'Guest-gouging' on the rise at high-end hotels

K.C. Summers, travel editor at the Washington Post, says readers constantly complain to her about resort fees. “They haven’t used the gym or the tennis court, they haven’t read their ‘free’ newspaper, and yet they are socked with the fee. It just doesn’t seem right.”

Summers says travelers want hotel operators to be honest with them. “They don’t want add-ons,” she says. “They want to know the real rate.”

Why are hotels doing this?
The industry says it needs more revenue to pay for improvements and upgrades — flat screen TVs, better bedding, curved shower rods, and fancier shampoos.

OK. But why not just raise the room rate? Why nickel and dime me when I get there?

“They’re doing it because they can get away with it,” Summers says. “It’s as simple as that.”

There’s also another reason. Hotel operators are afraid that boosting the daily rate will cost them business. People are very price-conscious when deciding which hotel to book. So rather than raise the rate — which is easy to compare online — and possibly lose a customer, they’d rather get you in the door and then pad the bill with fees and surcharges.

“This makes no sense,” says Douglas Shifflet, who runs a market research firm in Virginia.  Every month D.K. Shifflet and Associates surveys more than 50,000 households to get their feedback about the hotel industry.

“Extra fees are a hassle and hassles are an annoyance,” he says. Based on his surveys, Shifflet says eliminating hassles is significantly more important to travelers than adding amenities. “It’s time to provide value to the customer,” he says.

How to protect yourself on your next hotel stay
Never assume something is free — ask. Find out if there’s a charge for phone calls, the high speed Internet connection or in-room safe. Unless you’re told that bottled water in the room is complimentary, expect to pay an outrageous price for it.

When you make a reservation, find out if there are any routine fees or charges other than the room rate and sales tax. Hotels say information about fees is usually listed on their Web sites, but travel experts tell me it isn’t always easy to find.

If you’re doing this on the phone, get the agent’s name or ID number. That may come in handy if there’s a problem at checkout.

At checkout, challenge any fee you believe is unfair or unexpected, but don’t be surprised if the hotel refuses to budge. Bjorn Hanson of PricewaterhouseCoopers says the front office staff is less likely to remove a charge than they were a few years ago. That’s especially true with the resort fee.

When you get home, write corporate management. Tell them how you feel about the way you were treated. Hotels respond to customer feedback. If they get enough complaints about these add-ons, maybe they’ll get rid of them or at least do a better job of disclosing them prior to booking the room.

More information

Consumer Reports: Best hotels for any budget

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