People are not infallible; and machines and computer systems are not perfect. Mistakes do happen. However, no employee at lodging companies apologizes for charging guests mandatory resort fees — even though they almost always offer virtually no value to guests in return because they are almost pure profit for a hotel or resort property, which brings the question of being charged a resort fee twice: error — or money grab?
Being Charged a Resort Fee Twice: Error — or Money Grab?
Imagine being charged $40.00 per night in mandatory resort fees — especially when rates can be close to as much as $600.00 per night — which includes:
- Two bottles of water delivered to your room daily
- Complimentary access to Wi-Fi
- Daily fitness classes at the Dolphin resort property
- Use of the Swan paddle boats
- Discounts on select spa treatments
Now imagine receiving your folio at the end of your stay; and you find out that you were charged $80.00 per night because the mandatory resort fee was added twice — which is allegedly what happened to FlyerTalk member YYZTHF recently at The Swan Reserve at Disney World.
Hotel and resort properties have been increasingly creative in adding perceived value to mandatory resort fees, mandatory room fees, mandatory destination fees, mandatory amenities fees, mandatory facilities fees, or mandatory damage waiver fees — all of which are usually charged on a daily basis. They may have different names — after all, many hotel properties are not resorts; so calling the mandatory fee a “resort” fee would be ridiculous.
Final Boarding Call
Charging a mandatory resort fee on a daily basis is egregious enough in the first place, in my opinion — but to be charged that fee twice per day is inexcusable. I am almost certain that a simple mistake was committed; but I would not put it past the management of that resort property to “accidentally” charge guests a daily mandatory resort fee twice to see if they could get away with doing so.
I do not believe in intervention by the government to interfere with the free market; but these mandatory fees — creative as they may be and which are specifically designed to initially obfuscate the true cost of travel — are out of control. Unfortunately, consumers seem to be more resigned to paying them out of frustration rather than boycotting hotel and resort properties which charge them — especially as more and more of them do so to create extra revenue for themselves.
The only true way to stop this madness of hotel and resort properties simply tacking on an added daily mandatory fee is to not patronize them — or, at least, negotiate to not pay them when at the hotel or resort property.
Although a lot of work still needs to be done, you can help me fight mandatory daily fees by adding to the list of hotel and resort properties that charge them.
If all else fails, you can always try filing a complaint with the attorney general of the state in which you have stayed — or with the attorney general of the state in which you reside if you live in another state and booked a reservation at the hotel or resort property while sitting at home. Some readers of The Gate With Brian Cohen have reported their successful experiences of getting fully reimbursed for the mandatory fees that they paid.
Photograph ©2016 by Brian Cohen.
