Urine Stains Found in Hotel Rooms

Sept. 26 -- Hotels can be a place to unwind. They're like our home away from home. And whether we go there for romance, relaxation or business, there are certain things we come to expect when we check in — the most important of which is cleanliness.

But with thousands of people having possibly slept in the same bed before you, how do you know what's really under those covers?

Primetime decided to find out. Equipped with test tubes, special ultraviolet lights and rubber gloves, our producers swabbed their way through 20 well-known and respected hotels in four different cities around the country.

The results of what we uncovered are shocking, but — thankfully — do not pose any hazard to guests' health.

Behind Closed Doors

With the help of the UV light, we were able to see things not visible to the naked eye, viewing possible urine and semen stains, which were then swabbed and sent to a certified lab for analysis.

Hotel guests may be surprised at what we found. Urine or semen stains were confirmed in every room we examined — including on the bedspreads, the blankets, the walls, carpet, a desk top, a table and on upholstered chairs. One astounding discovery was in a hotel in Los Angeles, where we found a urine stain on the Bible.

"There's a lot going on behind those closed doors. But the reality is that the hotels are not going to be wiping down the walls and those surfaces," said Dr. Mark Callahan, a public health expert from New York-Presbyterian Hospital who evaluated our findings. (In fact, hotels do wipe down walls and surfaces, managers told Primetime, in the periodic thorough cleanings that are standard in the industry.)

Although the results may be unpleasant and disturbing, Callahan said they are not dangerous.

"It's not harmful because those are dried and sterile," he said, "They're not going to have viruses or bacteria growing in them."

Stains Everywhere

At a four-star resort in Miami our lights revealed urine not only on the walls, but on the bedspread, a chair, a bathroom vanity stool and on the carpet by the bed.