Because the hotel “Do Not Disturb” signs are disappearing.

Your right to sleep may take a back seat to some bigger problems.

Travelers who crave privacy in their hotel room can no longer rely on the outside sign to keep staff out. The first step in this direction was taken by Disney who replaced the words “Do not disturb” with “Room occupied” on the outside door tag. This subtle change is intended to remind guests of a new company policy that provides for the mandatory inspection of rooms every 24 hours, without exception. (If the “Room Occupied” card remains on display for longer than this period, the staff will knock and announce themselves before entering).

The first hotels and resorts affected by this change were those at Disney World, but the company said it plans to make it operational in all of its hotels. The news revealed that Hilton has also changed its rules on the matter. In fact, under the new company regulations, whenever cleaning staff members are denied entry into a room in this way, they must leave a note under the door. This “Unable to Service” notice informs guests that if entry is denied for 24 hours or more, management may – and almost certainly will – drop in to inspect the room.

It is easy to assume that both changes in the corporate policy of the 2 hotel giants were induced by the need to ensure greater controls and, therefore, security within their facilities.