A YouTuber has warned hotel guests to remove the bed runner from their bed as soon as they check in, citing hygiene concerns and accumulated dirt.
In a video on his YouTube channel sblga, which has 61,000 subscribers, the creator explained why the decorative strip of fabric sits at the foot of the bed and why frequent travellers take it off straight away.
Why the bed runner is there
Regarding its purpose, he remarked: "That strip of cloth across your hotel bed. Is it just for looks? Mostly, yeah, but not only."
He continued: "It is there because hotel beds are white, all of them. White can be washed really hot and bleached, and you can see the stain right way. But a plain white bed looks boring. Bed runner adds colour. Change one strip of clothe and the whole room looks different."
The bed runner is therefore present largely to enhance the room's visual appeal, with a vibrant colour such as red or blue contrasting against the white bedding.
Dirt and bacteria concerns
He added: "Think what you do when you walk into a hotel room. You throw your bag on the bed, you sit down to relax a little bit, still have your shoes on, and all of that happens at the bottom end. The runner is still there."
"It takes dirt so the white colour doesn't. Okay, now think about that. Sheets get changed for every guest. The runner usually doesn't. A lot of hotels wash them now and then. That's why people who travel a lot take it off the bed first thing."
The suggestion is that because the bed runner is not laundered as frequently as the sheets, it is more prone to collecting dirt and bacteria from previous guests' luggage and possessions.
Housekeeping manager's advice
sblga is not the only person to have discussed removing the bed runner. A housekeeping manager has also advised taking it off immediately upon entering the room.
On TikTok, Margarita Sidiroglou, who posts under the handle @margaritasd98, uploaded a video showing two women removing the bed runner and placing it on the luggage stand, with one of them grimacing as she did so.
The footage went viral, with viewers commenting that they were astonished bed runners were not cleaned regularly and proposing they should perhaps be eliminated from hotel rooms entirely.
One individual remarked: "If it's a hassle to clean or replace, they just shouldn't have them in the rooms. I don't need decorative pillows or bed runners."
