I've carried an IP phone when driving around the country and don't recall any issues connecting when in an hotel, it was pretty much plug 'n play. It's power was supplied by an external wall-wart. I made a point of unplugging the phone when I left so there was no issue of someone attempting to use the phone. I also set my dial plan so if someone dialed 911 or just took the phone off-hook more than 5 seconds without dialing a number it would call my cell phone!

Usually the phone would only be used if I was on a long stay (over two days). For the shorter staysI used EyeBeam (now Bria?) on my laptop and it did just fine.