ClassicCar

rbennett47

If you are registering on-line, use this link to access the HET package:
Marriott Hotel Reservations - SF San Mateo
The registration form shows the Arrival/Departure dates as 7/23-7/29. Please adjust them to reflect your stay, but remember those are the dates for the "package" rates. Register anywhere within that span and you will get the lower room-rates. PARKING is Free for this event. Marriott management tells me the fee notice is hardwired into their webpage, but that it will be waived for our event. So if it shows up on your registration, let us know. In any case you will NOT be charged for it...Bob

46HudsonPU

Bob - Worked well. ^:)^
I am registered in the hotel for that timeframe (not sure I will be able to go, but that's another story).

Adjusted my post: Just checked my statement, no charge to my card (as yet). Got the automated warning when registering that my card 'could' be charged, and when I got the email registration, I 'assumed' it had (been charged).

Also - I adjusted your link a bit, so it would open a 'new window' and still retain the place in classiccar.com.

402Bowtie

We're not able to make a reservation and hold a room without paying? 5 nights $525.00, Really!??

Park_W

I made my reservation without any requirement to pay up front. Also, you can get the special rate for the 21st or 22d as well.

rbennett47

According to Hotel mgmt. your card should not have been charged until you check in. Double-check your card statement, and if you were in fact charged, give them a call and they should take it off....Remember too, the $105 per nite fee does not include tax etc, which, in Calif, can add up a bit....However, these are excellent rates for this area during prime tourist season. Remember, you can also access this link, as well as maps, photos, etc, at our chapter website: norcalhet.org

46HudsonPU

Thanks Bob. Just finished checking my CC online. No charge to my card, although my CC information was necessary to make the reservation. The charge may not have 'hit' yet (CC might still be charged), however it is doubtful - credit card companies are getting pretty 'fast on the draw' when charges are made... <):)<br />

Addendum: Just checked again 8/24 @ 6:00 PM. No charge, except for one I made this morning at the supermarket... Looks good thus far.

rbennett47

Glad to hear that Rick...Thanks for getting back to us. These days, anything is possible...Bob

Jim_G

It is not working. It tell me "Group Rate Not Available For Requested Dates"

Jim

rbennett47

What dates did you put in ? Bob

bob ward

I'm also getting the "group rate not available" message at the moment. This is for arrive 22nd July and leave 28th July. Its early days, presumably the Marriott will sort this out before long.

rbennett47

I will call them today, but the parameters were for 7/23-7/29th. You may have to call the desk to get the rates for early days....Bob

bob ward

Not a biggy 11 months out, but the dates on the Marriott page do offer arrive 22nd and leave 29th. The earliest arrival date the page will actually accept bookings for is the 24th.

KEL 39 · KEL 39 August 2012 Posts: 38Greasemonkey

Booked my room today by phone . Was told no more block booking remain for the 22 & 23.
Had to pay full price for those dates $237. 24-28 are still available.
Looks like things are filling up fast!

Ivan

rbennett47

I will be calling Marriot in the morning....This is like working on a British bike...

bob ward

Just booked 2 rooms online, I wanted both to be 4 nights, arrive 24th, depart 28th. The first room was OK at 4 nights but for the second room the system would only allow me 3 nights, arrive 25th depart 28th.

ET8conv

Hoe many room nights were booked for the week of the National meet ? As of today, one month after this years National, there are only rooms available for Thursday, Friday & Saturday at the club rate. How can thay be sold out already if the meet starts on Wednesday ? Someone needs to address this situation.

rbennett47

I have a call in to the Marriot people...Hopefully we can get this straightened out today. Will also be calling Ed Drexler-Bob

rbennett47

Apparently some days have been booked up...Ed & Richard are looking into this, but, as of right now there are plenty of rooms for the 25th & 26th (Thurs, Fri). Not sure yet why this happened, possible computer error, but we are working on it. Please be patient....

rbennett47

OK, here's the deal: Due to OVERWHELMING demand, and we do mean "overwhelming", the rooms with the preferred rates for the 22, 23, & 24th have been sold out. Hotel management has said it is highly unusual to get this many reservations so far in advance of the event. Plenty of rooms for Thurs, Fri, and Sat are still available at this time. You can still book rooms for the 22-24th, but at the regular rate, which is about $100/nite higher.
Because we are so far from the actual dates of the meet, the hotel is unwilling to make any more rooms available at the preferred rate at this time, but may open more up as we get closer to July 2013. Nothing is definite on that score however.
Ed and Richard are looking into alternate bookings in the area, but, as you may know, obtaining hotel bookings anywhere in the SF Bay Area, particularly for a group, can be very tricky. If we underestimated the demand for this event, we apologize, but the room negotiations with Marriot were done after consulting with several other chapters who had hosted National Meets recently. We feel that this has the potential to be a really great National Meet, one that will be remembered for years to come, and want to encourage you all to make your plans and reservations now. Again, we apologize for the inconvenience, and we hope to see you all in 2013. Please contact Ed or Richard with any further questions...Bob

hudsontech

So now the question is any alternative hotels/motels nearby that have been negotiated for the HET rate???
Oh, ok, I see that you folks are working on alternative hotels. Sorry 'bout that.
In looking closer at the post I can't quite understand why, if the block of rooms set aside are filled, you can book those dates (22nd-24th) at a rate $100 higher. Why couldn't those rooms be filled at the negotiated rate even tho they weren't part of the deal to start with. I mean, apparently they have rooms available.

Hudsonly,
Alex Burr
Memphis, TN

Nevada Hudson

This seems to happen every year that all the rooms for National meets fill up within the first month of announcement. Should we have learned by now? Maybe we should have MORE rooms reserved, or larger or multiple hotels. It leaves most of the club members who are not fast on the draw( A whole year in advance) without a suitable place to stay.
A lot of members are confused on the dates also. In the May-June WTN it says the dates for the National are July 17-22. In the July August issue , July 23-27

402Bowtie

I called the Marriott yesterday and made a reservation for one room, two queen beds for Monday the 22nd check in and checking out Monday morning the 29th. They said the club rate ($105.00) was only good for Thursday the 25th through Monday the 29th. The first three nights I would have to pay the regular rate of $279.00 a night. I asked if they could honor the $105.00 rate and they said they would check and let me know. Well that was yesterday and I have not heard anything back. I asked how many rooms are at this Marriott and he said 325 rooms plus 151 suites. Were the 325 rooms reserved for the club or only 100? Something is not right?!! In the first thread above Bob states that the dates 7-23 through 7-29 are the dates for the "package rate".

Nevada Hudson

Ok, spoke to Marriott.All the regular rooms are GONE for July 22-24. Those other rooms for $279 are suites. They would not tell me how many rooms were reserved in the block.The rooms available on the 28-29 of July at the club rate, are after the fact-when the meet is over!
Anyway was able to reserve July 25-27. Guess I'll sleep in my car July 22-24, but I won't tell my wife yet!

rbennett47

Please also remember that it's just about 11 months still to go before the meet. Give us time to work something out. As I said, we consulted with the people who set up Spokane, Marbury, and other National Meet venues before making our plans. Nobody anticipated this kind of response.
Let us see what we can do....Bob

hudsontech

Good thing it's really to far for me to drive - if I had to pay $279 a night I couldn't go - and that's a sad commentary on the way things are going with our National meets. No way I could afford it - even with a room share.

Hudsonly,
Alex Burr
Memphis, TN

LaurieS65

Well Alex, my friend -

We won't be going to the National next year. Assuming I could get the time off, there is no way this event remotely fits into the budget. Between airfare and the hotel...just not doable at all.

But, to those that can afford it - hope they have a good time.

Laurie

Lee ODell

I called Marriot and made reservation for T, F, Sat. Looking forward to a great meet and seeing old friends and make new ones. Might even find a place M - W for less.

There are so many Hudsons, Exess's, and Terraplanes out West its possible to have the largest turnout of any national. If only we can get enough affordable rooms. Any local members willing to rent out a room for long distant travelers. Alex needs a room.

I grumbled some about the cost of my last National (drove 6,000 miles) and we went anyway and had a great time. Glad we did.
Lee O'Dell

hudman51

I hope Ed and Bob can get Marriott to cut their prospective guests some slack. Forecasting rooms on a project this size is a very unappreciated, difficult task - whoever signs the contract is on the hook for the unsold rooms for any given nite, and not even the HET, Inc has pockets that deep if the unthinkable happens - so you pick a number of rooms for every nite of the meet you can live with and go from there. See you in San Mateo!
Jon Cronk

rbennett47

Thanks Jon & Lee....we'll keep working on it. Bob

hudsontech

Lee, thank you for your post saying "Alex needs a room". Bottom line is it's too much of a hassel to fly and it's to far for me to drive. So I wouldn't be coming in any event, much as I'd like to.
I was just trying to make the point that, as Laurie pointed out, is that it's almost reached the point where a fair sized number of HET members are getting priced out of the market. I know it's hard to find a venue that fits most members budget these days; economy , fewer people traveling and so on.
The hard work the planning committee has put into this meet is greatly appreciated - most folks don't know what goes into getting one of these things together. But I do have to say that my feeling is the planning committee erred in estimating how many people would be coming - there are, what, 3 chapters in California and if one looks in the roster CA alone takes up 23 pages of members. That should be a hint that the turnout is going to be large.

Alex Burr
Memphis, TN

TOM-WA-

FYI: THE Stone Villa Inn San Mateo is close by and as of now has rooms available for 7-23 thru 7-29 at $105 per night

syddthekidd

Just booked the 23rd thru 25th at the Best Western Plus Coyote Point Inn about 3 miles from the meet for $84 a night. Look on roomkey.com....search the san mateo area...there is a ton to choose from.

rbennett47

The San Mateo Marriot is now completely sold out for discount rooms during the National Meet.
We apparently logged in over 700 room-nights. Apparently no one has ever seen this much response this early. We continue to research alternate lodging....

VicTor Z

Hi rbennett47, Thanks for the all the info you have sent out. I will be staying at another location , I Hope. Will I be charged parking for a vendor space? Vic's Auto Window Channeling.
VicTor Z

SuperDave

Jeez I think I'll buy a case of beer and chill out here in florida and save up for Indiana.

rbennett47

Don't know Vic. I'll check with Ed, but I would think not.....I'll get back to you.

RonS

Will there be room for trailer parking at the Marriott? Members that stay at another hotel need to inquire for that at their respective hotels. I have a rez( 7/22 to 7/28) at the Marriott. In addition to the Hudsons on the field, space is needed for those who have trailers, and their tow vehicles + space for swap meet. Ed & Bob, I can sympatize with you. I have chaired numerous AACA National Meets. See my advise to folks that would not mind staying in a differant hotel in another thread. Laurie, and others, there are many hotels in the area, and at way less cost/night, even in the $100/ per range. Check it out, Ron

VicTor Z

Hi rbennett47, I just received my third conformation letter for my rooms on the 25 of july to the 28, 2013. It has a cost of $22.00 for parking per day! My understanding is that the parking is free. Thanks! VicTor

rbennett47

Yes, it's free, that's their computer glitch. It should come off at time of payment. Since we have booked over 700 room-nites at this point, they will have a riot on their hands if it doesn't come off.....See you there, Bob

402Bowtie

Bob, is it set in stone that the Marriott will not honor the $105 rate for Monday (22nd) through Wednesday the 24th even though I reserved a room on those days for $189.00? Bill

russmaas

Did you guys only book 140 rooms a night? I see you say you book 700 room nites for the whole show but that equals about only 140 hudson families staying 5 nights. I dont think people are going just to fly out there for 1-2 nights.

Need at least 250 rooms booked per night. Was this an oversight or were you thinking it would be a low turn out. I believe the WTN said there were over 480 hudson registrations in Gettysburg. I am just not understanding the math on this.

I am one of those guys that waited till September to book my room to no avail for being sold out. So either 350 different people have books rooms for 2 days within the first 6 weeks ahead of me or the booking is way short for a national. Russ

hudsontech

Not to be a spoil sport but I think the planners of this meet, no matter how good a job they did messed up on figuring out how many rooms to book. Look up CA in the last roster - there are 23 pages listing CA members. Figuring on the low side that there are 8 members listed on each page that's (8 x 23) nearly 200 HET members within a comfortable days drive - ok maybe 2 days for folks in Southern Cal. Expand over into Nevada and north into Oregon you've got a bunch more within 2 days drive. Lets just toss a figure and say 100 - now we're up to nearly 300 from the local area Expand a little further east - Arizona is within 2 long driving days and New Mexico probably 2½ days. So maybe another 50 or 75?? These are all ball park figures based on what I've seen at other International Meets. Look at Gettysburg - I'm not surprised at the turnout - there are a lot of club members within a days drive - I came from West TN and it took me 13 driving hours - 8 on one day and 5 the 2nd day. Now draw a circle around G'burg out to, say Knoxville and around. Of course I think a lot of folks, if not most, came to say goodby to John Sherlock simply by being at the meet he was instrumental in getting off the ground. But still.
Most every local Hudson meet in CA appears, from the reports, to have a pretty good sized turnouts. That should have given the planner of this meet a clue. As I say, you've done a good job planning this one - you just goofed on how many would come.

Hudsonly,
Alex Burr
Memphis, TN

HUDSONNUT

The initial rush of reservations was way beyond ever anticipated, but the planners are working very hard to acquire more rooms and provide a great experience and things will work out, I'm sure. One thing no chapter wants is to be stuck with unused rooms they booked for.
I had reservations for Wednesday - Sunday and recently added Monday & Tuesday last week and asked the hotel some questions. I was told by the Hotel that they had added 97 - 100 more rooms for Thurs, Fri and Sat, plus added a few more rooms for the Sat & Sunday before and Sunday after at the Club rate. Monday, Tues & Wed are higher as you all know. More information on the meet will be posted before very long. Hang in there and be patient, Things are being worked on and we'll all have a great time in San Mateo.
Hudsonly,
Tom Conner
Glendale, AZ

Browniepetersen

The initial rush of reservations is because they always go so fast. This is not new. If you had a meet in Yellowstone National Park you would have to book two years in advance. What I do not understand is why the hotels are slow to add rooms. Anyway, this is going to be a great meet--I think I will call the hotel in french Lick and see if I can get an early reservation and beat the rush--Maybe, I could call Colorado--but, where do I call??

RonS

I have chaired many AACA National Meets in Arizona . All the hotels here require a guarantee of sold rooms for the duration of the meet in order to use the parking lot for show and trailers. That means as stated One person per night = 6 nights ( if some one stays the duration). Many Cal folks won't. They may not stay after the banquet & drive home, and(or) show up on Tuesday morning. The members in SF area won't even stay in the hotel. They sleep at home. Some folks,in past experience, cheap out, and go to a less costly hotel, or try to park a motor home on the Host Hotel premise at no cost. If the contract quota of total room nights is not met, the host chapter will be in BREACH, and the Marriott can demand payment of unused rooms. That may bankrupt a chapter. There are alot of sleepless nights for the chairman and his(her) assistants. Most clubs will over book ( ala airlines) and worry about extra rooms later ... at another hotel (overflow). This is always told to the Host hotel upfront, since it keeps them on their toes and they do not want to assist the competition, so, the Host hotel will, by hook or crook, make space. We have a contract writer from the U of A as a member. He knows these things, but that comes with experience. Back in July, I booked the rooms ( all 6) the first day they became available. In America you can always cancel reservations without a loss. Do not forget the members from downunder. This is the closest HET National that will ever be to them. Sydney to SF non stop.

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