We are launching Allowances in the United States and Canada, with the United Kingdom and other countries to soon follow! Allowances are a new way to bundle goods or services into flexible, guest-friendly offers while keeping your accounting team happy. Whether you’re running a boutique city hotel or a resort with recurring F&B perks, Allowances make it simple to include spendable credits as part of your packages.
What’s an Allowance (and how is it different from a Gift Card)?
Let’s clear this up first — because the difference matters.
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| Allowance | Gift Card |
| What it is | A predefined monetary or quantity-based credit included within a guest’s room package. | A prepaid stored-value purchased by a guest or third party. |
| Link to reservation | Always tied to a specific booking; expires at check-out. | Independent of any reservation; valid until redeemed or expired. |
| Accounting treatment | Represents part of the total package already paid; unused value has no cash equivalent. | Treated as a liability until redeemed or expired; subject to gift card and unclaimed property regulations. |
| Typical use | Breakfast or F&B credits, spa treatments, or bike rentals included in a rate. | Gift purchased for future stays or services. |
👉 In short: Allowances are built into a package. Gift cards stand alone.
What You Can Do Today
Allowances are live in Mews, bringing automation, flexibility, and accuracy to how you manage package inclusions. To activate Allowances, reach out to your CSM.
Here’s what’s available right now:
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Create Allowances directly from the Products page.
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Define rules and categories for what’s covered (e.g., F&B or spa).
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Set fixed or custom pricing based on your property’s strategy.
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Track spend, overspend, and breakage automatically — no manual reconciliations.
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Get accurate daily ledger entries for clean accounting and transparent guest bills.
This release is ideal for properties that want to simplify billing, delight guests, and boost non-room revenue — all while ensuring compliance and accounting accuracy.
Real-world Examples
1. Simplified Front-Desk Experience
Your front-desk team no longer needs to manually apply discounts or remember package inclusions. If a guest’s breakfast is part of their F&B allowance, the system automatically deducts it when posted.
2. Accounting That Just Works
Ledgers update daily to reflect billing movements, and any unspent allowance automatically generates a “breakage” item once the bill closes. Overspend? That appears transparently on the guest’s bill.
3. Seamless Migration and UI Updates
The new Allowances design uses our updated product table and creation form, soon to be fully migrated to the new front-end architecture — paving the way for faster product enhancements.
4. Native Support for In-Hotel Outlets
Your POS system can route charges directly to a guest’s room, and Allowances automatically apply relevant discounts. That means guests can dine, drink, or visit the spa — and their bill instantly reflects any available credits from their package, no manual steps required.
Coming: Even More Flexibility
The next release will make Allowances even more powerful. Key upcoming enhancements:
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Per guest or per day structures for recurring credits (like daily breakfast).
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Advanced bill routing to support complex corporate contracts.
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Expanded market fit for resorts and leisure properties.
What this unlocks
Hotels will be able to model recurring meals, add-ons, or services as daily or per-person credits — perfect for corporate rates, luxury stays, and all-inclusive packages.
Try It Out
Explore the Help guide and tell us how you’re using them in the comments below. We can’t wait to see the creative ways you’ll use Allowances to drive revenue and simplify operations.