Originally Posted by
stut
Mind you, hotels in some non-EU European countries, where registration with the police is still required, will often take your passport so they can go and do a nightly run to the local police station to do it for you (usually giving you an official receipt in return).
Of course, you can always go and do it yourself, but I'm usually happy to let somebody do it for me...
I have been staying and travelling around CEE for the good part of the past 4 years and never had the hotels asked to keep it.. sometimes they have asked to make photocopies for their records and for registration with the police, but never asked for the orignals to be kept.. And mind u, I have an Indian passport and not an American one..
Even for police registrations ( required in many eastern european countries) a xerox is usually taken.. never the original..