Fairy wings, vintage clogs and £1,000 violin left at Cambridge hotels

Where would you find a box of 100 vintage wooden clogs, two bottles of Châteauneuf-du-Pape Grand Cuvée and a set of iridescent fairy wings? Where else but the Travelodge’s lost and found offices in Cambridge.

The budget chain revealed some of the items left behind in its 582 hotels, including five in the Cambridge area over the last year.

A Royal Mint box containing a valuable Rolling Stones collectable coin was found at Cambridge Central Travelodge, where a beaded and embroidered masquerade ball gown and an order of service for the King’s College Carols at Kings were also found.

Meanwhile, a forgetful musician left a violin behind at Cambridge Orchard Park Travelodge – worth more than £1,000. The pricey Châteauneuf-du-Pape Grand Cuvée wine was also left here.

And if it was the tooth fairy that visited Cambridge Newmarket Road Travelodge, then she’s grown – a set of 5ft iridescent fairy wings were left behind, as was an e-bike. A box of 100 vintage wooden clogs were found at Cambridge Swavesey Travelodge, where a not-so-lucky horseshoe was also left behind.

Travelodge spokeswoman Shakila Ahmed said: “With nearly 19 million customers annually staying at our 580 UK Travelodge hotels, including our five hotels in Cambridge, for thousands of different reasons, we do get a range of interesting items left behind. During 2022, this included a box of 100 vintage wooden clogs, two bottles of Châteauneuf-du-Pape Grand Cuvée and a set of 5ft iridescent fairy wings.

“Interestingly the 2022 lost and found audit also revealed that we are a nation striving for a healthy lifestyle as we have seen a significant rise in smart watches being left behind in our Travelodge hotels during the last 12 months.”

The top 10 most popular items left behind in Travelodge hotels during 2022:

• Chargers for mobile phones and electronic devices such as laptops
• Mobile phones, tablets and Kindles
• Smart watches
• Business papers / notepads / presentations
• Books
• Teddy Bears
• Toiletry bags with contents
• Jewellery
• Clothing
• Toys
• Gifts / presents

Shakila added: “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.”