The Dreaded and Despised Resort Fee
#16
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Dec 2003
Location: LAX
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I dont think trusting the advertised price puts someone in "not bright enough" category...
#17
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Apr 2013
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The fact remains that it is bait-and-switch -- if you search for hotels on Expedia and choose the lowest-priced one, but then you have to go all the way to payment before finding out that it really isn't, that's pretty much the definition of b&s, and intelligence has nothing to do with the fact that you've just wasted your time for no good reason.
It also puts the honest hotels at a competitive disadvantage.
It's a deceptive practice and I look forward to the lawsuit that puts it to a stop.
#18
Moderator: GLBT Travelers & Hyatt Gold Passport
Join Date: Jan 2000
Location: CVG
Posts: 15,300
Ok - just a little word of warning here - the posts are getting a bit testy in here - please discuss the subject and not each other. On the subject itself, while the issue of Resort Fee is not exclusively Hyatt, we've decided to let the thread stay in the forum since it's not entirely off topic and could really belong in any of the hotel forums. We've chosen to let the choice of forum by the OP stand. Thanks!!
Peteropny - co-mod - Hyatt
Peteropny - co-mod - Hyatt
#19
Join Date: Jan 2009
Location: BKK
Posts: 6,741
It's absolutely bait-and-switch. That's exactly why they do it this way - to draw customers in, because some percentage will just keep going once they've invested the time to complete the booking details.
It also puts the honest hotels at a competitive disadvantage.
It's a deceptive practice and I look forward to the lawsuit that puts it to a stop.
It also puts the honest hotels at a competitive disadvantage.
It's a deceptive practice and I look forward to the lawsuit that puts it to a stop.
I have no problem with resort fees as long as they are transpatently disclosed at the time of booking. Of course, in cases where it really is a bait and switch tactic used by hotels, then I would have a problem with that.
#20
Join Date: Aug 2011
Programs: Hyatt Globlist,MarriottPlat,Hilton Gold,Delta Silver,National EE,Avis President Club, Hertz PC
Posts: 200
[QUOTE=MikeFromTokyo;25699844]Another reason for resort fees has to do with taxes, in some cases that portion of the bill is tax exempt if it is a separate resort fee, but that would not be the case if those charges were part of the room rate.
I have no problem with resort fees as long as they are transpatently disclosed at the time of booking. Of course, in cases where it really is a bait and switch tactic used by hotels, then I would have a problem with that.[/QUOTE
It's not the resort fee that bothers me. It's that the resorts that I'm staying at shouldn't charge more for things that average hotels give for free. On a businees trip most give me these for free but on a family vacation that cost alot more I need to pay for them.
I have no problem with resort fees as long as they are transpatently disclosed at the time of booking. Of course, in cases where it really is a bait and switch tactic used by hotels, then I would have a problem with that.[/QUOTE
It's not the resort fee that bothers me. It's that the resorts that I'm staying at shouldn't charge more for things that average hotels give for free. On a businees trip most give me these for free but on a family vacation that cost alot more I need to pay for them.
#22
Join Date: Jan 2013
Location: Chicago
Posts: 425
Here are the terms of this property's resort fee.
A daily Resort Fee of $20.00 plus tax per day will be added to your rate and includes premium internet access, two beach chairs and towels, two welcome bottles of water, use of hotel bikes, world cinema in-room Bluetooth, 24 hour Stay Fit access, and daily newspaper.
#23
Senior Moderator
Join Date: Oct 2001
Location: San Francisco, CA
Programs: UA Plat/2MM [23-yr. 1K, now emeritus] clawing way back to WN-A List; MR LT Titanium; HY Whateverist.
Posts: 12,396
My primary concerns over resort fees are two-fold:
1) the creep to add this fee to urban/suburban hotels without resort amenities on-property; and;
2) the charging of elites for services or products via the resort fee which items elites should receive free as part of status benefits (newspaper, higher speed internet, bottled water, admission to hotel gym or workout center, etc). Put another way, what's the point of earning elite status when booking at resort fee properties, if a no-status person can buy these same benefits for $15-$20/day, esp. if the property is not known to upgrade elites readily?
1) the creep to add this fee to urban/suburban hotels without resort amenities on-property; and;
2) the charging of elites for services or products via the resort fee which items elites should receive free as part of status benefits (newspaper, higher speed internet, bottled water, admission to hotel gym or workout center, etc). Put another way, what's the point of earning elite status when booking at resort fee properties, if a no-status person can buy these same benefits for $15-$20/day, esp. if the property is not known to upgrade elites readily?
#24
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Join Date: Aug 2002
Programs: UALifetimePremierGold, Marriott LifetimeTitanium
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My primary concerns over resort fees are two-fold:
1) the creep to add this fee to urban/suburban hotels without resort amenities on-property; and;
2) the charging of elites for services or products via the resort fee which items elites should receive free as part of status benefits (newspaper, higher speed internet, bottled water, admission to hotel gym or workout center, etc). Put another way, what's the point of earning elite status when booking at resort fee properties, if a no-status person can buy these same benefits for $15-$20/day, esp. if the property is not known to upgrade elites readily?
1) the creep to add this fee to urban/suburban hotels without resort amenities on-property; and;
2) the charging of elites for services or products via the resort fee which items elites should receive free as part of status benefits (newspaper, higher speed internet, bottled water, admission to hotel gym or workout center, etc). Put another way, what's the point of earning elite status when booking at resort fee properties, if a no-status person can buy these same benefits for $15-$20/day, esp. if the property is not known to upgrade elites readily?
Cheers. Sharon
#25
Join Date: Jul 2001
Programs: Marriott LT Tit; Hyatt Explorist; Hilton CC Gold; IHG CC Plt; Hertz (MR) 5 star
Posts: 5,536
2) the charging of elites for services or products via the resort fee which items elites should receive free as part of status benefits (newspaper, higher speed internet, bottled water, admission to hotel gym or workout center, etc). Put another way, what's the point of earning elite status when booking at resort fee properties, if a no-status person can buy these same benefits for $15-$20/day, esp. if the property is not known to upgrade elites readily?
#26
Senior Moderator
Join Date: Oct 2001
Location: San Francisco, CA
Programs: UA Plat/2MM [23-yr. 1K, now emeritus] clawing way back to WN-A List; MR LT Titanium; HY Whateverist.
Posts: 12,396
I've had some favorable consideration re resort fees at some HY properties.
At Starwood, corporate policy requires that resort-fee properties designate alternate amenities to be given elites in return for the resort fee. It can be a discount of the resort fee or something else which the resort fee doesn't cover. Thus it's not uniform. It can be a valuable trade-off for the resort fee or it can be negligible. Up to the property.
At Starwood, corporate policy requires that resort-fee properties designate alternate amenities to be given elites in return for the resort fee. It can be a discount of the resort fee or something else which the resort fee doesn't cover. Thus it's not uniform. It can be a valuable trade-off for the resort fee or it can be negligible. Up to the property.
#27
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: Brighton, United Kingdom
Programs: HHonors, Hyatt, Accor, SPGCorp, BA, Virgin
Posts: 73
Makes it difficult to do comparisons between suppliers.
X provides a service for Y$
Z provides a service for Y+$10
X charges a $25 resort fee. Z doesn't. You don't get to see this until you check out. You initially chose X because all things equal, you thought X was cheaper. It wasn't.
Z decides to reduce it's price by $20 but charge a $30 resort fee. Who is cheaper now? (don't worry - it's not a trick question). This then becomes doubly difficult when talking about airlines....
X provides a service for Y$
Z provides a service for Y+$10
X charges a $25 resort fee. Z doesn't. You don't get to see this until you check out. You initially chose X because all things equal, you thought X was cheaper. It wasn't.
Z decides to reduce it's price by $20 but charge a $30 resort fee. Who is cheaper now? (don't worry - it's not a trick question). This then becomes doubly difficult when talking about airlines....
#28
Join Date: Jul 2001
Programs: Marriott LT Tit; Hyatt Explorist; Hilton CC Gold; IHG CC Plt; Hertz (MR) 5 star
Posts: 5,536
Makes it difficult to do comparisons between suppliers.
X provides a service for Y$
Z provides a service for Y+$10
X charges a $25 resort fee. Z doesn't. You don't get to see this until you check out. You initially chose X because all things equal, you thought X was cheaper. It wasn't.
Z decides to reduce it's price by $20 but charge a $30 resort fee. Who is cheaper now? (don't worry - it's not a trick question). This then becomes doubly difficult when talking about airlines....
X provides a service for Y$
Z provides a service for Y+$10
X charges a $25 resort fee. Z doesn't. You don't get to see this until you check out. You initially chose X because all things equal, you thought X was cheaper. It wasn't.
Z decides to reduce it's price by $20 but charge a $30 resort fee. Who is cheaper now? (don't worry - it's not a trick question). This then becomes doubly difficult when talking about airlines....
Resort fees are a lot like parking fees in that different properties will charge different resort fees. In Las Vegas, the nicer properties charge higher resort fees so there does seem to be a strong correlation between resort fees and room prices.
#29
Join Date: Jan 2009
Location: BKK
Posts: 6,741
The only thing that makes sense to me is to think in terms of total cost (i.e. do not itemize) and to not have an emotional reaction to being charged fees.
Compare the total cost of staying at hotel A with the total cost of staying at hotel B.
Compare the total cost of staying at hotel A with the total cost of staying at hotel B.
#30
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Apr 2013
Location: PHX
Programs: AS 75K; UA 1MM; Hyatt Globalist; Marriott LTP; Hilton Diamond (Aspire)
Posts: 56,424
Makes it difficult to do comparisons between suppliers.
X provides a service for Y$
Z provides a service for Y+$10
X charges a $25 resort fee. Z doesn't. You don't get to see this until you check out. You initially chose X because all things equal, you thought X was cheaper. It wasn't.
Z decides to reduce it's price by $20 but charge a $30 resort fee. Who is cheaper now? (don't worry - it's not a trick question). This then becomes doubly difficult when talking about airlines....
X provides a service for Y$
Z provides a service for Y+$10
X charges a $25 resort fee. Z doesn't. You don't get to see this until you check out. You initially chose X because all things equal, you thought X was cheaper. It wasn't.
Z decides to reduce it's price by $20 but charge a $30 resort fee. Who is cheaper now? (don't worry - it's not a trick question). This then becomes doubly difficult when talking about airlines....