14 Fascinating Facts About The Bachelor That You Might Not Have Heard Before

Talking about the "journey" of being on the show is a time-honored Bachelor tradition, and according to former Bachelor Sean Lowe, there's a reason for that. "Any time you call it a process, they will make you retape it and say journey," he revealed in a Glamour interview.

Sean also revealed a mildly depressing tidbit in the same interview. All those gourmet dinners served up at the one-on-one dates? The participants don't get to eat a bite. "Nobody eats, and that's primarily because nobody wants to watch you eat and the mikes will pick up the chewing. So between the two date portions, they would bring us to a hotel, where you can shower and change and get ready—and it's during that time that you can eat."

Amy Kaufman's behind-the-scenes book Bachelor Nation gives us some of the juicy details about just what kind of planning goes into the famous Fantasy Suites. In an excerpt published on Vanity Fair, Kaufman revealed some of the details told to her by past contestants, including the fact that producers leave a "bowlful" of condoms and a handheld camera behind the closed doors. Plus, one extra uncomfy detail: according to Kaufman, the producers often "sleep in the same two-room villa as the special couple—just a wall over, where they can literally hear what's going on."

Former Bachelorette Jillian Harris spilled some details on her blog about her time on the show. Most shocking of all was her revelation that, aside from a few pieces here and there, the women have to bring their own wardrobes. "I remember when I went on the show we got goodie bags filled with some stuff that they wanted us to wear but half of it didn't even fit. And that was it!!! The girls do have to bring all of their own clothing and of course, they want to be wearing the best clothes EVER to be seen on TV in!!! I had re-mortgaged my house and I spent something like $8,000 on clothing."

Kaufman's Vanity Fair excerpt also featured a surprising tidbit about the drinking on the show. During Bachelor in Paradise, contestants were reportedly limited to two drinks per hour — but they all made sure to get those two drinks every hour!

But that didn't always stop bad behavior. Apparently, this restriction was in place both before and after the 2017 misconduct investigation after an incident between contestants Corinne Olympios and DeMario Jackson, which revolved around an allegation of misconduct that Corinne said she was too drunk to remember.

Kaufman shared another excerpt from her book, this time in the New York Post, to reveal the most frequent reason that potential contestants don't make it through casting. Among the barrage of personality, psychological, and medical testing that producers require of contestants is an STD test — and reportedly, turning out to have an STD is the top reason for getting rejected.

Former winner Courtney Robertson shared some of the details of day-to-day life with Allure. One of the most frustrating parts of being in the Bachelor mansion was being cut off from the outside world — and not just news and social media. "There are no magazines or books allowed. That was really hard. No TV, no cell phones, no music," she said.

Staying in shape while on the show is harder than it sounds. "They take you down to the gym, usually alone. Only a couple times did I work out with the other girls. You get 30 minutes, which is pretty short. I would usually do the elliptical or run on the treadmill and then do crunches," Robertson told Allure.

According to People, the mansion — which is actually a real house lived in by a family for most of the year — gets repainted every season, changing paint colors depending on if it's a Bachelor or Bachelorette cycle.

Former Bachelorette Ali Fedotowsky revealed one of the most bizarrely specific fun facts about the show in her liveblog for E!. The driveway used for limo entrances is constantly shiny because the producers spray it down with a hose before filming! "It makes it look shiny and pretty! But if you have a long gown on it gets soaked!" Ali said.

If you're impressed by the stars' ability to remember the names of 25 strangers they've just met, think again. Ali also spilled the details on how they're able to appear to remember the names, and it actually involves a lot of flash cards. "Throughout the night a producer is never far from your side and constantly reminds you about everyone's name. She (the producer) has flash cards with the pictures and names of every contestant. It is hard to remember everyone, even with the flash cards."

There's no staff at the Bachelor mansion, meaning that contestants have to cook (and clean, and do laundry) for themselves. "We were responsible for making all of our meals in the house," former contestant Ashley Spivey told Refinery29. "Dinner would be prepared by whoever felt like cooking for everyone... On my season, Britt [Billmaier] was a classically trained chef, so she would make things like bacon jam or roasted tomato soup. I usually made dessert, like banana pudding."

As much as we all want to buy into the slow burn of the competition, former Bachelorette winner Jesse Csincsak told OK magazine that the final four are largely determined by the end of the first night. "[The producers] tell the lead, 'Pick four people you would like to get to know better,'" and that's basically the direction they'll maneuver things.

According to a report in the New York Post, the contracts that contestants sign basically gives the show free rein to portray them however they want — even if it's not true. One clause in particular reads, "I understand, acknowledge, and agree that [the show] may use or reveal personal information which may be embarrassing, unfavorable, shocking, humiliating, disparaging, and/or derogatory, may subject me to public ridicule and/or condemnation, and may portray me in a false light."