Just when you think hotels couldn’t get more creative with junk fees, a Marriott Fairfield Inn in Texas decided to disguise its parking charge as a “City Fee.”
Marriott Fairfield Plano Caught Labeling Parking Fee As “City Fee”
A Fairfield Inn & Suites in Plano, Texas has been caught charging guests a mandatory $2.87 “City Fee” that was, in reality, a hotel parking charge…even for guests who didn’t have cars. The scheme came to light after a frequent guest noticed that the property’s previously free parking suddenly carried a $2.87 daily cost, which suspiciously matched a new “City Fee” on her bill.
When she questioned it, the front desk clerk admitted the charge was parking-related and promptly removed it.
That’s not just sneaky, it’s deceptive and unlawful. As View From The Wing reported, the property was labeling a hotel-imposed charge as a government fee, a move that violates Marriott’s own disclosure policies and should subject the hotel to regulatory scrutiny. It’s one thing to impose a parking fee; it’s another to mislead customers by implying the city required it. The guest, who happens to be a Titanium Elite, summed it up bluntly: “I don’t expect much from a Fairfield, but I expect honesty.”
What makes the deception obvious is simple math. In Plano, the only legitimate “city” hotel tax is 7% of the nightly rate. Yet the so-called “City Fee” was a flat $2.87 on nights with different room rates. That’s not how percentage-based taxes work. Add to that a “state cost recovery fee” (another hotel add-on that sounds official but isn’t), and you start to see a pattern…fees disguised as taxes to slip past guest scrutiny.
Guest Persistence Put A Stop To It
One reader took action beyond customer service. After realizing the issue wasn’t an innocent mistake, she contacted the Collin County Tax Assessor to report that the hotel was effectively collecting a non-existent tax and keeping the proceeds. Within days, the assessor’s office coordinated with the City Manager, who ordered the Fairfield to halt the practice immediately. City officials confirmed they’re now working on guest redress. It’s striking that the hotel didn’t stop because of Marriott oversight, it stopped because a guest refused to ignore a dishonest bill. Kudos to her.
This episode perfectly captures a broader problem across the hotel industry: the creeping normalization of deceptive “junk fees.” Whether it’s “destination charges,” “resort fees,” or fake “city” surcharges, these tricks serve only to confuse and frustrate guests. And while $2.87 may seem trivial, multiply it across hundreds of rooms and weeks of bookings, and the fraud becomes a tidy profit center…I hope this franchisee pays dearly for this fraud.
CONCLUSION
A Fairfield Inn in Plano got caught masking a parking charge as a city-imposed tax. Thanks to an attentive guest and the intervention of local officials, the practice has been stopped and refunds are being arranged. But this shouldn’t take a guest detective to uncover. As Marriott touts transparency, it’s time for the chain to actually enforce it, because nothing undermines trust faster than a “City Fee” that’s nothing more than a lie on the bill. Be vigilant of every hotel folio you encounter…these pathetic propeties will stop at nothing to squeeze every penny out of you.
“ she contacted the Collin County Tax Assessor to report that the hotel was effectively collecting a non-existent tax and keeping the proceeds”
THIS is the way. I reported the hotel I stayed at this week to ICE because the maid could not answer a basic question in English. Is she illegal? Maybe she just used fake documents to get the job and the hotel just covered their rears. Why risk my room being cleaned by a criminal? I don’t want to have to lock everything up daily.
But I do know we need more people to do what we were told after 9/11, see something, say something. Be bold America and help the good people at ICE find those trying to hide among us and penalize the businesses that hire them.
Someone should contact the IRS. Hundreds of thousands of dollars in extra revenue fraudulently accounted for as city fee collection is probably significant tax evasion.