HotelChatter

Intrigued, we followed our host to the table in the middle of the lobby, where a white box sat on top. Closed, it looked completely innocuous, the kind of piece you wouldn't even notice. If you did, you might assume that it held room keys or some other hotel-admin stuff to help those floating hosts in the lobby.

But of course, this is what we saw when our host opened the lid:

· a Fat Witch Baby Brownie
· a tin of C.O. Bigelow Peppermints
· a mini tube of Bigelow Anti-Bacterial Hand Gel; and
· a tube of Bigelow Lemon Lip Cream

We're such a sucker for mini products, especially those that come gratis, that were momentarily dumbstruck when our host said, "Take whichever one you like."

After our mini brain explosion, we settled on the lip cream, having already enjoyed enough free snacks in our room upstairs.

On a return visit, we asked to peek at the stashes of products used to replenish the departure amenity box and learned that the most popular items were the mints and the brownies. The least popular? The anti-bacterial hand gel. So much for hygiene.

Which would you choose? Have you enjoyed a hotel departure amenity elsewhere in your travels? Let us know in the comments below.