On a business trip, Ed stayed 2 nights at a hotel where the room rate was $72 per night; + a 8.22% hotel tax. What was the hotel bill? Round your answer to two decimal places.
$____ hotel bill
The Correct Answer and Explanation is:
To calculate Ed’s hotel bill, we first need to determine the total cost of his stay before tax and then apply the hotel tax rate.
Step 1: Calculate the Total Room Cost Before Tax
Ed stayed for 2 nights at a hotel with a room rate of $72 per night. To find the total cost for the room before tax, we multiply the number of nights by the room rate:
[
\text{Total Room Cost} = \text{Number of Nights} \times \text{Room Rate}
]
Substituting in the values:
[
\text{Total Room Cost} = 2 \, \text{nights} \times 72 \, \text{dollars/night} = 144 \, \text{dollars}
]
Step 2: Calculate the Hotel Tax
The hotel tax is calculated as a percentage of the total room cost. The tax rate is 8.22%, which we express as a decimal for calculations (8.22% = 0.0822). The formula to calculate the tax is:
[
\text{Hotel Tax} = \text{Total Room Cost} \times \text{Tax Rate}
]
Substituting in our values:
[
\text{Hotel Tax} = 144 \, \text{dollars} \times 0.0822 = 11.84 \, \text{dollars} \, (\text{approximately})
]
Step 3: Calculate the Total Hotel Bill
To find the total hotel bill, we add the total room cost to the hotel tax:
[
\text{Total Hotel Bill} = \text{Total Room Cost} + \text{Hotel Tax}
]
Substituting the values we calculated:
[
\text{Total Hotel Bill} = 144 \, \text{dollars} + 11.84 \, \text{dollars} = 155.84 \, \text{dollars}
]
Final Calculation
Thus, the total hotel bill rounded to two decimal places is:
[
\text{Total Hotel Bill} = 155.84
]
Summary
In summary, Ed’s hotel bill for a two-night stay at a rate of $72 per night, with an additional 8.22% hotel tax, totals $155.84. This process involved determining the base room cost for the stay, calculating the applicable tax based on the total room cost, and summing these amounts to arrive at the final hotel bill. Understanding how to calculate such expenses is crucial for budgeting during business trips and can help in managing travel-related costs effectively.