Opinion: Hotel Hot Tubs Aren’t Cannonball Ranges For Idaho Kids

This opportunity to state my opinion on hotel hot tubs and children has been a long time coming.

One of the allures to staying in a hotel for a lot of people is the chance to use the hot tub. We make sure to ask the front desk clerk if the jacuzzi is functioning before we book. I can't tell you the number of times my wife and I have walked down to the hot tub and stared into a completely drained, concrete pit.

During a recent out-of-town stay at a popular hotel chain, we decided to take our 10-year-old son down to the pool for some indoor, watery fun. When we walked in, there was one woman (probably in her thirties or so) supervising three kids. My wife had some remote work she needed to finish, so she brought her laptop down. The idea was that she was going to soak her feet while completing her tasks.

The ages of the young ones appeared to be three, seven, and ten, give or take. I knew right away when I saw how saturated the area was around the hot tub that this wasn't going to be a relaxing hour at the pool.

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Opinion: Hotel Pools Are For Relaxing And Not For Your Kids To Test Cannonballs

Since when did the hotel jacuzzi become a warm plunge for children?

When I was a kid, and we traveled with our parents, I wasn't allowed in the hotel hot tub, nor did I want to be in it. Not to mention, we ALL know what kids do in a hot tub. A sign hanging just above the hot tub read, "No kids under age 5 allowed in hot tub," in case I haven't mentioned it.

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After about 20 minutes of splashing all over the friggin hot tub area and full-on sprints around the slippery pool, I politely walked up to the woman who had not previously looked up from her phone the entire time we were there, and asked her if she minded policing her kids as far as the tidal waves in the jacuzzi were concerned. She complied...sort of.

Do you ever want to just shake a fellow parent until the stupid falls out of their pant leg? It's time to parent up when taking children to a hotel pool. Have some respect for your fellow travelers.

Do you think children should be allowed in hotel hot tubs in Idaho?