Denver, CO
A Denver hotel costs about 22% more than the rate you are shown.
Mostly tax, with parking as the main add-on downtown.
Typical advertised rate
$114.75
What it actually costs
$140.00
The gap
+22%
Per night, for a median property. Measured from real captured rates, not a live quote — prices move, and the point here is the SHAPE of the gap rather than tonight's number.
How the gap happens
A hotel advertises a nightly rate. Taxes are added at checkout, and in some cities a mandatory “resort” or “destination” fee is added on top — charged whether or not you use anything it covers.
Because that fee is usually collected by the property at check-in rather than by the booking site, it can sit outside the total you are quoted. We show it either way, and we are explicit about which part we charge and which part the hotel collects at the desk — because only one of those is ours to take.
Properties in Denver are relatively uniform, so the gap is predictable — but it is still a gap, and it is still not in the headline.