Originally posted by TravelManKen:
Well I guess this one of those issues where I can see where some people would freak out about $2/day, moving the costs from $229/night in San Francisco or Los Angeles to $231.50. However is this any different from a car rental?
A recent Hertz receipt from Phoenix Sky Harbor:
3 days at $44 = $132
Concession Fee Recovery = $13.20
Additional Charges = $18
7.5% Exc Tax on FF MI = $0.27
TX 14.5% on $163.20 = $23.66
City Surcharge = $2.50
Net Due $189.63
This is minor when you compare it to a rental at DFW.
In addition to the company that employs me (and causes all of the travel) I also happen to own a coffee shop/deli here in Sacramento. The surcharges for our industry is similar to that of a hotel. Our average monthly utility costs have risen from $290/month to over $750 with an additional increase of 64% coming next month. Now I don't add a $0.10 surcharge, but I have new prices going into effect on Friday 6/1.
The problem with changing your prices, like I did, vs. adding a surcharge is justification. Most of our customers live here in California so they understand a temporary surcharge. But because I bought an existing place, they are used to coming in an paying $1.40 for a cup of coffee and a change in that menu board may send them to Starbucks.
So, maybe they should just increase the room prices until this challenge passes. But I still don't have a problem with paying a surcharge (I did in Southern CA last week), it's no differnt than renting a car to me.
The difference is that on a car rental all those additional fees are disclosed when you make the reservation. I make sure all my quotes include the fees. These hotels don't inform you until you are there, or in one case after I checked out.