A SHORTBREAD castle, a life-size Yoda, an Indian wedding necklace made of £50 notes, a five-foot wedding cake pinata and a British shorthair blue kitten called Rocky were left behind by guests staying at Scotland’s Travelodges in 2021.
The hotel chain has unveiled its annual Lost and Found audit detailing the most unusual items found in its 44 Scottish hotels.
They included a suitcase full of shortbread left at Glasgow Queen Street Travelodge and a large jar labelled “Loch Ness Fresh Air” at Inverness Central Travelodge.
A treasure chest full of Scottish souvenirs and a diary documenting one holidaymaker’s Scottish adventures in the summer of 2021 was left at Edinburgh Central Travelodge.
The 2021 Scottish Travelodge Lost and Found audit has also revealed a growing trend of wedding-related items being left behind by brides, grooms and wedding guests.
A newlywed couple staying at Edinburgh Airport Ratho Station Travelodge were in such a rush to get to the airport to catch their honeymoon flight to Houston, Texas, that they left behind their flight tickets in their hotel room.
Luckily the hotel manager whizzed over to the terminal and reunited the couple with their tickets.
A bridesmaid staying at Glasgow Queen Street Travelodge had the important job of bringing the bride’s Indian wedding necklace made of £50 notes to the ceremony which she forgot, due to being too focused on her “bad hair day”.
The hotel receptionist arranged for a taxi to transport the traditional valuable wedding necklace in time for the vital ceremony.
A forgetful groom staying at Edinburgh Central Travelodge Plus was in deep trouble with his new bride when he forgot to bring the bespoke five-foot wedding cake pinata to the wedding reception.
But the hotel team, who love a challenge, stepped in and got the wedding cake pinata to the reception in time for the cake-cutting ceremony.
At Fort William Travelodge, the hotel manager had to go on a special mission to reunite a bride with her tartan wedding dress, which she forgot to take to her wedding.
The bride left the dress on the bed and only realised when she got make-up and hair ready at the wedding venue. The hotel manager managed to save her big day.
Beloved pets still remain a firm favourite on the Travelodge Lost and Found inventory report. The 2021 audit includes a British shorthair blue kitten called Rocky, who was left behind at Dumfries Travelodge.
Rocky’s owner drove to him up from a specialist breeder and broke up the journey by staying over at Dumfries Travelodge.
On departure morning, Rocky’s owner thought her sister had put him into her car and only realised 50 miles into their journey back to Newcastle.
The hotel chain has seen a rise in items being left behind by workers across all sectors, including a doctor’s coat left behind at Glasgow Govan Travelodge Plus and a professional golfer forgetting his golf buggy at Elgin Travelodge.
Additionally, a leading topiary artist forgot his prized five-foot family tree piece of artwork, which was due to be exhibited at Dundee Strathmore Avenue Travelodge.
Plus, a philatelist left his priceless collection of 55 year-old stamp collection at Aberdeen Bucksburn Travelodge.
Shakila Ahmed, Travelodge spokeswoman, said: “When it comes to why so many of our customers forget their treasured items, it’s basically due to us all being time-poor, juggling multiple tasks and being in a hurry to get from A to B. In the rush, valuable possessions are easily forgotten.”
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here