Ever gone on a trip and forgotten your charger for some rechargeable item? Thought about asking your hotel front desk to see what they have to help you out?

I’m currently on vacation (my first in 13 years) and I ran in to the most amazing idea at a Springhill Suites the other day.  As I walked up to the front desk to check in, the clerk was helping two guests go through a large basket of cell phone chargers.  Each was wrapped in a plastic bag and they were trying to find the one that would math the guest’s phone as she had forgotten her charger.  I didn’t ask at the time, but I just had to satisfy my curiosity as to what was going on.

I went back up to the desk later to arrange for my airport shuttle the next day, and as the same clerk was working, I asked about the chargers.  She said it was a basket full of the chargers people had left in their rooms and never come back to claim.  The hotel opted to keep them as a courtesy to guests who forgot their chargers.  While there was certainly no guarantee they would have the charger for your specific phone, it is better than running out to a store and having to buy a new one right away.

The clerk didn’t know if this was a chain-wide policy, but either way it certainly would never hurt to ask your front desk if they do such a thing.  If more hotels aren’t doing this, they should.  Although, hopefully with universal chargers on the way, it will become a whole lot easier for everyone to always find a charger.