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Wedding Etiquette Forum
SillyDuck
member
Renting out entire hotel
Hello all,
Not sure where this post should go. I am helping my friends plan a wedding and they found a lovely boutiqe hotel for their wedding. Unfortunately, the hotel makes them pay for all of 64 rooms upfront if we want to have the run of the hotel to ourselves and will not all the guests to each book rooms through them. We have to manage a list and provide it to the hotel upon start of the festivities.
Obviously, we are not requiring guests to stay there, but for those who would like the convenience of just going upstairs at the end of the day or those travelling in from out of town, we want to offer rooms. Also, there is a huge cost associated with booking this many rooms so we would like to recoup some of the costs.
Has anyone done something like this? If so, how did you set it up? Any help is appreciated!
Not sure where this post should go. I am helping my friends plan a wedding and they found a lovely boutiqe hotel for their wedding. Unfortunately, the hotel makes them pay for all of 64 rooms upfront if we want to have the run of the hotel to ourselves and will not all the guests to each book rooms through them. We have to manage a list and provide it to the hotel upon start of the festivities.
Obviously, we are not requiring guests to stay there, but for those who would like the convenience of just going upstairs at the end of the day or those travelling in from out of town, we want to offer rooms. Also, there is a huge cost associated with booking this many rooms so we would like to recoup some of the costs.
Has anyone done something like this? If so, how did you set it up? Any help is appreciated!
Re: Renting out entire hotel
If they don't want to cover the cost of these rooms (I wouldn't), they should just not book them. Typically hotels will allow events to block a set of rooms, where guests would get a special price and be located near each other. There's no reason to rent the entire building.
My guess is that the hotel wants to put the Covid responsibility on the wedding hosts. I would absolutely find another place that will let you reserve a block of rooms. That's the usual way to do this.
If they still go with this arrangement, I would also strongly recommend they don't tell their guests they've prepaid the rooms, if the hotel will handle the payment and booking aspect anyway. One, because it pressures guests to stay there, even if your friends aren't trying to pressure them. Two, your friends don't want to be in the position of saying "no pay, no stay". Or make an exception because Aunt Suzie or BFF Jane swears she'll have the money on the first payday after the wedding, but never pays up. A recipe for hard feelings, all around. And before your friends say "my friends and family would never do that!", they're already (probably) wrong. Even some of the nicest and most reasonable people can become miserly and unfair, when it comes to money.
They either need to be okay with booking the venue, but not the rooms, though then people would be in the hotel that aren't guests and there might not be enough rooms left for guests to stay in nor would they have a "run" of the hotel. Perhaps send out Save the Dates with a warning the hotel venue only has 64 rooms to try and ensure as many of their guests as possible book early. Or they should chose another venue, if this hotel won't do room blocks. Or, if there is a different nearby hotel, they could do blocks there.
But I can't see that as a good idea unless the hosts are so financially OK that they can take the loss and not worry about it.