Woman calls out friend for stealing hotel towels from room: 'That's theft'

Dec 13, 2023

By Kristine Tarbert | 3 weeks ago

One of the best things about staying in a hotel room is not having to worry about making the bed or doing your own laundry.

But it seems some guests are taking this privilege one step further, by taking home 'souvenirs' from their stay.

One woman on TikTok questioned the practice of taking things from hotel rooms when she found out her friend had a habit of taking the room towels.

Téja Renée (@tejarenee) admitted she's been known to keep the slippers, but thought taking the towels should be considered theft. And the questions sparked a bit of a debate.

Watch the clip above

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"I was talking to my friend about when you go to a hotel, I always take slippers and then they said they take the slippers, the shower gels, and the towels," she explained.

"I was like, 'no, if you take the towels that's theft, you're actually stealing, you can't take towels'.

"They asked why it was different to take the slippers than it is to take the towels.

"I'm saying that taking slippers is different to taking towels. Taking the little things from the shower is different to taking the towels.

She added: "Can we all just agree that it's not the same thing and taking the towels is actually theft? I just need someone to be on my side."

The clip received thousands of views and for the most part, people seemed to agree taking the towels was a step too far.

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"I wouldn't expect the slippers to be reused but the towels are," one person commented.

"Agree. The towels would be reused. The rest wouldn't," another said.

While a third wrote: "Something that can be reused is theft."

A few, however, didn't see the problem.

"I have a towel from most destinations I've been to – it's not theft, it's souvenirs," one admitted.

According to the Huffington Post, the average hotel loses 10 to 20 per cent of its linens per month.

A Quora thread a few years back asked the question about what would happen if you took the towels. And while some said likely nothing as it can sometimes be hard to track lost towels. Others said you risk getting charged for the missing item.

"They will charge it to your credit card. That is why they have you use a credit card to reserve the room. I left with a towel from a hotel and they charged me," one person said.

Indeed, some hotels have actually started putting tiny tracking tags on their towels, robes and bed sheets, or offering the items for purchase like a hotel gift shop.

As Flight Centre explained: linen and towels are a no. "Curtains, pillows, sheets, robes... Keep those sticky fingers at bay around these items. Only when you are staying on a champagne budget do the robes become take-home tokens. The slippers, however, are yours to keep."

As for the toiletries – have at it!

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