When there’s a headline involving wacky travel discounts and surcharges, there’s a good chance Ryanair is involved. The no-frills discount carrier is famous for fares that go as low as a few pounds or euros.
But the airline charges for everything and anything you can imagine: Luggage, both checked and carry-on, sodas, using a credit card, priority boarding, even online check-in. Ryanair has even discussed switching to pay toilets.
Now, getting into the spirit of things, Rancho Bernardo Inn, a four star hotel north of San Diego, has come up with a “Survivor Package” which discounts rooms for each amenity guests are willing to do without.
The discounts start off easily enough: $199 for a room without breakfast, $179 for a room without mini-bar. For those willing to give up air conditioning and heat, not perhaps a problem in a San Diego summer, the rate drops to $159.
Then we start getting interesting. $139 for a room without pillows, $109 without sheets, $89 without lights. All the way down to $19 for a room without a bed. Apparently the hotel will give guests a small tent. But bring your own flashlight.
The promotion runs only from August 16 to 31. For guests looking for a few more creature comforts, the Rancho Bernardo Inn also has some fun other offerings. For example the Inn’s “Kids Rule” package for $199 a room where children under 12 get all kinds of free stuff, from meals to manicures on the house. And a $279 package includes either dinner for two, spa treatments or unlimited golf.
And while legitimately bookable, the “Survivor Package” is obviously more than a little tongue-in-cheek. But with hotels looking to cut costs and raise revenues, it seems likely that more and more hotels will be heading in the unbundled direction.
Besides things like Internet and the fitness center, some hotels are already adding surcharges for things that used to be free. A hotel in Kansas last week was charging $1.50 nightly for use of the in-room safe. Other hotels are now charging for in-room coffee.
So what’s next? Maid service? Talking to a human at checkin? Clean towels? Use of the television? Additional keys? Hot water? Soap? As ludicrous as some of these suggestions might seem, no doubt some hotel somewhere is considering them.
Janice Hough is a California-based travel agent a travel blogger and a part-time comedy writer. A frequent flier herself, she’s been doing battle with airlines, hotels, and other travel companies for over three decades. Besides writing for Travelers United, Janice has a humor blog at Leftcoastsportsbabe.com (Warning, the political and sports humor therein does not represent the views of anyone but herself.)
