travel softball ?

[bethy]

Question for those who do showcase tourneys where the team is required to book hotels through the tournament. We were sent, from the team mom, a link to book a hotel for July. It's the team's 3rd time at this showcase and the same hotel we got the last times. It's a Holiday Inn in PA. I went to book and the price is ridiculous. It's $174/night plus taxes. For a HI. I was taken aback so I went on Expedia and see it for a chunk less. Do these showcases book hotels with deals to get the hotels higher rates (I was thinking we'd get lower rates) or is some of the price going back to the showcase (kickback) or do you think this is to cover the 2 coaches rooms that I do know we, players/parents, are paying for (but the way I was understanding, we were paying coaches hotels in the player fees)?

Ugh. Stay and Play tourneys make me so mad! Yes the price is nearly always higher than on the open market. It is not a "group booking" per se - like one that would get a volume discount. But instead it's some sort of revenue generator. It must be, because you basically get kicked out of the tourney if they find out you are staying somewhere else. It's ridiculous. I do see some intrinsic value in the players staying in the same hotel together for logistical and bonding reasons. But the stay and play tourney is a racket!!

Note: sometimes there is an exception if you stay with "family" in the area . . .

 

[debster812]

Question for those who do showcase tourneys where the team is required to book hotels through the tournament. We were sent, from the team mom, a link to book a hotel for July. It's the team's 3rd time at this showcase and the same hotel we got the last times. It's a Holiday Inn in PA. I went to book and the price is ridiculous. It's $174/night plus taxes. For a HI. I was taken aback so I went on Expedia and see it for a chunk less. Do these showcases book hotels with deals to get the hotels higher rates (I was thinking we'd get lower rates) or is some of the price going back to the showcase (kickback) or do you think this is to cover the 2 coaches rooms that I do know we, players/parents, are paying for (but the way I was understanding, we were paying coaches hotels in the player fees)?

For all of our soccer tournaments that were 'stay to play' the tournament rules state that you must stay in one of the tournament hotels, booked thru their Travel Agent, and if a team is found to not follow those rules, they could be disqualified. My thought process always was that I would book the room block, and as long as we had 8-10 rooms, that was sufficient for the tournament. I would typically give the team an email with 2-3 options, ask for replies with requests within 48 hours, and majority ruled. I always tried to balance convenience, price, logistics, and included breakfast. If we could get a suite hotel for a reasonable price that was always preferable.

 

[lovin'fl]

Thanks. I wish we wouldn't do all showcases because this hotel stuff is annoying. Team mom has 1 tourney where all she can get are rooms with 1 king. And we booked one, in MA, where the field is 30+ miles away from the hotel.

 

[debster812]

Thanks. I wish we wouldn't do all showcases because this hotel stuff is annoying. Team mom has 1 tourney where all she can get are rooms with 1 king. And we booked one, in MA, where the field is 30+ miles away from the hotel.

We've wound up in King rooms before. Then the fun began to find a Target to get an air mattress, because the hotel had either run out of rollaways, or never had them. We would always throw the air mattress in the car for tournaments we drove to from then on in.

For your MA tournament, if you want to PM me or post here what town you're staying in, and what town the field is in, I'm happy to see if I can help you with a good route for to and from. There's nothing worse than extensive travel in unfamiliar areas.