If you thought carrying hand sanitizer kept your hands clean enough, you'll be shocked at the great lengths Justin Timberlake goes to keep germs away. When staying at a hotel, the singer reportedly insists someone goes around every two hours disinfecting doorknobs. What's more, he requires an entire floor to himself and his entourage and for the air conditioning filters to be changed upon his arrival. He also asks for a private fitness studio and a PlayStation.
As a megastar Barbra Streisand is entitled to a few diva demands, right? But wait 'til you read this. According to the Evening Standard, the singer, who has been in the entertainment industry for over 50 years, once demanded staff at The Dorchester in London not to talk to her unless specifically requested, asked hotel workers at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas to enter and leave her room backwards and requested "peach-coloured toilet roll to match her complexion, and rose petals in the toilet bowl" at The Castletown House.
No star can beat Madonna when it comes to outrageous hotel demands. In 2011, the singer reportedly insisted that her room at Berlin's Soho House be given a £15,000 makeover, which included a fresh coat of paint, new lights and a new bed - all for a one-night stay! Apparently Mads doesn't like sleeping in beds that other people have slept in. A source who worked at the hotel confessed to Perez Hilton: "We renovated the whole room. We have never had a request like this before." She also requested 500 bottles of Kabbalah water specially blessed by a rabbi for her, boyfriend Brahim Zaibat and her entourage.
The award for the most bizarre hotel demand goes to... Eminem. The rapper asks for nothing more than tin foil to cover the windows of his hotel room to keep out all the light and white noise playing through speakers so he can get a good night's rest. A source told The Sun: "The noise and darkness gets Eminem the best night’s sleep. He uses the technique as he’s always jumping time-zones."
When on tour, Katy Perry's quirky "hotel provisions" include accommodation at a five-star establishment, rooms to be on one floor with a presidential suite (presumably for Katy), five junior suites (with requests for upgrades) and 45 single rooms. Katy must have free internet and breakfast to commit to a booking and she has separate "hotel instructions" that are forwarded to the hotel upon confirmation and approval. Don't believe us? TheSmokingGun.com released her Hotel Provisions list.
In March 2013, Elton John reportedly asked for an entire hotel room just for his glasses while staying at the Ouro Minas in Belo Horizonte, Brazil. A hotel spokesperson said: "Elton John asked for an extra room in the hotel for some of his collection of glasses because he needs a temperature of 16C to preserve the accessories." Sir Elton didn't stop there. He also demanded a phone line and sports TV channels.
Mariah Carey certainly knows how to make an entrance at a hotel. In 2005, the singer reportedly celebrated her 35th birthday at the Baglioni Hotel in London, but before checking in she had to be driven around in her limo until the hotel had rolled out a red carpet lined with white candles so she could make her entrance. Luckily the hotel was happy to oblige as Mariah rented 15 rooms at a cost of £20,000 a night. The diva also reportedly arrived with 50 suitcases. We feel sorry for the bellhop who had to carry those!
After years of grovelling for the rich and famous, former hotel workers Abigail Hart and Nancy Joyce Callahan revealed all about the celebs and their demands in their tell-all book Great Reservations. In it they told of how for a mere 12-hour stay at the Four Seasons Hotel Chicago, Nicole Kidman's assistants shipped a set of pink 800 thread-count Italian sheets to the hotel ahead of her visit, along with diagrams and pages of instructions on how to make the bed. Kidman, who was married to Tom Cruise at the time, never actually showed up!
Apparently Rod Stewart hates the light coming into his room so much that he has a "darkening team" to scout hotel rooms ahead of time, making sure no light comes in and he can enjoy his afternoon nap in complete darkness. Avid football fan Rod also reportedly needs thirteen footballs to kick about his suite.
When Victoria Beckham checked in to the ultra-chic Hempel Hotel in London in 2006, she reportedly handed staff a formidable list of requirements. According to the Evening Standard, the hotel spent a whopping £20,000 in an effort to make Posh happy, satisfying her need for £350 of cakes from a local patisserie, £1,000 of Jo Malone bath scents, ultra-thick towels and extra dressing gowns. During her two-day stay with husband David, Victoria's suite was decorated with £5,000 of orchids, six silver platters of fresh tropical fruit and lit with 60 candles. Unfortunately she wasn't happy with the Ruinart champagne her hotel room was stocked with and insisted on Cristal!
You know a celeb is a diva when they demand public hotel spaces all for themselves. Actress Kirsten Dunst reportedly shocked guests at Hollywood's Chateau Marmont in 2012 when all of the lifts were blocked so she could use them. A source told the New York Post that no-one was allowed to enter the lifts because "Kirsten was going up and down" and guests were redirected to take the stairs.
You could call Jessica Simpson a 'domestic diva' as the singer reportedly requested an oven from the Ritz-Carlton Central Park in New York when she was staying with fiancé Eric Johnson in 2010 and hosted Thanksgiving for his family - who are vegans. A source told People that Simpson had to get creative in the hotel cooking turkey and vegan dishes. "They had an oven brought into her suite," they revealed. "She also used the hotel kitchen." Jessica apparently stayed in the Royal or Central Park Suite as those are the only ones that come with a dining room table for eight people, and at over £2,000 a night, an oven doesn't sound that big a request!
In true diva style, Britney Spears sent several requests to London's Dorchester where she reportedly stayed during her 2009 tour. Britney's demands included a hotel room which has never been smoked in, 100 watt light bulbs, Marilyn Monroe DVDs and humidifiers in every room. She also asked for fresh flowers that she could arrange herself, celebrity magazines and women's novels. A source told the Daily Star: "She'll be bringing all her own pillows for ultra-comfort and her security will sleep outside her suite every night." Britney also requested tickets for West End theatre shows, as well as a place to horse ride and a map of nearby running routes.
Finally - a hotel that stands up to demanding celebs! Tom Cruise insisted that the Forza Mare hotel in Montenegro chuck out all of its guests so he could dine in private when he tried to book an executive suite at the boutique hotel in 2012. But his demand was rejected by the "outraged" manager at the 10-room hotel and a source told The Sun: "Who does Mr Cruise think he is? The hotel was full. It would have been unfair to other guests." Tom still tucked into his meal and got the hotel to deliver a seafood banquet to the luxury yacht he turned up in.
Before checking in to the five-star Dorchester in London in 2007, Jennifer Lopez made sure she sent the hotel a detailed two-page list of everything she needed to make her two-day stay perfect. A source told the Daily Mail that the singer and actress, who once played the role of a hotel maid in film Maid in Manhattan, asked for lilies or red or white roses, plus Jo Malone Grapefruit and Lime Blossom candles, plain M&M'S and cookies. J-Lo's list also included a microwave, coffee maker, toaster and an oven - surely the diva wasn't planning on using those herself?