Help... Blocking Rooms

benjaminandlauren

Alright, ladies. The time has come for me to block hotel rooms for the wedding. We are planning on blocking rooms at two different hotels in the area. To keep things simple... how the heck to I go about this? Do I figure out how many rooms I likely need, split them in half, and block rooms at each? Do they do this at no cost? Do most hotels offer discounts for doing this? HELP!

melissa82

I'm not sure if this differs by region, but I just called/e-mailed the area hotels, asked what their group rate was, how many rooms I could block (most have a limit), asked if I'd have to cover any blocked rooms that weren't booked, what was included, any incentives (like free room for you with X number booked), etc.As long as you don't have to pay for any unbooked rooms, I'd just book the maximum they'll let you, since it can't hurt. Some hotels only let you block 10 at a time and then you need to add more if you run out.There is usually a discount. For me it was a substantial one. But I've heard from other girls that their discount was a small one and people can often find the same or cheaper online for other dates. If you want the hotel to hand out OOT bags though, it's much easier if everyone is booked within the block. (This varies by hotel though.) My hotel is part of Hilton, and I really liked that they can make you the "manager" of your group and give you online access to your list. It really helps when you can see in advance who's booked a room (and so you know they're planning to come!) and if you're running low (for instance, I realized I needed to block more king rooms, while I was fine on doubles).

jkish22

someone on here gave me the email address for the visitors bureau or something like that and so i emailed them and told them i wanted to block hotels for my wedding and then they had all the hotels email me with their rates and conditions. then i just compared each hotel and chose two. I blocked 10 rooms at each. make sure you are not financially responsible for any that dont get booked. I would say that is the most important thing to ask. Also, some charge for putting OOT guests bags in the room for you, so ask about that too if thats something you are doing.

cupcakepirate

If it's only for 10 rooms, then they don't generally hold you accountable for attrition. They usually close the booking window within in that group about 30 days out. If you don't have all your rooms booked by then, the property will generally sell into your room block. All the hotels I've worked with aren't going to charge you for unblocked rooms with a group that small. If everyone thats going to book does so before the 30 days, then you'll be fine because they can close the block and sell into it. Group rates are usually cheaper. I'm at a convention hotel right now that also does a lot of weddings, and they usually go up to about 10 rooms and don't charge attrition for unfilled rooms for small groups.

elleh08

JKish22..... Where did you go on the vistors website to do this? I'm on the Seattle one and can't seem to find it? Thanks!

sleepyapollo

instructions from the seattle bio: http://sites.google.com/site/seattlebio/useful-links-misc