The Trump International Hotel in Washington is set to open in September. Photo / Getty Images
The Trump International Hotel in Washington is set to open in September. Photo / Getty Images
Even in the world of over-the-top luxury hotels, this is yuuuge: Donald Trump's soon-to-open hotel on Pennsylvania Avenue is offering a package during the presidential inauguration for a cool half-million.
The US$500,000 ($688,254) will get discerning inauguration-goers plenty of perks beyond accommodations in one of the hotel's 1920-square-metre duplexes, includinga catered dinner for 24 and round-the-clock car service, according to the Travel Market Report.
There's a limited market for the package: It's a pretty safe bet that no Democrat would want to help line the pockets of the GOP candidate, so if it's Hillary Clinton taking the oath of office, the potential clientele will be all but nil.
And even by the standards of hotels offering the highest thread-count sheets in town, it's pricey. By contrast, the St. Regis is offering a four-night inauguration package with VIP-friendly extras such as car service, shipping clothes to Washington and back (those ball gowns!), tea, private dinner, caviar and champagne, for only US$85,000 ($116,937), our Washington Post colleague Roxanne Roberts reported.
Perhaps that's why the Trump hotel folks are providing more than a little incentive for the travel agent who books the US$500,000 getaway for a client. (Of course they'll use an agent - these aren't the type of people who look for deals on Travelocity.com, after all.)
"While special event packages are not always commissionable, executives of the hotel tell Travel Market Report that all of the packages it offers around the inaugural will pay 10 percent commission to travel agents," the publication says.
