When my daughter was about a month old and we were living with my in-laws, I had a bit of a mental breakdown as commonly experienced by many new mothers. I called my mother crying telling her that I needed a break- that I needed to breathe. I wanted to go to a hotel so that I could get some time away with my daughter.  I wanted to flee to NYC and the comforts of luxurious rooms. I wanted a spacious and  clean bathroom that was all mine and not being shared by five people and room service. She was appalled at the idea of taking a newborn to a hotel in Manhattan. It wasn't safe.

Truthfully, I had never actually thought about the safety of hotels. Like many people, I just assumed that I would be protected.  I did, however, make a compromise with my mom and agreed to stay away from The City. As my husband drove  my daughter and me to a local Marriott Courtyard in Tarrytown, NY, I noticed its secluded location - surrounded by woods and not much else. It was situated pretty far off the main road. As we checked in, I made sure not to mention anything that would allude to the fact that  my husband would be leaving us to go to work until 6:00 am- feeling that to do so would leave me vulnerable.

We had a lot of things to carry. My husband wanted to pull the car up to the side door closest to our room so that it would be easier to unload. He suggested that we prop the door open for him so that he could carry as much into the room as possible in the least amount of trips. But I have an over-active imagination and objected. What if some strange person saw the propped door and decided to enter the hotel and harm us all?

I realized in that moment, that hotels and hotel rooms can leave us unprotected in ways that we don't imagine. When planning a vacation, there are so many safety issues to consider and there are many factors that contribute to the safety of hotels.

The most important thing to remember is that smaller, older, hotels tend to be lacking in security features. This goes for the less expensive hotels such as the as well. Additionally, we often take for granted things like the location of the hotel, proper lighting, entrances and who has access to the lobby, and security staff. We also forget that safety includes the  cleanliness of bathrooms, the qualifications of childcare providers if the hotel offers this option, and even the safety of local restaurants in the area.

Finally, it important that when traveling as a family we look for family hotels as they will offer more features that cater to children and provide better safety for them as well.

This is a Traveling Mom sponsored post.