Lessons learned this past weekend.

[Jim_Rogers]

Lessons learned; some we learned and some others learned.

This past weekend we traveled to CT to go to a festival. We reserved a room at a motel not too far away.

We arrived at the motel in the late afternoon, and got checked in and got the electronic key for the door lock.

Soon afterwards we went out to dinner and then drove a few miles further and went to see a movie at 6:30 pm.

After the movie we returned to the motel and got ready for bed. While watching TV I heard someone trying to open our door. The chain was not across to the frame. The dead bolt was not turned to lock.

I got up, and was just at the door when it opened. There were two men standing there. I told them this is my room. He said it was his room. I told him it was my room and go talk to the office staff. And I closed the door and put the chain across.

He pounded on the door and asked if he could get his stuff he had left in the room. I told him that there wasn't any of his stuff in the room when we got there and to go talk to the office staff. He said his stuff was in the bureau. After again closing the door, I looked in the bureau drawers and no stuff there. The bureau had a side cabinet, and sure enough there was some stuff in there.

I then told him that he could come in and get his stuff out of the bureau. He did and left. I locked the door and put the chain across. Soon he returned and wanted his "tablet" computer. I told him there was no tablet in the room and go talk to the office staff. He was very upset, and punched the wall outside the room.

I was prepared and about to call 911, when my wife said to wait until he came back again, and if he did then call the police.

This all happened between 10 and 10:30 pm.

At 11:00pm there was another knock on the door, this time I looked out the window before opening the door. It was the police. A woman cop came in and asked what happened. We told her the complete story. She looked in the bureau for his missing stuff, nothing was found. And she left.

Shortly thereafter she returned. Again I looked out the window before opening the door. She said he had told her where he left his tablet and charger plugged in to charge. She looked there and there was no tablet or charger in our room. And I offered to let her search our stuff looking for the tablet because I knew we didn't have it. She declined and didn't search any more, after looking under the beds for his stuff.

I asked her who called them and she said she got a call from the office and a call from him about his missing stuff because the office said they didn't find any of his stuff in the room when it was cleaned before we arrived.

It was our opinion that the cleaning crew took his tablet and kept it. Or that the crew had turned it into the office and the office staff kept it.

So the point of all this story is the lessons learned.
1) check your room for other's stuff when you first walk in. If there are other's belongings there then there could be a mix up as to who's room it is.
2) do not leave your valuable tablets or laptop computers in your room when you're not there.
3) lock your door and put the chain across, if available, so that no one can just "walk in" on you.

Lesson one and three are something we learned. And lesson two is one he learned, but most likely I will also follow, as I had left my laptop there while we went out to dinner and the movie.

Sorry for the long story but there are lessons there for others to learn from.

Jim Rogers

[Southside]

Years back I had left a digital camera in a rental car when I turned it it. Called them when I realized what happened and day or two later got a call saying the cleaning crew had found it and brought it to the office. 

When I was downloading photos from it there were a couple I didn't recognize, taken in a home and one had a female in it. Turns out the cleaning crew had kept the camera and brought it home before being asked about it, so your theory is probably spot on as to what happened to the tablet. 

[Magicman]

While sawing the "sand box" job my customer provided lodging at the Hampton Inn.  After checking in one time I walked into my assigned room to find a very alarmed lady who had not turned her "security" latch.  I apologized and was assigned another (this time) empty room. 

Yes, mix ups can/do happen so attaching the security chain/latch is very important to prevent a surprise.

[WV Sawmiller]

Jim,

   Good points. Also check to make sure the TV and lights a such work too. If not you can normally get them fixed or change rooms immediately but not necessarily so later. We stayed in a hotel in Charlotte a few weeks back and the TV did not work and the night crew could not get it fixed. We packed up to move rooms for the second night but we came back late and all other rooms were filled and they had not fixed the TV so I missed opening night of Survivor. We checked in early the first night and if we;d have checked we could have changed rooms or got the TV fixed then. We had plenty of chances to check in early the 2nd day but did not. The manager did give us half off the second nights lodging which was satisfactory compensation IMHO. 

[CCCLLC]

Appreciate it guys. Not something I would have thought about but I'll be doing these things now.

[SawyerTed]

Yes the front desk doesn't always get things right.   My wife checked into a room at a resort hotel for a professional conference.  I arrived later that day.

When I told the clerk my wife had checked in earlier and I was expected etc.  I was asked for my ID.  After checking it, I was issued the little folder with key and room number.

Upon entering the room, there was a quite attractive woman not my wife in very very undressed situation who was extremely surprised to see me.  Needless to say I was shocked to see her as well.  

The desk assumed I was the husband of the other lady.....

Turned out she and my wife are friends and colleagues from different school districts.  It made for an awkward couple evening meals.  We finally have learned to laugh about it.

[Southside]

Turned out she and my wife are friends and colleagues from different school districts.  It made for an awkward couple evening meals.  We finally have learned to laugh about it.

This went over better than the whole cake incident? :D

[curved-wood]

In an all-inclusive hotel I went one story underneath my room with the same wall and corridors configurations and open the room with my metal key!! Got in the room, suitcases wide open, nothing looks like our stuff but the wall and the colors was the same. For a few seconds I was really wondering what was going on even thinking it is a bit too much rhum. So I went out of the room, lock back the door. I didn't meet anybody which could have a very wide spectrum of reactions. I could have plan an easy theft but it is just not my cup of tea. I am not even sure that the staff know that my key open 2 different bedrooms.

[Chuck White]

Been-there-done-that @curved-wood only not in a motel, but in a U-Haul storage unit!

The key to my storage unit fit 2 other locks besides mine!  :-\

[scsmith42]

Years ago I had a Compaq Ipaq stolen from my jacket pocket while it was hanging in my room at the Grove Park Inn in Asheville NC.  I don't know if it was housekeeping or if they left the door open while they were cleaning several rooms and someone rifled through my belongings.

Lesson learned.

[YellowHammer]

Pretty scary, I'm glad it turned out OK, although certainly made for a restless night.

As part of my previous job, we were trained continuously on certain aspects of operation security, and among other things, what to do and not do concerning hotels.  One main things is to realize that someone will be going through our rooms every day (from routine maid service to outright thievery) and to never leave anything in the room that you don't want to lose, or get into other people's hands.  Never leave a passport, a wallet, a computer, etc because even though it may not be stolen, data may be mined and if nothing else, it could be used as identity theft or much worse.

The other thing is never open the door for anyone, never, and certainly never let anyone in your room, for any reason, unless the front desk has been notified and their people are present.  They should also be trained how to handle the situation and are only a short elevator ride away to get to your room.  A hotel room door is pretty solid, but not if you open it.  If there is ever an incident, for any reason, demand a room change immediately or completely leave the motel because the first incident is generally followed by others.  I've had to do both, and it's a pain, but better than the alternative.  Although the man claimed he'd left his belongings it could have been drugs or a firearm he did not want anybody to see.

Bad things can happen in motels.      

[SawyerTed]

Turned out she and my wife are friends and colleagues from different school districts.  It made for an awkward couple evening meals.  We finally have learned to laugh about it.

This went over better than the whole cake incident? :D

Thankfully the woman in question told my wife I was a gentleman in that particular situation.

The birthday cake thing involved some (too much) celebratory beverages and the subsequent skewed perception of what really happened.   ;)