People Think Hotel Guests Steal Towels. Luxury Hotels Say the Real List Is Much Stranger

There are a few things people expect to hear when someone talks about hotel guests taking things from a room. The tiny toiletries, a pen… Maybe, if someone wants to push it, a towel or a mug/glass that somehow ends up in the suitcase.

But hotel theft surveys show a much stranger picture. Yes, some guests take the predictable things, while others take items that are clearly not meant to leave the room. And then there are the cases that sound so absurd that I had to read them twice – yes, really, and you will see below!

This is not only about small souvenirs or bathroom products. The list of items stolen from hotel rooms includes common things, expensive things, and a few objects that make you wonder how anyone even managed to get them out of the building.

So, what do people steal from hotels? The answer starts with towels – predictably, you might say, I know. It does not end there (you know the phrase the sky is the limit? Well… try to think about the limit now – and it might be surpassed by the actual cases below).

What Are the Most Stolen Items From Hotel Rooms?

I am starting with the most stolen items from hotel rooms – but after this section (which has some interesting findings too!) – I will share what people steal from 4 and 5-star hotels – and that is even more surprising (or at least it was for me).

A 2026 survey from Deluxe Holiday Homes, reported by Travel + Leisure, looked at the most stolen items from hotel rooms by asking more than 1,200 hotel staff members and hotel owners what they see going missing again and again. Towels came first. According to the survey, 88% of respondents said towels disappear from hotel rooms because of “how easy towels are to pack and sneak out.”

That number did not surprise me as much as it probably should have, because I have heard a smaller version of this in real life. When my son came back from a short school trip years ago, he told me that one of the boys in his room packed a hotel towel in the morning. They were younger, so part of it may have been confusion, but my son told him the towels were there to use in the bathroom, not to take home. The boy insisted it was fine and packed it anyway.

The rest of the 2026 list gets expensive quickly. Bathrobes came second, with 66% of hotel owners reporting that guests commonly take them, and Travel + Leisure quoted a Deluxe Holiday Homes travel expert saying guests sometimes think robes are free, although “that’s never true” and they can cost hotels at least $50 each.

Hangers ranked third, with one line from the findings standing out immediately: “Every second guest takes a hanger from the hotel with them.” Toiletries ranked fourth, followed by blankets, with the report noting that blankets can cost between $75 and $150 depending on the brand.

Forbes, reporting on the same Deluxe Holiday Homes survey, continued the list with pillows, hair dryers, pens, dishes, and remote controls. Pillows were reported missing by nearly one in three hotel staff members, while more than a quarter of survey participants said hair dryers are regularly taken. Pens may sit closer to the “freebie” category for many guests; dishes and remote controls are harder to explain that way.

The cost is one reason hotels do not treat this as a joke. Travel + Leisure quoted the Deluxe Holiday Homes expert as saying, “Hotel theft costs the industry around $100 million annually in the US alone.” The same expert added that part of the issue is confusion around what guests can take home: branded pens or mini soaps may feel like freebies, but blankets and bathrobes are different because guests know those are not gifts, yet some still take them.

4-Star Hotel vs 5-Star Hotel Theft: What Changes?

The strongest source I found for the luxury hotel angle is the Wellness Heaven hotel theft study. It surveyed 1,376 hotel managers and compared theft reports from 4-star and 5-star hotels.

The basic list includes the common items: towels and bathrobes were stolen most often, followed by hangers, pens, cosmetics, batteries, cutlery, artwork, tablets, blankets, pillows, dishes, coffee machines, remote controls, light bulbs, hair dryers, televisions, mattresses, telephones, curtains, lamps, and bathroom fixtures.

But the difference between 4-star and 5-star hotels is where the study becomes more interesting. Four-star hotels reported more theft of practical items such as towels, hangers, batteries, remote controls, and toilet paper. Five-star hotels reported more theft of expensive items, including tablets, artwork, televisions, coffee machines, mattresses, and blankets.

The numbers are striking – or, again, they are to me (because I did not expect stealing at 5-star hotels, let alone the items – and wait until you see the truly weird items stolen that I am including in the next section). According to the study, tablet computers were stolen 6 times more often in 5-star hotels than in 4-star hotels. Mattresses were 5.4 times more likely to disappear from 5-star hotels. Televisions were 4.9 times more likely, coffee machines 4.8 times more likely, and artwork 4.3 times more likely to be stolen from 5-star hotels.

The mattress detail is probably the one that made me stop. Wellness Heaven says 11.8% of 5-star hotel managers reported mattress theft, compared with 2.2% of 4-star hotel managers. The study also notes that at least 91 hoteliers reported mattress theft in the survey, which means this was not just one strange story repeated online. 

But how do you steal a mattress – as a guest? Where do you hide it, how do you move it, and who gets it out of the building?

Wellness Heaven also found that some items are rising compared with its 2019 survey. Coffee maker theft increased from 6.9% to 11.4%, mattress theft from 4.2% to 6.6%, and tablet theft from 12% to 18.3%. Mini fridges also appeared as a newer stolen item, with 3.3% of surveyed hoteliers reporting theft of the device. That is another interesting finding – it shows that luxury hotel theft is not only about old towel-and-robe habits; some guests are apparently getting more ambitious.  

I know that sometimes there are all sorts of weird things happening in hotel rooms when guests are not there. But I was puzzled to see artwork stolen or coffee machines being stolen. I sometimes make coffee or tea in a hotel room, although I started looking at those machines differently after reading about that bizarre coffee-machine “hack” I wrote about before. Still, using a coffee machine in the room and stealing one are obviously very different things.

Here I have to say that I sometimes make myself a coffee or a tea in the hotel room  – true, this was before I found out about this bizarre hotel hack using a coffee machine -, but I would never steal one. Or anything else – even if it’s something I like (artwork) or don’t have at home.

Weird Things Stolen From Hotels

This was, for me, the most surprising part of the Wellness Heaven study and its findings. 

One Italian hotel manager reported that three men in overalls carried a grand piano out of the lobby and it never reappeared.

The same study mentions bathroom fittings, a rain shower head, a massage table, a hi-fi system from a spa area, sauna benches, room numbers, a stuffed boar’s head, and flower arrangements.

Stop for a second: You go to a 4 or 5-star hotel and steal sauna benches? Room numbers???? Shower heads??? I know some people do strange things at hotels, but I honestly don’t get stealing. 

Are Hotel Toiletries Free to Take?

Hotel toiletries are one of the few categories where the answer can be yes, but only in specific cases.

Small, individually packaged toiletries are often provided for single-guest use. If a hotel leaves a mini shampoo bottle, conditioner, lotion, soap, shower cap, or small sewing kit in the room, it may expect the guest to use it or take the unused portion.

But that does not apply to everything in the bathroom.

Refillable wall dispensers are not souvenirs. Soap dishes are not souvenirs. Towels, robes, bath mats, hair dryers, mirrors, shower heads, and bathroom fixtures are hotel property.

So, can you take hotel toiletries? Usually, yes if they are small, disposable, individually provided, and clearly meant for your personal use. No if they are fixed, refillable, reusable, or part of the room.

Can You Take Bathrobes From Hotels?

No.

Bathrobes are not the same as mini shampoo bottles. They are washable, reusable hotel property. If the hotel sells robes, you can buy one. If the hotel explicitly says the robe is included in your stay, that is different. But unless that is made clear, the robe should stay in the room.

What Can You Take From a Hotel Room?

You can usually take small disposable or complimentary items that are clearly provided for one guest. That may include:

• small individually packaged toiletries
• tea bags 
• coffee pods 
• sugar and creamer packets  
• shower caps
• sewing kits
• shoe mitts
• disposable slippers, if clearly single-use
• branded pens and notepads, in many hotels, not always!

What Not to Take From a Hotel Room

If it needs to be said… Do not take:

• towels
• bathrobes
• pillows
• blankets
• sheets
• mattress protectors
• hangers
• hair dryers
• mugs
• glasses
• dishes
• cutlery
• remote controls
• batteries from remotes
• coffee machines
• kettles
• lamps
• curtains
• artwork
• tablets
• phones
• televisions
• bathroom fixtures
• shower heads
• mirrors
• room numbers
• anything attached to the wall, furniture, bathroom, or bed

Can Hotels Charge You for Stolen Items?

Yes, hotels can charge guests for missing items, especially when the missing item is clearly hotel property.

A hotel may charge for towels, robes, pillows, blankets, electronics, damaged fixtures, missing remotes, or other items removed from the room. Policies vary by hotel, country, booking platform, and payment method, but guests should not assume that taking something will go unnoticed.

I recall seeing an article that hotels are starting to use the RFID codes (usually added to keep a record of laundry and washing) to see when an item dissapears (and they might charge you after you leave the hotel room, when the theft is discovered).

Photo sources: 1, 2, 3

Violeta Loredana

Violeta-Loredana Pascal is a communications expert, business mentor, and the founder of Earth’s Attractions and PRwave INTERNATIONAL. A pioneer in the Romanian digital PR landscape since 2005, she holds a degree in Communication and Social Sciences from SNSPA Bucharest. Violeta is a senior trainer at AcademiadeAfaceri.ro, where she leverages over 20 years of experience to teach professional courses in PR strategy and workplace productivity. By blending high-level business consulting with a passion for holistic travel and wellness, she empowers solopreneurs to overcome procrastination, build profitable brands, and design a life of purposeful adventure.