‘Junk Fees’ on Hotels, Short Term Rentals to Be Banned — What to Know

It’s finally happening: the end of resort fees as we know them. 

In a landmark announcement on Tuesday, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) will now prohibit “junk fees,” an overarching term for hidden and misrepresented prices in the hotel, and short-term rental, and live-event ticketing, industries. For travelers, that includes all hotel booking websites and vacation rental platforms like Airbnb or Vrbo. 

The rule will require companies to disclose total prices upfront. Search results on an online travel agency, for instance, must include the maximum total of all mandatory fees or charges people will have to pay. With this move, consumers searching for hotels or vacation rentals should no longer be surprised by “resort,” “city,” or “service” fees inflating the advertised price. 

By requiring up-front disclosure of total price including fees, the FTC says comparison shopping will be easier, “resulting in savings for consumers and leveling the competitive playing field.” 

“People deserve to know up-front what they’re being asked to pay—without worrying that they’ll later be saddled with mysterious fees that they haven’t budgeted for and can’t avoid,” FTC Chair Lina M. Khan said in a statement. “The FTC’s rule will put an end to junk fees around live event tickets, hotels, and vacation rentals, saving Americans billions of dollars and millions of hours in wasted time.

The “junk fee” FTC investigation was first launched in 2022 with two rounds of public input and over 70,000 comments. This feedback was then taken into consideration before the final ruling announced today. Expect this to take effect in 120 days. However, it’s not yet clear exactly how the FTC will enforce these mandates. 

The announcement comes as the Department of Transportation has worked to complete a similar feat when it comes to airline fees and protecting passenger rights.