How to Connect an iPhone or iPad to a Hotel TV (Cable, AirPlay, Netflix)

The quick answer

• Look at the TV first. A reachable HDMI port and an Input or Source button mean a cable will work. An AirPlay QR code or a cast option on the screen means you can go wireless.
• A cable works on any TV whose HDMI input you can use. Plug a USB-C to HDMI adapter into the iPhone or iPad, run an HDMI cable to the TV, and press Input or Source. iPhone 15 and later work, except iPhone 16e, iPhone 17e and iPhone Air.
• AirPlay QR code on the TV? Scan it with the Camera app and follow the steps. Apple has added AirPlay to select hotel rooms, starting with IHG hotels in 2024.
• Netflix: sign in to the TV's own Netflix app if it has one, or use a cable. Netflix doesn't support AirPlay, so the hotel's AirPlay won't carry it.
• Input locked, or no port in reach? Hotel TVs can be set to lock their HDMI inputs, and only the hotel can change that. Ask the front desk.

Every way to get your phone or iPad onto a hotel TV

The cable rows need an iPad with USB-C, or an iPhone with video over USB-C (iPhone 15 or later, except iPhone 16e, iPhone 17e and iPhone Air); Lightning models need Apple's Lightning Digital AV Adapter. ScreenCommand is supported over a cable and over AirPlay to an Apple TV; we haven't verified it with hotel AirPlay or hotel casting, so the table doesn't claim it.

First, check what the room's TV offers

Hotel TVs aren't set up alike, so spend a minute with the TV and its remote first. Look for these:

• An HDMI port you can reach, and an Input or Source button. Check the sides and back of the TV. If the remote's Input or Source button steps through HDMI inputs, a cable will work.
• An AirPlay QR code on the screen. In rooms that have AirPlay, Apple's steps start with turning on the TV and finding its AirPlay QR code. If you can't find one, ask the front desk whether the room has AirPlay.
• A cast option. Some hotel TVs have Google Cast built in. How you pair your phone with the TV differs by hotel, so follow the steps the TV or the hotel gives you.
• Streaming apps on the TV itself. Some hotel TVs have apps you sign in to. Netflix says its app is available at select locations of many hotels in the United States, including Best Western, Four Seasons, Hilton, Hyatt, InterContinental, Marriott and Wyndham.
• An input that won't change. Hotel TVs can be set to lock their HDMI and USB inputs: Samsung lists it as a feature of its hotel TVs, so guests can't get into the TV's settings. If Input or Source does nothing, ask the front desk.

Working from the room for a few days? The iPad travel workstation guide covers finding the HDMI port and setting up the hotel TV as a work screen.

Connect with a cable (any TV with an HDMI input you can use)

A cable needs no Wi-Fi, no QR code and no app on the TV. It's also the connection that lets Netflix and other protected video through to the screen.

1. Plug a USB-C to HDMI adapter into the iPhone or iPad, or use a single cable with USB-C on one end and HDMI on the other.
2. Run an HDMI cable from the adapter to a free HDMI port on the TV, and note the port's number.
3. Press Input or Source on the remote and pick that HDMI input. If the names on screen don't match the port numbers, step through each input.
4. Your screen appears on the TV. If the adapter has a USB-C charging port, plug your charger into it to keep the battery up.

• iPads: every iPad with USB-C sends video. Through an HDMI 2.0 adapter, the iPad (A16), iPad mini (A17 Pro), every M-series iPad Air and every USB-C iPad Pro send up to 4K at 60Hz; the iPad (10th generation), iPad mini (6th generation) and iPad Air (4th generation) top out at 4K at 30Hz.
• iPhones: iPhone 15 and later send video over USB-C, except the iPhone 16e, iPhone 17e and iPhone Air, which send none.
• Lightning iPhones and iPads need Apple's Lightning Digital AV Adapter and an HDMI cable, at up to 1080p.

The TV shows a copy of your screen, with black bars at the sides, and video apps can fill the TV. Only M-series iPads can extend to the TV with Stage Manager; every other iPad, and every iPhone, mirrors.

Netflix lists a video cable or adapter as a way to watch from an iPhone or iPad. It notes one difference: the next episode doesn't play automatically over a cable.

Which adapter to buy, and why some show nothing: the USB-C to HDMI adapter guide. Just the iPhone side: how to connect an iPhone to a TV.

Hotel AirPlay: scan the QR code on the TV

Apple has added AirPlay to the TVs in select hotel rooms, starting in April 2024 with more than 60 IHG properties in North America, including Kimpton, Hotel Indigo, Candlewood Suites and InterContinental, on compatible LG hotel TVs. These are Apple's steps:

1. Open the Camera app on your iPhone or iPad.
2. Turn on the room's TV, if it isn't on already, and find the AirPlay QR code on the screen.
3. Scan the code, then follow the onscreen steps to join the hotel Wi-Fi (if you haven't already) and the room's TV.
4. Choose the hotel TV as the playback destination: stream a video or photos, mirror your screen, or play audio.

To stop, tap the AirPlay or Screen Mirroring button, then tap your iPhone or iPad in the list, or tap Stop Mirroring.

• What you need: an iPhone Xs or later on iOS 17.3 or later, or an iPad (6th generation or later), iPad mini (5th generation or later), iPad Air (3rd generation or later), 12.9-inch iPad Pro (2nd generation or later), 10.5-inch iPad Pro or 11-inch iPad Pro, on iPadOS 17.3 or later.
• Privacy: Apple says each QR code is unique to the room, what you share is available only to you, and your connection to the TV is erased when you check out, so later guests and hotel staff can't see your activity. Several devices can pair with the same TV.
• Where it works: only in select hotel rooms with compatible TVs, and Apple notes that AirPlay in hotels isn't available in all countries or regions. The hotel can tell you whether your room has it.
• Netflix won't play over it. Netflix doesn't support AirPlay from an iPhone or iPad, and mirroring a streaming app turns its picture black. Apps that support AirPlay send video with their own AirPlay button: Apple names Apple TV+ among the services you can stream in these rooms.

The hotel's cast option

Some hotel TVs have Google Cast built in. Google announced in 2024 that it was bringing Chromecast built-in to LG's hotel TVs, so you can play a show from your streaming apps on the room's TV without signing in to each app on the TV.

Casting works from inside an app: tap the Cast button in a video app and choose the room's TV. It sends what that app plays, not your whole screen. Pairing differs by hotel, so follow the steps the TV or the hotel gives you.

Don't count on Netflix here. Netflix casts only to the devices on its own list: Chromecast (3rd generation or older, the ones that came without a remote), Google Nest Hub displays, and select Vizio and Compal TVs. If the app you want can't cast to the TV, use a cable.

Bringing your own Apple TV, Roku, Fire TV or Chromecast

A streaming device from home needs an HDMI input you can switch to, power, and Wi-Fi it can join. Apple notes that many hotels have Wi-Fi that needs a sign-in from a web browser (a captive network), and each device handles that page differently:

• Apple TV: supported. On the Apple TV 4K, go to Settings > Network. When it detects a network with a sign-in page, choose Continue on iPhone or iPad and sign in there. Apple says some of these networks have time limits; repeat the steps to reconnect. Update the Apple TV before you travel.
• Roku: supported through Hotel & Dorm Connect, on the models Roku's comparison chart lists. Go to Settings > Network > Set up new wireless connection, pick the hotel's network, choose I am at a hotel or college dorm, and finish the sign-in on your phone or computer; you have several minutes. Pack the remote and power adapter, and an HDMI cable unless it's a Streaming Stick.
• Fire TV: Amazon announced in 2015 that Fire TV and Fire TV Stick can join Wi-Fi that requires web authentication, which it said covers most major hotels. Its current help pages don't walk through the steps, so we can't give them here.
• Chromecast or Google TV Streamer: not on a network with a sign-in page. Google says its streaming devices don't support networks that need a captive portal, which is typical of hotels, and that a hotel network that keeps devices apart (AP or client isolation) blocks setup too.

Netflix may stop a TV or device it doesn't recognize with a message that it isn't part of your Netflix Household. Netflix's answer for travel is I'm Traveling: choose it on the TV, and a temporary access code goes to the account owner's email or phone. The code expires after 15 minutes.

How to watch Netflix on a hotel TV

Three ways work. AirPlay isn't one of them, since Netflix doesn't support AirPlay from an iPhone or iPad.

• The Netflix app on the hotel TV. Netflix says it's available in select hotels in the United States. Press the Netflix button on the remote, or press Menu, choose Internet TV and select Netflix. Then choose Sign In, type your email and password with the on-screen keyboard, and pick your profile.
• A cable from your iPhone or iPad. Connect a USB-C to HDMI adapter and play Netflix in its app on your device. You never sign in on the TV, so there's nothing to sign out of later.
• Your own streaming device. Netflix has apps for Apple TV, Roku and Fire TV, so a device you're already signed in to works once it's on the hotel Wi-Fi.

Why Netflix goes black over AirPlay and mirroring, in full: the Netflix black screen, explained.

Sign out before you check out

Netflix says your information in a hotel TV's Netflix app is cleared automatically at checkout, and Hilton says the same about logins on its Connected Room TVs. Signing out yourself takes a minute. These are Netflix's steps on a hotel TV:

1. Start from the Netflix home screen.
2. Scroll up to the menu row.
3. Select Settings, on the right.
4. Select Sign out, then Yes to confirm.

Already checked out and still signed in? Sign the TV out from your phone:

• Netflix: open the Manage Access and Devices page in your account, then sign out that one device, or choose Sign Out of All Devices. Netflix notes a device can take up to 48 hours to appear there.
• YouTube: go to myaccount.google.com/device-activity, select the TV and choose Sign out.
• Prime Video: on the Prime Video website, go to Account & Settings > Devices and choose Deregister next to the TV.

Hotel AirPlay needs no sign-out: Apple says your connection to the TV is erased when you check out.

What to pack

A small kit covers the cable route, and nothing in it needs the hotel's Wi-Fi:

• A USB-C to HDMI adapter, or a cable with USB-C on one end and HDMI on the other. Choose one that supports HDCP, or streaming apps can refuse to play, and HDMI 2.0 if you want 4K at 60Hz. Lightning iPhones and iPads need Apple's Lightning Digital AV Adapter.
• An HDMI cable long enough to reach from where you'll sit to the TV's port. One long cable beats two joined together: Apple's adapter troubleshooting says to remove HDMI extension cables.
• Your charger and its USB-C cable. An adapter with a USB-C charging port lets you charge while the TV is connected.

No usable TV in the room at all? A portable monitor fits in the same bag.

Hotel TV not showing your iPhone or iPad? Try these

• “No signal” over a cable. Switch to the exact HDMI input you plugged into, or step through them all. Unplug and reconnect the adapter at both ends, try another HDMI cable or port, and update iOS or iPadOS, as Apple suggests. The iPhone 16e, iPhone 17e and iPhone Air send no video over USB-C at all.
• An alert says an HDCP-compatible device is required. Apple says movies, TV shows and some streaming apps need HDCP. Use an HDCP adapter plugged straight into the TV, with no splitter or converter in between.
• The input won't change, or the HDMI ports are covered. The hotel has probably locked them. Ask the front desk; if they can't help, use the TV's AirPlay or cast option if it has one, or a portable monitor.
• Netflix or another service goes black. That's copy protection, which mirroring never carries. Use the TV's own app, or a cable.
• Your streaming device can't get online. The hotel Wi-Fi probably has a sign-in page. On an Apple TV, use Continue on iPhone or iPad; on a Roku, Hotel & Dorm Connect. A Chromecast or Google TV Streamer can't join it. If Netflix then says the TV isn't part of your Household, choose I'm Traveling.

More fixes, by symptom: iPad or iPhone not connecting to a monitor or TV.

Where ScreenCommand fits

Over a cable, ScreenCommand turns the hotel TV into a full desktop browser, edge to edge at the TV's own resolution, with your iPad or iPhone as the trackpad and keyboard.

• Streaming without signing in to the TV. Over a USB-C cable, Netflix, Prime Video, Apple TV+, Paramount+ and Peacock play in ScreenCommand. You sign in on your own iPad or iPhone, so there's nothing to sign out of on the hotel TV.
• Work, not just watch. Up to 4 windows of 12 tabs, two side by side on the TV. The iPad travel workstation guide has the work setup.
• Websites, not apps. ScreenCommand shows web pages. For an app from your phone on the TV, mirror it over the same cable.
• Any USB-C iPad. It works on iPads without an M-series chip too, which otherwise only mirror their screen.
• $4.99 one-time. No subscription, no account to create, zero data collection.

It needs an iPad with USB-C on iPadOS 17 or later, or an iPhone on iOS 17 or later. Over a cable, an iPhone needs USB-C video out: iPhone 15 or later, except iPhone 16e, iPhone 17e and iPhone Air.

Frequently asked questions

More product questions (pricing, gestures, privacy) are covered in the main FAQ.

Keep reading

• iPad travel workstation
• Connect an iPhone to a TV
• Which USB-C HDMI adapter to buy
• Netflix black screen, explained
• Portable monitor for iPad
• Connect an iPad to a smart TV