More hotels are trying fewer sheet changes: Policies at LV properties vary

By Liz Benston (contact)

Wednesday, July 27, 2005 | 11:06 a.m.

While more hotel operators move toward a policy of changing sheets every other day for guests, some Las Vegas casinos -- among the world's largest hotels -- say they have no plans to change the way they serve guests.

Casino hotels around town have very different practices on sheet-changing.

MGM Mirage, Nevada's largest casino operator and owner of 11 Strip hotels, changes sheets every day for guests, whether they are staying for one night or many.

Based on guest surveys and other customer feedback, "there's a certain expectation that the linens are going to be changed every day without making a special request to do so," MGM Mirage spokeswoman Yvette Monet said.

Keeping track of who wants sheets changed and who doesn't becomes an administrative challenge for a large company, she said.

With the recent acquisition of Mandalay Resort Group, MGM Mirage has about half of the Strip's 74,000-plus rooms.

Likewise, at Wynn Las Vegas, the world's most expensive casino resort changes bed sheets every day no matter what.

At Wynn, home to some of the Strip's priciest rooms, Duvet covers that lie atop the sheets are changed once for each new guest.

At Harrah's Entertainment Inc., the decision on when to change sheets is decided by property managers at each of the company's more than 40 owned and managed casinos.

Changing sheets isn't much of an issue at many Harrah's casinos nationwide, where guests often only stay one night, spokesman David Strow said.

At the company's Rio and Harrah's hotels in Las Vegas, where stays are typically longer, sheets are changed every other day or daily upon request, he said.

"It's primarily a water-saving measure," Strow said. "Obviously we're in the midst of a severe drought and if we can save some water than by all means we should do it."

Station Casinos Inc., which operates eight off-Strip casinos with hotels and one motel, began a policy in the late 1990s of informing guests with room placards that sheets are changed upon checkout unless they request otherwise.

"Our guests average between a two to three day stay so it's been on rare occasions that our guests request sheets being changed during their visit," spokeswoman Lori Nelson said. About five percent of guests request sheet changing during their stay, she said.

The company also lets guests reuse their towels if they are hung up and will only change them if they are on the floor.

"We have gotten guest feedback over the years that they appreciate our hotels being sensitive to saving water and energy," Nelson said.

Monet said MGM Mirage has taken many steps over the years to conserve water and energy.

Those include installing low-flow shower heads and toilets, using dishwashing systems that recycle water, replacing turf with desert landscaping and using special fertilizer on plants so they need less water.

In addition to using outside laundry vendors, MGM Mirage owns its own laundry in North Las Vegas that has adopted water conservation techniques, Monet said.