ESCAPE HOTEL SURCHARGES

We’ve seen the practicing that we call “nickeling-and-diming” – imposing phone surcharges, health-club fees, and mandatory valet parking – on the rise at many hotels. While a single fee might not seem like much, add a few here and there and your bill becomes outrageously high at check-out time. We think it is time to fight back – here’s how:

Join the frequent-guest program. Some programs include benefits like free health-club use, which can rid you of the fee altogether. But if you are still hit with those annoying surcharges, your membership card will give you additional status and clout when you ask the manager to have the charges removed from your bill.

Put things in perspective. Telephone access fees — typically $1 to $2 a call — are a gouge. But these fees are small in comparison to the other charges you’ve probably incurred. We always tell the manager, “Look, I've just spent hundreds of dollars at your hotel, and you're trying to charge me a two dollar fee for each local phone call. If you were in my shoes, would you think this was fair?" We have yet to have a manager refuse to remove the phone fees from our bill. (For more tips on how to get results when you complain, click here.)

Use the # key. Remember that some hotels levy charges for any calls -- even those made with a calling card. If you call from your hotel room using your calling card and know the hotel is charging, plan on making several calls in succession. If you stay on the line after the other party hangs up, you can press the pound key to make the next call. This saves you the extra charge of making another call, as your hotel's telephone system will not recognize that you are making multiple calls.

Avoid the mini-bar. Do you really need that $4 Diet Coke or that $2.50 Snickers bar? The hotel uses the lure of convenience to lead you into temptation. Don't let them profit at your expense! If you are dying for a drink or a junk-food snack, hop on the elevator and pick up your goodies at the newsstand in the lobby. You'll save yourself a bundle and work off a couple calories to boot.

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