TRENDING
Impact of
Marriott ’ s deal to disclose all fees
AFTER MARRIOTT AGREED TO BE MORE TRANSPARENT WITH DISCLOSURE OF MANDATORY FEES , LEADERS BELIEVE OTHERS WILL FOLLOW SUIT , LEAD TO OTHER CHANGES .
by JEFF WEINSTEIN , EDITOR IN CHIEF
After Marriott International reached a settlement in November with the Pennsylvania ’ s attorney general ’ s office to be upfront and transparent in the disclosure of mandatory fees , including resort fees , as part of the total price of a hotel stay , it begged the question how will it impact the long-standing practice of adding numerous fees separate from the published rate , and does it make a case for the further adoption of a la carte amenity practices ?
HOTELS reached out to a number of leading hoteliers to get their reaction to the news and opine on the future of these “ hidden ” fees . We agreed to quote them offthe-record to gain more candid responses .
Generally speaking , our sources believe other hotel companies will follow suit as Marriott tends to set the standard on a number of industry practices . If for no other reason , others will likely follow to avoid any future litigation .
Some operators told HOTELS this practice should have been modified a long time ago . “ The way we handled it was really sneaky , and not the way that we should have ,” says one industry veteran . Another says , as long as there is a level playing field , including OTAs disclosing fees , the consumer can make a more informed choice . “ That ’ s all they ’ re looking for ,” a source says . “ The right direction is to just have full transparency … At a time when people don ’ t trust all the brands , I do think that starting to better disclose all the fees will help rebuild trust . At least , a consumer can ’ t say we didn ’ t tell them .”
One U . S . -based mid-sized owneroperator says more independent hoteliers may take longer to catch up with disclosing all the extra fees , “ but I think our industry is seeing an evolution right now on many fronts , and this is one of them . It ’ s hard to say what the impact may be , but I think it would start with how the rates will be advertised on the websites and may show or identify at that point a ‘ resort fee ’ in addition to the room rate .“
Another U . S . -based global owner-operator says the impact of transparently disclosing all fees will depend on how much those fees were . “ Adding US $ 25-US $ 50 a night to rates across the board will make it more difficult to remain competitive prior to other major companies making the change ,” he says . “ But once everyone is onboard , it won ’ t cut down on bookings . To be honest , I ’ ve never been a fan of
10 hotelsmag . com January / February 2022