Eurofurence Information > Questions & Answers
The EF23 Hotel Booking Disaster
Rafa Greenfur:
I don't want to start a shitstorm against neither the EF staff nor the Estrel Hotel.
And I'd like to ask anybody to use common sense and be respectful in this discussion.
Also, please read the official announcement of EF, where they did explain upfront WHY they did change the booking process. What they state there is absolutely reasonable: https://forum.eurofurence.org/index.php/topic,7389.0.html
To me it appeared that the provider who was responsible for the booking screwed up big time.
This may have happened due to miscommunication – or just human error.
Of course it can (!) be a challenge for a server or computer centre to process several hundreds of requests at the same time.
Especially when furry-style DDOS-like behavior is added to it (endless rape of the refresh button, for example, which creates further overhead the servers have to handle).
But on the other hand a situation like this could've been communicated to the booking provider – so he is able to increase the server capacity upfront. I don't know if this was already the case?
Anyways, what bothers me is one thing: was a (in my view) "secret" booking link leaked (before it was twittered)?
This would be just plain unfair – and I don't accuse EF staff directly for that. Maybe somebody who got that URL just spread it.
This is nothing which can be controlled, apart from not giving a "secret" booking URL to anybody but EF staff.
So, for the next EF I plead you, EF staff, to make sure that the booking process runs fair and accesible to anybody.
thanks for your time.
Nathalias:
I fully understand why they changed the system and normally it should have been no problem.
What bothers me are those "secret links", there where more then one way to book your room and at the end two of them where shut down (including the official link) with an "access denied" while others still worked (like the mobile site and going directly via the Estrel website). The only reason I got no room that way is because I found out too late that no late pepartment was possible over that way...
But this is also a problem with the booking provider and nothing the EF staff or Estrel could help with. I just hope I can get a room via the waiting list or I find someone with an open space in his room.
winterheart:
I also would really appreciate that convention fee refunds are now introduced as I was unable to get a room because of this issue and going to overflow hotel is not an option for me.
Therefore I can no longer attend, however I already payed, and yes why pay before?? because you get only a very limited time to pay...
Nathalias:
The latest tweet says that there are a lot of double bookings... hope they open the waiting list soon. I would try that first bevore canceling.
I have a room in another Hotel, but that wasn't really what I was planning...
Suicune:
It's sad that I probably won't meet some friends of mine :/
Takes really the mood to attend this year right now...