Since I'm a member of the Starwood Preferred Guest program, I selected the Sheraton Park Hotel in Anaheim.
I could have found less expensive hotels (we ended up paying $150 a night, once all taxes and fees were included), but I'm as addicted to SPG points as George Clooney's character was to American Airlines miles in "Up in the Air." Still, though I ended up paying $150 a night, the rate the SPG website quoted me when I booked was just $115 a night.
Why the difference? The local hotel tax was not included in the rate I was quoted, though the amount was noted later when I clicked through to the booking page. But nowhere on the Starwood website did I find that I would be charged $9.99 for Internet access while staying at the hotel, nor $14 a night for self-parking. (I double-checked as I was writing this, too - Nope. Nowhere.)
Now, I stay at hotels somewhat frequently, and expected to be charged both for Internet access and for parking, so I wasn't to steamed by these charges. But I easily could see how less experienced travelers would be. And, frankly, I think both charges are ridiculous. The Internet access charges was actually a bit on the low side, compared to what I've been charged recently. But many hotels now offer this service for free.
And $14 a night for parking in Anaheim is steep, especially given the Sheraton's spacious (and those nights, half-empty) parking lot. I suspect that the Sheraton simply matched Disneyland's parking fee for its guests. But at least Disneyland provides a free continuous shuttle from its parking lots to the theme parks.
Now, I love Sheraton. And I think that the Anaheim hotel delivers a nice experience. But a free market can't work efficiently if consumers don't have complete information about the true cost of their choices.
With all this in mind, if I were in Congress, here's the bill I would propose to require better hotel fee disclosure:
1. All applicable room taxes must be included in the initial rate quoted on booking websites
The hotel knows what these charges are going to be, and there's no way to avoid them, so why shouldn't they be included in the rate you quote us up-front?
2. Fees incurred on more than 50 percent of room bills in the past 30 days must be included in the initial rate quoted on booking websites
This likely would include the parking fee at places such as the Sheraton in Anaheim, where almost everyone drives to the hotel, instead of arriving via taxis, airport shuttles or local mass transit. I suspect that it might also include Internet access, as well. It'd definitely include the "Resort Fee" that's become common at popular tourist hotels. (Most of the hotels I checked in Hawaii are charging them these days.)
Again, if the majority of people paying at a hotel are paying these fees, why shouldn't they be included in the prices we see first on a website - so that we can make an "apples-to-apples" comparison when looking at the list of prices for area hotels?
If this puts hotels that charge "resort fees" and for Internet access at a competitive disadvantage against hotels that don't... well, that's the point. We shouldn't have to wait until check-in to discover the true cost of staying at a particular hotel.
(*Update: To clarify, if you happen to be among the minority who didn't use something for which the majority is charged a fee at a particular hotel, such as parking or Internet access, you wouldn't be charged those fees when you checked out. In those cases, your check-out cost would be less than the price you were quoted up front.)
3. A list of all fees incurred on more than 10 percent of room bills in the past 30 days - and their average amounts - must be displayed to prospective customers before they book.
Do more than 10 percent of rooms at a hotel use a roll-away bed? Then that hotel has to show me the roll-away fee before I book. (This was the one fee that the Sheraton displayed on its site.) Same goes for business center or fitness room fees, the bottled water that many hotels place by the bed or the charge for bringing a pool towel back to the room.
Now, if fewer than 10 percent of rooms get charged for something, then it doesn't have to be on the website. (I'm sure that there's probably a fee to have the tailor at the Ritz fix the cuffs on Mr. Gates' tuxedo pants, but we don't need to see that clogging up the webpage.) But if there's a reasonable chance that I might have to pay extra for something, I want to know in advance of booking. Consider this the "menu" of potential fees that some visitors, but not a majority, pay. But let's list it along with other details about the room when I'm selecting a hotel to book.
Ultimately, by having to disclose fees up front, hotels could no longer pretend that they offer better deals than they actually do. And hotels that don't bait-and-switch their guests would no longer be put at a disadvantage when potential visitors shop for the best deal.
So let's get to the vote, shall we? I'd like to hear from you which "optional" fees you've paid during a hotel stay during the past 12 months. (If you've not paid any of these fees, or if you've not stayed in a hotel during that time, we've got options for you in this list, as well.) Some of these fees, such as the energy surcharge and resort fee, get slipped onto bills without much notice, so do watch for them whenever you check out.
What do you think about hotels' disclosure of extra fees? What's been your experience? Do you like my proposal, or would you rather see something else? Let's hear what you have to say, in the comments.
And thanks again for reading Theme Park Insider!
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I just booked at Royal Pacific at USF and the self park fee was $15 per nite! Again, as Robert indicated, most times I stay on USF property the parking lot has plenty of room. I think it is just a very unprofessional way at trying to squeeze every dime from a tourist when they visit.
Internet. IMHO, most hotels that charge over $100 a night should have free internet access, period... with either an ethernet port or a wireless network. In this wireless phone age, people use the internet in hotels more than they use the phone. The only reason I use the phone usually to call the front desk. I don't want it for anything else. I do however want internet. You will find that a lot of $80 a night hotels advertise free internet, and it's a real selling point. I really don't mind staying in a comfortable and well taken care of Fairfield or Comfort Inn that gives me free breakfast and free internet, and doesn't charge for all the little stuff on top of the room rate
Parking...I expect some parking fees in a "high traffic" place. Tourist destinations in season and large cities in particular have those labels. Anywhere else, free parking is expected. However, in some places it's gotten to the point where parking can add as much as 50% to your night stay. A prime example is downtown Chicago. I was there a couple of months ago and stayed downtown for the weekend. I payed $125/night for the room at Embassy Suites by Navy Pier (superb hotel by the way, highly recommended). However, I chose to drive rather than fly, so my cost to park the car? 50 bucks a night for valet, unlimited access. If you wanted the cheaper parking price, it was $45 with once daily access. Embassy wasn't unique...all the downtown Chicago hotels charge that much. In cases with fees like that though, I definitely think that they should at least be posted right beside the room rate instead of buried in the information section because of the amount of cost they can add to the stay. In the case of downtown Chicago, I would have been financially and time-wise better off flying for a couple of hours and taking cabs.
Resort Fees. If the resort is top notch and offers a lot of good complimentary services, than I don't have a problem with it. If there is a good in house sitter service/kids activities, or a really nice pool area, or a good complimentary daily meal...no problem, as long as it isn't an exorbitant amount of money on top of the rate. All hotels are different though. Example, complimentary internet or parking could be part of the resort fee instead of the separate fee, hence Robert's reasoning for wanting a standard.
It all comes down to expectations with this stuff. Hotels have to stay competitive with their rates, but they all price differently according to their market and target audience in order to stay competitive because they don't want to give the impression of "unreasonably more expensive", although they may not have been anyway. Many people today have a tendency to look at the price of something rather than it's value, and hotels have to strike that balance in a market with no rules.
In my case, I've stayed in scores of hotels of all prices and sizes, and I've come to this conclusion through my experience. I want certain things in a hotel depending on it's purpose, and I don't want to be gouged or nickel and dimed wih upcharges. I am however, willing to pay a little more on the rate for a better stay, because I value my time just much as I do my money.
The only extra feature we have paid is for room service. When exhausted from the fun of the day, it is always nice to have a meal delievered to your room.
Other than a situation like that, I'm just making sure the place I'm staying is affordable, clean, and in a decent area when I'm on vacation, especially to theme parks, because I don't expect to be there much anyway. I will look for free wireless internet, but it's not a deal-breaker.
I do agree however that showing parking fees should be required by law
I have yet to find the Hampton Inn that charges for parking, breakfast is included, and internet access is free! Embassy Suites offer huge rooms, cooked-to-order breakfast, manager's reception and other amenities appealing to the business traveler. Homewood Suites, as another example -- no parking charge, free internet access, two-room mini-suites with kitchenette, full size 'fridges and dishes/glasses, hot breakfast every morning and light meals Monday thru Thursday evenings. Doubletree -- chocolate chip cookies on check-in.
Ironically, Hilton hotels themselves are where you routinely find the most fees. But they're usually well located for business travelers on expense accounts, who are more inclined to pay the fees without kvetching.
My favorite example of a perfect confluence of Hilton? The King Street metro area in Alexandria, VA (inside the DC Beltway). There you'll find a full-up Hilton, an Embassy Suites and a Hampton Inn, all within a block of each other -- one for business, one for casual travel, and one for vacationers -- and all within an easy walk to the metro station as well as the restaurants and delights of Old Town Alexandria!
I have to admit, I haven't tried the Conrad or Waldorf-Astoria brands, but once I hit HHonors Diamond, it might be more tempting than I can resist...
Sorry for the long, effusive Hilton commercial, but I just wanted to point out a good alternative for you.
Your proposal is ridiculous and shame on you for suggesting the need for government intervention. If you don't like the way Sheraton and Starwood conduct their business, then stop patronizing them. Act like an empowered consumer, not whiner who thinks legislation is the solution to the problem.
In fact, go a step further and bring your concern to the general manager or corporate office. If you can't find any mention about parking and Internet fees on their web site, then you have an good argument for getting those charges reversed. If enough customers complain, then the hotel will likely respond.
Since when is paying for Internet service mandatory during a stay? At every hotel I've stayed that charges, it's optional. -Eric Gieszl
The basic tendency of all free markets is quickly to become unfree. Businesses will use every angle available to them to undermine or eliminate competition. That's the basic nature of competition. You try to eliminiate the other guy. In business, this happens when companies try to lock customers into long-term contracts, so that they can't switch to a competitor offering a better deal in the future. Or when a business sells you on the great features it offers, the locks your data into proprietary formats, so you can't easily switch to a competitor. Or when businesses lure you with an up-front price, then hide the real cost of their product through hidden fees you don't learn about until you've committed.
With hotel fees, any hotel that started listing a "true price" upfront would be putting itself at a huge disadvantage against those hotels which do not, since its room rates consistently would appear higher than its competitors. So, for the most part, they don't.
Ironically, if hotels were forced by some outside authority (such as government) to list the true price up front, I think two things would happen: First, "true prices" would decrease. Hotels now don't have to compete on the prices of things such as parking and resort fees, since these costs are hidden to prospective customers. But if they had to be included in an up-front true price, consumers would see them before booking, creating an incentive for hotels to keep them as low as possible - something that doesn't happen now.
Second, with lower true prices and cost certainty, since consumers would know that they wouldn't be hit with hidden fees, more people would book more hotel rooms.
See the irony? Because of competitive pressure, hotels hide fees, which hurts consumers *and* ends up hurting the hotels in the long run. It's a classic Prisoner's Dilemma, and it happens all the time in business.
So what we need is some way for people to come together and decide, collectively, not to do this anymore. Well, we have a process that can do just that. It's government. It's not some seperate, evil thing. It's simply the way that people in a civil society work together to make collective decisions about the rules under which they'll all live and work together.
Such as: hotels have to tell you their real price up front, before you book.
As someone who works at a resort hotel (with an indoor water park, which is what I do), I have to disagree with your point of view.
I won't speak much to parking or resort fees, as I've never worked for a hotel that charged them, other than to say that the idea that hotels don't have to compete with each other on this because the customer may not know the price up front is plain wrong. Trust me when I say that any good hotel operator knows EVERY price point that the competition is charging, all the way down to their Sunday Buffet price.
To my knowledge, there's only one industry in the States that generally includes taxes in their advertised prices (Movie Theaters). While I'm sure that there are many business that do, it is not common practice. If I go to buy a Computer, on sale at Best Buy for $999.99, I know instintively that I'm going to be paying more thank 1,000 to walk away with the computer. Those taxes and other government levies are beyond my control as a business operator. We provide a resort experience for $189, and then the government does what it does.
As far as Internet Access goes, I think that it should be free everywhere too, but the decision is rarely up to the actual operator of the hotel. I used to work for a Sheraton, and it was a Starwood specification to charge for Internet. We were required by our franchise agreement to charge. You're obviously more likely to see this type of charge in a business hotel, where business travelers will pay for it, and expense it back. I think though, that its a standard that's slowly changing.
In general, you have to keep in mind that the lodging industry is being much more widely hit than the amusement park industry. The number of hotels that are being foreclosed on each week, or owners and investors just walking away from the loan giving the property back to the bank is just staggering. The small segment of the industry that I work in straddles both Amusement & Theme Parks and Hotels, so I know many people in both industries, and many people out of work. I can say, very succinctly, though, that there are a lot more of my hotel friends out on the street than park friends.
I also have to side (less zealot-like though) with the other commenters that say that government intervention isn't the way to go. I disagree with you, and think that free market economies work when there is healthy competition.
I completely understand where hotels are coming from on some things. There are a lot of hotels out there struggling to stay open right now, and they have to make money somehow. If they want to charge, then they can charge. It doesn't mean I have to buy it, or even stay there if I can find a better deal, but it's obvious that someone is willing to pay for it if they are charging. As I said before though, it's not the roadside hotel at $50 to $80 a night or the little guys that do most of the upcharging and "fees". Rather it's the higher priced but seemingly always full places in the city or tourist areas, or in some cases airport hotels that upcharge for a great deal of the amenities that others don't.
I still don't understand why you didn't bring up your concerns with the manager. I'm used to getting my way and on a similar situation, I'd easily win.
I don't see how rates could be any lower in areas like Anaheim and Orlando. There is already excess inventory and many respectable properties struggle at times. I stayed in a 3-star Orlando hotel for $29/night in December. Lower rates would mean more service cutbacks. Are you ready to do without housekeeping?
Overall, I'm not bothered by the hotel fees you mention. I'm not afraid to make a phone call, if necessary, to inquire about resort fees and Internet charges if I need to know. Of course, I prefer free Internet, and I will often call to verify.
As a frequent traveler I've grown accustomed to what to expect from a 4, 3, 2 and god forbid 1 star properties. Parking fees and Internet charges are to be expected at most 3 and 4 star hotels.
In the end I don't want to have to read a ten-page contract full of disclosures just so I can make a hotel reservation. If you need to know about every possible charge, then you go ahead and do the homework, but for the rest of us, leave us alone.
Sales taxes are charged and collected locally, and the rate is the same on all purchases, so residents know what to expect.
But hotel taxes vary wildly by location and I doubt that any TPI reader outside the hospitality industry could name the various tax rates for top markets around the country. Yet it would be trivial for hotels to include these in the "first price" quoted to consumers, since the hotels know what they are. So why don't they?
Same goes for resort fees and other charges levied on all visitors who don't complain long and loudly at the front desk. Why not include those?
Because certain hotels and chains are trying to deceive you into thinking that you're getting a better deal than you are. Which forces others to play the same game. Even though that practice costs everyone in the industry business in the long run.
Yes, you can complain directly to a front desk. And maybe you'll get some fees taken off your bill. But why do we have to live with a system where we all have to play that game? Where we all have to make multiple phone calls to multiple properties to find the true costs of hotel rooms?
Why can't we just go to Hotels.com or Expedia or any other website and see those costs - which the hotels know and could report - first thing, without the rigamarole?
Why? Because of the Prisoner's Dilemma. Yes, consumers have the power to end this. We can do it individually by demanding changes at each front desk we check out from, and wait years and years for the industry to take notice.
Or we can do this quickly, by e-mailing our Congressional representatives and demanding a new ground rule for the industry - namely, that the price you quote us be the price you make us pay.
When I book the "Swolphin" online, they do not mention the mandatory $10 per day (or whatever it is these days - might be more now) that gets me 2 bottles of spring water, internet access and access to the fitness room. However I have been given a verbal heads-up about this fee when calling and speaking to a SPG agent to book.
I'm not especially happy about being forced to pay for amenities that I may or may not use. I now have a smartphone to which I can tether my laptop, so I don't really need the internet access. I like arriving in the park with a head start on the ever-shrinking $2.50 bottles of water, but I do not ever make it to the gym while I'm at Disney World, so that's sort of useless. I would like to have the OPTION of consuming - and therefore, paying for - these amenities. Or not. MY choice.
I'm not happy that there is no free parking option at the "Swolphin". But I figure, since I'm not paying for the room, I can afford to valet it.
I don't understand the "Free Internet" self entitlement people have. The hotel has to pay for the connection, so why shouldn't you? When it's optional then only those who use it pay for it. Free Internet is not really "free" unless the stay at the hotel is as well.
Robert- gas prices are an excellent example, but one of the few where the posted price includes taxes. Go to any retail or grocery store and the shelf price is the price for the product, not the price with tax.
I understand your side, but I don't agree with you since you're asking the hotels to include in their price fees and taxes that they cannot control or keep.
On my recent reservation from Hotels.com the taxes and fees was on the invoice and stated before I confirmed the reservation. So out of curiosity I went to browse the Starwood web site and specifically the Disneyland Anaheim property. I immediately found that it states that Internet is USD 9.95 per day under "Guest Rooms".
While making a reservation it states the price both with and without additional charges & taxes for each room type.
If you proceed to make the reservation there a bold link "Terms & Details" and bold text that says "Click the "Terms & Details" link for more detailed information for each room including taxes, additional hotel charges and terms & conditions."
That page outlines every single tax rate and the additional hotel charges, including the roll away fee you mention.
So what was the point of this entire article and poll when they're already doing what you propose?
I understand that it costs a little money to create a wireless network, especially one for a larger hotel. It requires the highest of bandwidth and higher end equipment. What I also understand is that for many, internet service is now more important than the telephone in each room. It's become a necessity for many people on the road. I don't need the hotel phone, I have a cell phone...but I will use the crap out of an internet connection to communicate and for other business purposes. I really don't think I'm alone in that respect. It's just an expectation I have when shopping for a hotel in which to stay.
I don't quite understand all of the flak given by some on this thread, but I think that a law or regulation is unlikely. That's why hotel review sites are so powerful and recommended. A lot of people simply don't pay attention to the breakdown of a hotel bill. They may get a big surprise if they start taking a look.
That $75 rate you state for those value hotels might be $70 or $65 if they didn't offer Internet service. The fact is you're still paying for it and it's not free.
Disney does not charge for parking at their hotels, so no- i do not expect to pay for parking at Universal Orlando hotels.
Full disclosure is just being honest and upfront so people can make decisions armed with all needed info. I have stayed at hotels that charge for parking. Usually in an area where all of the hotels charged a similar fee. I had to check each individual website for the fee b/c none included it. If they had all been upfront with the info, I would have made the same decision as to which hotel to stay in. It just would have taken me less time.
I want to know what I am getting before I get there. I don't want any surprises at check out- especially if I am on a budget. I don't want to get a list from Expedia showing a rate and then click through to book and find out that the price was $50 more per night than expected and then have to start over. I am a regular consumer. I do not work at a hotel. I travel for vacation once or twice a year and on business 2 or 3 times a year. I want FULL DISCLOSURE and honesty.
The hotels that try to deceive people just shoot themselves in the foot. I will not stay at a resort that charges a resort fee or parking automatically. If I get "caught" at one of these, you'd better believe I will not be back. And I will warn away everyone that I know.
This is 2010 folks. The internet is no longer uncommon or a luxury item worthy of a $10.00 plus extra fee. Most people use it everyday, some people overuse it. Businesses depend on it, and people communicate through it. It's ingrained into our culture, and hotels that offer it for free have an advantage over ones that charge extra for it. Road warriors, and there are a lot of us..use the internet.
It all comes down to simple economics, and in some cases bad business decisions in the form of contracts signed with third party proxy operators, who are employed to build and manage hotel networks for a large chunk of money and the opportunity to track user activity for the purposes of marketing and advertising. The hotel receives a small kickback of revenue. Not all such deals are bad, but they lock hotels into long term contracts, and in the long run end up raising the cost of providing the service in a lot of instances. If you know how to do it and you manage the work yourself, it's not that expensive in the long run, nor difficult to blanket a 5 floor hotel with a sufficient secure wireless internet. The problem is that a lot of people are clueless or intimidated by computers, so they turn to the "experts", who are more than happy to overcharge for providing relatively simple services, which drives up the cost.
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I check TripAdvisor before every reservation.