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Forbes most expensive hotels in the US, and a closer look at Little Palm

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  Site Where: 28500 Overseas Highway [map], Little Torch Key, FL, United States, 33042
September 24, 2004 at 10:24 AM | by markj | 1 Comment

Not only did Forbes recently release their 400 richest people list, but the magazine also published a feature on the nations most expensive hotels.

When you got the dough you gotta know where to go, right?

What properties made the list?

5,000-per-night Mansion at MGM Grand in Las Vegas was at the top, and the $600-a-night Inn at Palmetto Bluff in South Carolina brought up the rear.

What do you get for all that money?

Privacy, service, and space.

Let's look a little closer at one of the top resorts on the list, Little Palm Island in the Florida Keys.  

Little Palm sounds incredible, until you hear the price tag.  Private bungalows complete with sundecks, ocean views, only accessible by boat or seaplane, hammocks abound, all of this sounds like the makings of an incredibly romantic trip.  However, the $1,095 a night price tag is out of this word.  When you have a price tag that high, you better be able to hold up to scrutiny, and the Little Palm in seems to have a couple kinks.

Supposedly, Harry Truman stayed at this resort, and some guests feel that Little Palm feels as if it hasn't been updated since the Truman administration.  Other guests claim that a better name for the resort may be Little-To-Do-On-Palm Island.  Now, maybe these guests are a bit harsh, or are not being imaginative enough with their time, but if you slap a 1k/night price tag on your resort you are setting the bar high.  We want free booze and free food at that price, at the very least, and at the most we want to be treated like American royalty.

But you say, aside from price, the Little Palms looks like an incredible place for that romantic getaway.  We would agree, and urge you to begin negotiating.  Do you really think every guest pays their $1095 rack rate?  Hell no.  So if you want to go, pick up the phone and start negotiating.  We guarantee your vacation will be an order of magnitude more pleasant if you know you knocked hundreds of dollars off the rack rate.

Good Luck.

Remember hotel mavens, report back to us.

1 Comment

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  1. Anonymous Hero

    Jaunted Traveler

    The Sanctuary, Kiawah Island, SC

    We just visited, and ended up cutting the stay short because it was so disappointing. If you are looking forward to a Disneyland-like hotel, each with it's own theme and faux architecture - you'll love this place!The quality of the facility, the furnishing and the service were all about as deep as the veneer on the wood paneling in the common areas. Big prices, very pretentious and working hard to create the image they are a 5 Star hotel.

    September 24, 2004 at 3:15 PM

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