No, hotels cannot see your internet history. Hotels provide guests with a secure Wi-Fi connection that is separate from their own internal network. This means that the hotel staff would not be able to access any of the data you send or receive while connected to their Wi-Fi service.

Yes, the administrator of a hotel's WiFi network can see a significant amount of data about your device and your online activity, though they cannot "see inside" your encrypted apps. Specifically, the hotel's router logs your MAC address (a unique identifier for your phone), the device name (e.g., "Sarah’s iPhone"), and the domains (websites) you visit. For example, they can see that you are on Netflix.com or BankofAmerica.com, but because of modern HTTPS encryption, they generally cannot see your specific login credentials or the exact content of the pages you are viewing. However, if the network is unsecured, a sophisticated "Man-in-the-Middle" attack could potentially intercept more sensitive data. In 2026, it is standard security advice to use a Virtual Private Network (VPN) when connecting to any public or hotel WiFi; a VPN creates an encrypted tunnel that hides your browsing destination and data from the network provider, making your phone essentially "invisible" to the hotel's data logging systems.