Sessional_Paper_1948 — Page 217

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(ii) Rates for Food.

While we realise that overhead charges for Hotel dining rooms vary considerably, as do the terms of contract with caterers, we recommend the prevailing rate of $5.50 per day for food for "resident guests" be maintained.

(iii) Services and Extra Charges.

(a) Services. Services normally supplied by hotels during 1941 should

continue.

(b) Extra Charges. A schedule of permitted charges for the use of electrical appliances has been prepared and is attached, Appendix II. The use of any of these appliances is at the discretion of the Management. We strongly deprecate the use of any cooking ap- pliances in bedrooms.

(c) Children under the age of three years. It is recommended that no charge for accommodation should be made for children of this age provided the Management is not called upon to supply either bed, bedding and/or linen.

(d) Children over three and under ten years of age. It is recommend-

ed that half rates for accommodation should be charged.

12. RESIDENTIAL HOTELS.

(i) Rates for Accommodation.

(a) These establishments in pre-war days were regarded as boarding houses for Europeans. The accommodation offered is not of the same standard as the hotels referred to in paragraph 10 and in our opinion the rates now charged are higher than are warranted. In some hotels bathrooms and servants rooms have been convert- ed into bedrooms with inadequate furniture and bad lighting. As can be imagined these and some of the smaller rooms are very cramped. In some cases although a double bed is provided there seems to be no justification for treating such a room as a double room. The Arlington and Harbour View Hotels are well furnished and conducted and we have no criticism to make of the manage- ment of these two establishments.

(b) Accounts of some of these hotels have been submitted and our

comments thereon are shown in Appendix IB.

(c) Based on the facts and figures disclosed by such accounts as have been available and the Committee's knowledge of the operations of these Residential Hotels we recommend that the accommodation rates for "resident guest" should be:-

Arlington Hotel $12-$16 per day for double rooms

$6 per day for single rooms.

These rates should also apply to the following hotels in this category:-

Harbour View Hotel, Melbourne Hotel, Ritz Hotel, Phillips House, Lyton House.

We further recommend that 90% of the accommodation in these hotels be reserved for "resident guests".

NOTE: As long as the Ritz Hotel continues to operate as a hostel for the staff of the Royal Interocean Lines the foregoing recommendations will not apply to this hotel.