Hotel - left items lost and found

[Anonymous]

Does anyone have inside info into what really happens when you leave things behind at a hotel? We know that we left somethings due to a misunderstanding re: grabbing a packing cube on our way out... The hotel (a nice upscale resort) did not reach out to us to say they found something we left behind. (this was clothes). We reached out to them once we realized it and they are "looking in the lost and found". Is it not normal protocol to contact the guest when the cleaning staff finds items? I don't want to assume the worst, but do they not do that because its a pain and then donate when isn't claimed after some time? We are return guest to this resort FWIW.

[Anonymous]

The last place we stayed just last month, my son left his journal on the nightstand. No one contacted us.

I called about it, they checked in the lost and found and asked me to describe it. (his name, same last name as mine was in there).

Then they said they would ship it to me and took my credit card info. I later saw the charge on my account---$20!! $20 to ship me a book! That was more than the cost of the journal. There is no way, it actually cost $20 to ship it,

[Anonymous]

I work in a large resort and there are so many things left behind everyday. If there was something that stood out as being valuable, we would try to contact the guest. For most things (and it truly is so many things per day) we do not. Items found are taken to our lost and found and shipped out to guests who contact us to retrieve them. If they are there more than 30-60 days then they get donated.

For the PP with the $20 charge, at our resort we use FedEx onsite and I do know that ground shipping if you live a distance from us is often in the $20-23 range.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The last place we stayed just last month, my son left his journal on the nightstand. No one contacted us.

I called about it, they checked in the lost and found and asked me to describe it. (his name, same last name as mine was in there).

Then they said they would ship it to me and took my credit card info. I later saw the charge on my account---$20!! $20 to ship me a book! That was more than the cost of the journal. There is no way, it actually cost $20 to ship it,

There's no way the diet coke in the mini-fridge costs $12.00 either.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The last place we stayed just last month, my son left his journal on the nightstand. No one contacted us.

I called about it, they checked in the lost and found and asked me to describe it. (his name, same last name as mine was in there).

Then they said they would ship it to me and took my credit card info. I later saw the charge on my account---$20!! $20 to ship me a book! That was more than the cost of the journal. There is no way, it actually cost $20 to ship it,

Huh? Their employee had to go on company time to get it weighed and mail it (no, they do not have postal scales at the hotel front desk). That time costs money. Do you know how many people leave things behind in hotels?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The last place we stayed just last month, my son left his journal on the nightstand. No one contacted us.

I called about it, they checked in the lost and found and asked me to describe it. (his name, same last name as mine was in there).

Then they said they would ship it to me and took my credit card info. I later saw the charge on my account---$20!! $20 to ship me a book! That was more than the cost of the journal. There is no way, it actually cost $20 to ship it,

They charge for shipping and for their time to go and ship it. They should've told you the cost first.

[Anonymous]

We've had hits and misses with this. We did get a stuffed animal back (I paid for shipping and was happy to do so) but another time we forgot bathing suits that had been left drying in a bathroom and after LOTS of back and forth nada. I finally gave up on it.

Probably worth mentioning that the stuffed animal was at a Ritz Carlton and the bathing suits were a chain hotel (not that Ritz Carltons aren't a chain but you know what I mean)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The last place we stayed just last month, my son left his journal on the nightstand. No one contacted us.

I called about it, they checked in the lost and found and asked me to describe it. (his name, same last name as mine was in there).

Then they said they would ship it to me and took my credit card info. I later saw the charge on my account---$20!! $20 to ship me a book! That was more than the cost of the journal. There is no way, it actually cost $20 to ship it,

Why shouldn’t they change an extra handling fee to ship stuff back to guests? It’s not the hotel’s fault you left it behind, and people will want every sock and iPhone charger shipped back to them if it’s all on the hotel’s dime.

[Anonymous]

They’d be calling people every day. Sometimes people leave crap behind because they don’t want it anymore.

[Anonymous]

I worked in a hotel for a few years out of undergrad, and no we did not call. And this was a very very very nice hotel in Buckhead, Atlanta. If it was valuable, then sure, but I doubt all of the value items made it to the housekeeping supervisors desk. Most of the time things hung around and eventually employees would be able to take it home, maybe a few times year. Booze was a big thing to leave behind, unopened.

Reminds me that my mother left two new 'custom' bras in a hotel in Richmond. She paid $$$ for them to ship them a few miles down 64. It wasn't worth her time to go get them, and she was happy to pay the $20 or so to get them back. The bras were $$$$$ for a large chested woman.

[Anonymous]

Thank you this is very helpful. This was a Four Seasons and it was a whole packing cube of clothes.

[Anonymous]

They don't contact you, IME, but if you contact them they ship. I just contacted a hotel my husband left a pillow at. It did cost me about $20 because they just pop it in a standard Fedex box.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:They’d be calling people every day. Sometimes people leave crap behind because they don’t want it anymore.

This. It would be a full time job at high turnover hotels.

[Anonymous]

I left my Company iPhone While on a personal vacation - I like to use it’s wifi hot spot with my personal devices. Anyway I noticed it on my way to the airport and they found it exactly where I knew it was - charging on the nightstand. I paid a flat $50 for them to overnight it.which was worth it to me so I didn’t have to report it lost to my employer.

[Anonymous]

I would not expect staff at a “regular” hotel to set aside and label every forgotten item, bring them to the front desk to research the past guest, contact said guest, and arrange to have the item forwarded. I would however hope they have an honest staff with a reasonable system for storing lost items (especially ones of possible value) for owner to retrieve or have forwarded upon request.