The practice of tacking on additional fees to hotel rates is out of control, most planners would agree. Though some are able to negotiate these down or out, many hotels won’t budge.
Just do the math, said Shontae White, senior manager, global event operations, with the Association of Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialists. He pointed to an example from a hotel in the Bahamas. “They added a 21% charge that includes value-added tax plus the local levy, a resort fee of $65 plus 10% of your rate, and a $21.78 service charge to cover housekeeping and the bellman. When you take a rate of $239 and add all that, it becomes a very expensive room.”
Here are several other examples of surprise surcharges from hotels and vendors that planners shared with Skift Meetings.
AV Equipment Shipping
Diana Bryant, director, conferences & events and education at the Tennessee Valley Public Power Association, was shocked when an audiovisual company wanted to charge her several hundred dollars to ship in equipment from another part of the country.
“This is a large, well-known AV company,” she said. “The piece of equipment was digital floor signage that seems to be standard at many events these days, but it was nowhere in the region. We were able to purchase it on our own for the same price they wanted to charge us to rent it.”
A Fee to Flip a Switch
“There are so many added fees in hotel contracts these days, you really do have to watch out,” said Kerry Leigh Kerr, senior director, global accounts, at HelmsBriscoe. The latest she encountered? An electrical/power fee by a hotel to flip on a switch or use an electric outlet.
Sustainability Fees
More hotels and destinations are tacking on fees to cover the costs of protecting the environment, with Mexico taking the lead. There are actually four separate taxes – a tourist tax for Mexico, another tourist tax (Visitax) for the state of Quintana Roo, an airport tax and the environmental/sanitation tax.
For example, Kyra Canty, events coordinator at Paragon Events, reported: “While hosting a program at a resort in Mexico, each room was charged $1.56 USD for an environmental tax per occupied room per day.”
Refrigeration Fee
Just when she thought she had seen it all, said Kelly Fuller, senior event experience manager, Meetings & Incentives Worldwide, Inc., “I operated a large incentive of roughly 800 people at a property that charged a fee if you happened to put anything in the mini bar to keep it cool. It was about $20 and something they stood firm on. It was definitely the most frustrating charge I’ve ever encountered.”
Union Fees
The fee that Lauren Halpern, president, Make a Statement Events, dislikes the most is absolutely non-negotiable. “I really hate paying a union fee to have someone watch our team do the set-up or run the load-in elevator.”
Linen Fees
“One thing I see happening is that hotels are going linen-less as a sustainability measure,” said Jill Roth, owner & event architect, Jill Roth Events. “Now you need to pay a fee to rent linen that used to be included.”
Doubling Up Minimums
Tracy Breithaupt, events director, Evergreen Education Group, has come upon a new charge twice now, related to F&B: “Both of these hotels gave us a room block but then stated the block would require an F&B minimum in addition to the F&B requirement for the convention center. We can’t meet both minimums; therefore, we may not be able to bring our event to the city because we need the rooms to fill our block.”