Hotel room security is something we all worry about when we travel, more so if you’re a woman travelling alone.
A recent video clip of an Air New Zealand flight attendant doing a security check in a hotel room went viral on social media, however, it was subsequently deleted.
The video showcased how air stewardesses check their rooms when entering a hotel.
“As a flight attendant the first thing I do when I get to my hotel room is a quick security check,” explains the voice in the video.
“I check under the beds and I also check behind the curtains. I then open up the wardrobe and make sure nobody is hiding inside, and then into the bathroom and I check behind the shower curtain,” said the cabin crew.
The video was trending on Tik Tok but was later deleted. Air New Zealand General Manager Viv Vincent in an interview with Traveller said that the crew were taught to be very safety and security conscious when travelling.
“The security sweep of a hotel room isn’t a standard operating procedure but our crew are taught and encouraged to do one as a precaution. This is standard practice across the airline industry. The safety of our crew and pilots is paramount, so we have teams that are sent to vet all hotels before any Air New Zealanders stay there as part of their duty travel,” said Vincent.
This isn’t the first time a flight attendant has posted a safety video on Tik Tok. Creator @cici_inthe sky explains her routine when entering a hotel room.
She said that in addition to the above standard checks she also ensures her peephole on the entry door is closed. If it doesn’t have a cover, she stuffs tissue paper inside it so that nobody can look inside.
In addition to this, she puts a bag in front of the door and a washcloth on her door latch as well.
“I put the bag in front of the door so nobody can stick a wire under the door and open the security lock along with the towel as a backup.”
Flight attendants have been attacked in recent years with the most recent one being in 2019 when a Canadian flight attendant was followed back to her hotel room in Mexico and beaten unconscious.
In another case in 2017, a man was sentenced to 55 years in prison after sexually assaulting a crew member who had checked into a Detroit hotel.
