Resort Fee does NOT earn me starpoints!!!
 

I just thought to go over a few recent stays in Waikiki, and I realized that my resort fees did not qualify for starpoints.

When I stay for 10 nights, and pay $200 in resort fees, then I'm being shortchanged 800 Starpoints (3x200 + 200 bonus for charging on Starwood AMEX) Not to mention the double points from the recent promo.

It's really awful the way that Starwood Hawaii is handling this. The resort fee bogusly includes many things that, purchased individually, earn starpoints.

I'm getting madder by the day about these resort fees. Still standing by my principal of not having a single, paid dining experience within the Starwood Hawaii group while in-house. I won't stop staying there, but revenue from me, with the fees, is less than before the fees were forced on us.

aloha

Wow, I had no idea they exclude the resort fee from the total spend for calculating Starpoints. That's insulting. :td:

Nothing at this point surprises me when it comes to those lovely resort fees.

:td:

+1
This is SO true!
Unlike taxes/service charges, the resort fees more often than not include tangible things that would otherwise be Starpoint eligible if not for the classification of them bundled as a RESORT FEE.

You will get the 200 bonus points by charging it on your SPG Amex.

Overall I am with you. I will not stay at a hotel with a resort fee. SPG should be ashamed of themselves especially adding it to "free" stays.

It's only 600. You definitely get the Amex points, not only for the resort fee, but also for the tax on the resort fee.

At my stay at the Westin Maui, not only did my 5 days of resort fees not earn any starpoints, but neither did the close to $1000 Mrs YVR and I spent at the Westin operated heavenly spa.

I understand excluding taxes or third party services, but any other expense charged directly by the hotel should be eligible.

It just gets better and better with the resort fee issue. Wondering if Starwood could actually handle this worse? :rolleyes:

thanks everyone for the support, and for correcting my math.

my example above does in fact mean I"m cheated out of 600 starpoints, plus an additional 400 from the great weeks promo of double starpoints. So, cheated out of 1,000 starpoints.(and/or $200 too!)

aloha

Does any other chain handle resort fees any differently than SPG? It seems every resort I go to these days has a resort fee. Typing this email from Hyatt Lost pines resort with a 22.60 per day resort fee. Seems to be a problem with all US resorts not just SPG.

This has been covered before. Section 5.3 of the T&C's states:

“Eligible Charges” are charges incurred by you on your room account for Eligible Rates, food and beverage (excluding alcoholic beverage purchases where prohibited by law), direct dialed telephone and direct-dialed in-room fax, laundry/valet, and in-room movies and video games only. Eligible Charges do not include:

(a) room charges that are not included in the definition of Eligible Rates (NOTE: certain pre-paid rooms where the booking is made through a third party are not Eligible Rates);
(b) charges for banquets, meetings or other functions, with the exception of points earned from qualifying meetings or events through the Preferred Planner Program;
(c) complimentary services (including, but not limited to, any Awards earned through the Program);
(d) other fees paid such as parking, business center, high-speed internet access, retail stores, spa products and services and greens fees;
(e) taxes, gratuities, service charges and other applicable charges, such as energy charges, and resort fees.
(f) any charges not specifically listed as an Eligible Charge.

I'm not suggesting it's right. I think it's a bad policy, but it is there in black and white.

That's a bit of an over-generalization. With SPG, it's less than half (24 out of 59). Still too many, but nowhere near "all".

This has probably been covered somewhere, but how do the lawyers deal with claims from AmEx like, "enough for 3 free nights...," or even the promos, "earn one free resort night..." when none of these claims are true. They are NOT free. Is there a little asterisk next to the "free" word that I'm not seeing?

I don't recall resort fees being ineligible for Starpoints being "covered before", though you are correct that it is in the T & C's. Of course, it wasn't ALWAYS in the T & C's (resort fees are newer than the program itself) and it's not common that someone be reviewing the T & C's that regularly.

More important is your point of "direct dialed telephone" being an eligible charge. A big part of Starwood Hawaii's resort fee "bs" justification is that they include free direct dialed telephone calls. SOmething nobody who has a US based mobile phone needs, of course. So, we're paying for telephone calls and NOT earning Starpoints!!!!!

aloha

I knew that I had seen this before: http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/starw...rt-charge.html. There may be other threads as well.

As I said, I agree with those who say this policy should be changed, and that it's especially bad given that these charges, if not bundled, would be eligible charges.