The Battle of the DND Sign: Why Hotel Guests Turn Simple Fixes Into Epic Sagas
If you’ve ever worked in hospitality, you know that “simple” is rarely in a guest’s vocabulary. Just ask u/idkabtallatgurl, a front desk hero from Reddit’s r/TalesFromTheFrontDesk, who recently shared a story that proves guests can turn the tiniest request into an Oscar-worthy drama.
Picture this: A guest’s bathroom sink is on the fritz. He does the right thing and heads to the front desk to report it. The staff apologizes and leaps into action, dispatching the engineering team to save the day. All that’s left? Remove the trusty “Do Not Disturb” (DND) sign from the door so maintenance can knock and work their magic. Easy, right? Not so fast…
The Not-So-Mysterious Case of the DND Hanger
What should have been a two-second exchange spiraled into a mini soap opera. When the front desk kindly asked the guest to take down the DND sign, he erupted: “Are you serious? You just called them to come, wouldn’t they know I need my sink looked at?”
Despite the staff’s patient explanation—“it’s just a protocol we follow here that if there is a DND hanger on the door, we do not knock”—the guest’s indignation only grew. “Wow, that’s stupid,” he declared, refusing to accept that a simple cardboard placard could wield so much power.
As u/megalogo cleverly put it, “In my country we had a saying ‘drowning on a glass of water’, it fits perfectly in this scenario.” Sometimes, the smallest tasks feel like Herculean labors—especially when you’re a guest who just wants that sink fixed without lifting a finger (or a hanger).
Why the DND Protocol Exists: It’s Not Just Red Tape
If you’re wondering why staff care so much about a little sign, you’re not alone. The Reddit community chimed in with some interesting insights. For many properties, the DND sign is sacred. As the OP explained, “at every property I have worked at—every department is instructed to not knock or go into a room if there is a DND hanger.”
Why so strict? Liability and privacy, mostly. As u/PineappleLogical5654, a maintenance worker, explained, “unless I’m specifically told to ignore a DND, I’m not going in.” Entering a room with a DND up—even when a guest requests service—can get dicey fast. If staff ignore that sign and something goes wrong, it’s not just the guest who’s upset; management and legal teams might get involved, too.
Yet, there’s no universal rule. Some commenters noted that at their hotels, a direct service request overrides the DND. u/Large-Treacle-8328 shared, “if the guest requests service, that’s permission to ignore the DND sign.” Others, like the OP and u/SourDJash, confirmed that strict adherence is the norm: “We do this at my 4-star property as well. Most guests understand.”
The Comedy of (Guest) Errors
But why do guests get so riled up over such a minor thing? Maybe it’s jet lag. Maybe it’s principle. Or maybe, as u/RoyallyOakie speculated, “He’s playing this up for future discounts.” After all, some guests have mastered the art of the complaint in hopes of scoring freebies.
The irony, as many pointed out, is that it would have taken less time to remove the DND sign than to argue about it. As u/mYstiSagE quipped, “Jeepers, just remove the hanger, dude. He wasted more time… some people.🤦♀️” Even the OP can’t help but laugh: “He had to leave the desk to walk back to his room so before he enters the room, remove it & boom.”
Then there’s the confusion factor. Some guests genuinely don’t understand the policy—especially if they’re used to different rules at other chains or in other countries. u/Icy-Librarian-7347 explained, “at certain properties, a direct request for certain services is supposed to override the DNDs. He may be used to staying at shmiltons or something.” Hotels really are their own little universes, each with its own customs and quirks.
When “Do Not Disturb” Becomes “Dungeon & Dragons”
Of course, Reddit never misses a chance for a joke. “Why are there Dungeon N Dragons signs on the doors?!” asked u/Zoilo2, to which another commenter lamented, “Man, I miss when it was D&D.” If only the greatest threat in hotel hallways was a rampaging gelatinous cube, not a disgruntled guest with a stubborn DND tag.
And let’s not forget the most basic point, as OP reminded everyone: “DND is literally what it stands for… Do Not Disturb.” If you want your sink fixed, maybe—just maybe—let someone disturb you for a moment.
Conclusion: Sometimes It’s Really That Simple
Next time you’re in a hotel and something needs fixing, do your local staff a favor: take down the DND sign. Your sink—and the sanity of the front desk—will thank you.
Have your own tales of hotel hilarity, guest confusion, or DND disasters? Drop them in the comments below! And if you’ve ever drowned in a glass of water yourself, you’re in good company. After all, hospitality is a team sport—guests and staff included.
Original Reddit Post: very simple...why do guest make things more complicated...