Social media is becoming an increasingly important part of our lives. We use it to connect with friends, to see what our favorite celebrities are up to, and to watch the occasional funny video that gets us through a tough morning at work. But social media is also great for learning new stuff. And with more and more people sharing their everyday hacks online, the Internet is becoming the best place to get to know some beneficial techniques.
TikTok user Kat Kamalani certainly agrees. After sharing a video of her favorite hotel hacks, she's becoming a viral Internet sensation! Her TikTok publication is being shared worldwide, but not all netizens agree it is that useful, nor that reasonable... Yes, some of Kat's hotel hacks may strike you as a bit paranoid, but can one person be too safe and careful in today's world? So you can judge it for yourself, let's learn more about Kat Kamalani and her whoppingly popular video, which has been watched close to 6 million times already!
A Rising TikTok Superstar
Kat Kamalani is a young mom from Salt Lake City who's been making a huge impact online with one of her most-recent TikTok videos. With over 280K TikTok followers, she works mainly as a flight attendant, but she takes some time to publish new content online every other week, be it on TikTok, YouTube, Instagram, or Twitter.
A beautiful and relatable young woman, it's no wonder Kat is getting some much-deserved attention online. But after releasing a video containing many useful hotel hacks, she's experiencing a new level of Internet success.
Going Viral
To Kat, it was just another TikTok post. After checking-in at a hotel, she decided to share some hotel hacks with her followers in a short TikTok video called "Tips while staying at a hotel from a flight attendant." But she could've never predicted that her video would go viral all over the web!
That's the thing with Internet success: you never truly know how or why it happens. But facts are facts, and Kat's hotel hacks have been getting a lot of attention worldwide, even though not all people seem to have fallen in love with the video.
Useful Hacks, Common Sense, or Paranoia?
Kat's highly-successful TikTok video is turning her into a new Internet superstar. But, social media being social media, not all people seem to be happy about it. Some netizens believe the video contains some unsurprising and common-sensical hacks. Others say it's overly paranoid and sounds like the work of a hygiene freak.
Most people, though, believe it's a useful video containing some possibly life-saving hotel hacks! The video's success shows Kat is sharing some quite helpful tips with her followers, which can help ordinary people to avoid some gross hotel situations. But, after all, what are these hotel hacks all about?
A Hack-Sharing Expert
Before getting into Kat's actual hotel hacks, it's important to note the flight attendant has been sharing tips with her followers for quite some time before publishing this viral video. A recent mom, she's got hundreds of thousands of views on some of her previous TikTok publications, in which she shared tips on how to put babies to sleep or on how to make an easy trendy look.
As a flight attendant, she's a woman that pays close attention to detail and likes to keep everything neat and tidy. So, what can the beautiful Kat teach us about improving our experience while staying at a hotel?
Safety First!
Kat's very first hotel hack starts right at... the hotel lobby! Hotels are generally safe, but you never know if some bad people are lurking around and waiting for you to make a mistake. For that reason, Kat recommends that you never say the name/number of your hotel room out loud while checking in.
Like some haters have put it, sounds a little bit paranoid. But if you think about it, it makes perfect sense: you never know what you're truly getting into when checking-in at a hotel, and safety is always paramount, especially if you're traveling abroad.
Make Sure Nobody Finds Out Where You're Staying At
As a flight attendant, Kat must've checked-in at a million different hotels. Flight attendants often have to sleep away from their homes to keep their busy schedules. That's probably why she's so well-informed about hotel safety and hygiene rules.
After checking-in at the lobby, make sure your room number remains unknown to all other guests by seeing if there's someone following you to your room. Once again, it's a safety measure meant to decrease the probability of robbery or assault. Kat recommends you always keep a watchful eye, even after entering the hotel room!
Make a Quick Room Check
Once you get to your room, Kat recommends you make a quick room check. See if anyone is hiding behind the curtains or the bed, just for safety reasons. Once again, we know this may strike you as a bit paranoid, but it's all for the best.
Considering Kat takes this much care after checking-in at a hotel, she probably must've heard one or two scary stories of people who had terrible hotel experiences. We believe you can never be too careful, and we're pretty sure Kat would agree with us!
Commentators Have Agreed With Kat's Safety Measures
While on vacation, we tend to relax and feel like everything's going to be alright. But if there's something we can learn from Kat, you can never be safe enough. One commentator agreed with the flight attendant and explained that saying a guest's room number out loud is considered illegal in some states.
Crime can happen anywhere, and you're more exposed than ever when staying at a hotel, especially if you're far from home. Information is power. So, when traveling, it's best if you keep details like your hotel room's number all to yourself.
Locked & Safe
To complete Kat's recommended hotel safety measures, please make sure you lock your hotel room's door and don't forget about the top lock. If you follow these steps, you can feel pretty good about yourself: in case any criminals are lurking around, you've made their job pretty hard!
These are other hotel safety measures that can help you to stay more protected: make sure your hotel room has an electronic card access lock; request, if possible, a room in the upper floors; don't turn the TV or radio way too loud; always ask for an escort if leaving alone for the parking lot; and don't open the door to any unrequested visitors, even if they pretend to be part of the hotel's staff.
Mind the Bed Bugs
Once you're done with Kat's recommended safety measures, it's time to make sure you're sleeping in a clean and sterile environment. The TikTok flight attendant recommends checking the beds for bed bugs, which can sometimes hide in the corners of hotel mattresses.
Bed bugs aren't considered to be dangerous, but they're both disgusting and annoying. Bed bugs bites can result in constant itching, and excessive scratching can lead to dangerous skin infections. Additionally, multiple beg bugs bites can create a dangerous allergic reaction that calls for a visit to the doctor, so watch out!
Don't Use the Decorative Pillows
Love it or hate it, decorative pillows are a hotel's must. They can make a bed look good, but they're not that practical when it comes to having a good night of sleep. Most people only need one or two pillows to lay their head on during the night, and the rest is sheer decorative surplus.
Anyway, Kat recommends you not to use these pillows, as they're possibly not clean. The same applies to any top comforters lying on your hotel bed. But is she right? Are decorative hotel pillows this disgusting?
An Insider's Tip
No, Kat is not a neat freak. She's just an experienced traveler who's been to lots of different hotels throughout her flight attendant's career. Commentator Sanne de Greef has worked in hotel housekeeping before, and she couldn't agree more with the TikTok socialite: decorative pillows are repulsive!
Yes, most people end up not using these pillows. But as de Greef has put it, they are only going to get clean in case they display visible stains, which is not cool... Managing a hotel sounds like a lot of hard work, but simply ignoring the hygiene of decorative pillows seems like a case of gross negligence.
Keep Your Bag Off The Bed
Traveling bags and hotel beds don't make for a perfect combination. But most people start by putting their bag on the bed and unpacking as soon as they enter their hotel room. Well, you should stop doing this if you're listening to Kat's hotel hacks.
You see, your traveling bag has been through the airport, which is by far, not a clean place... To avoid all sorts of germs and bacteria, you may want to keep your bag somewhere else other than the place you're sleeping on! After all, it's been proved that airports and airplanes are notoriously prone to contamination.
Airplanes Are Hotbeds For Germs
Nevermind the airport, which is a place filled with travelers coming from all around the world. When it comes to germs and bacteria, airplanes are as dangerous as it gets! A team of researchers from Alabama's Auburn University has discovered that samples of viruses and antibiotic-resistant bacteria can be found all over regular airplanes.
By analyzing armrests, window shades, and tray tables, these researchers found certain types of germs and bacterias can survive for over 90 days in an airplane setup. Not to mention airplanes are ideal for cross-contamination, especially when it comes to airborne diseases like the common flu.
Make The Most Out of Your Ice Bucket
Kat's last hotel hack is another lifesaver, especially if you're traveling with food. Some hotel rooms don't include a refrigerator, which means it can be hard to store food properly. But when that's the case, you can use the ice bucket provided by your hotel to keep your food fresh and clean.
Being a veteran hotel client, Kat knows how to make the most out of every feature in the room. Ice buckets are often overlooked, especially if you're not into drinking champagne, but they can be handy if you're just a little bit creative.
Not All People Fell In Love With Kat's Hotel Hacks
It's the Internet. So, surprise surprise, not all people were impressed by Kat's useful list of hotel hacks. Some commentators love to complain, and they manifested their discontentment all over social media. Some netizens thought Kat was overly paranoid, while others believed her suggestions were kind of obvious.
Either way, Kat's hotel hacks video became an instant Internet success, and it's been in the origin of many online debates. While some people joked about Kat's overly cautious safety/hygiene measures, others saw it as another reason not to travel.
Don't Be Afraid of Traveling!
Internet user Manushaqe Pasho saw in Kat's video yet another reason to stay home and avoid traveling. While 2020 is probably not the safest year to visit a foreign country and get to know a new culture, Kat's hacks are by no means an invitation not to travel. On the other hand, they're just meant to keep tourists safe and clean.
So please, don't be afraid to travel abroad and stay at a hotel, no matter how "scary" they may seem to you now. Traveling is one of the best things you can do, and it's alright if you follow basic rules of safety and hygiene, such as Kat's lifesaving hotel hacks.
9 Out of 10 Times, It's Going To Be Okay...
While "paranoid" is not the best description for Kat's viral hotel hacks video, she does seem to be expecting the worst out of every hotel room. But most hotels have impressive levels of quality control and take good care of their guests. And 9 out of 10 times, figuratively speaking, you're going to be alright while traveling.
User Clio Perazzini mentioned that her mother was a former flight attendant and used to be a lot cooler than Kat about hotel room safety. We guess bed bugs aren't an issue if you happen to live in Australia, the land of the giant spiders!
Kat Was Shocked By The Video's Success
A rising star on TikTok, Kat was shocked by the unexpected success of her hotel hacks video. The publication was seen over 6 million times, counts with over 1.4 million likes, and has received as much as 3,675 comments! It's a surprising viral post that's been stirring a huge debate online.
A regular hotel client, Kat, has mentioned that she's seen some good changes in most hotels ever since the start of the Coronavirus pandemic. Besides social distancing, which is commonly practiced in hotel pools and gyms, she's noticed there's a lot more effort put into hygiene and sterilization.
Kat Continued to Make Helpful TikTok Videos
Fueled by her unexpected viral success, Kat has decided to continue working hard to produce high-quality TikTok videos. Right after her hotel hacks video, she published "Things About a Flight Attendant's Job You May Not Know About," which is a fascinating watch!
She also shared some "Tips on How to Become a Flight Attendant" and decided to help us once again to stay safe and clean by posting a video called "The Nastiest Parts On a Plane From a Flight Attendant." We know we don't have to say it, but you should go and check her highly-entertaining TikTok profile!
Flight Attendant, Mother, Wife, and... Cooker!
Kat's TikTok is a perfect reflection of her life, and it tackles subjects that go way beyond the realm of her profession. She's more than just a flight attendant: she's also a dedicated Internet personality, a loving mother, and the wife of a hunky firefighter who's been getting some attention online!
Besides, Kat is a terrific cooker, and she's not shy about sharing her food tips. In her TikTok profile, she's published some recipes for delicious, healthy meals, and she's also shared some everyday household tips. Her video about a "Stale Chip Hack" is worth seeing, especially if you're tired of eating mushy chips.
It's Not All Roses...
Kat's seemingly perfect life is not without its downsides. Earlier this year, Kat's car was broken into, and the robbers took not only over $5K worth of material but also a priceless object of inestimable emotional value.
The irreplaceable object in question is a quilt that belongs to her husband Keloni, and which contained a range of different t-shirts used by Keloni, his father, and his grandfather! Coming from a family of firefighters with a strong background in sports, Keloni finds this stolen quilt to be an invaluable part of his family heritage. The story made it to several locals news websites, including Salt Lake City's KUTV.
If You See This Quilt, Give Kat a Call!
This is the quilt that was stolen from Keloni and Kat's car. It may not seem like much to you, but it's an item of unmatched emotional value to the young couple from Salt Lake City. So, if you ever happen to see it, make sure you give Kat a call. She'll appreciate it.
It goes for saying that, no matter how paranoid some people believe Kat to be, there's no downside to being too safe! And, just like she's helped everyone else by sharing her useful hotel hacks, we can all show Kat out sympathy by looking out for this priceless missing quilt.
Summing It Up!
Social media is a great place for people to learn from one another, and Kat's hotel hacks video, while thorough, is a much-needed viral piece of information. So, if you're considering traveling abroad anytime soon, don't forget to follow Kat's recommendable safety and hygiene rules!
To sum it up: don't ever say your room number out loud, look out for strangers in the way to your room, check under the bed and behind the curtains, look out for bed bugs, avoid decorative pillows, don't put your traveling bag over the bed, and try to make the most out of your ice bucket. That said, have a safe trip, and always remember to enjoy yourself!