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First timer room booking tactics?

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DutchTheWolf:
This being my first ever Eurofurence, or furry convention for that matter, and with the upcoming room rush I was wandering what people experienced with their first time booking a room at the convention and what they consider a legitimate tactic to getting a room if you don't have any roommates yet.
Should you for example just try to get a 3-person room and offer up the remaining space later on or are there also other ways of going about it?

I don't know many people personally yet in the fandom and rooming with others is a great way to get to know people so therefore the interest!

Thanks in advance and I hope to see you all there!

With kind regards,
Dutch

ANTIcarrot:
Currently the only way I know to absolutely guarantee getting a room at the hotel is to be the convention chairman. Other senior staff posts are also good, but being the chairman is best. For a first time attendee, I do not recommend this course of action. ;) (By reputation, Uncle Kage may also endorse avoiding this course of action.)

Alternatively, there is no guaranteed way to get a room. There are 2500-3000 people trying to grab a room, and there aren't that many places at the hotel. The EF registration server will get hammered in the first minute, and then the Estrel will get several thousand emails in the next five, and it's largely a first come first serve situation.

Effective tactics to increase your chances include:

1) Forming a team with 3 other people with the intention of sharing a room. (Though this sounds like it might not be possible for you.) This gives you 3x times the chance. If you chose this tactic I strongly advise requesting a TWIN room, which will give you two beds, rather than a double, which will give you just one. I would advise to ask the hotel for a third fold-away bed as soon as possible, as supplies for those have been limited in past years.

2) If you don't get a room yourself, try your luck in the Room Sharing section of the forum. Remember to advertise you want a room, and to apply to anyone saying they are looking for a room mate. Check regularly and apply to every offer until you succeed, as if you were getting a job.

2) Booking a contingency room at a nearby hotel on the chance that you don't get a room at the convention site. Unfortunately this is something best done back in August,  but there are still a few when I looked for a friend last week. If you do this, remember to budget for breakfast (included at the Estrel) and a ~30 euro 7-day A-B card for getting around Berlin, and specifically to and from your hotel and the con site. I'd also recommend bringing a rocksack and a large bottle of water. Remember to plan ahead if you want to buy anything, and especially anything large and/or expansive - as it will no longer be a short walk from the dealers den or art show to your room. Ditto if you want to transport bulky items to the convention such as art for sale or a fursuit. A taxi might be worth the cost to avoid the hassle and risk of damage.

If you haven't seen it yet, the Introductions sub-board may be of interest:
https://forum.eurofurence.org/index.php/board,34.0.html

DutchTheWolf:

--- Quote from: ANTIcarrot on 15.01.2019, 02:23:52 ---Currently the only way I know to absolutely guarantee getting a room at the hotel is to be the convention chairman. Other senior staff posts are also good, but being the chairman is best. For a first time attendee, I do not recommend this course of action. ;) (By reputation, Uncle Kage may also endorse avoiding this course of action.)

Alternatively, there is no guaranteed way to get a room. There are 2500-3000 people trying to grab a room, and there aren't that many places at the hotel. The EF registration server will get hammered in the first minute, and then the Estrel will get several thousand emails in the next five, and it's largely a first come first serve situation.

Effective tactics to increase your chances include:

1) Forming a team with 3 other people with the intention of sharing a room. (Though this sounds like it might not be possible for you.) This gives you 3x times the chance. If you chose this tactic I strongly advise requesting a TWIN room, which will give you two beds, rather than a double, which will give you just one. I would advise to ask the hotel for a third fold-away bed as soon as possible, as supplies for those have been limited in past years.

2) If you don't get a room yourself, try your luck in the Room Sharing section of the forum. Remember to advertise you want a room, and to apply to anyone saying they are looking for a room mate. Check regularly and apply to every offer until you succeed, as if you were getting a job.

2) Booking a contingency room at a nearby hotel on the chance that you don't get a room at the convention site. Unfortunately this is something best done back in August,  but there are still a few when I looked for a friend last week. If you do this, remember to budget for breakfast (included at the Estrel) and a ~30 euro 7-day A-B card for getting around Berlin, and specifically to and from your hotel and the con site. I'd also recommend bringing a rocksack and a large bottle of water. Remember to plan ahead if you want to buy anything, and especially anything large and/or expansive - as it will no longer be a short walk from the dealers den or art show to your room. Ditto if you want to transport bulky items to the convention such as art for sale or a fursuit. A taxi might be worth the cost to avoid the hassle and risk of damage.

If you haven't seen it yet, the Introductions sub-board may be of interest:
https://forum.eurofurence.org/index.php/board,34.0.html

--- End quote ---

Great advice! Thanks, this really helps quite a bunch. Btw, so a TWIN room can fit 3 people?

I guess what I'll be trying to do is see if I can get some people together before saturday who would be willing to share a room and see if that works out.

Ofcourse, should such people happen to be reading this, feel free to send me a message if you're interested through Twitter or Telegram @DutchTheWolf. I love meeting new people and I'm a friendly enough guy  ;)

ANTIcarrot:

--- Quote from: DutchTheWolf on 16.01.2019, 01:14:27 ---Great advice! Thanks, this really helps quite a bunch. Btw, so a TWIN room can fit 3 people?
--- End quote ---
In the Estral, all the rooms accommodate two people by default, but the hotel offers a number of fold-away beds, which can mean 3 people can stay there. But ONLY if the hotel supplies the third bed bed, or otherwise gives express written permission.

NB: Maximum accommodation is determined by fire laws, so any attempt to fit in extra people without permission is EXPRESSLY FORBIDDEN, and will earn you no sympathy from the con staff, or your travel insurance company, if the hotel finds out, and kicks one or all of you out.

That said, best of luck.

DutchTheWolf:

--- Quote from: ANTIcarrot on 16.01.2019, 20:50:05 ---
--- Quote from: DutchTheWolf on 16.01.2019, 01:14:27 ---Great advice! Thanks, this really helps quite a bunch. Btw, so a TWIN room can fit 3 people?
--- End quote ---
In the Estral, all the rooms accommodate two people by default, but the hotel offers a number of fold-away beds, which can mean 3 people can stay there. But ONLY if the hotel supplies the third bed bed, or otherwise gives express written permission.

NB: Maximum accommodation is determined by fire laws, so any attempt to fit in extra people without permission is EXPRESSLY FORBIDDEN, and will earn you no sympathy from the con staff, or your travel insurance company, if the hotel finds out, and kicks one or all of you out.

That said, best of luck.

--- End quote ---

Thanks, that does make sense yeah.

By the way, for those still interested, I'm still looking for one more person who would like to share a 3-person room we will be trying to get with me and another roommate. We will be staying from the beginning till the end of the convention.

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