I have a two night stay at the Kimpton Shorebreak coming up using Chase anniversary free night certificates - one for my credit card and one for my wife’s. I sent emails to both the hotel and IHG customer service. Both responded that the free night awards do NOT cover the resort fee and I would have to pay it directly to the hotel.
From the reports in this thread, it’s odd to me that there would be resort fees charged on Chase free nights but not on rewards points free nights.