Resort Fees
The hotel industry prides itself on offering an array of amenities and services to ensure guests have what they want and need from their travel experience. Transparency and guest satisfaction are at the core of the industry’s business model. Making sure guests have all the necessary information prior to booking their reservations is paramount.
The hotel industry provides guests full disclosure for resort and amenities fees charged up front. In fact, they were created in an effort to provide consumers with the best value by grouping amenity fees into one cost. If consumers were charged individual fees for all amenities, the cost would likely be prohibitive. This practice aligns with guidance introduced by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) in 2012.
Indeed, these fees are not common practice in the hotel industry. Declining over the past decade, approximately only six percent of hotels currently charge resort fees – and these are the properties that have far more available amenities than other lodging facilities.
Our Position
Consumers should be aware of the exact amount that they are paying for each item of the bill – cost of the room, fees and taxes – and each should be broken out separately. Our industry is transparent about fees and discloses them prior to a guest booking online.
However, that is not necessarily the case with online travel agencies, which tend to bundle fees and taxes, resulting in consumers being unaware of how much they are paying for each item.
The bottom line is that the hotel industry embraces a competitive business model that is driven by transparency. Ensuring guests have all the necessary information prior to booking their rooms is central to that model and consumer satisfaction.
Key Issues
AHLA is the singular voice representing every segment of the hotel industry including major chains, independent hotels, management companies, REIT’s, bed and breakfasts, industry partners and more.