Okay, so I’m kind of a hoarder when it comes to hotel toiletries. They’re cute, convenient, and great ways to try out new — and often times, exclusive — products. And sometimes, they’re surprisingly awesome. Take, for instance, these “Mercure and Me” complimentary products from the Mercure Hotel in Luxembourg City. Fun, graphic bottles and delicious, fresh scents make up this cool brand. Read on to see what I thought! 

When was the last time hotel shampoo actually made your hair look good? Almost never, right? They tend to be overly perfumed and severely lacking in the suds department. And one bottle contains enough product for about, uh- half your scalp? Give or take? Yeah, I thought so.

Mercure and Me’s shampoo comes in a deluxe size: over an ounce in a bottle the size of your hand. You’d need to be Rapunzel to use up the whole bottle in one washing. The scent is a fragrant fresh floral, but it’s not perfume-y or heavy. The effective gel formula rinses clean instantly, and adds mega shine.

On the growing list of Things I Don’t Understand is why I got two differently shaped and sized bottles of “conditioning shampoo” that are marked with the same description. Ten world languages on the back of the bottles tell me that these products are the same, but every morning, I was left a new bottle of each. They both were the same scent in a clear gel formula, but I used both daily anyway. Maybe I was just double cleaning my hair.

The “bath shower gel” is more distinguishable, with a distinct fresh scent and icy blue cooling gel formula. I’ve been using at home, which means I like it enough to use it even when I’m not forced to on vacation. You can’t say that about most samples.

Not that you’re going to book a hotel entirely based on its complimentary shower gels, but it’s a total bonus when you actually like the products you’ve been given. It keeps packing light and TSA liquid scanners happy, while keeping you glowing and clean over your vacation. There are Mercure locations all over the world, so keep an eye out for the fun products wherever your travels take you!

Bonus History Lesson Uncharacteristically Found In A Beauty Blog: my Mercure hotel in Luxembourg City once rented a room to General Patton, of WWII Battle of the Bulge credit. Cool!