted that there are other actions hotel guests can take, too.
"While most hotel rooms lock automatically, a number of solutions available on the market can provide an added layer of security," said Falter. "Items such as door wedges, portable door locks and travel door alarms can help a traveler secure their room more effectively."
Many people also believe certain floors of a hotel are safer than others.
More than a quarter of U.S. business travelers surveyed (29 percent) said that they stay on a higher floor if possible. Twenty-one percent opt for a lower floor and 32 percent avoid staying on the ground floor.
"Security experts typically advise staying between the third and sixth floors, where it becomes difficult for an intruder to break in, but you're still within reach of most fire departments' ladders," noted Falter.
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