Hidden Fees: Hotels’ Way Of Making An Extra Buck
Categories: Holiday Travel, Hotels
Nov 28th
Many hotels plan on you being in such a rush at checkout, in order to get out on time and make flights, that you won’t have the time to glance at your bill. And this is where they bank on you not seeing the hidden fees that they sneaked onto your bill; these are fees you should be aware of.
Most travelers have learned to avoid the phone fees that hotels are so accustomed to charging for, and hotels are making less and less from guests on these grounds, and most everyone has cell phones nowadays. But they have found other ways to make money from you without you being aware of it. Some of these fees include: a towel fee, grounds keeping fee, resort fee, mandatory tips for the bellmen and the maids, hospitality fees, mandatory valet parking fees, Ethernet cable fees, and workout room fees and a fee for the in-room safe (even if these services aren’t used). They even can charge you for that so called “free/complimentary” breakfast by charging you for beverages such as when the waiter comes around with a picture of juice.
But there are ways to carefully avoid such fees. You can try haggling upon check in if you think you may be un-rightfully charged for hidden fees. If you are a repeat visitor or business traveler, chances are you will have success. Try to keep asking questions about fees during your stay. Ask at the buffet when served drinks, ask at the entrance to the gym, ask when the pool boy offers you an extra towel, and ask before using the safe or borrowing a charger. Also it is advised to leave enough time upon checkout to review your bill, as if there are any complications you have given time to dispute anything. And there is one thing you cannot avoid, but by being aware of it you can be prepared, and that is taxes. New York City has an 8.25% sales tax plus their 13.5% hotel tax. San Francisco’s is 14%, in Phoenix it is 12%. Either way, you are going to be paying more than anticipated.
This entry was posted on Wednesday, November 28th, 2007 at 7:34 pm and is filed under Holiday Travel, Hotels. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.
