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Package Rates

The purpose of package rates is to help you maintain your accounting, billing and roomMaster system normally but allow special promotions to your guest very easily. Package rates are designed to replace the traditional posting of room and tax and display to the guest one package price. In addition to the one price, you will be able to include additional charges such as a certificate to the restaurant, a bottle of champagne, etc. Package rates actually work behind the scenes just like the traditional way of charging room, tax and other charges.

The guest can see this on their bill:

Summer Night Package $325

While you will see the following on the folio as well as all accounting reports:

Room Taxable (night 1) $100

Room Taxable (night 2) $100

Room Taxable (night 3) $0

Restaurant Certificate(night 2) $100

Champagne (night 1) $25

To set up package rates, first add a rate code in Setup > Rates Management > Setup Rate Codes. The rate code will be the name of the package such as SNP (Summer Night Package) and cannot be a derived rate. After the rate code is created, on the Rate Information screen, click Insert and use the drop down box to select the new rate code. Then choose a specific rate type or select *ALL for all rate types. This is provided so that no matter what room type they choose, it will be the same price. If the price changes depending on the room type, you must set up a separate package for each rate type, however the package name (rate code) can be the same.

Once you select Charge Type as Package Rate, the Discounts tab will change to Packages. Click Insert to enter the individual charges which makes up this package rate.

Transaction Information​

Type - Enter the account code to be posted to. Use the magnifying glass to browse account codes.

Amount - Enter the amount to be charged to the account code. Also select whether the amount should be a Flat Charge, Per Adult, Per Child, or Use Weekday/Weekend Amounts from the Amounts tab. The Use Weekday/Weekend Amounts should only be used with room revenue account codes.

Voucher - Enter a description of the charge. This will displayed on the folio screen for the charge and may show on the printed folio, if the charge is not rolled up.

Posting Options​

You can enter whether the charge occurs every night, on a certain night, or from a certain night forward.

Night to start posting - Enter the night the charge should start posting. The charge will post with the Auto Post each night after the night entered. Use this for items the guest does not receive each night of the stay.

Post one time only - When selected, the charge will only be posted once. The default is the first night, but if a Night to start posting has been entered, the charge will post only once on that night of the stay. For example, for a package that includes dinner on the third night of the stay, enter 3 for Night to start posting and check the Post one time only option. This posts the revenue for the restaurant on the actual night they should be credited for.

Package Rollup (for folio printing) - Select this option if you do not want the guest to see this individual charge on their folio. When the guest bill prints, all charges marked as "RollUp" will be combined. In the above $325 example, you would mark all items as "RollUp". Then add one more entry for account 100 (Room Taxable) starting on the fourth night and do not mark it as "RollUp", so if the guest stays longer than the package rate period, they will see those charges individually on their bill. You can use the days of the week boxes if you want to charge a different rate for weekday vs. weekend as well. For more information about rolling up these charges on the Sign-in Sheet, Confirmation Letters and Total Stay, click here.

Notes:

  • Charges will be posted only on the night specified. If you want all charges to appear on the first night's bill, mark all charges to post on the first night only. If the guest is to receive a free night, you should enter an entry for account 100 with the amount as zero so the room statistics and average daily rate figures are calculated correctly on your reports.

  • It is recommended to enter a room charge at a standard rate starting the first night after the end of the package, in case the guest decides to extend their stay. For example, if the package is a three day rate, enter a room charge starting on the fourth night and going forward just in case the guest decides to stay longer than the package period.

Package rates which span more than one period (rate changes) are not taken into consideration.

This is because the system does not know which portions of a package rate to charge when different package rate records are used during the same stay. If you wish to apply and use different packages for the same stay of a guest, you must override the rate to zero and use the Special Package feature instead. From here, you can create as many packages as you wish for any date range.

Using Derived Rates with Packages​

Derived rates can be used with package rates to have the room revenue for different packages calculated based on a single rate code. However, only rates codes with rate records using the package rate charge type can be used as the base rate for other packages. Since a derived rate follows the charge type of the base rate, if a daily rate was used as the base rate on a package, the package components would be ignored and only the daily rate would be posted for the package rate.

For the same reason, only derive rates for packages that have the same components. If you have rate entries for a golf package, a dive package and a dinner package, any rate code being derived from the golf package would include the components of the golf package. You cannot apply only the room revenue portion of a golf package to your dive package.

Also, the Use Weekday/Weekend Amounts option must be used for the base package rate for the derived rate to be applied. The amounts entered in the Adjustment fields for one to four adults will not be applied if Flat Amount, Per Adult, or Per Child are used.

Derived Rate Package Example

To give a 10% Seniors discount on a golf package, first create the golf package at its regular rate, using rate code GOLF. Enter the rate entries in the Rate Information screen setting the charge type to Package Rate and including all the components of the package, room revenue, green fees, breakfast, etc, on the Packages tab. Make sure the room revenue posting is set to Use Weekday/Weekend Amounts. Next, create a second rate code, SGLF, to use for guests receiving the senior discount. Set the derived rate code as GOLF, the amount as Percent and the adjustment as -10.00. When the SGLF rate code is applied to a reservation, all the same components of the GOLF rate code will post, but the room revenue will be discounted by 10%.

Note: As of this time, the derived rate discounts apply ONLY to room revenue, not to the other components of the package. InnQuest Software is evaluating options to include all components of a package in the future.

Yield Management with Package Rates​

When using Package Rates, and using Yield Management, the only portion which is yielded are rate amounts set as Use Weekday/Weekend Amounts. All other charges (flat charge, per adult, per child) are not increased/decreased or modified in yielding.