Can you take the robe from a hotel?

Hotel Etiquette: What You Can Take Home

Most hotels want you to feel at home in your room. From complimentary pens to soaps and shampoos, they will fill it with nice things to make your stay all the more comfortable.

You might be tempted to take some of these things home with you. Certain items, like the complimentary shampoo, are given to you and are perfectly fine to pack in your carry-on. Other items belong to the hotel; if you get caught stealing these, you may have to pay a fine.

So before you start stuffing your suitcase with goodies, take a minute to learn what you can and what you cannot grab from your hotel room.

What You Can Take From a Hotel Room

Anything that's complimentary is free for you to snag. This includes the mini bottles of shampoo, conditioner, body lotion, coffee, packets of creamer and sugar, and other bathroom amenities. The slippers will get thrown away after you leave, so it's fine if you want to pack them away for later use. Stationery, pens, notepaper, postcards, and envelopes are also a gift to you—and because they carry their logo, hotels consider these free advertisement.

What You Cannot Take From a Hotel Room

Guests often take towels, irons, hairdryers, pillows, and blankets, according to the housekeeping department at Hilton Kingston. Cable boxes, clock radios, paintings, ashtrays, light bulbs, TV remote controls—even the Bible—are commonly stolen as well. However, all of these items belong to the hotel and are meant to stay in the room.

Bathrobes, for the most part, should be left behind as well. Many hotels do launder them for the next guest—but in some higher-end hotels, a guest may be given a monogrammed robe as a gift.

When in doubt whether something is complimentary (and therefore okay to pack), you can call the front desk to double check.

Other Items Commonly Stolen From Hotels

At the Hilton Curacao, guests will often take the mugs that come with breakfast up to their rooms so they can "finish their coffee." In reality, these mugs are so popular that they disappear daily, despite being available in the gift shop.

A housekeeping manager at the Sheraton Chicago Hotel and Towers also confirmed that their signature "S" crest white pillows and robes often disappear, along with the new coffee makers. Since both the pillows and robes are hotel property, they are not meant to be taken, either.

Consequences of Taking Hotel Property

If you take something from your hotel room, you can expect an extra charge on your bill. Robes and towels are so commonly stolen that many hotels now list the charge right on the hanger; they will automatically bill the credit card they have on file for the extra cost of replacing these items.

Robert Thrailkill, the General Manager of the Conrad Miami, once said:

"A guest room should feel like a home away from home. If the guest enjoys something enough to want to take it home with them, they are welcome to do so, but at a charge. We give guests the option to purchase the items that they are fond of, with everything from the 700 thread count linens and mattresses to the Conrad Miami signature terrycloth and waffle robes."

In some countries, including Nigeria, hotel guests have faced jail time for stealing items such as towels. Again, it's best to be cautious and ask reception if you are unsure whether something is complimentary—especially when you are traveling in a foreign country and are unfamiliar with the laws.

How to Turn Your Room Into a Hotel Suite

If you are itching to take something home with you, many hotels have online stores, ideal for anyone who's dreamed of transforming their bedroom oasis into a hotel suite. On these sites, you can purchase all your favorite items from the hotel, from their plush towels and 700-thread-count sheets to their lamps, shower heads, and beds. Whether you're a fan of Hilton's Serenity bed or the Mariott's canvas art and scent diffusers, you don't have to leave the life of luxury behind when you come back home.

The best part of all? Everything is brand new and you don't have to worry about fitting it all in your suitcase.

They say there's no such thing as a free lunch but, when it comes to hotels, we want to have our complimentary coffee pods and drink them too!

Slip that plastic key into the door and suddenly self-respecting people become obsessed with tiny bottles of conditioner and wafer-thin shower caps. They lose sight of their objectivity and forget about the normal world that exists without mini-bars.

There's a clearly defined line between what you can and can't take from hotel rooms. If you're a little hazy on the fine print, this list should keep you on the straight, narrow and well conditioned.

Nobody is going to blink if you shove a few soaps in your toiletries bag, but pilfering the bible means your moral compass probably needs adjusting.

NO: Linen & Towels

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.

Let sleeping towels lie. (Image: Getty)

According to the Huffington Post, the average hotel loses 10 to 20 per cent of its linens per month. Some hotels have actually started putting tiny tracking tags on their towels, robes and bedsheets, or offering the items for purchase like a hotel gift shop.

Also, they have your credit card on file and I'm guessing that well-used towel isn't worth what they're going to charge you. Fluffy towels are hard to resist, but investing in some fabric softener back home should see you right.

YES: Toiletries

I once found a hotel moisturiser I liked so much I collected four bottles in one night, and lived to tell the tale. Seriously though, the MALIN + GOETZ products at QT Hotels are divine.

Gotta catch 'em all. TOILETRIES! (Image: Getty)

Toiletries are fair game. They're disposable and can't be used by the next guests. Shampoo, conditioner, lotions, soaps... go for it.

Raiding the housekeeper's cart is generally frowned upon, unless you're pinching extra milk and tea (guilty) or like living on the edge.

NO: Appliances

One in five Brits admitted to pinching the kettle from their hotel room. Is there nothing those people won't for a cup of tea??

Who even has room in their luggage for a kettle? (Image: Getty)

Hair dryers, TVs, remotes, and lamps are a firm no. If a friend came to visit and nicked your bedside lamp, that would probably be a pretty short-lived friendship. Though I guess you wouldn't be charging your friend for the privilege of a sleepover.

Some hotels nail or padlock their appliances to the room. The others are trusting you to be a grown up.

YES: Stationery

Hotels brand these amenities in the hopes that you WILL take them. Pull out a Hilton pen or a Shangri-La pad and you've got an instant conversation starter and hopefully some positive word-of-mouth for the hotel.

Save the trees. Steal the notepad. (Image: Getty)

Working in the travel industry, our drawers are full of pens from hotels all over the world. This is one of my favourite pseudo-souvenirs. In front of me right now I have pens from QT, Pullman, Carnival Cruises, Travelodge and Novotel, and they each tell a story of happy times on land and at sea.

NO: Artwork, batteries, lightbulbs, door signs, crockery

Do you really need that generic landscape print? Are you that hard up for a pre-used light bulb or half-drained battery? This is shady territory and I won't have any part of it.

It's a sign! Leave it. (Image: Getty)

Put down the clock radio and step away from the coffee maker. Also, if you don't know by now that most of your mini-bar comes at a cost, you've probably already had one too many tiny tequilas.

Weirdest items stolen from hotels:

• A $300,000 Andy Warhol print from the W Hong Kong
• A Grand Piano from a Starwood Hotel
• A suit of armour from a Best Western
• A marble fireplace from the Four Seasons Beverly Hills
• A mini-bar fridge and sofa from a 5-star hotel in Dubai
• An entire dinnerware set from the Franklin Hotel
• 'Adult' toys from The Residence in Bath

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