How to Survive Convention Housing (And Still Get a Room)

by Ryan Lewis

What day of the year do you dread most? Spring cleaning? The first day of school? Your birthday? Tax day? For some Free Will Baptists, it may be the opening of convention housing. From computer crashes to mix-ups in reservations to the headquarters hotel selling out in minutes, the housing process has its challenges. Many attendees have endured these frustrations at one time or another. For that reason, planners are continually trying to improve the process. This year is no exception.

One frequent challenge is that the room block sells out in minutes. This is due in large part to overbooking rooms. Because of the chaos that ensues when housing opens, many attendees reserve more rooms than actually needed to ensure their reservations. Unfortunately, they often hold these rooms too long and cancel the reservations after the cut-off date. This means other attendees do not have an opportunity to book rooms at the convention rate.

This leaves many attendees without a room in the block. They are forced to look elsewhere in the city. This also puts the National Association of Free Will Baptists in danger of not meeting the contracted room block and, as a result, paying steep attrition fees. In an effort to reduce (or eliminate) overbooking, the convention has initiated a new housing policy.

Beginning in 2013, anyone reserving convention hotel rooms will be charged a non-refundable deposit of the first night’s room and tax for each room at time of booking.

While the deposit is non-refundable, it is transferable between individuals. Attendees transferring reservations must call the hotel to switch the name on the reservation then work out payment between the two of them. The convention website will provide a method for individuals to post available rooms so attendees can find rooms and make rooms available to others.

Convention housing will open Monday, May 6, at 9:00 a.m. CST.

Hotels will accept reservations by phone or online. Phone numbers will be listed on the housing form, and links to the hotels will be available at www.nafwb.org. Because so many reservations are made online, the Executive Office has upgraded Internet capabilities so the site can handle all reservations without delays or crashes. (A must after we received more than 30,000 visitors on the day housing opened in 2012.)

Four hotels will be available for convention attendees. The Tampa Marriott Waterside Hotel is the convention headquarters adjacent to Tampa Convention Center. The Embassy Suites is connected by sky-bridge to the convention center and includes free cooked-to-order breakfasts for guests. The Westin Tampa Harbour Island is located one block from the convention center, right on Tampa Bay. The Hilton Tampa Downtown (formerly Hyatt Regency) is located six blocks from the convention center and boasts an affordable rate for families and groups.

About the Writer: Ryan Lewis is convention manager for the National Association of Free Will Baptists. For more information about the convention, visit www.nafwb.org.