Wedding Etiquette Forum

Booking a block of rooms for guests necessary?

Is it necessary to book a block of rooms for wedding guests?  The reason I ask is that I can't find an ideal hotel for guests.  I'm getting married in San Francisco, where hotel rates are very expensive in summer, even if I were to book a block.  Meanwhile, I have no idea when people will decide to arrive.  I have a bunch of people coming just for the weekend, and then my FI's family and friends are international, so they will be staying for a week or more.  Given people's varying price points and schedules, I'm thinking of just giving them a few suggestions and not booking a group of rooms.  Would that be impolite?

Re: Booking a block of rooms for guests necessary?

  • That is fine. The wedding police won't come after you if you don't book a block of rooms. :) It is thoughtful of you to give a few suggestions though.
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  • It's okay to skip it, but keep in mind that it could make things easier for you as well--if you have OOT gift bags, they'll be easier to distribute if everyone is at one or two hotels, and if you plan to provide transportation, same deal. No idea if either of those apply to you, though!
  • It depends on what else you are planning.  Are you doing a breakfast or anything the next morning at a hotel?  It is nice for people to have a block of rooms, but I don't think necessary.  You should at least give a few recommendations.  And even if they are expensive with the block, it might still be worth it to make the block.  When we reserved the block, we got a rate of $119 the night before the wedding, and $169 the night of.  At the time, the regular rate was I think $130 the night before and $195 the night of.  It was at least a small savings for people.  I'm so glad we did reserve it though because before the block expired rooms were going for $240 the night before and $425 the night of the wedding.  Had we not reserved the block there is no way our guests would have been able to stay there. 
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  • i think giving suggestions is fine. especially since you don't know when people are coming in. just make sure you send out a save the date to the OOT guests so they have plently of time to book a room. though if you can block a few rooms at a hotel closeby just for a night it would be nice. hotels will tell you when they release the rooms back out to the public. i booked a block of rooms only because my venue is 1 1/2 drive for everyone and it's in a small town. so there isn't that many options. as well i know most people who decide to stay will most likely just stay for one night.
  • I live in tourist city and have guests of a variety of spending ranges.  I'm not even trying to find a place that will please all of them.  I put a list of hotels near the wedding site on our website and then put a link for the primary tourist area.  The ones that are going to camp are on their own to figure it out. 
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  • I think it's rude.

    I was just the MOH in a wedding where the bride bragged about the fabulous price she got on her room, and everyone else had no idea where to book and got shafted on price.

    It's not that much hassle for you to call up a decent hotel and get a block, especially when prices are so high anyway. Just book it for Friday and Saturday and people can add on as necessary.
  • I don't think it is necessary to block rooms unless you know you can get a really good deal somewhere.  As long as you give 3-4 suggestions, I think you're ok.
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  • You should do a block-- it's not costing you anything but time. You could get two different price points and see. Usually, they'll give you somewhat of a deal on published rates now, so as the rates go up, yours stay frozen. They release it back to the public about a month or so before your event, so just make sure and tell your guests when the release date is so they know.
    Just make the block for whenever your wedding festivities start. You don't have to guess when people will come-- they can call the hotel for reservations and figure that out themselves. If they can find better deals, or want to spend more...surely they can find their own hotels, but it's a nice touch to do a block.
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  • I highly recommend hotelplanner.com if you do decide to try to find a block. We got rooms that are normally $140 for $89. Hotels "bid" on your block and it is a free service even if you don't end up blocking rooms. That was the best decision we made for our guests. If you live in a more popular area, the deal might not be as good, but it is still worth a try. 

    You could just say that you only want a block for the weekend of your wedding, when most guests will be staying. If they book in your block for a week, they will likely get the same rate for the whole week, even if you only blocked the rooms for a couple of days (I imagine this is true regardless of whether you go through hotelplanner). 

    While you don't have to block off rooms, I think that it is nice especially if you can get a good rate. 

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  • like PP, not needed, but very helpful.  We got a block of rooms that were normally $140 a night for $89.  And we only needed to book 8 rooms, so you might even do 2-3 blocks of rooms (dont tell the hotels) and let guests pick where to stay.  It cant hurt to save them money!
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  • My friend just got married and didn't book a block of rooms because they were going to charge her for any room not taken.  She did, however, list the nearest hotel on her web site so people would know where to stay.

    We're probably going to get a block of rooms and suggest a couple other hotels in the vicinity.  A lot of people have hotel reward program memberships and stuff, so they'll probably want to pick and choose anyway.
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  • Thanks for your feedback.  I see various opinions and good arguments on both sides. 
  • BeeBee22BeeBee22 member
    100 Comments
    edited August 2010
    I recommend doing a block. Hotels are just as expensive here, and the block rate we have for guests is half price. People can stay somewhere else, but it's a courtesy to your guests to offer a good deal at least somewhere (our reception is at the hotel, so it may be a better deal than usual...I don't know).

    Often it can be set up in such a way that guests have a cutoff date. If they don't book by then, the block expires, so you don't have to pay for any unreserved rooms. See what's available.
  • One more point...i am having a NY wedding in December.  The rooms were all in the mid-$300 ranges, and booking a block of rooms got me a discount for my guests.  I picked a few hotels close to the venue, and was able to procure some rates that they probably couldn't get if they just called them.

    Everyone has been really thankful that I did that.

    Cost me nothing to do!
  • Also, you never know what else might be going on in that area on your wedding weekend. There is a HUGE soccer tournament on my wedding weekend so I blocked rooms very early. You don't want your guests to be scrambling for a room.
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