Fixing of Hotel prices in Dublin

Infernal Racket

I stayed in my friends father's hotel last night. I often stay there as my friend is the manager and always gives me a great price on the hotel room. Last night I got a really great rate again. This hotel is a decent enough hotel in the heart of Dublin City Centre. The price of my room should have been €380 for the night, I got it for €80. We spoke about the mental one night room rate and he agreed that it's over the top but the Spice Girls were in town so everything was dear. The normal Saturday night room rate is €280 which I told him was still madness.

He agreed with me but told me that if they dropped their prices that other hoteliers would contact them and give out stink about devaluing all the other hotels in Dublin. To me, this is a form of price fixing. He also informed me that their bookings and all hotel bookings were plummeting as an average. No surprise there says I.

I asked him how could any tourist justify paying over 2 grand per week to stay in an average Dublin hotel and he agreed that they don't seem to be getting long stays anymore which is obviously due to over pricing.

I suppose my question is, is there any regulatory board that deals with this kind of fixing and is it even legal for other businesses to be able to dictate what another business charges for their services?

Infernal Racket

Nobody knows?

dudara

The Competition Authority would look at cases of price fixing.

Graham

You honestly believe your friends hotel tacks on an additional €300 during peak-demand just to keep other hoteliers sweet?

Sleeper12

I don't believe that this happens at all tbh. I think he's winding you up

i71jskz5xu42pb

Gerry G wrote: »

Nobody knows?

Jesus, it's Sunday morning, calm down a bit.

Gerry G wrote: »

I suppose my question is, is there any regulatory board that deals with this kind of fixing and is it even legal for other businesses to be able to dictate what another business charges for their services?

This is what you are looking for.
https://www.ccpc.ie/business/help-for-business/competition-law-how-does-it-apply-to-my-business/
and this is where you can make a complaint.
https://www.ccpc.ie/business/contact/make-competition-complaint/

Any decent sized hotel will subscribe to online services to track the pricing of similar sized hotels in their area/star bracket. They change their own pricing based on that. Nothing wrong with that.

I think you'll have an uphill battle proving that these guys are working in concert in an anticompetitive manner.

IAMAMORON

Tourists don't stay in Dublin for a week, it is too expensive. You should try Paris or London, Hong Kong or Singapore, now they have expensive Hotels.

I doubt very much there is consortium of Hotel owners conspiring week on week to fix Hotel prices. I would say more likely that the top Hotels dictate the price and it trickles down through the market. The tourist can opt to stay in a BnB on Gardener street if they choose....

If a city centre Hotel can get € 280 per room on a Saturday night good luck to them. I doubt they are getting € 280 in early January.

And no there is no regulatory board investigating the tourist industry in Ireland. Bord Failte was set up to promote Irish Tourism, not investigate Hotel prices. To what end ?

Infernal Racket

Graham wrote: »

You honestly believe your friends hotel tacks on an additional €300 during peak-demand just to keep other hoteliers sweet?

No, I don't believe that and that's not what I said either.

Infernal Racket

Ayan Better Crab wrote: »

Jesus, it's Sunday morning, calm down a bit.




This is what you are looking for.
https://www.ccpc.ie/business/help-for-business/competition-law-how-does-it-apply-to-my-business/
and this is where you can make a complaint.
https://www.ccpc.ie/business/contact/make-competition-complaint/

Any decent sized hotel will subscribe to online services to track the pricing of similar sized hotels in their area/star bracket. They change their own pricing based on that. Nothing wrong with that.

I think you'll have an uphill battle proving that these guys are working in concert in an anticompetitive manner.

I wouldnt dream of trying to prove it but surely if an investigation was carried out by a regulatory board they would find wrongdoing?

killbillvol2

Either you or your friend is talking rubbish.

While hotels will pitch their prices at whatever the market will tolerate the idea that hotels in Dublin are suffering from plummeting bookings is ludicrous.

Graham

killbillvol2 wrote: »

hotels will pitch their prices at whatever the market will tolerate

That is exactly it.

Full-stop, the end.

Infernal Racket

killbillvol2 wrote: »

Either you or your friend is talking rubbish.

While hotels will pitch their prices at whatever the market will tolerate the idea that hotels in Dublin are suffering from plummeting bookings is ludicrous.

His exact words were "occupancy across Dublin is down". I took that to mean that not as many people are availing of hotel services as previously. Perhaps I took it up wrong but I don't think so. At the prices hotels are charging I wouldnt be surprised if occupancy was down. Prices are extortionate

Infernal Racket

Graham wrote: »

That is exactly it.

Full-stop, the end.

True, but why do they insist on pushing it to breaking point every time. Greed is the answer

OldMrBrennan83

Graham wrote: »

You honestly believe your friends hotel tacks on an additional €300 during peak-demand just to keep other hoteliers sweet?

No, they tack on 100. Go back and read the OP again.

Graham

Gerry G wrote: »

True, but why do they insist on pushing it to breaking point every time. Greed is the answer

Demand increases, prices go up.

Demand falls, prices drop.

Given the absence of hotels making extraordinary profits, you might conclude that pricing is reflective of a capital and labour intensive business.

Graham

OldMrBrennan83 wrote: »

No, they tack on 100. Go back and read the OP again.

You're absolutely right. Only an extra €100 during a Croke Park event sounds like a bit of a bargain.

Batgurl

Occupancy being down doesn’t necessarily mean business is down; that’s not how the hotel business works. Any decent hotel will base their business off ADR, not solely occupancy, and work off having a good RevPAR.

Put it this way, a hotel with 100 rooms who charge €80 a night with 100% occupancy earns less than the same hotel with just 30% occupancy who charge €280 per night.

And all hotels have comp set, which is a list of hotels which they consider their competition based on # of rooms, facilities, star rating, location etc. They most certainly benchmark against each other but that’s just business. Any business who doesn’t know what their competition is at, is a bad business person.

Infernal Racket

Batgurl wrote: »

Occupancy being down doesn’t necessarily mean business is down; that’s not how the hotel business works. Any decent hotel will base their business off ADR, not solely occupancy, and work off having a good RevPAR.

Put it this way, a hotel with 100 rooms who charge €80 a night with 100% occupancy earns less than the same hotel with just 30% occupancy who charge €280 per night.

And all hotels have comp set, which is a list of hotels which they consider their competition based on # of rooms, facilities, star rating, location etc. They most certainly benchmark against each other but that’s just business. Any business who doesn’t know what their competition is at, is a bad business person.

Good explanation. Thanks Batgurl

notharrypotter

Each hotel has what is called a "rack rate".
This is the maximum amount the hotel has advised Board Failte it MAY charge.


All other times they charge what they think the can get.

Eric Cartman

Gerry G wrote: »

I stayed in my friends father's hotel last night. I often stay there as my friend is the manager and always gives me a great price on the hotel room. Last night I got a really great rate again. This hotel is a decent enough hotel in the heart of Dublin City Centre. The price of my room should have been €380 for the night, I got it for €80. We spoke about the mental one night room rate and he agreed that it's over the top but the Spice Girls were in town so everything was dear. The normal Saturday night room rate is €280 which I told him was still madness.

He agreed with me but told me that if they dropped their prices that other hoteliers would contact them and give out stink about devaluing all the other hotels in Dublin. To me, this is a form of price fixing. He also informed me that their bookings and all hotel bookings were plummeting as an average. No surprise there says I.

I asked him how could any tourist justify paying over 2 grand per week to stay in an average Dublin hotel and he agreed that they don't seem to be getting long stays anymore which is obviously due to over pricing.

I suppose my question is, is there any regulatory board that deals with this kind of fixing and is it even legal for other businesses to be able to dictate what another business charges for their services?

That was never said to you and is not the reality.

Hotels use booking.com , expedia etc... to attract bookings, their hotel dashboard has AI and shows upcoming events, average room rates for that time, what prices hotels are selling out at etc... it 90% automates you charging what the market is willing to pay and calculates days that rates should be higher for gigs etc... Any hotelier would be an idiot not to use the info infront of them to maximise profits.

El Tarangu

notharrypotter wrote: »

Each hotel has what is called a "rack rate".
This is the maximum amount the hotel has advised Board Failte it MAY charge.


All other times they charge what they think the can get.

Indeed - I learned about this in the 'I'm a hotelier AMA', it was very illuminating.

I would suggest that the OP either:

i) misunderstood his friend's father;

ii) the friend's farther is telling porkies;

iii) the OP is telling porkies

The facts don't really support the story; as another poster pointed out, hotel occupancy certainly isn't plummeting, the current high price of hotel rooms will tell you that.

Infernal Racket

Eric Cartman wrote: »

That was never said to you and is not the reality.

Hotels use booking.com , expedia etc... to attract bookings, their hotel dashboard has AI and shows upcoming events, average room rates for that time, what prices hotels are selling out at etc... it 90% automates you charging what the market is willing to pay and calculates days that rates should be higher for gigs etc... Any hotelier would be an idiot not to use the info infront of them to maximise profits.

It was 100% said to me but now that I know a little more about it thanks to the boards posters, my buddy was probably telling me this to try and justify charging mad prices for what is essentially a 3 star hotel in Dublin city.

Idbatterim

the funniest thing about the weekend price surges is, that its the weekend most likely, where you will least use the room, many of those who went to spice girls the other night, probably dropped their stuff off in room , head out, get back 2-4am, pass out, wake up, shower, leave! a nice E300 or so for the privilege in a 3 star hotel!

tedpan

Your mate owns a hotel in the heart of Dublin. He must be absolutely loaded. Strange how he has the need to charge you anything at all if he's your mate..

Infernal Racket

tedpan wrote: »

Your mate owns a hotel in the heart of Dublin. He must be absolutely loaded. Strange how he has the need to charge you anything at all if he's your mate..

If he did that sure I could just move in altogether couldn't I? Why so cynical?

And also, if you had read the OP you would see that it's his old man that owns it, not him. Not that that's important to you though, you just needed to ad some kind of snide remark right?

tedpan

Gerry G wrote:

And also, if you had read the OP you would see that it's his old man that owns it, not him. Not that that's important to you though, you just needed to ad some kind of snide remark right?

Not at all, my mates dad owns a hotel and I've never paid even when I tried.

Lux23

Gerry G wrote: »

I stayed in my friends father's hotel last night. I often stay there as my friend is the manager and always gives me a great price on the hotel room. Last night I got a really great rate again. This hotel is a decent enough hotel in the heart of Dublin City Centre. The price of my room should have been €380 for the night, I got it for €80. We spoke about the mental one night room rate and he agreed that it's over the top but the Spice Girls were in town so everything was dear. The normal Saturday night room rate is €280 which I told him was still madness.

He agreed with me but told me that if they dropped their prices that other hoteliers would contact them and give out stink about devaluing all the other hotels in Dublin. To me, this is a form of price fixing. He also informed me that their bookings and all hotel bookings were plummeting as an average. No surprise there says I.

I asked him how could any tourist justify paying over 2 grand per week to stay in an average Dublin hotel and he agreed that they don't seem to be getting long stays anymore which is obviously due to over pricing.

I suppose my question is, is there any regulatory board that deals with this kind of fixing and is it even legal for other businesses to be able to dictate what another business charges for their services?

This could be seen as a type of Cartel, you can report it to the CCPC but they wouldn't do anything without a piece of physical evidence or testimony from a hotel owner. You evidence would be basically the same as hearing a story in a pub.

https://www.ccpc.ie/business/contact/make-competition-complaint/