As a travel writer for the past two decades, I have spent a lot of time in hotels, often staying at dozens of properties each year. And while I always stop at the front desk when checking into a hotel to make special requests and pick up my room assignment and keys, I didn’t always stop on the way out. No-contact ways to depart a hotel have become as common as in-room coffee, and at many places, checking out is as easy as literally walking out the door at the end of your stay.
But I’ve learned the hard way that stopping at the front desk is mandatory when I’m departing any property. It should be for you too, and I talked to four travel experts, including managers at major hotels, who agree. Keep reading to find out why.
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Why I always stop by the front desk when checking out of a hotel
I’ll admit I used to do a quick checkout when I was on the road. A bill slipped under my door, a television checkout menu, a quick call down to the lobby. Especially when I was traveling with family and juggling bags, toys and snacks, it seemed like an easy way to save time.
That is until I got an unwelcome surprise after a stay at an Orlando hotel.
I was traveling with my son, and we spent our last Disney vacation day enjoying the resort pool. We splurged on two smoothies and an order of guacamole and chips, which totaled $50 (hello, Orlando!). I signed the bill, and we went back to our room before spending the evening at Disney Springs, checking out before dawn the next morning. I had prepaid the hotel, so I dropped my keys and left, knowing it was just my pool bar bill that would be on my invoice.
Imagine my surprise when I found a charge on my credit card bill for triple the amount I was expecting. I called the hotel and was informed that the charge was part of my pool bar bill. Impossible, I replied. I challenged the charge, but it took nearly two weeks of back-and-forth until I connected with someone in accounting who had copies of that day’s bar bills. He confirmed that the waiter had erroneously added my room number to another bill, and that the signature on that second bill didn’t match mine.
Had I stopped at the front desk before I left (or the night before, considering our early departure), I could have caught the mistake before my credit card charges went through, the bar bill had been filed away and I spent two weeks of my life trying to get it reversed.
What can happen if you don’t stop at the front desk at the end of your stay?
You can get stuck with a charge that isn’t yours, as I did. In this case, it was “just” $100, but other things can show up on your bill that you weren’t expecting. One I often encounter is the “free” hotel breakfast that never gets deducted from the bill, but a more serious case of an erroneous charge recently happened to travel journalist Zach Griff.
Griff stayed at a hotel in Newport, Rhode Island, with his wife and 9-month-old baby over the Fourth of July week. When he stopped at the front desk, Griff, a nonsmoker (as is his wife), saw that the hotel had added a $500 fee for smoking in the room.
“Checking the folio [bill] at checkout was the first time I noticed this charge, and if I hadn’t stopped at the front desk, I likely would not have been able to contest it as strongly if I were already on my way home,” Griff says. Unfortunately, the hotel wouldn’t budge.
A few days later, Griff was getting ready to ask his credit card company to reverse the charge when he noticed “scores of reviews online for the same hotel with the same seemingly fraudulent smoking charge,” Griff says, suggesting the practice wasn’t isolated to him. Griff told me that his experience underscores the importance of doing research before your stay, checking your hotel bill before you depart the hotel and speaking up when something is wrong.
Are there other ways to review your bill before you check out?
Yes. I’ve stayed in a lot of hotels, and these are the most common ways to check out your bill before you check out yourself:
- Use the app: Most large hotel groups have apps that do everything from acting as your room key to ordering up room service, and they can be a great way to review your bill and check out of your room.
- Check the TV: In most hotels you can pull up your bill on the TV and check out that way.
- Call or email: You can also call the front desk and request that they tell you your current room charges. And many hotels will email you the bill so you can see the itemized charges.
- Look for a physical bill: Although it’s less common now that digital interfaces are so popular, some hotels do still slip a bill under your door the night before you depart.
I’ve found that for a very early departure, stopping by the front desk before I head to bed for the night gives me a good look at what I’ve accrued on my bill and lets me address any issues before morning. Then, when I do have to check out in the dark, I feel secure that there won’t be any surprises.
But don’t take it from me! Kristin Duncan, the general manager of the Renaissance Chicago Downtown Hotel, says that even though guests can digitally check out, “we still believe it’s a good idea for guests to stop by the front desk before they leave.” Not only can you look at and review your charges, Duncan says that talking to hotel staff is helpful if you “need a printed copy for expense reports, or want to split charges across multiple cards.”
How can you dispute a bill after you check out?
Disputing a bill after you’ve checked out of a hotel is possible, but be prepared: It takes much longer, and it will be more difficult to find the correct people to talk to.
“If there’s a charge you’d like to dispute, it’s always best to do it while you’re still on property,” says Becky Kramer, the general manager of the Radisson Salt Lake City Downtown Hotel. “That way we can speak with the right team members, check records and get back to you with accurate answers, often before you even leave.”
And if the on-site hotel staff aren’t able to resolve your dispute, “speaking to us directly at least gives you an idea of who you can speak to if you need to call back,” Kramer says.
Are there any other reasons you should stop by the front desk before checking out?
Stopping by the front desk before you check out doesn’t have to be just about checking your bill. Here are some additional perks of a personal visit.
- Get assistance with departing the hotel. “We always enjoy when our guests stop by upon checkout!” Duncan says. “It’s a great way for us to see if there’s anything we can assist with before departure,” such as securing transportation, helping with luggage or other needs.
- Share your feedback. “This is your moment to tell us how we did!” Kramer says. “Whether something stood out as amazing or there was an issue during your stay, we genuinely want to hear about it. Your feedback helps us thank our team when they get it right or make things right if something fell short.”
- Recycle your keys. Yes, you can bring them home, or dump them in the garbage, but Duncan says if you do leave your keys they can be used again. “All of our keys are recycled and fully sanitized before they are re-used,” Duncan adds.
- Get last-minute recommendations. “Stopping by the front desk can create a meaningful moment of human connection before departure,” says Emily Wright, a vice president and global brand leader at Hyatt. “[It’s a] chance to connect personally, ask a final question or uncover a local recommendation.”
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About the experts
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Sources:
- Zach Griff, journalist and travel expert; interviewed, August 2025
- Kristin Duncan, general manager of the Renaissance Chicago Downtown Hotel; interviewed, August 2025
- Becky Kramer, general manager of the Radisson Salt Lake City Downtown Hotel; interviewed, August 2025
- Emily Wright, vice president and global brand leader for Hyatt Hotels; interviewed, August 2025
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