Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino and PH Towers Westgate are the latest Harrah's Entertainment hotels in Las Vegas to take a stand against resort fees. The resorts join CaesarsPalace , Harrah's Las Vegas, Paris Las Vegas, Rio All-Suites Hotel & Casino, Flamingo Las Vegas, Bally's Las Vegas, Bill's Gamblin' Hall & Saloon and Imperial Palace as official "no resort fee zones." The announcement was commemorated by Holly Madison, star of Holly's World and Planet Hollywood's "Peepshow," in an unveiling of $12 million in cash, the amount of money spent last month on resort fees by visitors of the Las Vegas Strip.
"We want our guests to have a choice in regards to where they spend their money," said Marilyn Winn, president of Planet Hollywood and PH Towers. "We don't believe in hidden fees or forcing our guests to pay for amenities they may not need or desire."
Harrah's Entertainment is the first major casino operator on the Las Vegas Strip to completely remove such fees. Competitor resorts have eliminated them for select guests, but most continue to assign fees, which in some cases, are in excess of 40 percent of the advertised room rate and often not prominently advertised to the guest.
Resort fees range in price and may cover hotel amenities such as bottled water, newspaper delivery, pool entry and fitness facility access. While some of these amenities may be utilized by hotel guests, charging travelers a resort fee is not optional. Guests who prefer to use their mobile device to make local calls and receive news updates, or whose schedules won't accommodate daily fitness center access are not given the option to decline the fee.
Furthermore, because some resort fees are not added when booking a reservation, guests often are surprised by the additional charges at checkout.
To book a room at any of Harrah's Entertainment's nine Las Vegas resorts visit www.harrahs.com or dial 1-800- HARRAHS.