Something that is not often talked about are hotel room blocks and are they worth getting? Maybe in some cases they are worth it, especially if you have a high percentage of guests travelling from out of town or have a huge budget but even then ... they may not be worth it. Many people tend to use third party sites to get discounted hotel rooms or sometimes use their credits or mileage. So is it worth going the extra mile reaching out to all the local hotels near your venue and signing a contract for rooms that you're not sure will even get booked?
Here's what they don't tell you....
In my experience with hotel room blocks, many will require you to hold a minimum of 10 rooms for two nights, making it a total of 20 rooms. They'll give you a discounted rate and a code to share with your guests which is amazing, right!? But what many don't talk about is the fact that many hotels will require you to put your card on file and enter into a legally binding contract where you will be responsible for all the rooms NOT BOOKED..... Yes... All the rooms that are not booked by your guests will be charged on your card! Or sometimes they'll ask you to pay a deposit to ensure that the rooms will be booked, again making you financially responsible for all the rooms you have placed on hold. That's quite a bit of responsibility isn't it? Is it worth it?
Here is my advice on hotel room blocks and how to navigate this part of your wedding planning. Take a look at your guests lists and find out just how many people are actually traveling, maybe chat with your bridal party and see if they are considering staying overnight. From there I'd begin looking at the hotels closest to the venue. I 'd look at all pricing options so that you have maybe two different price range options for your guests to choose from, again everyone has a different budget. I'd reach out to the hotels and find out what their room block policy is and get all the details before securing anything. READ YOUR CONTRACT, don't just sign anything and hand over your card to be placed on file, READ IT THOROUGHLY! If there is an "Attrition & Liability" clause in the contract, then you may be financially responsible for these rooms.
Not all hotels require any deposit form. Some will let you enter into a contract, offer the discounted rate and give you a time frame to get all the rooms booked. They'll release all unsecured rooms by a certain date, releasing you from any financial liability. Your guests will just have to book the room at current market value. Which is fine considering many will use a third party site.
Should you decide to have secured room blocks be sure to let all your guests know. Link the hotel website to your wedding site and add it to your invitation details card. Don't forget to include your hotel room code! If your guests actually book up the 10 rooms and more are needed, the hotel will usually contact you to let you know you're reaching your capacity. From there you can add another block hold . They will walk you through the process. They'll also reach out if the rooms are not getting booked..
I hope this bit of information helps you with your hotel block wedding planning process! Please drop a comment below and let me know what else you'd like to know !