I love Hampton Inn... probably my favorite hotel chain. The ones I've
stayed at are just as nice as expensive hotels, except that they don't
usually have restaurants on-site (so I have to order a pizza or walk
somewhere.) But they're inexpensive and nice at the same time.
But, in the context of COMMON or another conference, you're missing
something: Hotels charge for meeting space based on the number of rooms
you book. If you are planning a conference with 3 session rooms, you
may have to fill (for example) 100 hotel rooms. If you don't get enough
people to fill the rooms, the cost of the session rooms goes through the
roof.
That's why COMMON charges you a, what did you call it... "nuisance
punitive penalty tax". Because they need to encourage people to stay in
the hotel. If they don't get enough rooms, they'll end up being hit
with *huge* fees from the hotel. I've been told of cases where having
one extra person stay in a hotel room at $150/night saves the conference
upwards of $8k.
I don't plan this sort of stuff, and only have heard about it 2nd
hand... but it would be useful, I think, if someone who does plan this
sort of thing would explain it so the community understands the problem.
The point is... if COMMON didn't force people to stay in the conference
hotel, they'd all go and do cheaper things like you do, Don, which would
be great for them, but COMMON would be out of business fast.
Don wrote:
Try Hampton Inns...breakfast included...nice places...usually very cost
effective especially vs marrirott properties...
midrange.com
