Quote:
Originally Posted by SoCal11053
Sleeping in a parking garage is for amateurs. Go upstairs mid morning when housekeeping is in full effect. Find a maid cleaning a room and with that cool confidence I know you have tell her "You know what, that's ok. You don't need to clean up, I'll just need some extra towels." Tip her $5. She'll hand over towels, appreciate the tip and be thankful that it's one less room that she'll have to clean that she can check off her list. Don't forget to set the alarm so you don't oversleep and provide TR.
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In my youth I did this or a variation of, many times. It works almost every time. Here are some tips...
1. Pick a hotel that is a tall building, and do this on a high-up floor. Alternately, get the room as far from the desk as possible. That way, if they give out the room and someone comes in, you can yell out "hey, who's there!" and they'll be startled, and go back to the front desk to tell the person there the room is already occupied. The extra long elevator ride down/long walk gives you more time to get out.
2. Do not unpack anything, or at least pack back up before you sleep, in case of #1.
3. Be talking on your cell phone as you approach the maid, watch the room numbers, and say as you're approaching "no, I'm there right now...I'm in room 1234." It lends you credibility, and people can be hesitant to want to interrupt you, giving you a bit extra edge (put your 'caller' on hold for a sec while you tip the maid, then get back on the phone).
4. Have a key card in your hand from somewhere...don't flash it such that she might see that it's not the right card, just have enough visible that it plants another seed that you're where you're supposed to be.
5. Extra-smooth: before you do this scam, try to find out how housekeeping is kept abreast of who is checked out/which rooms are occupied or not, and scheme around that. This allows you to avoid the hassle of a busy-body maid getting huffy with you when she consults her list and busts you.
6. Know which hotels have a security guard asking to see room keys, and which don't.
7. Another possibility is to beg a comp. If you're playing poker all day/night in a hotel/casino, and you bust, or otherwise don't want to pay for a room, don't be afraid to beg a room from the room manager. Years ago I actually had a legit sob story due to losing my wallet and car keys in the same evening (were in a coat that somebody lifted while I was smoking...yes, dumb I know) and the dude called the front desk and got me a free room, no problem. This was at the Horseshoe in southern IN (before it was a HS it was CP), but you have a shot anywhere.
Good luck.