Marriott Village resort fee!!!!

[LisaRay]

Ok, maybe this is old news since I haven't been on here as much as usual. If so then sorry. .

I was just on Marriott's web site looking up rooms at the Courtyard and Fairfield that are in the Marriott Village and it says they are now charging a $7.50 a nite resort fee!!! This is unbelieveable!! These are nice clean hotels but not fancy ones! Just a basic hotel and you take your own bags to the room. Plus $7.50 is a pretty hefty fee! :(

[LisaRay]

Ok being the idiot that i am i will post again!!LOL

Well i just looked it up and the resort fee at the Marriott World Center ..(ya, know the big fancy place, lol) is only $5.30! So why do they think we should pay $7.50 resort fee at the Fairfield??

Ok, I'll get off my soapbox now. But as you can see that really ticks me off.

[ginga]

We just returned yesterday from the Fairfield at Marriott Village and were charged $5.50 a day. They told me about the fee upon check-in and I did not protest and am glad I did not. I quickly learned the resort offers so much that I felt it was worth it. The village was a great place. We were three families with several kids between us and the kids could pool-hop. They really liked the Courtyard's indoor-outdoor pool with the waterfall. There is also an arcade on site which was very nice and clean and virtually empty. The food court and convenience store was also very handy. Mostly, it was nice letting the kids go to these places and know they could safely walk around within the village. We got the Fairfield for $45 and thought it was totally worth it. The complementary breakfast helped save money for one family that had four children, although we got tired of it after 5 days and went elsewhere for breakfast. The location was great, a lot of good restaurants within walking distance or on the road. I would recommend this place and we've never stayed off-site.

[LisaRay]

well I have also stayed at that hotel. We were there in March. I am not saying that its not a nice hotel at all!! But I am saying that $7.50 is a pretty big chunck of change.

I personnally hate these resort fees that some of the hotels are starting to add on and if you don't know about it when you make the reservation than it can add alot of your bill. There are still ALOT of hotels that aren't doing this. I just think I would rathr pay a higher nightly rate for the room than a resort fee. They call it a free breakfast but on the other hand they are charging that fee which makes it seem less free to me.

I was not trying to start anything with this post. But I do know that alot of people may not be expecting a fee and the price of it can make a difference in someones hotel choice. Just thought that those who have reservations already might not know about this and was giving a heads up. :)

[Kermit]

I agree that hotels shouldn't do this. It should just be part of the fee. I've stayed at places that charge $2/night for the safe in your room, regardless of if you use it. They should just raise the price of each room by $2, or at least warn you when you make the ressie.

[baileybrad]

I, also, would rather have the room charge that I am quoted reflect the amount of the night's stay plus the room tax and sales tax. I think that it is just a way to gouge unsuspecting customers. I think that it is done because most people aren't going to challenge it. It should be spelled out when the reservation is made.

I wonder if the new LBV Residence Inn is stooping to this method of customer gouging.

[mickey7861]

I agree with Lisa Ray also. Why don't they just charge you $56.50 for the Courtyard instead of $49 plus a FEE of $7.50. We HAD reserved the Courtyard because I thought it had the best pool. Then I got nervous about whether they allowed pool hopping (they do) so the 3 resorts could be at the Courtyard's nicer pool. YUCK. Then we had reserved at $49 plus a $5.50 resort fee. I called to confirm and drop one day due to DS's college orientation. They told me first the the resort fee had gone up to $7.50 and then they said I'd have to now pay $65 nighlty instead of $49 because I changed my ressie. Needless to say I cancelled and booked elsewhere. I'm sure the hotel is very nice but I wasn't impressed with their customer service.

[JandD Mom]

I have read that the resorts will waive the fee if you refuse to pay it. On our first night in WDW, we are arriving after 9 and leaving probably by 9 the next morning. To sleep why would I pay a resort fee, especially if I was not advised of it ahead of time?

Anyone have any experience with this?

[Tiger926]

This is something that my DH and I are dealing with right now. I am a Marriott Rewards member and when I was sent an e-mail regarding this promo the first week of June, I booked the same day. I printed the confirmation off of the Marriott website, as well as the confirmation that the Marriott reservation office emailed to me. NOWHERE on either of these 2 confirmations is there mention of a resort fee. I discovered last week that there is a resort fee of $7.50 per night (just raised from a fee of $5.50) when I double-checked my reservation on-line and found that someone actually changed my confirmation by adding the resort fee! Needless to say, my darling accountant husband is not impressed, especially since we are Canadian and for the 10 days that we are staying, we would have to pay an additional $75.00 U.S. which in effect is 1.5 nights lodging. I have called the resort several times to inquire about other matters, and have never been informed of the resort fee. We have decided that we are going to refuse to pay the fee, not because of financial reasons, but because they have had ample opportunities to inform us of the fee, and they have not. We have paid resort fees at properties in Hawaii that provided us with snorkeling lessons, breakfasts, etc... and we had no problem because we were informed of the fee at time of booking! Plus the resorts were incredible with a million different amenities. Obviously it is most beneficial for Marriott to ambush guests with this fee upon arrival at the hotel, because they know that most people are not going to dispute it. Sorry for rambling, it just seems that if we as guests just roll over and accept any and all fees, they are just going to get higher and higher! All they need to do is raise the room rate, and the problem is solved!
Tiger:jester:

[mickey7861]

Tiger926

Careful, they may wave the fee but raise your ressie price because you " changed your reservation". This is what they did to us when we had to drop one night, the first night. We were reserved for 3 but only need 2 now. When we called they said the 2 days would now be at $65. We also never heard of the resort fee when we first made our ressie. We switched hotels. Good luck with your stay. I'm sure the hotel is at least very nice.

[Tiger926]

Thanks for your advice, but we didn't change our reservations at all. We have always been booked for 9 nights. When I double-checked our reservation on-line, I discovered that Marriott had actually changed our reservation to include the $7.50 resort fee. Like I said, the resort fee is not listed anywhere on the other 2 confirmations that I have. The only reason that I checked my on-line reservation is because I heard on this board that there was a new resort fee. I am hoping that we don't have any problems - it's not worth it to us to have to fight about it because it's not very much money, but it is the principle of the matter. I love staying at Marriott properties (which is why we thought we'd try this new property), but I'm not that impressed with the way they are implementing these resort fees. Hopefully we have a great vacation, because we really need it!
Tiger :jester:

[GrumpyEd]

I thought the same. Originally I had resi at $49 plus resort fee. I hesitated and thought i could do better on priceline. Well after 8 nights at Hawthorn suites we needed another Hotel. So walked in got $45 AAA rate at Fairfield. I think it was worth it. On site stores,. The security at this place was cool! Gated access after 12 or 1. Very nice!

The only thing I did not like were the Brazilian tourists RUDE!

[Tiger926]

Thanks Grumpy Ed. We are looking forward to staying at this new property. We decided not to stay on Disney property this year, because we are going to be spending 3 days at Sea World, 1 day at Universal and 1 day shopping, along with our 4 days at Disney. Therefore, we thought it might be a bit more convenient. One more thing, did you have any experiences with the shuttle service? DH didn't feel like renting a car and so we are going to use shuttle or taxi. I'm hoping everything works out with the shuttle. Thanks again!
Tiger:jester:

[GrumpyEd]

Nope had car, they have there own bus! It was nice. They were well prepared. There were tons of people there. The breakfast is like an assemble line but people were nice. We missed it one day and one of the servers went out of her way to go in the back and get us a bag full of stuff! They have like a walkway oustide nice deli hot dogs coffe krispy creme, walking distance to golden coral and restaurant bahama breeze whish I heard was very nice. Pool bar at courtyard was nice! pools are real nice. Fridge in room was a bonus. Overall for a budget hotel it was great. Also coin laundry on-site!


Have fun!

[Tiger926]

Thanks, Grumpy Ed. Hotel sounds good! Tiger:jester:

[GrumpyEd]

No problem. Im only grumpy because I'm home again!

[cakathy]

We drove to FL. and got in one night early. Stayed at Universal Inn, 3 story hotel with a outdoor pool, they charged $43.99 a night and a $5.00 "resort" fee. We were all tired and hungry. My question "Where's the Resort?".

[Tiger926]

I must agree. We had a bad experience with a vacation club last year in Orlando that booked us at a so-called resort (if we had booked on our own, their rate was higher than the moderately priced Disney hotels!). What a joke! Being an English teacher, I was very angry with their blatant misrepresentation of their hotel in both their written brochures, and verbal communications I had with them. I aired my concerns with the president of the company, namely being with their understanding of the words "four star resort property" and their misrepresenation to guests of what they constituted as "luxurious surroundings." I ended up making my case and we were awarded about 50% of our money back, but this wasn't the point. We wanted them to understand that we were not going to allow them to lie to us by arguing sematics, when in fact, our concern was with the actual quality of their property. Now I understand that most of the travel business is predicated on the fact that things look much better than they really are. If hotels, cruises, resorts, etc... were not allowed to stretch the truth, many of them would not be in business. That being said, I believe that we as consumers have come to expect the highest of expectations from resorts, when in fact, the actual definition is as follows: "a place frequented for recreation or rest." Obviously, most hotel properties do fall into this definition, and so they can justify resort fees for things such as: pools, transportation, breakfasts, kids' clubs, etc... Or in the case of our honeymoon resort in Hawaii, snorkelling, private beach, crafts, poolside entertainment, free coffee, daily paper and free travel guide (actual person who planned all excursions and provided maps and made reservations!) In my opinion, regardless of these amenities, it seems that most hotel "resort fees" are nothing more than built-in profits. This seems to be the wave of the future, in that it allows hotels to keep their rates more competitive (especially in Orlando), and in the case of many places, they aren't even making guests aware of these fees until check-in. This in effect guarantees the least amount of hassle for the hotel because they know that most guests won't dispute a low resort fee, (but would protest a 10-15% raise in hotel rates), especially after spending hours on a plane, and another hour on a crowded airport shuttle bus. Just my thoughts. Interested to see what others think.
Tiger:jester:

[Mic]

We first stayed at the Courtyard at Marriott Village in early December, and REALLY enjoyed our stay. The staff was great and the rooms were new and large. At the time, only Courtyard and Fairfield Inn was open. In late December, we returned, and stayed at Springhill Suites...rooms were new, staff was just ok, and breakfast was an added bonus. We were not charged a resort fee either time. In March, we returned for 1 night before checking into OKW, and we had 2 rooms at Fairfield Inn. I booked the rooms the very day we checked in, and was not informed of the resort fee. Imagine our surprise to arrive at 2 am and be charged $20 deposit per room, which would be refunded the next day at check-out, minus the $5.50 resort fee. First, we were not informed when making the reservation, and what would the fee cover for someone checking in at 2 am and checking out at 9? To make matters worse, our tv remote had no batteries, and the staff was less than helpful with anything. The front desk had even called my sister's room at 3:30 am to inform her she had "forgotten" her change when checking in(she had paid cash for the room)...my sister did not forget anything, the clerk did not give her any change from a $100 bill! Our AAA-rate $45 room ended up costing over $70, so we were not happy. A week after our return from WDW, I learned from my credit card co. that Marriott still had a hold on my card, for some outrageous amount(like $300), a full 2 weeks after I had checked out of the hotel after spending 1 night. It took 3 phone calls and another week before it was released. We took another short trip to WDW the week of July 4th, and decided to spend an extra night. OKW had nothing available, so I again called for a AAA room at Fairfield, 2 hours before I planned to check in. At no time did the reservationist mention the resort fee, and after I had given my cc number, I informed her I knew about the $5.50 resort fee, and I thought it wrong not to inform customers of it at booking. She politely informed me I did not "know" everything, since the resort fee was now $7.50! I paid an $8 resort fee at the Dolphin in April and at the Wyndham in May, and was informed of the fee at booking both these hotels, so I felt it was not misleading. Even if I did not think the fee at Marriott Village was exorbitant, I have a problem with not being informed.

[MikeP]

We just got home from the Marriott Village Courtyard, upon check in they told us of the Village Fee and also told us that if we didn't the shuttle(they gave us a card that would be marked if we used it) or the coupons they gave us we would be refunded the $5.50 village fee. When we left, the entire amount of the fees were refunded to us because we did return the coupons and didn't use their shuttles. The hotel is very nice, and we got a regular room with a balcony that faced the pool for $49.00 a night it would have been well worth an additional $5.50.

[Tiger926]

MikeP: I'm glad that you had a good stay - we arrive in 8 days! We are looking forward to our vacation, but the more I hear about this resort fee, the more frustrated I get! As I stated before, I have never been informed by Marriott (I am a rewards member so they have my email, phone and address) of the resort fee. What's more confusing to me is the fact that some people are paying $5.50 and some are paying $7.50! My husband and I are not going to pay this fee, and we are planning on using their shuttles. If they need to charge for transportation or the complimentary breakfast, then they should increase their hotel rates, or inform customers at time of booking of their resort fee. This is not a financial issue for us at all, because an extra $5-7 per day is very minor, and we have paid resort fees at other hotel properties before. It is actually the fact that they seem to blatantly be withholding this information from guests until check-in because this way they are assured of actually collecting the fee. It is nice that they are refunding guests who do not use their services, but they really shouldn't be charging a resort fee in the first place. I would have no problem with them charging user fees for transportation, or breakfast because these are targeted fees. As soon as customers are adequately informed of the fees, they then can make a decision as to whether or not they are going to use these services. Marriott Village has their own website, and it states that they "offer transportation to Disney, Sea World, etc..", that they offer "complimentary breakfast at Fairfield and Springfield", and that they offer "kids' club with complimentary programs", NOWHERE on the website does it mention a resort fee for any of these services. Of course it does not say "free" transportation, but then they should make it their mandate to properly inform guests of any and all charges AT TIME of booking - but of course we all know why they don't do this, they would lose customers!
Tiger:jester:

[MikeP]

When I booked my reservation a couple of months ago it did say on my confirmation that the cost didn't include the $5.50 PD village fee. I just booked another week on the website and got the same message, except the confirmation said the price didn't include the $7.50 village fee. I just really didn't consider it to be a big deal, and was glad that mine was refunded when we left since we didn't plan on using their transportation. I agree if they are going to charge the fee it should be told to you in advance. In my case it was.

[GrumpyEd]

Just returned. I was told both on 800 number and when I walked in about fee. I kinda think that a place where you can go and use any of three different pools is worth it. Also Fridge in room at Fairfields was nice extra. As was on-site poolside bars, and gated commumity after hours.

[Tiger926]

GrumpyEd - are you allowed to use all of the pools? When I called Marriott Village (at beginning of June), the reservationist said that they discourage this because they want guests to use the pools at their own resorts. My DH was kind of looking forward to using the indoor pool at the Courtyard. Did anyone ask for resort id?

By the way, it's not that I don't think the amenities at this hotel are not worth it, it's just that I have 2 different confirmations (one from website and one emailed from central reservations), as well as 3 different phone calls, and none of them mentioned the resort fee. When I checked my confirmation the other day after hearing about the fee, I noticed that someone changed my confirmation to show the $7.50 daily fee. Oh well, we'll see what happens when I check in next Wednesday.

One other thing, the other day you mentioned that you thought the hotels at Marriott Village were very good basic hotels. I was just wondering why you consider these to be basic properties? Sure they are considered value properties in the Marriott family, but you can't compare them to Days' Inn or Knight's Inn (both of which my DH & I have stayed during our high school days as track & field athletes). We really enjoy staying at Marriott Courtyard's and are looking forward to our stay at Marriott Village - once we get this resort fee straightened out (ha,ha)!
Tiger:jester:

[LisaRay]

When we were there in April they didn't we were at the Fairfield and it was raining and storming all day and evening. We were told that we could use and of the pools so we went over to the Courtyard and used the indoor pool.

While no they didn't ask to see an id but, you couldn't get into the pool area without using your room key (credit card type). As a matter of fact I was reading a book while my DD swam and when a young boy swam under the indoor/outdoor wall he got out of the pool in the outdoor area and tried to open the door to come back in to the indoor area. He was locked out. I had to get up and let him in. This happened alot to various kids. So I guess if they didn't want you to pool hop they could keep you out with the key?? But like I said they told us we could use all the pools.

Also as I have said before it was a nice hotel area and I wouldn't mind staying there again at all. However the only places I have paid a resort fee before seemed like more expensive places. MOWC, and beach resorts with full use of beach equipment. I just think that these are the lower end Marriott hotels (no help with luggage, sit down restraraunts, etc.) and that is why I didn't expect to pay it here.

[Tiger926]

Thanks LisaRay for the info. My DH and feel the same as you regarding the resort fee - we have stayed at tropical resorts in Hawaii that charged a resort fee, but the amenities were incredible. And of course, we were informed of the resort fee at time of booking. We had no problem since we had a private beach, valet parking, daily newspaper, activities coordinator, lagoon and 4 pools, luau on premises, gated security, daily snorkeling, arts/crafts lessons, dance lessons, 24 hour room service, late check-out, free coffee and muffins, pool bar and nightly poolside entertainment, bell hops galore and beach hopping privileges at other private beaches, as well as unlimited phone calls and room charging for any purchases made in the boutiques, salon or art gallery that were on the premises. This was truly a resort! Thanks again for the info.
Tiger:jester:

[MikeP]

When I read that last post I was reminded of one "minor" disappontment. I was kinda susprised by the fact that I had to pay for my local phone calls. I would generally expect that at a low end (Motel 6 and the like) but I just didn't expect it here. What ever the case, I am sure you will enjoy your stay, I hope you are able to get your problem with the resort fee resolved.

[ginga]

Regarding the pool hopping, as was mentioned by someone above, one of the mothers in our group was told by Fairfield staff "we discourage" going to other pools. However, we figured if they truly wanted to "discourage" it, they would change the key situation so that room keys don't work for any pool. While our kids liked the Courtyard's pool best, they also spent a great deal of time in Fairfield's pool which usually seemed more crowded. I also feel with the resort fee, you are paying for ALL the village's amenities.
Also, Mike P., that's funny you mentioned about the local calls. We noticed we were not charged for the numerous local calls we made. We didn't know if that was their normal practice or because we're Marriott Rewards members. ??

[GrumpyEd]

Well after staying at hawthorn suites for a week I consider Fairfield a basic but new hotel. Let me tell you this they are so busy, busloads of brazillian tourists that that will not even notice you. The key to our room fit all of the pools doors and we swam in each one, yes you need a key to enter pool areas. As far as I am concerned the only way I would pay that fee if they let me use any pool I wanted. I think 7.50 is a bit steep, I paid 5.50. But as consumers we all have options. From what I understand the hotel industry is not doing that well. If enough people complain about fee they will have to do something. However I factured it into cost and was very pleased with cleaniness of hotel and location. I will most likely stay at courtyard next time they have nice balcony's. The suites were ok but not a seperate room, Hawthorn suites was definately nicer.

[MikeP]

I am also a rewards club member, we made a number of calls and were probably charged for half of them.

[Mic]

Concerning the phone charges, I forgot to post what the front desk told me. While I was waiting to check-in at Fairfield, a woman was asking the front desk clerk about phone charges, and I asked her to repeat the information to me. If you are a rewards member and leave a credit card # on the folio, then local and toll free numbers are free. I had not planned to leave a cc # after the last stay at this Fairfield, but I did for the free calls.

[MikeP]

I am both rewards member and left a cc, but was still charged for a few of my local calls. Earlier I said I was charged for about half of them, I just looked at my bill I was charged for 3 calls $1.50 I know we made probably at least that many per day. Must have been a mistake of some sort.

[NancyIL]

Adding extra fees to the room rate is one way for hotels to raise revenue without appearing to raise their rates. They nick you with extra charges for parking, telephone, resort fees, and now an energy fee at many hotels.

Last year there were a lot of posts about the Marriott Orlando World Center (MOWC) adding a $9.54/day resort fee. They backed down and lowered the fee, but also charged extra for the bus service to the parks.

[Tiger926]

We arrive at the Fairfield at Marriott Village on Wednesday morning. For those of you who just returned (GrumpyEd or MikeP), can you tell me if there are hairdryers and irons in the rooms? I usually always bring them with us, but most hotels have them in the rooms, and my DH wants us to pack as lightly as possible so that we have more room for souvenirs (go figure!) I also know that the rooms have fridges in them, which is also a nice surprise. Any info. would be appreciated. Thanks.
Tiger:jester:

[MikeP]

We stayed at Courtyard and it had both an iron and a hair dryer. Have a great trip, I wish we were just now leaving to go.

[LisaRay]

Yes, I think there was a hairdryer in the room at the Fairfield. But, to make sure go to Marriott's web site and look it up it should tell you for sure.

[ginga]

We returned about about two weeks ago. There was a hair dryer and an iron in our room at the Fairfield. Good idea to pack light as storage space is limited in the rooms! Having a frig in the room was very nice. Have a good time. We really enjoyed the village.

[Tiger926]

Thank you all for the info! We are looking forward to our vacation since it's been 1 whole year since we were at Disney last!
Thanks again, Tiger:jester:

[ginga]

Tiger,
also don't know if you matters to you, but some of the rooms also offer microwaves, something i didn't know and didn't request, but some of the others in our group did.

[Tiger926]

Thanks Ginga for the info. on the microwave. I did not know about this - I'm not sure if we will have any use for a microwave, but this is good to know.
Thanks again, Tiger:jester:

[WINTER]

:smooth: We were there for 4 nites a few weeks ago and LOVED it. The buses were a great feature. The buses were very plush, we didn't have to pay $6 to park and we didn't have to fight traffic, no one went away hungry after breakfast and the coin laundry on our floor was a plus. The place was new, clean, very friendly guest services personnel and location is excellent. We had a rate of $45 plus the resort fee but was never charged the resort fee. I would recommend the Fairfield Inn highly.

And, yes, the frig and iron board/iron was much appreciated.

[WINTER]

:smooth: We were there for 4 nites a few weeks ago and LOVED it. The buses were a great feature. The buses were very plush, we didn't have to fight traffic, no one went away hungry after breakfast and the coin laundry on our floor was a plus. The place was new, clean, very friendly guest services personnel and location is excellent. We had a rate of $45 plus the resort fee but was never charged the resort fee. I would recommend the Fairfield Inn highly.

And, yes, the frig and iron board/iron was much appreciated.