Samuel Conway (![[info]](http://p-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small} unclekage) wrote in ![[info]](http://p-stat.livejournal.com/img/community.gif){kind=small} anthrocon,@ 2007-09-23 14:47:00 |
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Why we are waiting to open hotel reservations
A lot of people are wondering when they can start reserving hotel rooms. Here is why we have not opened hotel registrations yet.
A problem that has plaqued Anthrocon since the very beginning was hotel room attrition. Because our hotels tend to fill up very early, people rush to reserve rooms even if they are not sure that they will be attending the convention. Inevitably, the day before the convention, there is an avalanche of cancellations, and the problem is getting worse every year. Last year we lost 100 rooms on the last day -- 100 rooms that other people would have loved to have stayed in, but had been told for months, "Sorry, the hotel is full."
It is understandable that our attendees want to be certain that they won't be caught without a room, but the sheer number of people who reserve rooms on the mere off-chance that they might consider the possibility of maybe attending Anthrocon, or perhaps not, is forcing us to look for ways to cut down on the amount of last-minute attrition. I have tried pleading with people to cancel their rooms early as soon as they knew that they were not going to make it, but that has not worked.
Our hotels, of course, are unhappy with such enormous attrition. The Omni was the first to request that it be allowed to charge a one-night deposit at the time the room is reserved; the Westin would like to do the same.
Here is that they propose: when a reservation is made, a deposit of one night's fee would be required (room rate plus tax). This would be credited toward your stay as soon as you check in, so at convention time, if you stay for 4 nights, you would only pay for 3, since one was already paid for when you reserved. The catch is that the deposit would be non-refundable if you canceled the reservation prior to the convention.
This is the only way that anyone can think of to prevent people from reserving rooms and then canceling them when it is too late to give others a chance to reserve. It is a system that has worked well for suite reservations for the past two years. I know that people will be worried about not knowing for certain if they can attend by the time the hotel fills up, but I believe that the hotel will not fill up anywhere near as quickly as it did in the past, since people will only make reservations once they know that they can attend. We also intend to have rooms available at more overflow hotels nearby, so I am confident that nobody will be left without a room.
We are still working out the details with the hotels, and while we are doing so I would like to hear our attendees' thoughts on the matter. If anyone has any better solutions, I am more than willing to run them by the hotels for consideration.
A lot of people are wondering when they can start reserving hotel rooms. Here is why we have not opened hotel registrations yet.
A problem that has plaqued Anthrocon since the very beginning was hotel room attrition. Because our hotels tend to fill up very early, people rush to reserve rooms even if they are not sure that they will be attending the convention. Inevitably, the day before the convention, there is an avalanche of cancellations, and the problem is getting worse every year. Last year we lost 100 rooms on the last day -- 100 rooms that other people would have loved to have stayed in, but had been told for months, "Sorry, the hotel is full."
It is understandable that our attendees want to be certain that they won't be caught without a room, but the sheer number of people who reserve rooms on the mere off-chance that they might consider the possibility of maybe attending Anthrocon, or perhaps not, is forcing us to look for ways to cut down on the amount of last-minute attrition. I have tried pleading with people to cancel their rooms early as soon as they knew that they were not going to make it, but that has not worked.
Our hotels, of course, are unhappy with such enormous attrition. The Omni was the first to request that it be allowed to charge a one-night deposit at the time the room is reserved; the Westin would like to do the same.
Here is that they propose: when a reservation is made, a deposit of one night's fee would be required (room rate plus tax). This would be credited toward your stay as soon as you check in, so at convention time, if you stay for 4 nights, you would only pay for 3, since one was already paid for when you reserved. The catch is that the deposit would be non-refundable if you canceled the reservation prior to the convention.
This is the only way that anyone can think of to prevent people from reserving rooms and then canceling them when it is too late to give others a chance to reserve. It is a system that has worked well for suite reservations for the past two years. I know that people will be worried about not knowing for certain if they can attend by the time the hotel fills up, but I believe that the hotel will not fill up anywhere near as quickly as it did in the past, since people will only make reservations once they know that they can attend. We also intend to have rooms available at more overflow hotels nearby, so I am confident that nobody will be left without a room.
We are still working out the details with the hotels, and while we are doing so I would like to hear our attendees' thoughts on the matter. If anyone has any better solutions, I am more than willing to run them by the hotels for consideration.
