Eurofurence Community > General Discussion
EF13 website up and running
Cheetah:
--- Quote from: Schneelocke on 12.11.2006, 18:46:49 ---
--- Quote from: Loewi on 12.11.2006, 18:14:06 ---so... you still can bring your own food. Or what about attending meal once a day? Or both?
Noone pushes you to attend every meal. I think the "meal thingy" is as flexible as it could be.
--- End quote ---
Sure it is. But you can't deny that it's not the same as in the past, either, where all meals were included. I'm not complaining about the new site, but I think I should be allowed to express my disappointment with this particular development, at least... right? :P
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Sure, you're free to do that, but unless you know a better possibility (and would be willing to share it with us), it's rather pointless, because there's nothing we can do about it.
Tungro:
Yes, the total fee may end up being comparable to EF12, BUT EF12 included food (albeit not great food IMO). You can't really say it'll only cost €160 (€210 for Sponsors) when you still have to add food costs to that. Yes, there is some kind of choice - you can buy food in town, bring it with you beforehand etc.
Another problem I see is the location of food. On a LiveJournal post, Big Blue Fox said that there is a food discounter at the bottom of the hill, claiming it's a 10min walk or a 2min car journey. My problem is... the venue is on top of a hill! If you haven't got a car, it'll be a pain in the backside to carry shopping up that hill. You thought Nuremberg's hill was bad? :P Some say there is a bus service between Suhl and the hotel's driveway. But I don't quite see how it'd be much cheaper than eating in the hotel, if you add bus tickets to the total. And then you STILL have one problem - you can't actually cook anything. I doubt the hotel will have little kitchens for us to use, when they would obviously want any guests to use their own restaurant. And I'm not even sure if there'll be a kettle in the room which can be used to make ramen. Oh, and let's not forget a lack of somewhere to keep food fresh and cool.
The con runs from the 5th to the 9th of September. So let's say that's 2 meals a day (brunch and dinner), but the 5th and 9th will only have one meal. So that's eight meals, at €10-€15 at a time. Which adds €80 to €120 to the con fee. So that makes the con costs €240-€280 for regular congoers, and €290-€330 for sponsors. Ick! And before people say the food at the hotel is optional, getting food elsewhere will cost just as much when you add in transport costs, and even then you're limited to takeout (eat it whilst it's hot) or cold food only.
Sorry if this sounds rather negative, but I'm merely voicing concerns that I have. I'm not even sure how to suggest how to tackle these problems. Can't exactly ask the hotel to convert a room on each floor into kitchen space really! I'm just disappointed that this time food isn't included in the fee, and if it IS added then the resultant fee is €240+... And I also presume that the costing has been worked out in fine detail and that the con fee is the lowest it can be made to be (to still break even in the end), and that the buffets are also done at a discounted rate for the con goers?
Schneelocke:
--- Quote from: Cheetah on 12.11.2006, 19:01:10 ---If you find a way to assign more rooms than available, please let me know, so I can propose you for a nobel prize in mathematics :)
So it's not strictly a "room upgrade". It's a donation that will give you priority treatment when rooms are assigned.
And please keep in mind ... sponsorship is a voluntary fee that you pay to give the convention extra support. The sponsor benefits you get in return are a gift.
--- End quote ---
*chuckles* There is no Nobel Prize for mathematics, actually, but if you want to propose me for a Fields medal, I'd be most honoured. ^.~ In any case, hey, peace - that's exactly what I meant. There's only so many rooms in the higher category, so naturally, not everyone will be able to get one. And yes, being a sponsor doesn't entitle you to one, either, so if you don't get one even though you're a sponsor, you don't have a right to complain (and those who do should keep in mind what being a sponsor is and isn't about).
--- Quote from: Kralle on 12.11.2006, 19:03:15 ---Bring 20 packages of Ramen and 2 tins of Chappy with you if you like.
--- End quote ---
Wow, great idea. :P
--- Quote from: Cheetah on 12.11.2006, 19:05:48 ---Sure, you're free to do that, but unless you know a better possibility (and would be willing to share it with us), it's rather pointless, because there's nothing we can do about it.
--- End quote ---
I don't know of any possibility, naturally - I don't know anything about the deal with the hotel, after all.
Oh well, I'll shut up already.
Cheetah:
--- Quote from: Tungro on 12.11.2006, 19:12:48 ---Yes, the total fee may end up being comparable to EF12, BUT EF12 included food (albeit not great food IMO). You can't really say it'll only cost €160 (€210 for Sponsors) when you still have to add food costs to that. Yes, there is some kind of choice - you can buy food in town, bring it with you beforehand etc.
--- End quote ---
Okay, I think I need to put things into perspective here:
Out of 400 attendees at EF12, only 250 attended the meals at all. The rest not only paid for a meal they didn't want, they obviously spent extra money to eat elsewhere. So, when deciding which part of the increased cost to offload from the con fee, food was the obvious choice. And with an art show turnover of roughly 11000€, the average congoer doesn't seem to be overly poor.
--- Quote --- Another problem I see is the location of food. On a LiveJournal post, Big Blue Fox said that there is a food discounter at the bottom of the hill, claiming it's a 10min walk or a 2min car journey. My problem is... the venue is on top of a hill! If you haven't got a car, it'll be a pain in the backside to carry shopping up that hill
--- End quote ---
Oh, come on. There will be 400-500 furries around. People will go shopping in groups, and people will also most likely be going out for dinner in groups. There's always someone with a car you can go with. And unlike Nuremberg, you CAN park you car right outside the front door.
--- Quote ---You thought Nuremberg's hill was bad? :P Some say there is a bus service between Suhl and the hotel's driveway. Which adds €80 to €120 to the con fee. So that makes the con costs €240-€280 for regular congoers, and €290-€330 for sponsors.
--- End quote ---
If you make the free, optional, decision to exclusively eat at the hotel buffets, yes. But the alternatives are there, even if it takes a bit of planning ahead. So your argument is a little bit like, "and if I book the massage service twice a day, this drives my con fee up to 400€". Sure it will. Additional convenience does cost extra money.
--- Quote ---People say the food at the hotel is optional, getting food elsewhere will cost just as much when you add in transport costs, and even then you're limited to takeout (eat it whilst it's hot) or cold food only.
--- End quote ---
You're wildly exaggerating. In town, you can get a kebap for 3€, and some buns and a cup of coffee for about 4€. Or a Big Mac Menu at McDonalds for €4.50. Calm down :)
--- Quote ---Sorry if this sounds rather negative, but I'm merely voicing concerns that I have. I'm not even sure how to suggest how to tackle these problems.
--- End quote ---
For breakfast, get stuff from a bakery, that you can easily store at your room. For dinner, find other hungry furs, share a car, go out together. It's more fun anyways.
Oh and by the way, the rooms actually do have a little fridge. (It usually serves as a minibar, but they won't be stocked for Eurofurence, so it's free for you to use and store cold food.)
And by the way, the restaurant also serves snacks for less than the buffet price.
Wawik:
While I personally dislike EF departing from the "all inclusive" philosophy, there's a bit to be said about the food issue.
First, as previously mentioned there are two facilities in the hotel, so you could possibly get away anywhere between €5 and €10 per main course in the non-buffet restaurant, or alternatively overindulge on the brunch buffet and just skip dinner, or have a light salad instead. ;)
Secondly, there is public transportation from the main road (which is about 200m down the hotel access road) with a bus line that runs sort of bi-hourly (http://www.iov-ilmenau.de/fahrplan/300.pdf) with a single fare of € 1.10 (if I am not mistaken there, public transport down there _is_ rather crude and below par compared to what you will find in the non-Soviet parts of Germany). If one is truly desperate, one can therefore still shop on their own (although don't even think about getting places in the evening without a car).
Unless there is a footpath I am not aware of, walking would mean about 1.5 to 2 kilometers before you reach Suhl city limits, as the access road to the hotel meanders just in the wrong direction to meet the main road.
Oh, and there's also a Joey's in Suhl that will deliver from a minimum amount of €9.95 per order.
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