Tips From a Hotel Worker

That hotel worker being myself.

Use of the Do Not Disturb sign: It's really not there to make other guests act in a responsible manner. Business guests won't bother you, they're trying to get a good night's sleep themselves. The sort of guests most likely to cause a disturbance are families with children, sports teams, and traveling school classes. These people won't heed a Do Not Disturb sign, and hanging one out might actually make you a target for harassment. Often the signs will be pulled off the doors, anyway, and thrown to the floor.

The Do Not Disturb sign is best used during the day to prevent the maid from disturbing you. Bear in mind that if you leave the sign on the door when you leave for the day the maid will NOT clean your room, and this will be noted in the Executive Housekeeper's worksheets, so calling the desk to complain won't really help you (the desk clerk will be happy to furnish fresh towels/linens, but your room won't be cleaned after working hours).