But no one told me about the resort fee!

Question: I’ve been booking hotel rooms through Hotwire recently, and I’ve been quite pleased with the site — until now. The last hotel charged a $25 per night resort fee, which included the “use of the spa.”

This was mandatory, even though we didn’t plan to use the spa, and had not been disclosed in the Hotwire booking process. I tried calling Hotwire about this and they simply kept saying, “It’s in our terms and conditions that hotels may charge separate fees for parking and resort fees.”

I understand that parking often constitutes an extra charge, but failing to disclose substantial, mandatory resort fees seems inappropriate. In theory, they could have tacked on $100 a night or more to our nonrefundable reservation, and we would have had no recourse. What do you think? — Sonja Johnson, San Francisco

Answer: The hotel shouldn’t charge you a mandatory “resort” fee. It shouldn’t charge anyone a resort fee, for that matter.

Resort fees are wrong on so many levels; it’s hard to know where to begin. A room rate should include all mandatory charges except maybe taxes (and I would argue that it ought to include taxes as well, but I digress). Resort fees — which are charged by some independent hotels for the use of anything from an exercise facility to beach towels — add anywhere from $10 to $30 to the per-night cost of your room.

If a hotel charged extra for towels or the gym that would be fine. But some resorts force every guest to pay these fees, effectively raising the cost of each room — and raising the hotel’s revenues, too. This is fundamentally dishonest, even when it’s disclosed in the fine print of your reservation by the hotel or by your travel agent. It must either be part of the room rate or be an optional fee. There are no two ways about this.

I believe either these hotels, or the online travel agents who sell their products and enable their immoral behavior, will find themselves on the losing end of a court case if they don’t stop.

Hotwire’s actions add yet another wrinkle to this scam. A site like Hotwire, with its immense buying power, has the leverage to force hotels to include all mandatory fees in its room rate. Yet if you read its terms of use it’s clear that it won’t. “Hotwire rates do not include special fees charged by hotels upon checkout (e.g., energy charges, convention fees, resort fees, parking fees),” it notes. “Customers will be required to pay these fees directly to the hotels at checkout time.”

(Incidentally, Hotwire isn’t alone. Its other competitor, Priceline, has a similar policy.)

It gets worse. Because Hotwire is what’s known as an “opaque” site — meaning that you don’t learn the name of your hotel until you’ve paid for it — you’re out of luck if you end up with a resort-fee property. So you’re right: Hotwire could have quoted a $69 a night fee, but the hotel might have theoretically charged a $100-a-night resort fee, and you would have had to pay for it.

If Hotwire didn’t offer to change your reservation, you might have disputed the charge on your credit card. I know of at least one traveler who persuaded his credit card company to reverse a resort-fee charge that hadn’t been adequately disclosed.

I contacted Hotwire on your behalf, and it removed the resort fee from your bill.

(Photo of a generic resort which may or may not charge a resort fee by williamcho/Flickr Creative Commons)

  • SirWired

    This sort of sneaky dealing sounds like fertile ground for the FTC, and clearly under their jurisdiction, at least in Hotwire’s/Priceline’s case.

    SirWired

  • Patrick

    I am opposed to resort fees also. We recently booked a vacation package through American Airlines Vacations, staying at the Vdara in Las Vegas. Again, on the AAV website it was disclosed in fine print that the hotel may charge resort fees which we must pay directly to the hotel. Sure enough, we were charged $25 per room per day by the hotel. To make matters even worse, the pool was not yet scheduled to open at this new property for another week. We challenged the resort fee and were told that it is for the use of the gym and the free water in the rooms (which was not restocked daily). When we pointed out that the pool was unavailable we were told that we could use the pool at Aria next door. Sure, let me just go down to the lobby and walk across the street to another hotel in my bathing suit. Hardly a viable option. Eventually the hotel waived the resort fee. But I absolutely agree, these costs should either be included in the price of the room, or else be an optional fee that the guest has the right to decline. Instead it seems they are just another way for the hotel to make more ‘commission-free’ profit on top of the room rate. On a sidenote, the hotel also put a $500 credit card hold on each room – something else that I think should be disclosed by AAV – with a two room booking, maybe not everyone has $1000 available credit to give up for the duration of their stay – maybe that’s credit they were planning to use during their vacation for other things.

  • Patrick

    Regarding my previous post, the resort fee was $15 per day, not $25, please note the correction, thanks.

  • MeanMeosh

    I think it’s one thing if you’re booking through something like AA Vacations – you know what hotel comes with the package, so you could always pull up the hotel’s website, or call them directly, and check on resort or other fees (though I agree, it would be nice if these would be disclosed in the package price).

    The opaque sites are a different matter altogether. That $69 a night bargain for a 4-star hotel doesn’t look so great when it’s really $94 because of the “resort” fee. If you ask me, these should either be folded in to the rate, or they should be disclosed BEFORE you push the “pay” button. Hotwire or Priceline don’t even have to disclose the name of the property at this point – just a warning that pops up saying “the property charges a resort fee of $XX per room per day – are you sure you want to continue?”.

  • David Z

    I’ve said this before, but one main problem (and it’s of course our problem) travel agencies face is it’s practically difficult (if not impossible) to tell what hotel charge a resort fee and who doesn’t. What makes this more…challenging…is sometimes they don’t even tell us until it’s brought to our attention somehow.

    That’s one reason for that seemingly “blanket” policy where the hotel may charge an extra fee or so. That seems like a lazy excuse, but that’s also an arguably “practical” approach on the travel partner’s side to dealing with this issue.

    It so happens it’s debatably harder when dealing with an “opaque” site like Hotwire. Kudos to them for refunding the customer, though it would be nice if it didn’t have to take Chris’ intervention.

  • J C

    I agree that resort fees are wrong on every level and we avoid those places if we can. One of the problems I see are these opaque sites. I do not use them at all and prefer to go to the companys regular web site. Even if it means booking air, hotel, and car rental separately. I know this is not for every one and we don’t get a package deal, but I have found you can view their taxes and fees before booking. It’s more work and you sometimes have to click to the booking page, but it will show the final costs and if you don’t like what you see then don’t continue to payment.

    If you don’t mind the work, you can at least check out the info before booking your package.

    Chris – I agree with you and the other posters that disclosure is the key. At least then you can make an informed decision and maybe stay somewhere else.

  • Lianne

    The one thing I do not like about opaque websites is the “resort fee” disclaimer. At the very least, the sites need to disclose in clear terms that the hotel you are about to book does include mandatory resort fees and what those fees are. Unless they do that then the rate they are offering is dishonest to put it nicely.

  • Carver

    I’m with Meanmosh. The resort fee must be efully disclosed. A travelers should never be in a situation where they don’t know the full price until after they’ve committed to the transaction.

  • Bill

    I don’t think fees should be able to be added without disclosure – and I do disagree with resort fees. There’s a conference that I’m not going to this spring, and one of the reasons I’m not going is that the hotel it is at charges a resort fee – and it is in Washington DC!

  • noah

    The anti-resort fee colloquy really isn’t the point. Even if resort fees are totally okay, the actual amount of the fee needs to be disclosed at the time the customer reserves the hotel stay.

  • Josh

    Contracts can contain many things, especially for specific business arrangements, but a standard consumer purchase simply can’t have vague terms that place unlimited liability on the consumer (e.g. you must pay any resort/energy fees, which could be $10, $100, or $1000). And I’d include all the weird local “soak the visitors” taxes in that too.

    There’s no reason why (by federal law if necessary) a single price couldn’t be quoted, with certain standard required items always included (bed, towels, “energy”, sink water, etc), and truly optional items called out *clearly* as either included or not in the base price (parking, pool/spa use, business center use, etc).

    THIS (ensuring a fair disclosed playing field, while allowing businesses/consumers to determine the services) is exactly the kind of thing the governments are intended to do…

  • http://www.wickedgoodtraveltips.com Susan

    I agree that the practice of slapping resort fees onto quoted rates is price gouging of unsuspecting customers. When searching for hotel accommodations, I now avoid any with “Resort” in the title unless I’m intentionally booking a luxury vacation.

  • Carver

    @Josh

    I think we’re mixing two things. The propriety of resort fees and ensuring adequate and timely disclosure.

    While I agree that mandatory resort fees are pushing the line of business ethics to the breaking point, there’s nothing inherently illegal about them that would justify legislation. Each business is entitled to determine its own pricing structure.

    The larger issue is adequate disclosure of the pricing structure so that a potential customer is able to make an informed decision about whether to transact business. Just as poster-Bill decided not to stay at a certain DC area hotel which has a resort fee.

  • MeanMeosh

    David Z – I don’t think the issue here is necessarily with travel agents who can’t do more than issue an “advisory” about resort or other fees because they don’t know the amount. If I call a travel agent and inquire about a package, the agent will tell me the properties I’ll be staying at, along with a price quote. I would hope that a reputable agent would give me the option to put the package on “hold” for an hour so I can then get on the internet or the phone and check whether the hotels involved charge resort fees. I can then make an informed decision of whether to accept the package, or ask you to find me something else. Point is, I still have a choice before paying, even if it would be more convenient if you could tell me upfront. You don’t have that choice with opaque sites – which is where I really have the problem.

    The fairness of the fees themselves is a different story – but I’m with Carver on this one. The government should do more to ensure that these fees are fairly and prominently disclosed, but not mandate otherwise legal pricing structures. After all, if the fee is disclosed, there’s no law that says you have to stay at a hotel that charges a resort fee. You can tell them to take a hike and stay somewhere else, as many people do nowadays.

  • Carver Farrow

    @David Z.

    I”m confused. Why wouldn’t a travel agent know that a give hotel charges a resort fee and how much.

  • Mike

    @ MeanMeosh

    No offense, but you go to a travel agent in order to avoid having to do your own work over the internet and whatnot. If I was going through the hassle of checking prices over the net, why on earth would I still use a travel agent for something as seemingly simple as a hotel booking? Henestly, if someone wants to use a travel agent, why would we expect them to use an internet site at all? Just because we have the internet, doesn’t mean everyone has to use it for every thing under the sun. There is a reason travel agents still exist.

    And I agree about full disclosure. If the Airlines can be forced to disclose extra potential costs on the booking screen so that passengers can make an informed decision, there is no reason that hotels cannot do the same thing.

  • Arizona Road Warrior

    There should be a full disclosure of resort fees since they are ‘mandatory’. Also, there should a disclosure of ‘potential’ fees such as parking…for example, if the daily parking rate is $ 30 a day, you might want to decide to look for another hotel with free parking (or a lower parking cost); use taxis instead of having a rental car or etc.

  • Steve

    I think resort fees (that are mandatory) ought to be illegal in general. If I am required to pay it, it should be part of the base price. Period. I have no problem with a la carte fees, like some hotels charge for internet access, if I can choose whether or not to pay them. If you want to charge me for the pool, fitness center, bottled water, etc, that’s fine – as long as I can decline to use the amenity in question and thus avoid the fee.

    (I do think some of the a la carte fees are a bit excessive – charging $15 a day for internet access in a $200/night room, for example – but that’s a separate issue.)

  • Arizona Road Warrior

    The ‘problem’ is that travel has become a commodity. It is about getting the lowest price. It is no longer about the experience, the value and etc.

    If the hotels included their resort fees in their base price, it will make their hotels less attractive or competitive to other hotels. They understand that most people don’t read the small print or don’t automatically add the resort fee to the base price of the room rate; therefore, a room rate of $ 250 with a daily resort fee of $ 25 looks the ‘same’ as a room rate of $ 250 from a hotel without a daily resort fee.

    Most travel providers have reduced their staff so that they can no longer provide the level of service, the experience, the value and/or etc. that could justify a higher price. For example, to compete with the ‘discount’ airlines, the legacy airlines start to slash services, personnel and etc. in order to match the fares. If I was a CEO for a legacy airline, I would have invested in customer service; would have taken out a few rows of seats on the plane to increase the legroom; would have included great meals as part of the far; would have NOT reduced the fares and etc.

  • Arizona Road Warrior

    @ Steve – “I have no problem with a la carte fees, like some hotels charge for internet access, if I can choose whether or not to pay them. If you want to charge me for the pool, fitness center, bottled water, etc, that’s fine – as long as I can decline to use the amenity in question and thus avoid the fee.”
    - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - -
    The problem is the enforcement. There will be people that will not pay the fee but will sneak into the pool, fitness center and etc.

    @ Steve – “I do think some of the a la carte fees are a bit excessive – charging $15 a day for internet access in a $200/night room, for example – but that’s a separate issue.”
    - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - -
    I believe in free enterprise and free markets so if a hotel wants to charge $ 15 a day for Internet access that is their rights. It is your right not to stay there. There are several hotels that do not charge for Internet access. Also, you can purchase a card for your laptop such as the AT&T LaptopConnect card to access the Internet. From time to time, I rent hotel meeting rooms for internal meetings, user meetings and etc…it is typical for some hotels to charge $ 50 to $ 150 a day (typically there is a limit for the number of connections) for Internet access for that room. If they don’t reduce the fee, I book a meeting room at another hotel.

  • Steve

    “The problem is the enforcement. There will be people that will not pay the fee but will sneak into the pool, fitness center and etc.”

    Right…my point is that if they’re going to charge $10 or $15 or whatever a night to everyone, it should be included in the base rate, not snuck into the small print. If I cannot avoid paying it, it should not be separated out into a separate fee – that’s deceptive.

    “I believe in free enterprise and free markets so if a hotel wants to charge $ 15 a day for Internet access that is their rights.”

    Oh, I agree with you about their rights. I was just offhandedly complaining that I consider it to be excessive…but compared to the mandatory resort fees, it’s not the concept I have a problem with. Charging $15/day for internet is like charging $4 for a can of Coke in the minbar – I find it to be a ridiculous markup, but since I can choose not to pay it, no problem.

  • Carver

    @Arizona

    Unfortunately, you are completely correct about the commodity aspect of travel. American Airlines tried what you are suggesting and it failed unfortunately. The result was them canceling the upgrades in coach and concentrating on inproving the experience for the business travel who sees travel as less a commodity.

  • David Z

    Why wouldn’t a travel agent know that a give hotel charges a resort fee and how much.

    It’s not that, Carver. What sometimes becomes an issue (although I agree with MeanMeosh it isn’t necessarily) is the travel agency didn’t “inform” the consumer prior to booking in any way, especially if the hotel started charging a resort fee or whatever “suddenly” and without telling their partners beforehand.

    Obviously I can’t speak for every travel agent or agency, but we “try” to stay on top of this by periodically checking with our hotel partners. Some of them might say they don’t, someone figures they’ll charge a whatever fee, then suddenly change their mind and impose that without telling us ahead of time.

    And again I agree with MeanMosh: one either figures this out themselves, or gets someone else to do it for them.

  • Janine

    I once put up some family members in a nearby hotel that charged a separate fee for use of the phone and internet, neither of which they used. When I protested that it was not only unfair but not disclosed at the time of reservation, they said “too bad” and would not credit my account. Needless to say, I never used that hotel again and posted negative reports online. I guess we have to face the fact that there are crooks in every facet of the industry.

  • Nobody

    A good on-line travel service like Orbitz highlights list of hotels with “NO RESORT FEES!” That helps you to ignore hotels that have resort fees say, in a list of Las Vegas resorts, without digging through the “fine print” of the hotel descriptions.
    Here lies the innocent vacationer
    Run down by an irate vacationer
    Who didn’t know about the daily parking fee
    Until he checked in at the resort.
    RIP
    Nobody Was Faster

  • Arizona Road Warrior

    @ Steve – “I was just offhandedly complaining that I consider it to be excessive…but compared to the mandatory resort fees, it’s not the concept I have a problem with. Charging $15/day for internet is like charging $4 for a can of Coke in the minbar – I find it to be a ridiculous markup, but since I can choose not to pay it, no problem.”
    - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – -
    If I stay at a hotel that charges for Internet (which is probably less than 10% of the time), the rates that I have paid have been $ 9.95 a day. In Canada, I will pay $ 15.95/$ 16.95 CAD at Marriotts to use their Wired for Business plan since it provides Internet service and free local and long distance calls within North America. Since my cell phone service is from a US company and it is easy to rack up $ 50 to $ 100 a day in roaming charges…it is a bargin to pay $ 15.95 CAD to reduce or eliminate roaming charges on my cell phone.

    I will be attending a 2-day trade show in Las Vegas where the cost for Wi-Fi service to the booth is $ 700 for one connection, $ 1,374 for two connections or $ 5,865 for 30 connections.

  • Mona

    At least these fees were added on at check-out and could be paid with a credit card. A few years ago we went to Grand Bahama for a 3- or 4-night stay and were denied check in unless we paid a $50pp “tax.” We tried to protest but quickly saw that it would do no good. We could either pay it or leave. Since it was very late in the day and the line behind us was only growning longer, we paid the $100 but we will never go back to Grand Bahama Island again.

  • http://profile.yahoo.com/UV4YSHAYHNIMYRSDI3DBAASEYI K

    Actually I used priceline to book a hotel in Austin, TX and this particular hotel demanded the 15.00 per night ‘resort fee’ in advance or they wouldn’t permit us to check in.  In addition, what was booked as a 3 star was barely a one, with grungy carpets that stunk (we couldn’t walk around barefoot, or as we learned our first night, our feet were completely black), dirty, mildewed bathtub, and beds with questionable stains.  They permitted various loud and drunken parties to rent the facilities in the lobby at all hours, and when my spouse attempted to use the wifi in the car because we were unable to receive a signal anywhere in our room, he was subjected to demands to leave the property and treated like a criminal, despite showing them his ID and room key.  I was disgusted, and will never use ANY website again that is not transparent about the choice of accommodations and all associated fees.