Most Commonly Forgotten Items

When people come and go from our hotel here are some of the most common items left at home and what we find they leave when they depart. 

5  Swim suits

4  Toiletries (shampoo, toothpaste, razors, etc.)

3  Pillows

2  Clothes

1  Cell phone chargers

I’m sure the number one answer comes as no surprise. In fact, cell phone chargers are the number one item left behind in hotels worldwide. A study last year by Holiday Inn and Holiday Express in the UK revealed 42,000 cell phone chargers left behind in their hotels in one year. What’s more surprising is their collective value: nearly $1 million!

What Else Did They Leave?

Forget the most common items, what’s more entertaining is discovering what area visitors forgot in the closet, stashed in the safe and inexplicably left behind. Our survey of Traverse City area hotels revealed several stories, ranging from the odd to the downright embarrassing. Here’s our list of the top five.

 Top 5 Most Unusual Items Hotel Guests Left Behind

#5  Adult toys

As you might expect, underwear and lingerie are often discovered after check-out. And more than a few hotels reported adult toys among the mix. We’ll spare you the EEEW factor and other details. This is a family-friendly website after all.

#4  False teeth

OK, I understand that you have to remove them for cleaning, and could accidentally leave them behind in a glass on the sink or something. But honestly, how do you forget them? And how often do you leave them behind that you can’t remember the last time you had them??

#3  A walker

Discovering a walker accidentally misplaced, or folded neatly in the closet may not be all that unexpected. But finding one sitting in the parking lot at the center of a handicapped space gives it a ranking on my strange-o-meter. As Alanis says, "isn’t it ironic?"

#2  A police-issue 9mm handgun

Placed in the safe for security it was left behind. Unfortunately for the officer, that’s a big no-no. The hotel reported it and the officer got in big trouble with the department.

#1  Cremated urn of ashes

This one I just can’t paraphrase. An anonymous hotel found, "An urn of cremated ashes, yes of a person. When contacted the son said ‘throw him in the dumpster’. We tracked down a daughter who was happy to accept." Strangely enough that same survey respondent also listed "human leg and hip bones from a doctor who does replacement surgeries." Truth is stranger than fiction.