Over the years, I’ve left so many things behind in hotels, at airports, and on airplanes, and rarely have I ever been reunited with them. But my long-lost Apple AirPods Pro have returned, marking a rare hotel lost and found success story.

You might recall I recently stayed at the Casa Cipriani in New York City. The morning I checked out, I began my day as I often do at the gym, followed by the sauna and steam room. 

I use Apple AirPod Pros when I exercise and I had taken them off and placed them in my locker. After the sauna and steam room, I showered and put on a hotel robe, grabbing the AirPods and placing them in the pocket of the robe.

I forgot that I had placed them there and when I got to the room, took off the robe and put on some clothes. Shortly thereafter, I checked out.

It wasn’t until several hours later that I needed to make a phone call, reached into my pocket for the AirPods, and found they were not there. I looked in my bag…also not there. 

Then it hit me…it was in the robe. I was already at JFK Airport and my flight was about to leave. I used Apple’s Find My app to see if they were still at the hotel, then phoned the hotel (which promised to look) and followed up with an email.

A couple of hours later, while I was onboard the flight to Frankfurt, the hotel wrote back stating that the headphones had been located and asking me how I wanted them shipped.

I was relieved and told them to send it as cheaply as possible since I would be out of town for the next week.

When I returned home, the AirPods had arrived via FedEx.

I’m still pretty bad at leaving things behind (at least it wasn’t the passport this time…), but I’m happy to report that I’ve been reunited with my AirPods. Considering the number of items I’ve left behind over the years, I do wonder when I’ll learn to better inventory my things before I depart…

Thank you Casa Cipriani for keeping my AirPods safe and sending them back to me.

Have you been successful in being reunited with a lost item you left behind at a hotel?

Matthew is an avid traveler who calls Los Angeles home. Each year he travels more than 200,000 miles by air and has visited more than 135 countries. Working both in the aviation industry and as a travel consultant, Matthew has been featured in major media outlets around the world and uses his Live and Let's Fly blog to share the latest news in the airline industry, commentary on frequent flyer programs, and detailed reports of his worldwide travel.

Left my wife’s jacket in the closet at the JW in Houston. Didn’t notice til we were close to the airport and not enough time to turn back. Phoned up and told them we’d be back the following week in Houston for a night. Came back to Houston the next week and sure enough, they had located it and kept it for us.

Follow up to that, we’ve also left my wife’s iPad in a hotel in Villamoura, Portugal and a Fire Stick remote at a Marriott in Amsterdam, all successfully returned. We’ve also left our passports in the safe of our hotel in London. We’ve been very lucky in regards to having things returned. Also, very forgetful at the same time.

I am very particular with my personal belongings and rarely lose anything. I travel light and use a Rimowa amenity bag for all my cables and small electronics including the Air Pods. BTW, you can set up Find My app to alert you when the Air Pods are left behind. It works really well.

A slight error frequently made on blogs. “Then it hit me…it was in the robe” should be “Then it hit me…they were in the robe.”

Whew! Good thing you called right away – I’d have been afraid they went into the laundry.

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