Breakfast Event, Turtle Track, and Hotel Updates

[chaiya.livejournal.com]

Just a couple of quick notes:

We're trying a new event on for size this year -- a breakfast buffet event with GOHs and other Special Guests (including Seanan McGuire, Cat Valente, Hildy Silverman, Frank Wu, and others)! Breakfast price is comparable to prices in the hotel restaurant, with the added bonus of cool conversation! Go to http://2011.arisia.org/buffet for tickets & more info.

Turtle Track (childcare) is currently full. To get on the waiting list, email reg@arisia.org with "Turtle Track" in the subject line. Every year, there are some cancellations, so don't despair if you haven't yet signed up, just do it asap. (Same is true for hotel reservations, actually. Last year, we ended up with a couple of empty rooms in the main hotel, due to cancellations.)

Speaking of hotel reservations: The hotel has turned off the public reservations page while we sort through the Waiting List together. We're working on an alternate solution for getting reservations into their system, but the meantime, please have patience. We expect to have a further update tomorrow night, after more conferring with the hotel.

Comments

[archangelbeth]

Aresia this year is going to have Seanan McGuire??????? AHHHHHHHH!

[madfilkentist]

Seanan! Yay!

[stormsdotter.livejournal.com]

YAY!!! Seanan's coming to my home con! Must finish the dress from Toby Book 4!!

[bkdelong.livejournal.com]

Awesome!! Wait, I didn't think 4 was due out till like March.

[stormsdotter.livejournal.com]

It's not, but since I'm her First Official Cosplayer, I wanted to make the dress.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/stormsdotter/4080696219/in/set-72157606822423731/

[adriannebrennan.livejournal.com]

Any updates on hotel rooms yet?

[chaiya.livejournal.com]

My apologies for the delay; things have been somewhat crazy around here.

The update is essentially that the Westin wants us to continue sorting through the waiting list on a rolling basis. As we finish up allocating rooms that were set aside for particular uses, we will shift people from the waiting list into those rooms. Ultimately we think that everyone currently on the waiting list will get a room (though not everyone will get the type of room they requested -- the hotel only has so many doubles). We are also looking into overflow hotel options (there are two other hotels within a short walk from the Westin), although we hope that won't be necessary.

The Westin has many more rooms than the Hyatt had, or even the Park Plaza. However, we seem to have more people interested in staying in the hotel this year than previous years. It will just take more patience than we had expected.

For anyone who is not yet on the waiting list: the waiting list is still the best option for getting a room in the Westin. The hotel will only be releasing rooms to those on the waiting list, so there is no reason not to be on it.

We will post updates about updates about the hotel status to the Arisia website as well as LJ, FB, Twitter, etc., when we have them. If there will be an overflow hotel, that determination will be made based on the status of the waiting list once all rooms and suites are allocated.

And thank you for your patience!

[adriannebrennan.livejournal.com]

Thank you!! :D