Booking a hotel room should not require the detective skills of a forensic accountant, but according to U.S. regulators and a string of lawsuits, a popular corner of the online travel world has been making it exactly that hard. Priceline.com, part of Booking Holdings, is facing possible Federal Trade Commission action over third-party hotel booking services that allegedly charge hidden fees and mislead travelers.
According to Reuters reporting on October 7, 2026, the FTC could sue Priceline.com and its affiliate Guest Reservations over allegations that customers were misled into believing their reservations were made directly through hotels, while being charged substantial fees for things like maid service and resort fees. Some of those fees could more than double the original cost of the room.
Consumer advocate Christopher Elliott did not mince words, calling the practice extremely deceptive and noting that the hotel industry is doing it increasingly aggressively. Guests frequently do not realize the charges exist until checkout, when third-party customer service is often unresponsive. For tens of millions of Americans, he noted, they don't notice until they've checked out and paid exorbitant fees.
Priceline's defense is that consumers are told about added fees and the total cost before paying online, and a spokesperson told CBS News the company is compliant in disclosing fees prior to purchase. The FTC's counter, according to the reporting, is that those fees are often buried deep within taxes and other legitimate-looking charges, making them nearly impossible for a normal traveler to identify before booking.
Guest Reservations, the aggregator at the center of much of this, has reportedly been the subject of more than 1,000 consumer complaints to the Better Business Bureau, many from people who believed they were booking directly with hotels. The San Francisco City Attorney has already sued Guest Reservations and another third-party site over claims they posed as authentic hotel sites to charge exorbitant prices. Booking Holdings disclosed in August that the FTC was considering legal action without naming the affiliate or describing the practices, saying it was in talks with the FTC to resolve the matter.
Third-party booking sites that misrepresent their affiliation with hotels or advertise misleading rates have been a persistent problem for years, according to the American Hotel and Lodging Association. The irony is that hotel owners and employees are the ones who deal with angry guests when these bookings go wrong. Laura Lee Blake, CEO of the Asian American Hotel Owners Association, said she once made the same mistake herself while booking a room, believing she was booking directly through the hotel. If someone who works in the hotel industry can get fooled, she noted, imagine how easily the average traveler can be confused.
No lawsuit has been filed by the FTC yet, and an FTC spokesperson confirmed the investigation but declined further comment. But the consumer takeaway is free of charge: if you think you are booking directly with a hotel, double check the URL, the fees, and the customer service number. Or book direct and skip the surprise entirely. Surprises should come with cake, not checkout.