Staying in a hotel during COVID carries a moderate level of risk that you can significantly reduce with a few practical choices. Hotels are not among the highest-risk indoor settings, but shared air systems, common areas, and high-touch surfaces all create opportunities for viral transmission. Your actual risk depends on the hotel’s ventilation, how crowded it is, and the precautions you take.
Why Hotel Air Systems Matter Most
The biggest risk factor in any indoor space is the air you’re breathing. COVID spreads primarily through aerosols, tiny respiratory particles that linger in poorly ventilated rooms. The CDC recommends that public indoor spaces aim for at least 5 air changes per hour using outdoor air, or an equivalent rate achieved through a combination of ventilation, filtration, and air treatment. Many hotels, especially older ones, fall short of this target.
A study of a quarantine hotel published in the journal Indoor Air found that neither the corridors nor the guest rooms had fresh air supply ducts. Corridors were ventilated entirely with recirculated air. The researchers found that virus-carrying aerosols could leak from one guest room into the hallway, then get drawn into neighboring rooms through gaps under doors and through bathroom exhaust fans that create negative pressure. The conclusion was blunt: airborne transmission can occur in hotels due to a lack of fresh air, disorganized airflow, and relatively stagnant air in shared spaces.
Not all hotels are built this way. Newer properties and higher-end chains are more likely to use MERV-13 filters (the EPA’s recommended minimum for reducing viral particles) and to have systems that bring in outside air. But you typically can’t verify this before booking. Opening a window in your room, if possible, is one of the simplest ways to improve your air quality. A portable HEPA air purifier is another option worth packing if you travel frequently.
Common Areas Carry Higher Risk Than Your Room
Your individual guest room is the lowest-risk part of a hotel stay. Once you’re inside with the door closed, you’re in a space that’s been unoccupied and cleaned. The risk concentrates in the places where people gather and air is shared: lobbies, elevators, breakfast buffets, fitness centers, and indoor pools.
Elevators deserve special attention. They’re small, enclosed, and used by many people throughout the day with minimal ventilation. A quick ride in a crowded elevator can expose you to more aerosols than an hour in a well-ventilated lobby. If the hotel is busy, waiting for a less crowded car or taking the stairs makes a real difference. Breakfast rooms and hotel restaurants, where people are unmasked, talking, and sitting close together for extended periods, are another concentration point. A systematic review and meta-analysis in The Journal of Infectious Diseases found that community indoor settings had a pooled secondary attack rate of about 32%, with some hotel-linked events producing rates even higher. A scientific meeting held in a hotel in Munich was cited as one of the highest-transmission events in the data set.
Fitness centers combine heavy breathing with small, often poorly ventilated rooms. If you want to exercise, early morning or off-peak hours reduce the number of people sharing that air with you.
Surface Transmission Is Lower Risk Than Air
Early in the pandemic, there was intense focus on wiping down every surface. The science has since clarified that surface (fomite) transmission is possible but far less common than airborne spread. That said, hotels are high-touch environments. Door handles, light switches, TV remotes, and elevator buttons are contacted by many guests and staff throughout the day.
Most major hotel chains now use enhanced cleaning protocols between guests. Some properties adopted technologies like UV-C light devices and electrostatic sprayers, both of which have been studied in hospital settings. In a randomized trial, UV-C light reduced bacterial contamination by an estimated 88%, and electrostatic sprayers showed similar effectiveness, reducing the odds of surface contamination by roughly 70%. These tools were designed for healthcare, but their adoption in hospitality adds a meaningful layer of protection to standard cleaning.
Carrying a small pack of disinfecting wipes for high-touch surfaces in your room, particularly the remote control, phone, faucet handles, and light switches, takes about two minutes and addresses the residual risk.
Contactless Check-In Reduces Exposure Points
One of the most useful changes to come out of the pandemic is the widespread adoption of mobile check-in and digital room keys. Many hotel chains now let you complete the entire check-in process on your phone, bypassing the front desk entirely. You skip the shared pen, the key card that’s been handled by staff, and the face-to-face interaction in a busy lobby.
Mobile keys also eliminate the need to return a physical key card at checkout, removing another shared-surface contact point. If your hotel offers this option, it’s worth using. If it doesn’t, hand sanitizer after handling key cards and lobby touchscreens covers the basics.
How to Choose a Lower-Risk Hotel
Not all hotels present the same level of risk. A few factors can help you pick a safer option:
- Room ventilation: Hotels where rooms have windows that open give you direct control over airflow. This single feature can matter more than any cleaning protocol.
- Building age and type: Newer buildings are more likely to meet modern HVAC standards. Boutique hotels with fewer rooms mean fewer people sharing air systems and common spaces.
- Occupancy: A half-empty hotel is safer than a sold-out one. Midweek stays and off-season travel naturally reduce how many people you’re sharing indoor air with.
- Outdoor access: Properties with outdoor corridors (like many motels and resort-style hotels) eliminate the shared-hallway ventilation problem entirely. Rooms that open to the outside rather than an interior hallway are a practical advantage.
- Breakfast format: Grab-and-go or in-room dining avoids the crowded breakfast room. If the hotel only offers a communal buffet in a small indoor space, eating elsewhere may be the better call.
Practical Steps That Lower Your Risk
You can’t eliminate risk entirely, but you can reduce it substantially. The most effective steps target airborne transmission, since that’s the primary route. Wearing a well-fitting N95 or KN95 mask in lobbies, elevators, and other shared indoor spaces blocks the majority of inhaled aerosols. Keeping your hotel room ventilated, either by opening a window or running a portable air purifier, protects you during the hours you spend sleeping.
Timing matters too. Checking in during off-peak hours (late morning or early afternoon) means a less crowded lobby. Using stairs instead of elevators when practical, eating outdoors or in your room instead of the hotel restaurant, and keeping your time in enclosed common areas short all reduce your cumulative exposure. Hand hygiene after touching shared surfaces remains a sensible baseline habit, even though surface transmission is the lesser risk.
Vaccination status makes a significant difference in your personal risk of severe illness if you are exposed. Staying current on boosters doesn’t prevent infection entirely, but it substantially reduces the chance that a hotel stay leads to a serious health outcome.