Are resort fees ever worth it?
Resort fees that aren’t advertised as part of the room rate of a hotel stay can surprise many travelers when they see the final price
The Andaz Maui at Wailea Resort, a Hyatt resort on 15 beachfront acres in Hawaii, is far from a place to sleep. There are multiple pools, including a lagoon and three infinity pools. As part of the resort fee, you can also take a stand-up paddleboarding course, use the resort’s snorkel equipment and GoPro action camera and maybe even learn ukulele, hula or mixology.
It’s all marketed as complimentary — but it’s only sort of so. Andaz Maui is one of what the American Hotel and Lodging Association estimates is 6% of all hotels that charge a resort fee. These fees run between $20 and $50 per night — and they’ve become one of the most controversial issues in the travel industry.
NerdWallet analyzed more than 100 U.S. hotels with January 2023 check-in dates as part of its 2023 Best-Of Awards to see which hotels have the best and worst fees. Among the hotels that charge them, the average resort fee was $42.41, representing nearly 11% of the overall nightly cost. The Andaz Maui’s daily resort fee is $50 plus tax, which is above average. But because Andaz Maui’s nightly rates are also above average, the fee is about 6% of the overall nightly cost to stay in January 2023, based on data gathered in December 2022.
And like most other resorts that charge such fees, the Andaz’s fee is not optional — even if you never use the amenities.
