How To Reserve Hotel Rooms For A Class Reunion

One of the biggest mistakes that class reunion planning committee members make is that they do not reserve a block of hotel rooms for their class reunion.

Blocking hotel rooms for out of town guests instead will provide a centralized location for everyone, and simplify transportation, increase classmate interaction, and provide lower group rates for hotel rooms.

Not only can you hang out with other classmates at the hotel, local classmates can meet everyone together instead of going hotel to hotel.

So How Do You Go About Reserving A Hotel For A Class Reunion?

The process of blocking hotel rooms is quite simple.

Step 1. Group Hotel Rates

You no longer have to waste time calling hotels individually. Instead, use a group hotel rates form to submit your needs and hotels will email you their group rates automatically. The average discount at a 2-3 three star hotel is over 20%!

Step 2. Compare Rates and Amenities

Within a few minutes of submitting the form above, you will receive group rates from hotels in your desired city and in your price range. Once you have prices from several hotels (We have over 40,000 hotels participating in this free service), download the details and discuss with your committee or fellow class reunion planners.

Some important things to consider are:

• How close is the hotel to your school . A distance of more than a five miles might not be feasible as most people want to be near the school
• Is the group rate affordable?
• Is the hotel willing to offer a courtesy room block for your class reunion?
• What kind of deposit is the hotel looking for?
• Is a hospitality suite included for the class reunion?
• Does the hotel offer a free breakfast? Free WiFi?
• Are there parking fees, resort fees or any other kind of fees that would substantially increase your cost?
• Can the rooms be blocked near each other?

These questions will help narrow the list of hotels down to three or four. In order to make a final selection, contact the hotels individually and ask for a site tour.

Step 3. Negotiate Details

Before you sign the contract, go over the contract in detail. Know what the cut off and attrition policies are. Also, is the comp ratio mentioned in the contract? For more on hotel contracting, read our article “How To Negotiate With A Hotel For A Class Reunion”

Step 4. Inform Your Classmates

Once you have contracted a hotel for the class reunion, send out a detailed email (Or post the information on the class reunion website) to your classmates. Make sure to include the following:

• Name and address of the hotel
• Hotel Amenities
• Telephone number of hotel for making reservations
• Types of rooms blocked (King Beds, 2 Queen Beds, Junior Suites)
• Cut off date
• Cancellation policy
• Room rates for each room type
• Whether the hotel offers connecting rooms
• Group Code (To be used when calling to make a reservation)
• Directions To Hotel From Airport

A sample email may look like the following:

Dear Classmates,

After an exhaustive search for the perfect venue for our class reunion, we decided on [Insert hotel name]. The hotel is only two miles away from [Insert school name] and offers an indoor pool, free breakfast, and free WiFi.

The hotel is located [Insert address] and their telephone number to make a reservation is [Insert number]. When calling to make reservations, please ask for group code [Insert Group Code].

We blocked a total of [Insert number of rooms] rooms, with a combination of doubles, singles and Junior suites. The group hotel rates for each night for each room type are [Insert rates].

Please note the following:

The hotel has a limited number of connecting rooms and if you need one, then call now.

We would encourage you to make reservations early as they will only hold the rooms till [Insert cut off date].

Before you make the reservation, know that their cancellation policy allows you to cancel the reservation up [to 24 hours before check in time].

Here are directions to the hotel from the airport.

Should you find a rate that is cheaper than the one we received, please email [insert email address] so we can get the hotel to match it.

As always, if you have questions or are just looking to chat, email me at [Insert email] or call me at [Insert telephone number].

P.S. Attached to this email is a list of classmates that we have not been able to get in touch with.

Thank you,

___________

Following the steps above will result in discounted group hotel rates, and help you narrow down your choices of potential venues with ease. With some additional legwork, you should be able to get a contract ironed out with a hotel in no time.

What should you do next?

Reserve a block of hotel rooms for your class reunion. Fill out this form and let hotels email you their group rates in less than five minutes. There is no cost for this service, and there are no gimmicks. Promise 🙂