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Here’s Why Parents Should Throw a Towel Over Bathroom Door in Hotel Rooms

A mom of three revealed an ingenious travel hack that efficiently utilizes towels supplied in hotel rooms for children's safety.
PUBLISHED JAN 12, 2025
(L) Towels hanging in a bathroom. (R) A door remains closed. (Representative Cover Image Source: Pexels | (L) Kaboompics.com, (R) Jonathan Petersson)
(L) Towels hanging in a bathroom. (R) A door remains closed. (Representative Cover Image Source: Pexels | (L) Kaboompics.com, (R) Jonathan Petersson)

When it comes to checking into hotel rooms, there are a variety of travel hacks and tips that can ensure a smooth stay. Now, parents traveling with their kids have the added responsibility to babyproof the new setting as much as possible to avoid any mishaps. On that note, a viral Reddit post by u/strayainind revealed an ingenious hack that prevents children from locking themselves in rooms. The message pointed out how the “little ones” often accidentally get locked in bathrooms of hotels or AirBNBs.

White and maroon towels. (Representative Image Source: Pexels | Dom J)
White and maroon towels. (Representative Image Source: Pexels | Dom J)

To avoid that, the Reddit user offered a simple and cheap solution that goes a long way. “Throwing a thick towel over the top of the door is a cheap and easy way to save your sanity when your little one is in an unfamiliar place or you need to do a little babyproofing,” a part of the message enlightened the readers. The user, whose bio reads “World’s okayest mum”, even provided full disclosure to confirm the authenticity of the towel hack. She revealed that the hotel door towel trick was mentioned in a parenting magazine from the late ‘90s. 

A toddler smiling on a dining table. (Representative Image Source: Pexels | Alexander Dummer)
A toddler smiling on a dining table. (Representative Image Source: Pexels | Alexander Dummer)

Moreover, the Reddit user explained that she is a mom of three adult children but never had this towel hack failed her children’s safety. Although, she humorously recalled an incident when her youngest kid had locked his grandparents out of their own house. A towel would have been a big help there. The life pro-tip was acknowledged by several internet users as they chimed in with their thoughts on the travel hack

Towel hanging inthe  bathroom. (Representative Image Source: Pexels | Kaboompics.com)
Towel hanging inthe bathroom. (Representative Image Source: Pexels | Kaboompics.com)

One person u/melimal suggested that this hack can also be used as a self-protection as well. “This could also work as a way to keep little fingers from getting pinched in those doors too!” the comment stated. While another Reddit user u/jajajujujujjjj advised the hack can also be a life pro-tip for animals. “We used to do this to prevent our cats from locking themselves in certain rooms all day when we were at work. Living in a rental towel was a damage-free solution,” the note read. “Omg, what a great idea. I usually prop all the doors open but this would be much easier!” another netizen u/BrattyBookworm wrote. 

Towel hung on a white ceramic bathtub. (Representative Image Source: Pexels | Pixabay)
Towel hung on a white ceramic bathtub. (Representative Image Source: Pexels | Pixabay)

However, an internet user u/GypsySnowflake asked the mom of three about the function of a towel preventing a door lock. The Reddit user u/strayainind effortlessly explained that a folded towel manages to jam a door and hence, cannot be latched at any cost. “If you lay the towel flat, obviously it doesn’t work. If you hang anything in bulk over the top, it cannot close,” she further mentioned. For parents who require intense baby-proofing everywhere they go, there is one easy solution to all their worries– duct tape, according to a Tiny Beans report. Duct tape can be used to secure drapery cords, lodge a seal on electrical outlets, and close out mini-fridges and toilet lids. It can also be used to blunt sharp furniture edges by placing a cloth and securing it with duct tape. Band-aids are another alternative to duct tape.

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