tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9864334.post114507348511721675..comments2023-10-24T05:49:04.269-04:00Comments on The Chaliceblog: "Goodness, those GA hotels are classy,"Chalicechickhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07781469958573869914noreply@blogger.comBlogger9125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9864334.post-1145416257716355772006-04-18T23:10:00.000-04:002006-04-18T23:10:00.000-04:00I stayed at a cheap hotel in St. Louis once. The b...I stayed at a cheap hotel in St. Louis once. <BR/>The bed was nicely made, but there was a condom wrapper on the pillow.indraxhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05077014748902924745noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9864334.post-1145198879156539392006-04-16T10:47:00.000-04:002006-04-16T10:47:00.000-04:00Walking distance hotels can be very handy if you'r...Walking distance hotels can be very handy if you're sponsoring Youth Caucus attendees at GA. One of the requirements for sponsors is that they stay in the same hotel or housing as the youth they are sponsoring (this does not mean the same room ... just the same hotel). <BR/><BR/>Walking distance means that any youth you are sponsoring will have an easier time traveling to and from GA events. This is good for your peace of mind if you're sponsoring a youth.<BR/><BR/>All of the requirements for being a Youth Caucus sponsor at GA are listed on the online GA FAQ:<BR/><BR/>http://www.uua.org/ga/faq.htmlSteve Caldwellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12333184436301854794noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9864334.post-1145135181091661092006-04-15T17:06:00.000-04:002006-04-15T17:06:00.000-04:00When we went to GA in Boston, we stayed in a dorm....When we went to GA in Boston, we stayed in a dorm. Very minimal, lots of space, took the subway. When we went to Long Beach GA, we stayed in the hotel it was in. <BR/>No dorms in St. Louis?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9864334.post-1145121762750169602006-04-15T13:22:00.000-04:002006-04-15T13:22:00.000-04:00CK, which of your blogs are the tips on? I am tryi...CK, which of your blogs are the tips on? I am trying to organize a bloggers dinner at GA and I LOVE TAPAS! <BR/><BR/>Thanks for bringing up the hotel issue, CC. As for me, I have two requirements: (1) I have to be close enough to the action so that I can easily pop back to the room for a nap, and to drop off materials and (2) the hotel bar has to serve Ketel One.<BR/><BR/>I've done the outlying hotels often enough to feel it's well worth the price to stay at the classier joints. After a year in the salt mines of ministry, I don't want to GA to be any more of an exhausting week-long trial than it has to be.PeaceBanghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11431551457505981195noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9864334.post-1145119239547645192006-04-15T12:40:00.000-04:002006-04-15T12:40:00.000-04:00The UUA GA planning office works with the Conventi...The UUA GA planning office works with the Convention Bureau's to get hotels, they don't contract with hotels themselves. The hotels then give rooms for meetings as Scott indicates.<BR/><BR/>They need to book so many rooms in order to break even. After that number there are no rooms and folks who register to late are going to book in other hotels, dorms, hostels, etc. They figure how many will do this any ways...to save money, because they hate hotels. At one or two GAs the planning committee didn't figure correctly, and guilt tripped folks who were making their own reservations. Boston had thousands of commutters, why stay in a hotel if you live in Framingham? So we lost some money. <BR/><BR/>But in most cases if one checks around one can find a hotel that meets the budget and usually the official hotels are booked by people who like the convenience and will pay for the privilege, or have expense accounts, or who married rich. The planning office doesn't guilt trip people when they get their rooms booked. Somehow I feel they need to make better estimates....Quebec City had lovely mansions, why stay in hotel...for example. So they had lots of unbooked rooms at the big fancy hotel a mile away and made the UUA staff stay there--the staff would have prefered being across from the convention center. Bad planning.<BR/><BR/>I have known some folks who stay in the boonies on principle...small hotels use less power and therefore are environmentally friendlier they have told me. <BR/><BR/>In an another life I would stay far away, I have been sleepless in too many cities.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9864334.post-1145114026798855042006-04-15T11:13:00.000-04:002006-04-15T11:13:00.000-04:00Hmm, looking at various non-religious conventions ...Hmm, looking at various non-religious conventions Ive been to, I usually stay in the boonies - the disadvantage is that you are far from the action. Fine if you want to sleep and eat in quiet and reflection... not so fine, if you want the stimulation of 24 hour conversation (hey, does GA have 24 hour video rooms?)<BR/><BR/>Scott: I go to cons in charlotte yearly, and you will be happy to know that the downtown area has added lots of eating places that are open on the weekend now!(although i wont swear there is enough of them) While I didnt go to GA there, I certainly recall seeing domino delivery folks going up to rooms as the main food choice in downtown in the early 1990s....<BR/> I also recall seeing hour long lines at Wendys in Atlanta during conventions.....Steven Rowehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14302958901026684328noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9864334.post-1145111002554829482006-04-15T10:23:00.000-04:002006-04-15T10:23:00.000-04:00"In exchange for free or lower-cost meeting space ..."In exchange for free or lower-cost meeting space in the hotels that is used for GA workshops and GA social functions, the UUA agrees to reserve a block of rooms. If you as an individual go outside the GA reservations, the cost to the UUA is minimal. If you and a bunch of other folks go outside the GA reservation system, the UUA is left holding the bill for a bunch of unused room."<BR/><BR/>Speaking as someone who has organized a fair number of conventions- granted, they were Star Trek conventions, but the process is the same- I know that the cheaper hotels will give you exactly the same deal as the expensive hotels. The UUA simply chooses to cut that deal with expensive hotels rather than less expensive ones, no doubt for the reasons CC stated.<BR/><BR/>"Distance is another consideration. After your first GA stuck in the boonies, you'd hock your One True Love to be in a room that you can get to in five minutes or less. It is a very tiring experience." <BR/><BR/>I have been to a number of industrial conventions where some company provided a shuttle bus service so people could stay at cheaper hotels and still have a pleasant convention experience. Surely someone in the UUA owns a van- or they can be rented cheaply enough- and a volunteer driver rustled up. At Star Trek conventions all kinds of labor is obtained merely by comping tickets- surely it wouldn't bankrupt the UUA to offer free tickets to someone willing to carpool the cheap hotels every morning and evening?Joel Monkahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10631333436948102576noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9864334.post-1145108724900583552006-04-15T09:45:00.000-04:002006-04-15T09:45:00.000-04:00CC,You are correct that one can find GA housing th...CC,<BR/><BR/>You are correct that one can find GA housing that is cheaper by going outside the GA recommended hotels.<BR/><BR/>The drawback to that is you have to weigh the benefits for the individual vs. the benefits for our wider association of congregations.<BR/><BR/>In exchange for free or lower-cost meeting space in the hotels that is used for GA workshops and GA social functions, the UUA agrees to reserve a block of rooms. If you as an individual go outside the GA reservations, the cost to the UUA is minimal. If you and a bunch of other folks go outside the GA reservation system, the UUA is left holding the bill for a bunch of unused room.<BR/><BR/>I suppose the staff and volunteers who work out these business arrangements for GA could decide to forgo reserving blocks of rooms to get this free/reduced-cost meeting space. However, that would probably increase the GA registration costs to cover meeting room space in the surrounding hotels.<BR/><BR/>One obvious way to reduce the costs for your GA trip is to find roommates for your trip. If you find a second roommate, your costs per night goes from $130 to $65 per night.<BR/><BR/>If you get the double bed room and share it with 3 other folks, your costs are now $32.50 per night.<BR/><BR/>Finally, the other overlooked costs for GA is food ... restaurant meals in downtown areas are very pricey. The food vendors at GA charge inflated airport prices for their food.<BR/><BR/>Since we drove from Shreveport to Ft Worth last summer for GA, we stocked our room with snacks, sodas, ramen noodles, fruit, etc. Since we had my daughter and a friend of hers sharing our room, I wanted to make sure that any potential penniless youth I had sponsored or any friends they ran into would have food if they needed it.<BR/><BR/>Have fun at GA!Steve Caldwellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12333184436301854794noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9864334.post-1145102710231977702006-04-15T08:05:00.000-04:002006-04-15T08:05:00.000-04:00I did warn people that staying out by the airport ...I did warn people that staying out by the airport would suck.<BR/><BR/>And <A HREF="http://www.explorestlouis.com/pdf/maps/2006map6-11x17.pdf" REL="nofollow"> judging by this map,</A> the Hampton Inn and the Econo Lodge are closer than some of the UUA's suggestions. <BR/><BR/>CCChalicechickhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07781469958573869914noreply@blogger.com