Room 70 | Greg Maguire – Powerhouse Hotels From humble beginnings to regional hotel icon, Greg Maguire has spent a lifetime quietly transforming what great hospitality looks like in country Australia. In this episode, Greg shares the story behind Powerhouse Hotels, the risks and resilience that shaped his journey, and the leadership lessons he’s picked up along the way. It’s a warm, generous chat packed with practical pearls of wisdom for anyone who loves hotels, regional Australia, or building something that truly lasts. This podcast is dedicated to another hotel legend Caroline Wright who will forever be a Powerhouse.

From 1 October 2026, Australian hotels will no longer be able to surcharge guests on eftpos, Mastercard and Visa transactions covered by the new rules.

This is more than a compliance change. It is a margin issue.

For years, hotels have used surcharges to recover part of their payment costs. From October, that recovery disappears for covered cards.

The question is not simply “Have we removed the surcharge?”

It is: “How much EBITDA are we losing, and how do we recover it?”

Consider a hotel processing $1.5 million in annual card revenue. A ~1.5% surcharge represents around $22,500 of annual cost recovery. If merchant costs fall from 1.4% to 1.0%, the saving would be approximately $6,000. That still leaves a potential margin gap.

For hotels, the impact is meaningful because transactions are large — accommodation, deposits, pre-authorisations, incidentals and F&B can all carry payment costs.

Audit. Understand your total card volume, current surcharge recovery and true merchant cost.

Renegotiate. Don't wait for your payment provider. Get a full fee breakdown and negotiate your effective blended rate.

Don't automatically increase rates. Model any pricing response against ADR, occupancy, conversion and channel profitability.

Look at net channel economics. A $220 direct booking with a low payment cost can be more profitable than a $230 OTA booking after commission and payment costs.

Prepare Operations. Update PMS, booking engines, terminals, payment procedures and Front Office training before October.

For one hotel, this may look small. Across a portfolio for example processing $10 million in annual card revenue, a 1.5% surcharge represents $150,000 of potential cost recovery. That is a portfolio EBITDA conversation. Treat October 2026 as a cost optimisation exercise, not simply a compliance deadline.

Effective Payment Cost %

Total payment - related costs ÷ total card revenue.

If you don't currently track it, now is the time to start.