From the inbox:
Dear SEA Conference Participant,
The Washington Marriott Wardman Park reservation cutoff date is Friday, October 28, 2011. If you have not yet secured your hotel reservations for the 2011 SEA Conference to be held on November 19-21, 2011 at the Washington Marriott Wardman Park, please contact the Washington Marriott Wardman Park Reservations Department at 1-800-228-9290 and reference the SEA Conference to receive the SEA Conference Room rates of $187.00 for single/double plus $20.00 for each additional occupant and to access the SEA room block. Alternatively, hotel reservations may be obtained via the Marriott Wardman Park SEA Conference Reservation webpage available by clicking here. After October 28, 2011, all room prices will increase to the prevailing rack rates and any remaining rooms will be released by the hotel for general sale.
The SEA encourages all conference participants to register in the SEA room block at the Washington Marriott Wardman Park. The conference room rate pays for the conference meeting rooms and helps keep the registration price low. The SEA is required to pay a substantial penalty in the event that we do not fill our reserved room block.
This is what I said about this sort of thing two years ago:
The hotel is overcharging for each room to pay for the conference meeting rooms. When facing a high price, such as in a year with limited travel budgets, consumers tend to shop around. After a bit of Travelocity research, I've noticed that I could register as a regular customer at the Rivercenter and get a non-conference rate of $159/night. There are also other nearby hotels, including another Marriot, for that price and below. My guess is that many conference attendees will avoid the conference room rate, especially if they must pay part of their own travel, and the SEA will fail to maximize profit from this conference.
An alternative would be to go ahead and charge a higher registration fee (about another $100, I think). Registration fees are reimbursable by employers and there are no substitutes. You must wear you name badge to gain admittance to the meeting rooms. Then, attendees could feel free to shop around and find the hotel that suits them best.
Economists are famous for explaining to governments and others that alternatives and free choice are good. It is odd when we violate our own advice.
Note: I'll be staying at the Rivercenter but I wish my favorite economics association would make more rational pricing decisions.
Travelocity is telling me I can stay at the Washington Marriott Wardman Park for $15/night cheaper than the conference rate. There are also several other nearby, cheaper hotels.
