Can Hotels Charge Pet Fees in Louisiana? What the Law Actually Says
September 15, 2026
If you’re wondering whether hotels can charge pet fees in Louisiana, the answer depends almost entirely on what kind of animal is riding in your back seat. Ordinary pets, service dogs, and emotional support animals each fall under different legal rules, and mixing them up can cost you money or get you turned away at the front desk. This breakdown walks through what Louisiana law actually says, where federal disability law overrides state rules, and what you can do if a hotel charges you a fee it isn’t entitled to collect.
You’ll also see how Louisiana’s specific statute on hotels and pets differs from what most travelers assume, and why the state hasn’t stepped in to cap pet fee amounts the way some other jurisdictions have.
Can Hotels Charge Regular Pet Fees in Louisiana
Yes. For ordinary pets, Louisiana hotels are generally free to charge whatever pet fee they choose, because state law doesn’t regulate fee amounts at all. Louisiana Revised Statutes § 21:51 only addresses whether a hotel can ban pets in the first place. No person shall take, and no owner, manager, or person in charge of any hotel or motel shall permit any person to take any dog, cat, or pet animal into any hotel room where there is posted in a conspicuous place a sign to the effect that dogs, cats, and pet animals are prohibited therein. A hotel that violates its own posted policy faces a modest penalty: whoever violates this Section shall be fined not more than twenty-five dollars or be imprisoned for not more than thirty days, or both.
That statute is about admission, not pricing. Nothing in Louisiana law prevents a property from charging a nightly rate, a flat per-stay fee, or a combination of the two once it decides to accept pets. In practice, Louisiana properties charge a wide range of amounts. One Lafayette-area hotel structures its policy so that guests pay $25 (+ tax) per pet per night for the first 6 nights and $10 (+ tax) per pet per night after that, with the first 7 nights payable at check-in, while another simply lists a flat Pet Fee of $50 for the stay.
Pro Tip: Call the hotel directly before booking rather than relying only on third-party listings. BringFido notes that the pet fee charged by the hotel will not exceed the amount quoted on your reservation confirmation, but policies change and independent motels don’t always update their listings.
If you’re traveling with a large or commonly restricted breed, it’s also worth checking a property’s weight and breed limits before you arrive, since these vary widely across the state and can affect which rooms you’re offered. Our guide to popular dog breeds in Louisiana covers some of the companions travelers most often bring along.
Service Animals: Why Hotels Cannot Charge a Fee
Service animals operate under an entirely different legal framework than regular pets. The Americans with Disabilities Act treats hotels as places of public accommodation, which means trained service dogs must be let in regardless of a property’s no-pets policy, and without an added charge. As one disability rights resource puts it plainly, service animals are protected under the ADA, but emotional support animals are not, which means service animals must be permitted in hotels and motels.
That protection extends directly to cost. According to AARP’s reporting on pet-friendly travel, there is no charge for a service dog to stay at a hotel. This isn’t a courtesy some hotels choose to extend; it’s a legal floor that applies nationwide, Louisiana included.
Louisiana’s own state law backs this up in its own way. The same statute that lets hotels ban pets carves out an exemption specifically for trained service animals: this Section shall not apply to guide dogs or service dogs used by blind persons, visually impaired persons, persons who are deaf or hard of hearing, and other persons with physical disabilities who have been taught to use such dogs at a qualified dog guide or service school. In other words, even a hotel that posts a strict “no pets” sign cannot lawfully turn away a genuine service dog under either state or federal law.
It’s worth noting that only two species qualify. Under federal disability housing guidance, service animals are individually trained to do work or perform tasks for people with disabilities, and the ADA only recognizes specially trained dogs and, in some cases, miniature horses as service animals. A well-behaved pet that hasn’t been trained to perform a specific task doesn’t qualify for this fee exemption, no matter how much comfort it provides.
Emotional Support Animals: Do Louisiana’s Laws Offer Extra Protection
Short answer: no. Louisiana hasn’t passed any state-level law that extends hotel fee protections to emotional support animals the way it has for trained service dogs. The distinction comes down to which federal law applies. The ADA does not cover emotional support animals, but the federal Fair Housing Act provides them with rights — and the Fair Housing Act governs long-term housing, not typical overnight hotel stays.
Because hotel stays don’t fall under the Fair Housing Act’s residential protections, hotels are free to treat ESAs like any other pet. As one ESA-focused legal resource explains it, yes, a hotel can charge a pet fee for an emotional support animal, because the Fair Housing Act covers ESAs in housing, not typical hotel stays, so it does not require hotels to waive fees or no-pet rules. That means the same nightly or per-stay pet fee a Louisiana hotel charges for a family dog can legally apply to an ESA, along with any breed or weight restrictions the property enforces.
Important Note: Even in residential settings, ESA fee waivers aren’t guaranteed. A recent HUD policy shift referenced a court decision in which a landlord’s refusal to waive a pet fee was not automatically a Fair Housing Act violation, even for someone with a legitimate ESA. If the rules are unsettled for apartments, it’s even less likely a short hotel stay would trigger fee-waiver obligations for an ESA.
If you’re planning to stay somewhere for an extended, residential-style period rather than a typical overnight trip, it’s worth asking a housing attorney whether Fair Housing Act protections could apply to your specific situation. For a standard vacation or business trip in Louisiana, though, expect ESAs to be billed the same as any pet.
Pet Fee vs. Pet Deposit: What’s Legal in Louisiana
Louisiana law doesn’t dictate which fee structure a hotel must use for ordinary pets, so properties mix and match. Generally speaking, a hotel may charge a pet fee, a refundable pet deposit, a non-refundable cleaning fee, or a combination of these. The label matters because it determines whether you get any of that money back.
Some Louisiana properties combine both approaches in the same policy. One Opelousas-area hotel charges guests a small nightly pet charge plus a separate cleaning fee only if it’s needed: up to two small pets are allowed for a non-refundable charge of $10 per pet per night, with a pet sanitation fee of $50 if applicable. Others require a straightforward refundable deposit instead, such as a policy charging pets weighing up to 75 lbs are permitted for a $75 non-refundable deposit — note that despite being called a “deposit,” this particular charge is non-refundable, which is exactly the kind of fine print worth reading before you book.
| Charge Type | Typically Refundable? | Applies to Ordinary Pets | Applies to Service Animals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pet Fee | No | Yes | No |
| Pet Deposit | Often, if no damage | Yes | No |
| Cleaning/Sanitation Fee | No | Sometimes, if applicable | Only if actual damage occurs |
That last column matters. Because federal disability law treats trained service animals differently from pets, a hotel cannot require a pet deposit or pet fee as a precondition for a service dog’s stay — it can only charge for actual damage the animal causes, the same way it would for any guest’s negligence. Louisiana adds another wrinkle worth knowing about if you’re traveling with a specific breed: local breed-related restrictions can sometimes affect lodging decisions independent of pet fees, so it’s worth reviewing our overview of pit bull laws in Louisiana if that applies to your trip.
Are There Limits on How Much Hotels Can Charge in Louisiana
No state-imposed dollar cap exists in Louisiana for ordinary pet fees. Hotels set their own rates based on brand standards, local market rates, and how much cleaning an animal’s stay is expected to require. Nationally, typical hotel pet fees range from roughly $25 to $150, either as flat per-stay charges or nightly charges, sometimes with refundable deposits in addition to the fee. Louisiana properties tend to land on the lower-to-middle end of that range, with several local motels charging between $10 and $50 per pet, per night.
Fee structure varies just as much as the amount. As one hotel-travel analysis explains, there are two main ways that pet fees are charged by hotels: per stay or per night, and when hotels charge on a per-stay basis, that means you pay a flat rate regardless of how many nights you stay. That distinction can matter a lot financially — a $100 flat fee is a bargain on a week-long trip but steep for a single night.
| Property Type | Typical Fee Range | Structure |
|---|---|---|
| Independent Louisiana motels | $10–$50 per pet, per night | Usually nightly, sometimes with a cleaning fee |
| Extended-stay chains | Around $100 per stay | Flat per-stay fee |
| Major upscale chains (e.g., Hilton) | Up to $75 for 4 nights, $125 for 5+ nights | Capped per-stay fee |
Fees at Hilton’s pet-friendly properties are applied per stay, not per night, with a maximum of $75 for up to four nights and up to $125 per stay for five or more nights — a useful national benchmark, since Louisiana properties in major chains generally follow the same brand-wide fee schedule regardless of which city the hotel sits in.
Key Insight: The absence of a state cap means Louisiana pet fees are set by market competition, not regulation. If a fee feels unusually high, comparing a few nearby properties is often more effective than trying to negotiate it down, though some independent motels will discount fees for multi-night stays if you ask.
What to Do If a Hotel Charges You Illegally in Louisiana
If a Louisiana hotel bills you a pet fee for a genuine, trained service dog, that charge is very likely unlawful under the ADA regardless of what the property’s general pet policy says. Here’s a practical sequence to follow if it happens to you.
- Document everything at check-in. Get the fee in writing, note who quoted it, and keep your folio or receipt.
- Point to the law directly. Explain, calmly and specifically, that trained service animals are exempt from pet fees under the ADA and under Louisiana’s own hotel statute.
- Ask for a manager if front-desk staff won’t budge. Many front-line employees simply haven’t been trained on the distinction between pets, ESAs, and service animals.
- File a formal complaint if the charge stands. You can reach the Department of Justice’s ADA Information Line to report a suspected violation; travelers can call the ADA Information Line at 800-514-0301 for voice or 800-514-0383 for TTY.
- Contact a disability rights organization for guidance if the hotel disputes your service animal’s legitimacy or continues charging fees after your complaint.
Keep in mind this process looks different for emotional support animals. Since Louisiana law doesn’t extend fee protections to ESAs in hotel settings, a fee charged for an ESA generally isn’t illegal, even if it feels unfair. Save your complaint energy for cases involving genuine, trained service animals, where the law is unambiguous and squarely on your side.
Before your next trip, it’s worth double-checking a property’s current pet policy directly rather than assuming last year’s listed fee still applies — Louisiana’s pet-friendly hotel market changes often enough that even well-reviewed properties update their rates from one season to the next.