Hawaii Resort Fees Are Skyrocketing Again

Above, hotels in Waikiki Beach with Diamond Head in the background. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

It looks like that it was a good thing that I went to Hawaii when I did in 2016. Hotels and resorts are planning to hike their resort fees on stays.

Beat of Hawaii reported:

Hawaii resort fees rankle travelers and residents alike, significantly inflating the cost of a hotel stay. These charges can easily add hundreds more dollars to the bill, often covering questionably chargeable services like internet access or beach amenities that might otherwise be included in the room rate.

Combined with Hawaii’s 18% state and county accommodation taxes, plus a range of other fees labeled as everything from “conservation” to “local tax,” hotel bills can quickly surge by over 50%. That’s before factoring in parking costs, adding as much as an additional $60 per night.

Hawaii visitors often feel blindsided by how these fees are disclosed.

While the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has advocated for pricing transparency, most hotels reveal resort fees late in the booking process. On platforms like Booking.com, nightly rates have become loss leaders, luring travelers before piling on hidden costs.

Despite federal initiatives, resort fees will remain widespread across Hawaii in 2025, leaving many questioning if meaningful change is possible. Although earlier proposals inspired some hope, doubts persist about whether the industry will shift, even in the face of consumer outrage.

Hawaii resort fees now.

Resort fees in Hawaii vary significantly depending on the property. Here’s just an assortment. Since Hawaii has such a vast number of hotels, you’ll need to check. The Royal Hawaiian will increase its fee to $52 per night starting December 2024. Fairmont Orchid recently raised its resort fee to $48 per night. Hilton Hawaiian Village remains among the highest in Waikiki at $59 per night. Montage Kapalua Bay maintains its $50 per night charge, with additional costs for valet parking.

To read more, go here. 

The Dreaded Las Vegas Resort Fee, Part 2

Above, the entrance to Excalibur's Resort Tower. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Back in September 2017, I blogged about "The Dreaded Las Vegas Resort Fee" that's being charged to guests at Las Vegas hotels. 

Last weekend, I stayed two nights at the Excalibur Hotel Casino while in town for a friend's wedding.

I got a good package deal through Travelocity for my flights and hotel room for around $300. Unfortunately, the amount did not include the hotel's "resort fee". When I bought the package, I was told that I would have to pay the hotel $79.36, which is the $35.00/day resort fee and the resort fee tax.

Resort fee tax?!

Obviously, the corporate casino money-grubbing bean counters will squeeze every cent out of visitors. 

Excalibur's resort fee is actually two dollars cheaper than some other hotels. 

According to The Points Guy (as of March 2020):

Flamingo Las Vegas: $37

Planet Hollywood Las Vegas: $37

Paris Las Vegas: $37

Harrah’s Las Vegas: $37

In the future, if I am to stay in Las Vegas, I will stay at a RV park where no resort fees are charged. It's much cheaper. (The last time I checked (in 2017), Circus Circus RV Park charges resort fees.) 

Are RVs More Economical Than Hotels?

Above, The Beast at the USA RV Park in Gallup, New Mexico. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Hotels and resorts are getting more expensive these days, especially those who tack on amenities or resort fees.

Many people are taking to RV travel as they see it as more economical. But is it?

NerdWallet takes a look at this question.

They begin with:

More and more travel bloggers, and real-life couples and families are dipping their toes in the recreational vehicle craze. 

But is RV life really that much cheaper than driving your own car and staying in a hotel? Or is it just a cool thing to do? Here are some trip factors to consider as you make this travel decision.

To read more, go here. 

Resort Fees and Parking Charges Reportedy Killing Las Vegas Tourism

Above, The Beast at Circus Circus RV Park in 2015. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Well, I can't say I'm surprised!

The Los Angeles Times reported that fewer people are visiting Las Vegas due to resort fees and parking charges.

They wrote:

Daily resort fees and parking charges are rising and spreading in Las Vegas, adding as much as $45 a day to visitors' hotel bills. The publisher of Las Vegas Advisor blames the extra charges for a recent decline in the number of visitors. 

"Everyone hates resort fees, but the parking [fee] is even worse," said Anthony Curtis of Las Vegas Advisor. "Everyone wants some kind of comp, [and] the most basic comp is free parking. That was the one comp that everyone got."

Last year, I was going to reserve a campsite at the Circus Circus RV Park on the Las Vegas Strip (I stayed there in 2015) until the reservation website tacked on a $27 resort or amenities fee that would have made the total charge around $60 per night. I was on my way to view the Great American Eclipse in Idaho. I said, "To hell with that!"

I ended up staying at a RV park on the eastern side of Las Vegas (about 3 miles from The Strip) that didn't charge any resort or amenities fee.

To read more, go here.

RVers Are Discovering Casino "Camping"

Above, The Beast at Circus Circus RV Park in Las Vegas. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Those who follow the Nomadic Fanatic and other RV/camping channels on YouTube have probably noticed that on occasion they will camp or park overnight in a casino's parking lot or RV park.

This is a growing trend as more casinos (Indian and otherwise) are popping up across the country.

Casino.org has posted an article on this growing trend. They call this trend "boondocking with benefits." They specifically mentioned the Circus Circus RV Park.

They begin with:

It’s a trend that RV owners are loving: regional casinos across the United States often have ample parking space to accommodate overnight motor homes and travel trailers, and retirees and vacationers are taking full advantage of that fact. 

With gambling venues now spread from the Atlantic to the Pacific, RVers traversing the country have plenty of casino destinations to take park at. With nearly every casino featuring some level of around-the-clock security (albeit not as stringent in a lot as on the tables where the money is), people staying in RVs say they feel safer in such parking lots, compared with big box store chains like Wal-Mart and Home Depot. 

According to a recent report in The Green Sheet Farm Forum’s Motor Matters section, the popularity of recreational vehicles is skyrocketing, as is the use of regional casinos for overnight parking. Many casinos are gladly welcoming the vehicles, as they believe guests will at some point come into the property to eat, shop, and gamble.

The article goes on to mention that casinos in Las Vegas are charging RVers to park their rigs. One charge that is not mentioned in the article is the amenity or resort fees on top of the nightly "camping" fees. I posted a blog about this last month concerning the aforementioned Circus Circus RV Park.

To read more, go here.

The Dreaded Las Vegas Resort Fee

Above, The Beast at Circus Circus RV Park in those pre-resort fee days. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

When I was planning my recent trip to Idaho to view the total solar eclipse, I decided that I would spend the first night in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Two years ago, my daughter and I stayed at the Circus Circus RV Park on the Las Vegas Strip. It seemed like a reasonable place to stay (although not much to look at as it is essentially a parking lot with hook-ups), so I went about to make a night's reservation at the RV park.

They had a special going on for the night I wanted to reserve. It was listed as $31/night. That was reasonable. But then I got a bit of a shock.

At the end of the booking process, they wanted to tack on a $27 amenities (or resort) fee onto the price, making it nearly $60 for one night. I don't recall such a fee two years ago. I thought, "No thanks!" and looked elsewhere. Then I found the Riviera RV Park about 2-3 miles east of the Strip. It was only $22/night. So I booked a space. As it turned out, it was a much nicer RV park than the Circus Circus RV Park.

But what's with these amenities or resort fees?

I did some checking. It turns out that Circus Circus isn't the only hotel that's charging them. Here's a list of the Las Vegas hotels who are charging them and how much.

According to The Points Guy:

If you’ve stayed at a hotel on the Las Vegas Strip within the past few years, you’ve almost certainly been subjected to a resort fee. With tax, this daily charge ranges from $26.88 (Circus Circus) to just shy of $40 (Wynn and Encore), and includes some perks that you’d normally have to pay extra for (like water bottles and Wi-Fi), and others that you wouldn’t (such as pool towels and gym access). In almost all cases, amenities covered by a resort fee would otherwise be available free of charge to elite members, although even top customers are rarely able to get these fees waived (though there are some exceptions).

I was told that the Las Vegas resort hotels started this "resort fee" practice about two years ago.

Well, thankfully, I have a RV so I can avoid Las Vegas hotel resort fees by finding a RV park, such as the Riviera RV Park, who doesn't charge them.

To read more, go here.