Dirty Room Service Dishes Left in Hallways

[ocdtraveler]

It makes me crazy to be walking down the hall on my way to my cabin and have to look at the dirty dishes left over from one of my fellow passengers after they've had room service. They don't want to look at their own dirty dishes so they place them out in the hallway for everyone else on their deck to look at. These are the same people who probably drop all their trash in a parking lot when they get out of their car. On a ship they probably think their cabin steward will remove the tray, but he's off duty until 8:00 the next morning. So after a lovely evening on the ship I have to walk past dirty dishes. Not only are they ugly to look at, I'm sure they're a safety hazard. If a fire broke out and passengers were trying to get to safety in a hurry, I'm sure stepping on a try full of dishes would cause a serious problem. Here's one thing that might stop people from doing this. The next time you walk down a hall and see a tray of dirty dishes, knock on the door a few times and then just keep walking. If the people in the cabin stick their head out into the hall and ask why you knocked, tell them it's because they left their dirty dishes outside. If enough of us do this it might just stop the practice. Also, cruise lines might leave a note on the tray or put an announcement in the daily news letter asking passengers not to put their trays in the hallway. Just a suggestion.

[Krazy Kruizers]

Try going down the hallway with a scooter or wheelchair or a rollator when there are trays of dishes on the floor.

I have had terrible times getting by when this happens and my DH isn't with me to help me get by.

[Strophic]

Talk about an overreaction. What do you expect people to do when they ask—on this very forum—"What do I do with my room service dishes?" and multiple people say "Put them in the hall."

 

It's not much of a stretch to think that a cruise newbie sees a large number of trays left by the door and just assumes that that's what you are supposed to do. It doesn't have to be a deep-seated personality flaw, so why don't you take it down a notch?

 

You are taking a small annoyance that has nothing to do with you as a personal attack. People aren't leaving their trays in the hall at you. And knocking on doors, really? Who has time on their vacation to be such a busybody? I don't know about you, but I'm too busy relaxing and enjoying time spent with my loved ones for that kind of nonsense.

[ronrick1943]

Let's be honest, they should be picked up right away. You also have health issues-----if they don't pick-up right away your on the wrong cruise.

[rkacruiser]

OP,

 

Leaving Room Service trays and dirty dishes in the hallway is indeed a safety hazard.

 

On HAL ships, there is a notice from Room Service to call them for removal of the Room Service items. (I think I have seen this on Carnival as well.)

 

As a suggestion, if one sees such items in the hallway, what prevents one from calling Room Service and asking that those items be removed?

[Hey Tina]

To be fair, on Royal it was written somewhere, either on the menu or the food delivery placemat, to call room service for tray removal when you were done. I didn't call. Oops.

[NLH Arizona]

Talk about an overreaction. What do you expect people to do when they ask—on this very forum—"What do I do with my room service dishes?" and multiple people say "Put them in the hall."

 

I think just as many people have said "keep them in your cabin or call Room Service to take them away".

[capriccio]

Try going down the hallway with a scooter or wheelchair or a rollator when there are trays of dishes on the floor.

I have had terrible times getting by when this happens and my DH isn't with me to help me get by.

 

I agree; it most certainly is a safety issue. Even when using a cane it can make walking down the halls difficult, especially when the ship is rocking and rolling. Holding on to a cane in one hand and the hallway railing in the other can require all one's concentration. Dodging trays of dishes and leftover food just creates a more difficult obstacle course.

[mjkacmom]

I don't remember seeing anything on NCL about what to do with the trays. We never order room service, but let's say it's 10 pm, what do you do with it? And please don't knock - several times on our last cruise, some passengers put their dirty trays right in front of OUR cabin!

[tropicalkerry2002]

I have never seen trays left outside in the halls on Oceania, thank God.

I have only ever seen it once, at the Royal York in Toronto, and it was GROSS!

We wouldn't DREAM of putting dirty dishes outside the door...keep it in the room until the next AM!

[bUU]

There is one bit of "traditional cruising" that has to go: Every hall should have a room, open to the passengers and clearly marked, within which the passengers can serve themselves when they are so inclined, a place to leave room service trays, a place to empty trash cans, and a place to get ice.

 

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[tip]

Talk about an overreaction...You are taking a small annoyance that has nothing to do with you as a personal attack. People aren't leaving their trays in the hall at you. And knocking on doors, really? Who has time on their vacation to be such a busybody? I don't know about you, but I'm too busy relaxing and enjoying time spent with my loved ones for that kind of nonsense.

 

Thank you. Very well-said! And for what it is worth, me darling wife and I have been on twenty-six cruises and have often used room service. We have never left our dirty dishes in the hallways.

[DisneyDatknee]

There is one bit of "traditional cruising" that has to go: Every hall should have a room, open to the passengers and clearly marked, within which the passengers can serve themselves when they are so inclined, a place to leave room service trays, a place to empty trash cans, and a place to get ice.

 

This message may have been entered using voice recognition. Please excuse any typos.

 

Well said. Room stewards work very hard and honestly just for things like that, I would love to just be able to do it myself and not have to ask.

[NMLady]

I don't remember seeing anything on NCL about what to do with the trays. We never order room service, but let's say it's 10 pm, what do you do with it? ...

 

You call room service and ask them to send someone to pick up the tray. They're open 24 hours.

 

Or else leave it on your table/shelf for cabin steward in morning.

[GUT2407]

There is one bit of "traditional cruising" that has to go: Every hall should have a room, open to the passengers and clearly marked, within which the passengers can serve themselves when they are so inclined, a place to leave room service trays, a place to empty trash cans, and a place to get ice.

 

This message may have been entered using voice recognition. Please excuse any typos.

I've never understood why there isn't.

 

I guess there must be a reason somewhere.

[DaKa2002]

Same thing often happens in hotels, even some very nice hotels.

 

Simple solution, even if the dishes are not yours - a call to room service with the referenced room number will almost always get it taken care of.

[queenfrostine22]

Having been touched by the OCD fairy myself, I have on a cruise or two, washed the plates and such in the bathroom sink, dried them with a washcloth and left them somewhere in my own room for the room steward to take the next time he or she comes in. However, I am not the guardian of the dirty dishes for the rest of the cruisers. Who am I to judge.:)

[klfrodo]

Considering most hotels and cruise lines, if asked, tell you to put the dishes in the hallway and call room service to pick them up.

 

I'll continue to put my room service dishes in the hallway.

If the staff doesn't pick them up in a timely manner to suit your desire,,, too bad, so sad.

[Scottishmum40]

I put my hands up, I put my tray outside my cabin door! I thought this was the expected thing to do!

 

I worked in hotels for years and it was expected that our guests would leave their trays outside their hotel room doors for staff to collect.

 

I thought I was being polite to my room steward by putting them outside for room service to collect, rather than expecting him/her to do it. Who knew?!

 

 

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[GUT2407]

Considering most hotels and cruise lines, if asked, tell you to put the dishes in the hallway and call room service to pick them up.

 

I'll continue to put my room service dishes in the hallway.

If the staff doesn't pick them up in a timely manner to suit your desire,,, too bad, so sad.

 

 

But apparently doing as asked is somehow wrong.

:o:evilsmile::loudcry:

[cb at sea]

Folks will do as they choose, regardless of requests from management, apparently. In hotels, EVERYONE puts their dirty stuff in the hall. Ships usually have narrower hallways, and it's rude....but 97% of cruisers aren't on Cruise Critic, and don't know any better.

[OCruisers]

Some cruise lines (Carnival for one) actually TELL you to but your used trays in the hall.

On RCCL (Oasis) the same. Gosh, people must have liked room service because the hallway from our cabin to the elevator was FULL of trays.

[bUU]

If the cruise line doesn't say anything, then it isn't really "knowing better"... It is just knowing what some people on CC prefer.

.

[rkacruiser]

There is one bit of "traditional cruising" that has to go: Every hall should have a room, open to the passengers and clearly marked, within which the passengers can serve themselves when they are so inclined, a place to leave room service trays, a place to empty trash cans, and a place to get ice.

 

This message may have been entered using voice recognition. Please excuse any typos.

 

Forgive me, but I disagree with this view. Particularly with your suggestion of obtaining ice; another opportunity for an undesirable "bug" to be spread.

 

I stand by my previous post. How much time and cost does it take to call Room Service, inform them that there is a tray/dishes outside Stateroom # whatever. Please remove them.

[bUU]

How much time and cost does it take to call Room Service, inform them that there is a tray/dishes outside Stateroom # whatever. Please remove them.

Do people assume that every tray they see in the hall is one for which the patron didn't call room service to have it retrieved? Or is there some kind of special glow that a tray has when the call has been made, which is missing when the call has not been made?

 

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