Every hotel I stayed at in Spain had a room key card holder just to the right of the entry door so that when you entered the room, you had a place to put your key, and when you existed the room the card was right there for you to grab on your way out. Very convenient!But its real purpose is not for convenience, but rather for conserving energy. You see, it controls the lights in the room. So when you enter the room and insert the card, all the lights you left on when you departed, come back on. The same for when you leave the room and take the key. You can't leave without all the lights shutting off. Just don't make the mistake I made one night in Madrid when I left my computer plugging into an outlet controlled by the card switch. My computer was dead when I got back ; (
This is not the first time I have seen this in Europe, but it was the first time I saw it in every hotel. I wonder if it's a requirement in Spain, who is a very energy conscious country.
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