Car-rental companies are prime offenders in 'These Are the Most Ridiculous Fees in Travel'

[Tripatini]

Eric Hochstein found something unusual on his bill at the Gregory Hotel in New York City recently.

No, it wasn't the mandatory $35-per-day resort fee that covers local and domestic calls, a 24-hour fitness center and coffee and tea. And it wasn't the $259-per-night room rate, which was below average for Manhattan.

It was that the resort fee – which the Gregory calls a "tailored fee" to fit its garment theme – including a donation to charity to "save the Garment Center."

"Pretty unique, eh?" says Hochstein, an international business development consultant from Barrington, Illinois, who says that other than the fees, he liked staying at the Gregory.

Travel companies are coming up with all kinds of new charges these days, which is hardly a surprise. The travel industry's business model relies on fees to generate extra revenue. The real shocker is the way they justify the new fees, claiming that people asked for them or that they're there for your convenience.

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