Hotel Door Alarms (was: Locks?)

[LaurenRose]

Curious question.

I belong to a women's travel group. The subject of hotel security comes up often.

Some women carry door wedges and alarms and additional locks to further secure the doors on their rooms while on travel.

Other women argue that this is unwise since if they were having a medical emergency and could not reach the door, emergency responders
would be unable to reach them due to the extra door devices.

Opinions as to using additional door security?

[stan1]

Personally I do not. For one, I don't want to carry extra items with me.

But I also think the "swing bar" and peephole on most US hotel doors is sufficient.

If someone unexpectedly knocks on the door don't open it.

Other safety precautions:
One can choose a hotel that has indoor hallways and an access restricted elevator (preferably by floor). A ground floor unit in a drive up motel has less security.

Don't wear jewelry or display signs of wealth. Don't drink alcohol. In general be low key.

I don't think you need to worry about a criminal using a police style battering ram on the door unless you have a lot of money.

[adamthesmythe]

Seems to me it depends on your assessment of the relative risks of room invasion and medical emergency.

I have seen some (set from inside) hotel locks that appear to me to be very robust. Not the kind with a chain but the ones with a steel flap.

Another thing to consider is the ease of evacuation in the event of fire. I can imagine a situation where occupants are sufficiently excited that they forget about how many locks there are and how they are operated.

[sherwink]

Twenty years ago I stayed on the beach at a Key West FL beachfront Hotel. When I opened the sliding door to the beach, I noticed there was no locking mechanism to the door--it was gone. I haven't been back since.

[bob60014]

Keep in mind that 99.5 percent (+ or -) of all travelers have zero issues regarding security. The other .5 percent (+ or -) that make the news, blogs, internet, review sites, etc....sound the alarms. As always, use common sense and be aware of your surroundings.

[truenorth418]

I travel a great deal and mostly stay in hotels.

If the safety and security of a place were so bad that even the various, multiple locks provided on the hotel doors were not enough to protect me, I would not travel to such a place.

[5oh!Investor]

Full-time big city cop here, FWIW.

You are correct, portable travel door reinforcement tools hinder the ability of an officer/EMS/firefighter to get to you in the event of an emergency.

Imagine the following: you’re on the top floor of a big hotel and have a medical emergency. Consider a 3-5 minute response time from first responders, 2-3 minutes to get to your floor and room, 1-2 minutes to realize you can’t make it to the door and need use to force entry, 3-5 minutes for the rookie to go back downstairs to get a key made, 2-3 minutes for the officer to make it back upstairs to your room only to find out the door is barricaded, another 3-5 minutes for the rookie firefighter to go downstairs to grab the entry tools, and finally 2-3 minutes defeating those devices.

On the long end you’re looking at possibly 25 minutes to get to you in the event of an emergency, even if everyone is rushing. I don’t want to be alarmist, but these things really do happen in real life.

I like door jamb alarms, like this, that don’t stop entry but deter criminal activity.

If a bad guy really tries to force your door, the alarm goes off and wakes up you and everyone on the floor and usually sends the bad guy backing in a hurry.

[AnnetteLouisan]

Read The Gift of Fear by Lundy Bancroft. It’s about situational awareness.

[Johm221122]

There are three locks on are doors. Your extremely safe as long as you use all three.
Basic door lock
Electronic lock(doesn't allow electronic keys to work except grand master)
Door latch (very hard to open even for us without waking you up)

[Silverado]

But I also think the "swing bar" and peephole on most US hotel doors is sufficient.

If someone unexpectedly knocks on the door don't open it.

This what my spouse does when traveling alone (and I do, and of course when together we do).

I don’t even answer my home door when it is unexpected. Which basically means it’s never answered unless the UPS person needs to hand me a wine shipment.

[bampf]

I travel a great deal and mostly stay in hotels.

If the safety and security of a place were so bad that even the various, multiple locks provided on the hotel doors were not enough to protect me, I would not travel to such a place.

The door secondary locks are mostly for show. You can defeat the chain, flap or bar generally with the do not disturb card. Youtube has dozens of videos.

I wouldn't stay in a hotel where I felt like I needed more than those. I agree with you except for the notion that the secondary locks are any good.

[Johm221122]

Full-time big city cop here, FWIW.

You are correct, portable travel door reinforcement tools hinder the ability of an officer/EMS/firefighter to get to you in the event of an emergency.

Imagine the following: you’re on the top floor of a big hotel and have a medical emergency. Consider a 3-5 minute response time from first responders, 2-3 minutes to get to your floor and room, 1-2 minutes to realize you can’t make it to the door and need use to force entry, 3-5 minutes for the rookie to go back downstairs to get a key made, 2-3 minutes for the officer to make it back upstairs to your room only to find out the door is barricaded, another 3-5 minutes for the rookie firefighter to go downstairs to grab the entry tools, and finally 2-3 minutes defeating those devices.

On the long end you’re looking at possibly 25 minutes to get to you in the event of an emergency, even if everyone is rushing. I don’t want to be alarmist, but these things really do happen in real life.

I like door jamb alarms, like this, that don’t stop entry but deter criminal activity.

If a bad guy really tries to force your door, the alarm goes off and wakes up you and everyone on the floor and usually sends the bad guy backing in a hurry.

That 25 minutes is at best,in my experience it has been longer

[jabberwockOG]

Full-time big city cop here, FWIW.

You are correct, portable travel door reinforcement tools hinder the ability of an officer/EMS/firefighter to get to you in the event of an emergency.

Imagine the following: you’re on the top floor of a big hotel and have a medical emergency. Consider a 3-5 minute response time from first responders, 2-3 minutes to get to your floor and room, 1-2 minutes to realize you can’t make it to the door and need use to force entry, 3-5 minutes for the rookie to go back downstairs to get a key made, 2-3 minutes for the officer to make it back upstairs to your room only to find out the door is barricaded, another 3-5 minutes for the rookie firefighter to go downstairs to grab the entry tools, and finally 2-3 minutes defeating those devices.

On the long end you’re looking at possibly 25 minutes to get to you in the event of an emergency, even if everyone is rushing. I don’t want to be alarmist, but these things really do happen in real life.

I like door jamb alarms, like this, that don’t stop entry but deter criminal activity.

If a bad guy really tries to force your door, the alarm goes off and wakes up you and everyone on the floor and usually sends the bad guy backing in a hurry.

Excellent advice.

I would add that anyone staying in a hotel should always have a small but powerful flashlight on the nightstand - something with a minimum of 1000+ lumens. These types of flashlights can be a little expensive but can last a lifetime.

In case of emergency a small powerful flashlight can be invaluable - to light your way, to signal your presence to responders, or in the case of self defense, shining a powerful blinding light into intruder's eyes.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00MBP5MCS/re ... s9dHJ1ZQ==



https://www.amazon.com/dp/B096JQH2RC/re ... NrPXRydWU=

[nguy44]

The standard hotel door security is fine. What may be more important is ensuring the front desk never, ever gets convinced by someone else to give them your room number or (worse) copy of room key. As well as "situational awareness" mentioned above, like making sure no one is following you going back to your room.

[ResearchMed]

Read The Gift of Fear by Lundy Bancroft. It’s about situational awareness.

I didn't know there were two books by that name.

I'm familiar with "The Gift of Fear" by Gavin de Becker.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gavin_de_Becker

RM

[Cruise]

Read The Gift of Fear by Lundy Bancroft. It’s about situational awareness.

Never heard of her. THE book "The Gift of Fear" was written by Gavin de Becker back in 1997. A classic.

-----------
Edit--Saw RM beat me to it.

[EnjoyIt]

When my spouse travels alone, she sleeps with a handgun on her nightstand. If we are together my handgun is on my nightstand.

When we travel to a state that doesn’t have reciprocity with ours we don’t do anything illegal and just take our chances.

[Doctor Rhythm]

This is the first time I’ve heard of people adding further security to a hotel door. This situation seems ripe for unintended consequences. Fear of exceptionally rare crimes makes you take actions that actually cause more harm than good, whether it’s barricading yourself during a medical emergency or shooting the maid who enters your room accidentally.

[THY4373]

I am male so a different situation than females but I have been to 55 countries and probably 30+ states and counting and honestly I don't let headlines drive my risk decisions. The most dangerous things most of us do when travelling is get in a car (this is especially true in some countries overseas). Obviously pay attention to your situation (I'll have to check out that book), generally keep a low profile, avoid getting intoxicated, understand the country you are in. When I am in "riskier" countries I generally stay at nicer hotels which generally have better security. The vast majority of travelers will have absolutely no issues.

Since I travel very light I don't carry any additional security measures with me. Though I do keep a backup cell phone, cash, credit cards and ATM card with me in case I am mugged or lose my primary ones.

I should add that with a few exceptions where logistics get complicated, I travel by myself (1 in 3 trips I go with my son) and use public transportation within the country.

[SmileyFace]

Stay in the better hotels they have cameras in the hallways and security personnel. If they are in a major city there also may be no way of getting up to your floor without a key. Nothing is fullproof and perhaps you are traveling to places without decent hotels - but if I need to barricade myself in my room I don't want to be in that city/area anyway (since I would be more likely to be harmed when I left my room anyway).
Carry pepper spray if legal in your location - leave where you can reach it at night.

[wilked]

Hotel rooms almost always have a narrow hallway leading into a larger space. When my spouse travels alone she always secures a thin but strong tripwire to that hallway before going to bed. This is in addition to having a can of pepper spray on the nightstand. You can use large thumbtacks to attach to the walls, it leaves a hole so small that it is unnoticeable. In the event of an intruder they would inevitably trip over the tripwire and give the victim extra time to react / use the pepper spray.

[JPH]

I don't know the solution but I know of dangerous incidents.

Once I didn't check the room number before entering what I thought was my room. I immediately noticed it wasn't my room and left. When I reported it to the front desk they admitted that they were having problems with programming key cards so were temporarily giving everyone a passkey card. So everybody could freely enter every room.

In another incident, one of my grad students pretended to be asleep while an intruder quietly entered her room and rummaged through her stuff. There was no break-in; they must have had a key.

[nisiprius]

I've been struck by how stupid I get in an emergency. (Even when I was younger!) For example, we've had fires small enough that it was sensible to use an extinguisher, and it amazing how hard it can be to get the thing out of the bracket, or break the designed-to-break plastic band securing the pin, etc.

I would be leery of anything making a door confusing to open.

[LaurenRose]

Thank you for the feedback. I am most appreciative of the info provided by 5oh! investor - you have given me a great tip to use a door alarm versus extra lock. I will be looking into that right now.

For all those who have complete confidence in lodging door security - appears to me you might be fortunate to never travel as female, never traveled in areas where crime is higher than average or or traveled in some independently owned lodging with dicey security features. Keep on your four and five star hotels and safest locations lucky you.

[EnjoyIt]

This is the first time I’ve heard of people adding further security to a hotel door. This situation seems ripe for unintended consequences. Fear of exceptionally rare crimes makes you take actions that actually cause more harm than good, whether it’s barricading yourself during a medical emergency or shooting the maid who enters your room accidentally.

Anyone who doesn’t train on using their firearm should not carry a fire arm. That includes tactical training. Although I carry a firearm, I would not recommend just anyone do the same.

Your straw man example of shooting the maid by accident sounds scary. But that is all it is scare mongering. Lots of people sleep with a firearm by their side in hotels. I have yet to see a slew of accidental maid shootings. Maybe your example is unrealistic. Accidents with guns happen, but they occur with those who are untrained and don’t respect the firearm. Guns don’t go off on their own.

[ScubaHogg]

Thank you for the feedback. I am most appreciative of the info provided by 5oh! investor - you have given me a great tip to use a door alarm versus extra lock. I will be looking into that right now.

For all those who have complete confidence in lodging door security - appears to me you might be fortunate to never travel as female, never traveled in areas where crime is higher than average or or traveled in some independently owned lodging with dicey security features. Keep on your four and five star hotels and safest locations lucky you.

I’m curious if you have any data on hotel room invasions?

Personally, I travel a lot (as a male) and my assessment is the safest place I virtually ever am is in my hotel room (which granted, are generally nice hotels with interior entrances). I’d be much more concerned out and about. For instance, once in my younger days I am 99% sure I drank a roofied drink that was intended for my female friend. Luckily nothing happened other than an unpleasant night and morning. Stuff like that and random street crime is more concerning than someone identifying my room and gaining entry past the imperfect but not-nothing set of locks and without alerting a lot of people

[THY4373]

For all those who have complete confidence in lodging door security - appears to me you might be fortunate to never travel as female, never traveled in areas where crime is higher than average or or traveled in some independently owned lodging with dicey security features. Keep on your four and five star hotels and safest locations lucky you.

Other than not traveling as a female which I fully acknowledge is different the rest of your assumptions are wrong about my travel. We just all have different risk assessments and tolerances. I am not going to let fear of what might happen ruin me seeing the world. One day it might bite me in the backside but so far it hasn't. But zero judgement from me to anybody who assesses things differently.

[LittleMaggieMae]

There seems to be a lot of fear involved with traveling. Maybe it's the places people are traveling too and the types of hotels/inns/bnbs/hostels people are staying in?

I can't imaging staying at a "Brand Name" hotel in any Big City or vacation get away area in America by myself and needing to add extra security to the hotel room door or needing to sleep with a handgun on the night stand. I can't imagine doing any of this even at a typical motel/hotel along a highway in America.

I haven't really travelled much outside the US - but it's always been to other big cities or "inclusive resorts" and the hotels have always felt safe and had quite a bit of security.

Now this doesn't mean I leave any of my belongings in my vehicle in the hotel parking garage or the parking lot. I can totally see my vehicle being broken into - it's kind of a theft of opportunity. But that just seems like common sense to me.


OK, if you are afraid that someone will break into your room WHILE you are in it.... are you also afraid that when you return to your room someone will have already broken in and is waiting for you? When you aren't there - the intruder just needs to get past the "basic" lock on the room door?
How do those of you who are afraid deal with that???


ADDED: and how do you deal with getting into a vehicle every day? It must be terrifying to have to do it. 100 people a day die in vehicle accidents in America. That doesn't include the people who are seriously hurt. Yet, no one seems overly concerned about getting in a vehicle nearly everyday... The illusion of personal safety that we all carry within us is an interesting thing...

[quantAndHold]

I traveled as a solo female for work for 20 years, in multiple countries. Most hotels I stayed in had more effective security than my house. Stronger doors, better locks, no windows at ground level, kept solo women on their own floors, etc. The biggest issue when traveling was always maintaining situational awareness *outside* the hotel. Things like not getting roofied at the bar, not getting hit by a car coming from the “wrong” direction when walking around London jet lagged, having to fend off a male work colleague, in the office, in Israel…that kind of thing. Hotels are the safe zone.

[halfnine]

On a few occassions I have pushed my bed up against the door as a precautionary measure. Also I aim to be off the ground floor. Ideally the second floor.

See here for some hacks for those looking for additional security measures in a typical type hotel room.

[Boglegirl81]

I spend a lot of nights on the road with work. I don’t use any extra locks for security, but we stay in full service Hilton/Marriott brand hotels in nice areas so I always feel very safe. We do not stay in hotels with outside rooms.

[homebuyer6426]

Thank you for the feedback. I am most appreciative of the info provided by 5oh! investor - you have given me a great tip to use a door alarm versus extra lock. I will be looking into that right now.

For all those who have complete confidence in lodging door security - appears to me you might be fortunate to never travel as female, never traveled in areas where crime is higher than average or or traveled in some independently owned lodging with dicey security features. Keep on your four and five star hotels and safest locations lucky you.

I’m curious if you have any data on hotel room invasions?

Personally, I travel a lot (as a male) and my assessment is the safest place I virtually ever am is in my hotel room (which granted, are generally nice hotels with interior entrances). I’d be much more concerned out and about. For instance, once in my younger days I am 99% sure I drank a roofied drink that was intended for my female friend. Luckily nothing happened other than an unpleasant night and morning. Stuff like that and random street crime is more concerning than someone identifying my room and gaining entry past the imperfect but not-nothing set of locks and without alerting a lot of people

I traveled as a solo female for work for 20 years, in multiple countries. Most hotels I stayed in had more effective security than my house. Stronger doors, better locks, no windows at ground level, kept solo women on their own floors, etc. The biggest issue when traveling was always maintaining situational awareness *outside* the hotel. Things like not getting roofied at the bar, not getting hit by a car coming from the “wrong” direction when walking around London jet lagged, having to fend off a male work colleague, in the office, in Israel…that kind of thing. Hotels are the safe zone.

Yes. The hotel is not generally the place you are most at risk. Of course there are always exceptions.

I have slept in literal "roach motels" in bad parts of some of the most dangerous cities, where the attendant would glare at you when you asked for a room.

Be careful in the street, and in and around public transportation.

[LaurenRose]

I’m curious if you have any data on hotel room invasions?

yes, personal.

two experiences - one a friend, one a family member and numerous reports in travel groups. I don't need more - you may, we each assess risk personally, often based on circumstances, past and present.

now let's see how many more angels we can get to dance on the head of this pin lol.

I like the earlier comment here from the city cop on a door alarm. That seems reasonable.

[SmileyFace]

For all those who have complete confidence in lodging door security

I just went back and reread all the posts - I am somehow missing all the posts from people who made a statement about having this "complete confidence".

[MarkBarb]

It's hard to lock out hotel staff or savvy invaders. The old style room key locks (the ones where you put your key in a slot) are known to be extremely easy to hack.

The swing bars aren't any better. We tried to check into a room recently and couldn't get the door open because the swing bar was somehow already in place. Someone from the front desk came up with a tool and unlatched the swing bar in 2 seconds.

I once returned to my hotel feeling sick and without my wallet or room key (both of which I had left in my room). It was easy to convince the desk staff to give me a key to my room. That was almost 20 years ago, but I'm sure that social engineering still works.

I once had photography equipment stolen from inside a cabinet in the inner room of a 2-room suite with the outer door locked. Was it by the cleaning staff? My guess is that they opened the door and a thief walked in. The hotel was able to establish that only the cleaning staff had opened the door, but that was it. Now we put the "do not disturb" sign on our door and leave it for the duration of our stay. I'd rather that nobody open my door even if it means doing my own housekeeping. Although I've been told that, after the Las Vegas shooting, hotels will sometimes check in on your room anyway if you try this.

It's a gamble. You've got to guard against what you perceive to be the biggest threat. For me, my fear is getting items stolen from my room, so I put my energy in that direction. I think that I would be more concerned about egress in an emergency more than trying to hold off someone breaking into my room, but that's just me.

[truenorth418]

I travel a great deal and mostly stay in hotels.

If the safety and security of a place were so bad that even the various, multiple locks provided on the hotel doors were not enough to protect me, I would not travel to such a place.

The door secondary locks are mostly for show. You can defeat the chain, flap or bar generally with the do not disturb card. Youtube has dozens of videos.

I wouldn't stay in a hotel where I felt like I needed more than those. I agree with you except for the notion that the secondary locks are any good.

That makes sense. And also the hotel security and lobby personnel also play a factor no? And elevators that only allow room key access?

So much more than just the door lock to consider.

[AnnetteLouisan]

Barking up the wrong tree with this in my opinion. There’s so much more to be afraid of with travel than this.

1. Takeoff and landing
2. Taxi rides
3. Food poisoning
4. Lack of rights to habeas corpus in the jurisdiction
5. Hijacking
6. Dark streets
7. Mistaken identity
8. Mugging
9. false arrest
10. Detention by a foreign authority
11. That charming stranger
12. Misplacing your money
13. Lost or expired passport
14. Civil disturbances
15. Becoming ill without medical access in your language

Really, door security I’ve never given a thought to and I’ve traveled widely and am a woman last I checked. My solution is fly on good airlines, stay in good hotels and don’t flash your wealth, don’t drink to excess and keep alert.

[LadyGeek]

I removed an off-topic post and reply. As a reminder, see: General Etiquette

At all times we must conduct ourselves in a respectful manner to other posters. Attacks on individuals, insults, name calling, trolling, baiting or other attempts to sow dissension are not acceptable.

[cs412a]

OP, I don't feel the need for extra security when I travel. But I'm not you, and I can't tell you how to feel. I'm glad you were able to get a response that was helpful.

This seems to be one of those Boglehead threads. You know:

Looking for a dog with a calm temperament. Response: Have you considered a goldfish?
I switched from coffee to tea. Response: That's nuts! Coffee is way better than tea.

Not going there for the threads starting "I earn $300,000 annually and have 5 million in assets at the age of 40. Worried about the future." Fortunately, I don't have that problem

And, I admit it, I am that charming stranger. But also perfectly harmless, I swear.

[erp]

And, I admit it, I am that charming stranger. But also perfectly harmless, I swear.

That's a bit like a bank president telling you to "stay calm, no need to panic"

I just read an article a week ago about a couple of hotel chains being sued for giving out keys to strangers who then raped some guests. I remember it because one woman was able to slam the door while the guy was trying to undo that latch thing and cut off his fingers. That bought back images of "Phantasm" and "Panic Room" which are difficult to ignore.

I agree that if the OP has 2 direct friends that had break-ins, that's enough for her to want to take precautions. eg I've never had my car broken into, but know several that have, so I never leave anything in my car.