Lost something? Guides to getting it back
Practical steps for getting back something you lost: a phone, a wallet, a passport or AirPods, or anything left behind at a hotel, a stadium, a festival, a gym, a train or an airport. Each guide starts with the short answer.
The guides are written by vFound, which makes lost and found software for venues. The steps work wherever you lost something.
Updated
Step-by-step guides
Left something in a hotel room? Here’s how to get it back.
Contact the hotel directly as soon as you notice, not the booking site, and give them your room number, checkout date and a precise description of the item.
Lost something at a stadium or concert? Do this.
Check the venue’s website for a lost and found page first.
How does hotel lost and found actually work?
When housekeeping finds an item at room turnover, it is logged (traditionally in a book or spreadsheet, increasingly in software), secured in storage and held for a policy period while the hotel matches it to guest inquiries.
Lost your wallet? Here’s what to do in the first hour.
Freeze or cancel your cards first, using your banking app or the bank’s website, then retrace your steps and contact every place you visited.
Lost your phone? Here’s how to find it and protect your data.
Use another device to open Apple Find My or Google Find My Device, play a sound, and mark the phone as lost with a contact number on the screen.
Lost your AirPods? Here’s how to find them, or replace just one.
Open the Find My app on your iPhone or at iCloud.com and check where your AirPods are or were last seen.
Lost your passport abroad? What to do, step by step.
Search the places you’ve been and check hotel, airport and venue lost property, then report the loss to local police if required.
Lost something on a train or bus? Here’s how to get it back.
Work out which company runs the train or bus you were on, because each operator has its own lost property office.
Lost something at a festival? Here’s how to get it back.
During the festival, go to the lost property tent or info point and leave a description and your phone number.
Lost something at the gym? Where to look and who to ask.
Ask at the front desk first, since most gyms keep a lost and found box behind reception.
More answers from our blog
Lost Something at the Airport? How to Get It Back
If you lost something at the airport, the fastest route back depends on where you lost it.
Left Your Phone in an Uber or Lyft? How to Get It Back
If you left your phone in an Uber or Lyft, both apps have a built-in lost-item flow that connects you to your driver, even if your phone is the thing you lost.
Theme Park Lost and Found: Disney, Universal and Beyond
Theme parks reunite a huge number of lost items every day, and most have a defined process, often with same-day return to your hotel or an online form.
How Long Do Hotels Keep Lost Items? (By Item Type)
Most hotels keep ordinary lost items for around 30 to 90 days, hold valuables and documents longer, and dispose of perishables within a day or two.