Common courtesy in hotels

Recently during one of our mini vacations, I noticed that some people feel that they are entitled to do things differently than others that are staying at the same hotel. What I am talking about is how people act while they are enjoying a free breakfast that is offered as part of the price of the hotel room.

Here are some examples of what I am talking about:

• They come in and get their breakfast and enjoy it but then get up and leave and don't remove the dishes from the table. The idea of a self-serve breakfast is there is normally an area allocated where you are to put your dirty dishes. By removing your dirty dishes, you are making the table available to someone else.

•  Some individuals come down and they grab their coffee and then go and take a table for four people, and there is one person and they decide to sit and read while enjoying their coffee. It might be fine when the breakfast area isn't busy, but when it gets busy maybe it's time to find another location where you can enjoy your coffee and read your book. Where we were staying, they had a couple of small sitting areas which would have been great for sitting and reading a book.

•  Of course, there are going to be other individuals that pile their plate full of stuff and only eat part of that plate of food and then remove that plate from the table and proceed to go back and get another plate of food. Why didn't you eat what you got the first time. I think it's better to take a bit of food and then have to go back and get more than take piles and not eat it.

• A group of four people but they have to take up two tables where four people each could sit. If there are four of you it is only considerate if you could take one table for four people leaving the other table available for others.

I understand that there are going to be times when situations are different but remember that there are other guests in the hotel that what to enjoy their breakfast and they also need to find a spot where they can sit down and enjoy their food. It is nice when a hotel offers a free breakfast as it is a great start to your day, especially if you are heading to work while out of town or you are going to be starting another travel day.

Knowing that if you are able to have a quick breakfast in the breakfast area and leave it clean for the next guest can go a long way. Understanding that keeping the area clean makes a big difference as the staff try to ensure that the food is hot and available for the rest of the guests when they come down to have their breakfast. A free breakfast during a hotel stay is always so nice to have and we all have to remember that this benefit could go away quickly if too many guests just take it for granted and feel they are entitled.