Checking out from your hotel room can be a hectic experience. You may have a flight to catch, kids to wrangle, or just a full day of travel on your mind. Given that, it’s no surprise that many people leave things behind when they leave a hotel. To make sure you’re not one of them, keep the following tips in mind:
Take your time.
You’re more likely to leave things behind if you’re in a hurry, so pack when you have plenty of time rather than leaving it for the last minute. If you need to, call down to the front desk and ask if you can check out late.
Sweep the room.
Hotel rooms have lots of little places where things can hide. Check drawers and nightstands, the closets, areas under the sink and bed, and the safe, if there is one. You should also be sure to check under the bedcovers and look in the refrigerator.
Look for chargers.
It can be easy to grab your cell phone or tablet and forget that you also need to pack up its charger. Before you leave your room, make a sweep of its electrical outlets to make sure you didn’t accidentally leave something with a plug behind.
Check your toiletries.
Toothbrushes and bags of toiletries are some of the items most frequently left behind in hotels. If you’re headed straight home, losing them might not be a huge problem, but if you lose all your toiletries on the first night of a long trip, you’ll be stuck scrambling to replace them.
Make sure you’ve got your keys.
Because people don’t need their house and car keys when they’re on vacation, the keys have a tendency to wander. They may have been set down on a table when you checked in, then moved several times, and subsequently forgotten over the course of your stay. You’ll need them to get home, however, so make sure you have them before you check out.