There was a lively discussion about this topic before. I couldn't find the thread so here is another thought. When you check into a hotel you expect to use the pool and exercise room with the room price. You expect spa services to be extra. So it is natural for wise consumers to be pissed about resort fees.
I am sure this will garner the usually spirited debate, but my philosophy is simple. Resort fees are so well known by now that anybody booking should know to check for them and include them in the total cost of the room. I despise them as well since I never use anything that is included with them and always stay at MGM properties so I just factor in that cost. When they first came out they were a little more vague, but now they should be considered an inconvenience to total when booking, but not a surprise cost at the end of someone's stay like when they first came out.
FYI, CET and other non resort fee hotels charge daily if you want to use the exercise room. So I would suppose you are pissed at them, too. The pool isnt usually listed as one of the benefits of the resort fee.
While the educated might know the hotels which charge resort fees not all of us know which hotels charge it and how much. For instance I didn't know that the Palace Station charged resort fees. I found some great rates for the palace station and might have considered booking them if I hadn't read a post that mentioned how much they charge for resort fees ($14 or so a night!). To me, it's just a con, they should just add in the fees in their rates but by lowering their rates and charging resort fees they reel in a few unsuspecting customers. I don't know, is there a sticky which lists all the vegas hotels that charge resort fees and how much? yes, like you said it is an inconvenience and I usually just add in the resort fees when I'm looking at hotel rates, that usually prices those hotels out of my price range. I'm glad that we have boards like this that make sure that readers know about these fees and also allows us a place to "vent" our displeasure. :Þ The hope is that other hotels don't follow suit, especially downtown hotels. some of us downtowners don't like the "stripification" that some downtown hotels are going through, resort fees is just another thing we expect on the strip and hope that it doesn't migrate to downtown. There were a lot of complaints when the plaza announced their resort fees, but many of us feared that other downtown hotels might follow suit if the plaza resort fees were left unchallanged.
I know MGM properties list the resort fee online when you put your payment info in. It's just another marketing stunt.(i.e. Mirage lists summer room specials of $55/nt. Those in the know don't see $55, they see $80 because they know about the $25/nt resort fee.
Ha ha Sonya, I knew you would post it for me. I was just too lazy to go looking for it. thanks! maybe you should move it to this vegas chat thread since it covers resort fees for hotels not on the strip too. I didn't look at the strip hotels thread for the resort fees because I was looking at non strip hotels and what their fees were. Just a suggestion.
I see that many of the hotels/casinos now charge the total resort fee directly to your card at check in. I guess they feel they have the advatage over the customer, in fear of loosing his room in a heated argument and no where to go. Do they send the charge through immeadiately that day? Does this mean they don't show it on your bill at the end of your stay, so a host doesn't wave the charge either?
We haven't had a good Resort Fee debate in about a week or so... VMB friends, what do YOU think about them?
Resort fees are GREAT............more the better......errrrr........I guess that's what MGM Resorts think...LOL