How to see resort fees when booking IHG stays
Most travelers don't like to pay resort fees on their stays. Luckily, some hotel loyalty programs, including World of Hyatt and Hilton Honors, waive resort fees on award stays. World of Hyatt also waives resort fees on paid stays for its top-tier Globalist members.
But, even if you can't use hotel points or elite status to avoid resort fees, you can decide not to stay at properties that levy these fees. However, as Traveling For Miles wrote about last week, some travelers might not see these fees when booking stays with IHG One Rewards.
Luckily, there's an easy way to ensure you see resort fees displayed when booking IHG stays. In this post, I'll explain how.
Related: Best hotel credit cards
How to see resort fees when booking paid IHG stays
Let's consider a stay in New York City as an example since IHG has several hotels in New York that charge per-night amenity fees. Log in to your IHG account and start your search as usual.
Once you click "Search," you'll see a listing of hotels with the amenity fee clearly listed under the nightly rate.
If you select a hotel, you'll see the rooms you could book. Again, each room type shows the amenity fee under the room rate.
If you click "View Prices" and navigate through a few screens to pick a specific rate, you'll reach the final page where you can pay and complete your reservation. On this page, you'll see additional charges of $40.17 and taxes of $74.94.
You can expand these fields to see that the additional charges are indeed the amenity fee and that the taxes include state tax, city tax and an occupancy fee.
It's easy to see whether a hotel levies a resort or amenity fee from the initial results page. So, you can avoid even considering these hotels if you wish.
Related: What is IHG One Rewards elite status worth?
How to see resort fees when booking IHG award stays
It's also easy to avoid resort and amenity fees when redeeming IHG points. Here's the results page if I display the price in points for the same stay. As you can see, the amenity fee is displayed on this page under the nightly points rate for properties that levy such a fee.
If you select a hotel with an amenity fee, you won't see the fee displayed on the room selection page.
But on the final page, before completing your reservation, you'll see a field for "Additional charges."
If you expand the field for additional charges, you'll see the $40.17 amenity fee.
IHG could make the amenity fee clearer on this final booking page. For example, IHG could list the amenity fee amount directly next to the additional charges field instead of forcing guests to expand the field to see it. And IHG should list the total charges in this example as 84,000 points plus $40.17, as this would be the total charge the guest bears.
Related: Hotel resort fees are out of control and need to end now
Why you might miss resort fees when booking IHG stays
So far, you might wonder why we're writing this post. Although the final page before completing an award stay should clearly show the amenity fee, potential guests could see the amenity fee on the initial results page before selecting that hotel.
However, if you click the "Show prices with taxes and fees" box on the results page, you might not notice the amenity fee at properties that charge it. I tend to check this box when searching for paid stays, as I'm primarily interested in the total cost of my stay.
I think it's fine for IHG not to list the amenity fee separately on the results page for paid stays if you opt to show prices with taxes and fees.
But the problem comes when you switch to displaying points rates and check the "Show prices with taxes and fees" box. When this box is checked, the results page shows the points you'll need to redeem but not the amenity fee. The results page even says taxes and fees are included, which doesn't apply to the amenity fee.
Of course, you'll still see the amenity fee listed if you expand the additional charges field on the final page before confirming your award stay. And you'll also see this fee if you check the rate details for your stay.
So, although the amenity fee might not be clearly stated throughout some of the booking process, it's easy to find once you know where to look. Unfortunately, travelers who don't frequently book IHG stays may miss seeing the amenity fee and be surprised by this charge at the hotel.
Bottom line
The easiest way to avoid staying at IHG hotels that levy resort or amenity fees is by not checking the "Show prices with taxes and fees" box and selecting a property for which these fees don't appear in the search results.
I also recommend checking the rate details page before booking, as this page will show any extra fees you'll need to pay, the nightly rate breakdown and the cancellation policy. Doing so lets you see most of the important information about your stay in one place before you book.
Related: The 19 best IHG hotels in the world
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There’s a lot to love about the Amex Gold. It’s a fan favorite thanks to its fantastic bonus-earning rates at restaurants worldwide and at U.S. supermarkets. If you’re hitting the skies soon, you’ll also earn bonus Membership Rewards points on travel. Paired with up to $120 in Uber Cash annually (for U.S. Uber rides or Uber Eats orders, card must be added to Uber app and you can redeem with any Amex card), up to $120 in annual dining statement credits to be used with eligible partners, an up to $84 Dunkin’ credit each year at U.S. Dunkin Donuts and an up to $100 Resy credit annually, there’s no reason that foodies shouldn’t add the Amex Gold to their wallet. These benefits alone are worth more than $400, which offsets the $325 annual fee on the Amex Gold card. Enrollment is required for select benefits. (Partner offer)Pros
- 4 points per dollar spent on dining at restaurants worldwide and U.S. supermarkets (on the first $50,000 in purchases per calendar year; then 1 point per dollar spent thereafter and $25,000 in purchases per calendar year; then 1 point per dollar spent thereafter, respectively)
- 3 points per dollar spent on flights booked directly with the airline or with amextravel.com
- Packed with credits foodies will enjoy
- Solid welcome bonus
Cons
- Not as useful for those living outside the U.S.
- Some may have trouble using Uber and other dining credits
- You may be eligible for as high as 100,000 Membership Rewards® Points after you spend $6,000 in eligible purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. Welcome offers vary and you may not be eligible for an offer. Apply to know if you’re approved and find out your exact welcome offer amount – all with no credit score impact. If you’re approved and choose to accept the Card, your score may be impacted.
- Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on purchases at restaurants worldwide, on up to $50,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year.
- Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent at US supermarkets, on up to $25,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year.
- Earn 3X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on flights booked directly with airlines or on AmexTravel.com.
- Earn 2X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on prepaid hotels and other eligible purchases booked on AmexTravel.com.
- Earn 1X Membership Rewards® point per dollar spent on all other eligible purchases.
- $120 Uber Cash on Gold: Add your Gold Card to your Uber account and get $10 in Uber Cash each month to use on orders and rides in the U.S. when you select an American Express Card for your transaction. That’s up to $120 Uber Cash annually. Plus, after using your Uber Cash, use your Card to earn 4X Membership Rewards® points for Uber Eats purchases made with restaurants or U.S. supermarkets. Point caps and terms apply.
- $84 Dunkin' Credit: With the $84 Dunkin' Credit, you can earn up to $7 in monthly statement credits after you enroll and pay with the American Express® Gold Card at U.S. Dunkin' locations. Enrollment is required to receive this benefit.
- $100 Resy Credit: Get up to $100 in statement credits each calendar year after you pay with the American Express® Gold Card to dine at U.S. Resy restaurants or make other eligible Resy purchases. That's up to $50 in statement credits semi-annually. Enrollment required.
- $120 Dining Credit: Satisfy your cravings, sweet or savory, with the $120 Dining Credit. Earn up to $10 in statement credits monthly when you pay with the American Express® Gold Card at Grubhub, The Cheesecake Factory, Goldbelly, Wine.com, and Five Guys. Enrollment required.
- Explore over 1,000 upscale hotels worldwide with The Hotel Collection and receive a $100 credit towards eligible charges* with every booking of two nights or more through AmexTravel.com. *Eligible charges vary by property.
- No Foreign Transaction Fees.
- Annual Fee is $325.
- Terms Apply.