Cleanliness is Paramount When Booking Hotels, Study Shows

New Study from CLR® Reveals Majority of Vacation Lodgers List Cleanliness as a Top Priority When Booking Travel

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Sep 22, 2015, 08:00 ET

SKOKIE, Ill., Sept. 22, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- It's no secret that hotels are full of germs and bacteria. But how much do consumers care about cleanliness while traveling, and to what lengths will they go to have a clean place to stay? According to a new survey commissioned by CLR® (www.jelmar.com), cleanliness is one of the most important factors to vacation lodgers, with 86 percent reporting cleanliness as one of the top criteria they look for when reading online hotel or vacation rental reviews.

The survey, conducted by TNS, set out to understand the importance of cleanliness to travelers and evaluate the different perceptions of cleanliness between lodging options, such as vacation rentals like AirBnB or standard hotels. It was discovered that not only is cleanliness top of mind when reading vacation lodging reviews, but that eight out of 10 (80 percent) vacation lodgers would rather give up Internet access for the duration of their vacation than stay in a dirty rental or hotel. Clearly, cleanliness is an important factor for businesses and homes alike, and the CLR® family of products has been solving cleaning problems big and small, at home and on the road, for more than 20 years.

"We know that a clean home is important, but we wanted to understand just how important it is when on the road," said Alison Gutterman, president of Jelmar. "The feeling of a perfectly clean hotel or vacation rental can provide a sense of calm and contentment; however, a dirty room can ruin a vacation experience by making it impossible to let go and relax. Even when travelers are excused from cleaning duties on vacation and have permission to escape the rigors of daily chores, the cleanliness of our environment is clearly top of mind and of the utmost importance to travelers no matter where they're staying, be it a vacation rental or hotel."

Additional survey highlights include:

The Power of the People: Many vacation lodgers look to online reviews for information about lodging cleanliness and for a platform for lodging complaints.
- Nearly half (49 percent) of vacation lodgers read online reviews to make vacation-lodging decisions.
Will Pay for Clean: The majority of travelers would pay an additional fee to guarantee a clean stay.
- Over half (54 percent) of vacation lodgers would pay a cleaning fee to make sure a vacation rental is clean when they arrive.
The Standard of Clean: Some Americans even feel the need to clean vacation lodging upon arrival.
- Nearly one-third (31 percent) of vacation lodgers report they often clean their hotel room or vacation rental property upon arrival.
The "Ick" Factor: What is the most appalling cleaning faux pas in a hotel or vacation rental? A dirty bathroom.
- Over eight in 10 (84 percent) of vacation lodgers believe a dirty toilet is the worst thing you could see in a hotel or vacation rental.
The Property Difference: How do Vacation Lodgers treat property rentals versus hotels?
- Over half (55 percent) of vacation lodgers believe hotels are cleaner than vacation rentals, while nearly half (45 percent) report vacation rentals are cleaner than hotels.
- Over one-third (35 percent) of vacation lodgers believe it's OK to leave hotel rooms messier than vacation rentals.

METHODOLOGY
The CLR survey was conducted using the online omnibus field services of TNS from August 20-24, 2015 among a nationally representative sample of 1,495 Americans 18 years of age or older who are vacation lodgers (i.e., they have stayed a hotel or vacation rental in the past 2 years). The margin of error for vacation lodgers is ± 2.5 percent at the 95 percent confidence level. If the study were replicated, the findings would not vary by more than 2.5 percentage points 95 times out of 100 for vacation lodgers.

ABOUT JELMAR, LLC:
JELMAR is a leading manufacturer of a broad range of household cleaning products, including CLR® and Tarn-X® brands of cleaners. Flagship CLR products include CLR Calcium, Lime and Rust Remover, CLR Bath & Kitchen Cleaner and CLR Septic Treatment and Drain Care. With its unique formula, the CLR brand gets the cleaning job done in virtually every area of the home, hotel room, or vacation rental. For more information visit http://www.jelmar.com.

CONTACT: Jae Siercks, (310) 248-6160, [email protected]

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SOURCE JELMAR