Caesars Entertainment Resort Fees starting March 1, 2013

After years of advertising that they don't charge resort fees, Caesars Entertainment has changed course 180 degrees. The company will start charging the fees on all Las Vegas rooms booked after March 1, 2013.

This is quite a change from the summer of 2011 when showgirls from Bally's protested resort fees on the Strip.

All eight Caesars properties in Vegas (Caesars Palace, Planet Hollywood, Paris, Bally's, Harrah's, Flamingo, Rio and The Quad) will start charging resort fees ranging from $10-25 a night, which will include the use of basic amenities like internet access and use of the hotel fitness center.

From an outside perspective this seems like a strange move. Since most Las Vegas Strip hotels charge resort fees, I thought Caesars was in a great position being able to advertise that the didn't have the fees. Obviously adding fees will provide a revenue boost for the company, but they could have just as easily done that by raising hotel rates outright.

Caesars obviously didn't think they could continue on with the no-fee strategy though, as eye-catching low rack rates backed up by secondary "hidden" fees are proving to be a very successful strategy for travel providers.