Clutch 87 Posted August 13 Report Share Posted August 13 Nothing in the Announcements forum again. I have been checking daily to avoid missing the block opening. https://www.otakon.com/info/hotels/ Looks like the Melrose Hotel is blacked out on the list. Link to post Share on other sites
Daniel Perales 108 Posted August 13 Report Share Posted August 13 1 hour ago, Clutch said: Nothing in the Announcements forum again. I have been checking daily to avoid missing the block opening. https://www.otakon.com/info/hotels/ Looks like the Melrose Hotel is blacked out on the list. I just saw that. Also, I noticed that all the room rates are no less than $204 a night now. One even at $319 a night?!😞 Is this the best Otakon can do? Link to post Share on other sites
Golddess 5 Posted August 13 Report Share Posted August 13 While I knew to expect it today from closing ceremonies, what I did not expect was that I would need to access the site prior to noon in order to be put into a queue to access the page. I appreciate trying to make things as smooth as possible, to ensure that the site can handle the traffic and doesn't take forever to load, but when you expect and plan for massive refreshing of the page starting around noon, only to find out that you should have accessed the page several hours prior... lets just say I am thankful I decided to load the page when I did. 2 Link to post Share on other sites
Clutch 87 Posted August 13 Author Report Share Posted August 13 What?????!!!!!!! You are #3595 of 3626 Yeah, I'm getting a room. Link to post Share on other sites
rotinoma 6 Posted August 13 Report Share Posted August 13 So I read that the queue will open, but this is a first-come first-served queue. and then they misspoke about when the queue will open. what the hell were they thinking that this system is a good idea? do they not know about all the roasting from attendees in previous years about silly con hotel registration pains? did we lose all the institutional knowledge about this part of the con experience or something? Link to post Share on other sites
TomDent 24 Posted August 13 Report Share Posted August 13 I keep getting disconnected and have to refresh the page. I went from #670 to #5051. Also I thought the virtual waiting room didn't open until 11, but my friend was just messing around with it and it let him in almost an hour before. Link to post Share on other sites
TomDent 24 Posted August 13 Report Share Posted August 13 Something this big should have been officially announced AT LEAST a week before. And I know that maybe this should have been common sense, but I just saw the note about your credit card needing to have an expiration date of 8/25 or further out. I didn't think to check my card until then and realized that mine expires 7/25. 1 Link to post Share on other sites
Daniel Perales 108 Posted August 13 Report Share Posted August 13 I thought that it supposed to be open at noon. ☹️ Anyway, it really don't matter to me since I get a better deal outside the Otakon block. But if this is the case, like Katsucon, I think I'm done with Otakon. ☹️ Link to post Share on other sites
windseeker 81 Posted August 13 Report Share Posted August 13 Nice garbage rollout. So much for a noon waiting room time. Link to post Share on other sites
Clutch 87 Posted August 13 Author Report Share Posted August 13 I am still #3395 of 7973. Afraid to refresh the page or touch anything. Link to post Share on other sites
Golddess 5 Posted August 13 Report Share Posted August 13 I got in at 1871. Currently down to 1534. Link to post Share on other sites
Daniel Perales 108 Posted August 13 Report Share Posted August 13 Well, when I went to the virtual room the first time, I was # 4600 out of 5100. I got disconnected, reconnected again, now I'm # 7335 of 8588. Link to post Share on other sites
windseeker 81 Posted August 13 Report Share Posted August 13 6 minutes ago, Clutch said: I am still #3395 of 7973. Afraid to refresh the page or touch anything. Don't! 1 Link to post Share on other sites
Clutch 87 Posted August 13 Author Report Share Posted August 13 Booked secondary choice. Marriott Marquis was not on the list. Don't leave your place in line! 1 Link to post Share on other sites
Golddess 5 Posted August 13 Report Share Posted August 13 Huh, another thing I wasn't expecting were these radio buttons to say if you didn't get your preferred hotel, and to select a preferred hotel to be moved to if rooms open up. Kinda wonder how that works. Will I only be moved if a like room opens up (same number of beds), or will it possibly drop my 2 bed room in one hotel because a 1 bed room opened in my preferred. And will it wait to move me until 2 rooms open up, or will it move 1 as it opens up and now if another doesn't I'm left with my group spread not across different floors of the same hotel, but across different hotels? Link to post Share on other sites
Daniel Perales 108 Posted August 13 Report Share Posted August 13 Ok. I'm done waiting. I'm going to try and get my room the same way I've been doing for years. Thru external sources. If I get a good deal, great. If not, I'm done with Otakon. I'm doing this at work risking getting suspended or fired at worst. I'm not allowed to use my personal laptop and cell phone in the office. No convention is worth this. 😠 Link to post Share on other sites
fuzzy nukes 3 Posted August 13 Report Share Posted August 13 My first 4 choices were all sold out. Had to get a place a half mile away. They completely screwed this whole thing up. Link to post Share on other sites
rotinoma 6 Posted August 13 Report Share Posted August 13 (edited) Hotel registration is a huge part of the convention. There are people who won't come if they don't get a reservation, and this fiasco turns something kind of mundane into a pain in the butt. But at least Washington DC has a lot of hotel inventory even for a event like Otakon that has 46k attendees last time, so when push comes to shove, attendees are not completely SOL. I'm more concerned that something fairly straightforward, that was done basically without major issues for years, was bungled this badly this year. Wish someone from the con can at least explain why. Edited August 13 by rotinoma Link to post Share on other sites
Clutch 87 Posted August 13 Author Report Share Posted August 13 Well, I now don't have a hotel. I thought that thing about the preferred hotel was some kind of survey and not anything about moving the room. Went in to book my 2nd choice again and fix the mistake. Nowhere in the information did it tell me I was not making a duplicate registration. Cancelled the first booking and it blew me out of the hotel completely. Everything now is wait listed. I am beyond upset. Link to post Share on other sites
TomDent 24 Posted August 13 Report Share Posted August 13 6 minutes ago, rotinoma said: Hotel registration is a huge part of the convention. There are people who won't come if they don't get a reservation, and this fiasco turns something kind of mundane into a pain in the butt. But at least Washington DC has a lot of hotel inventory even for a event like Otakon that has 46k attendees last time, so when push comes to shove, attendees are not completely SOL. I'm more concerned that something fairly straightforward, that was done basically without major issues for years, was bungled this badly this year. Wish someone from the con can at least explain why. I think, at the very least, that this system would have worked fairly well if we just had all the info a good amount of time in advance. All the info they first put out about how it would work differently this year should have went out a lot sooner than the day before. And other important pieces of info, such as don't refresh your page if it said disconnected and that you need to make sure your card's expiration date is acceptable, should have been included from the start. I found out a lot of important info either through unofficial social media posts or just by dumb luck. 1 Link to post Share on other sites
Revan 45 Posted August 13 Report Share Posted August 13 I had to take my (other) brother for a procedure, so when I got a text this morning about the hotels opening up today I was more than a little irritated. Hotels have always opened on a Monday, and yesterday I would've been at a computer to try and get a room. (There's no way I could get everything done on my phone in the allotted time - I'm not that fast a typist.) That and giving such short notice for it didn't help my disposition. So when I finally got home after 3, the closest place I saw that actually had a room and not a waitlist was the Comfort Inn, so I grabbed it. Downside is that it's a single bed, so my brother will just have to get used to sleeping in the bathtub. 😄 It's a longer walk to the Chinatown Metro station, so that may factor into any activities on Thursday. OTOH, we might be able to go in via the Marriott, as it's up from there, and it looks like it has a complimentary breakfast, so that's (potentially) something positive. It looks like I may have gotten the last room there, as when I went to check on other hotels it was gone from the page. Time will tell if this was a good move. It's the first time we haven't gotten the Marriott or the Hampton. Link to post Share on other sites
Golddess 5 Posted August 13 Report Share Posted August 13 1 hour ago, rotinoma said: Hotel registration is a huge part of the convention. There are people who won't come if they don't get a reservation, and this fiasco turns something kind of mundane into a pain in the butt. But at least Washington DC has a lot of hotel inventory even for a event like Otakon that has 46k attendees last time, so when push comes to shove, attendees are not completely SOL. I'm more concerned that something fairly straightforward, that was done basically without major issues for years, was bungled this badly this year. Wish someone from the con can at least explain why. I mean, it was always kind of a pain in the butt, but it was a known pain in the butt. This though, was just way too much change with way too little announcement. And something I just learned that I don't think has been brought up here: "3. All names on room to ensure double beds" What exactly does that mean? If I book a double-bedded room for me and one other because we each prefer our own bed, am I going to be booted to a single-bedded room because double-bedded is rated for up to 4? 2 Link to post Share on other sites
Attendee7000 35 Posted August 13 Report Share Posted August 13 As someone else pointed out, Otakon once again went live with the hotels on a Monday, at noon. Some of us do actually have jobs.... I'm frustrated but not terribly worried. Usually over the next 1-3 months additional rooms are released, which is how I got my room last year. If I spot good rooms showing up in the hotel portal I'll post about it here. It's one time the forum being a small community can be beneficial, it won't be seen by 45,000 people. 2 Link to post Share on other sites
Hauser Two 5 Posted August 13 Report Share Posted August 13 Pros: I love the consideration that came from creating a queue so that everyone could get a chance to access the portal without a server overload, and also the early cancellation warning to prevent people from withholding rooms they may not need from others who do. Cons: I'll assume the earlier-than-expected queue lineup was either a mistake in the scheduling announcement or a mistake in launch, so I won't go in on them for that but what could be an issue for some people with this new arrangement is that in order to hold your place in line, you had to keep your browser open (despite possible shotty internet reception) and wait till you're "called" in order to reserve a room. This could be hard if you are at work and can't be on your phone all day waiting around (as opposed to the latter option which would be possibly excusing yourself, maybe to the bathroom, and hopping online real quick to reserve a room and then going back to work). To be fair, the hotel block has always been a "first come, first serve" thing. Before the new "waiting room" policy, I know from experience that if I were even just an hour late to the reservation, I'd have missed all the affordable and nearby options, so I feel like it's always gonna be a hit-or-miss. Besides, there was over 2000 new attendees this year so it seems like "hit-or-miss" is gonna be the name of the game from now on unfortunately.. Link to post Share on other sites
Hauser Two 5 Posted August 13 Report Share Posted August 13 16 minutes ago, Golddess said: And something I just learned that I don't think has been brought up here: "3. All names on room to ensure double beds" What exactly does that mean? If I book a double-bedded room for me and one other because we each prefer our own bed, am I going to be booted to a single-bedded room because double-bedded is rated for up to 4? Yea, I forgot about that. This took me by surprise too. I wonder if you type three names in the reservation, will they charge you per person or can you finesse and write the three names to get the beds, keep the flat rate, and just show up with the two of you? Link to post Share on other sites
KyoKyo 42 Posted August 14 Report Share Posted August 14 (edited) 5 hours ago, TomDent said: I think, at the very least, that this system would have worked fairly well if we just had all the info a good amount of time in advance. All the info they first put out about how it would work differently this year should have went out a lot sooner than the day before. And other important pieces of info, such as don't refresh your page if it said disconnected and that you need to make sure your card's expiration date is acceptable, should have been included from the start. I found out a lot of important info either through unofficial social media posts or just by dumb luck. Agreed 100% My friend was working at home and lined up in the queue at around 11:45 and was already something like #3,500. He had to wait over 45 minutes to get us a room around 12:45. I mean if you have to actually work how are you supposed to sit there for 45 minutes waiting in queue? I really wish they'd open these blocks on weekends ESPECIALLY if they're using the queue system. Luckily we got the Westin again but Otakon really needed to clarify how this system was supposed to work including the fact that even if you had CC issues or your connection dropped the whole thing would refresh and kick you out of your spot. Edited August 14 by KyoKyo Link to post Share on other sites
TomDent 24 Posted August 14 Report Share Posted August 14 38 minutes ago, KyoKyo said: Agreed 100% My friend was working at home and lined up in the queue at around 11:45 and was already something like #3,500. He had to wait over 45 minutes to get us a room around 12:45. I mean if you have to actually work how are you supposed to sit there for 45 minutes waiting in queue? I really wish they'd open these blocks on weekends ESPECIALLY if they're using the queue system. Luckily we got the Westin again but Otakon really needed to clarify how this system was supposed to work including the fact that even if you had CC issues or your connection dropped the whole thing would refresh and kick you out of your spot. Our group got really lucky. Three of us out of a six person group were going to try to book a couple of rooms for the whole group. Myself and one friend were at work (we work together in a factory setting with crappy Wi-Fi and even worse cellphone signal) and we were planning on joining the queue at 11, which is when our lunch break starts, then kind of hide out over the next hour or so at the risk of getting in trouble. Another friend works from home and was ultimately the one who booked the rooms. He was just messing around on the site a little after 10 and noticed he could join the queue, so he let us know. He got in at #552 and we got in around the 600-700s. Since our Internet connection was crap in the factory, we kept losing our place and got knocked back to near 6000 by noon. The friend at home was able to keep his place and get the hotel we wanted. He actually moved up in line really rapidly when the booking session started (I'm guessing a lot of people may have panicked and refreshed their page, booting them to the back of the line). It was nerve wrecking to say the least. 1 Link to post Share on other sites
Just a Lad 3 Posted August 14 Report Share Posted August 14 19 hours ago, Clutch said: Well, I now don't have a hotel. I thought that thing about the preferred hotel was some kind of survey and not anything about moving the room. Went in to book my 2nd choice again and fix the mistake. Nowhere in the information did it tell me I was not making a duplicate registration. Cancelled the first booking and it blew me out of the hotel completely. Everything now is wait listed. I am beyond upset. To clarify, did it cancel the first reservation for your booked hotel and put you on the waitlist for the preferred hotel? Or did it replace your first reservation with an equivalent at the preferred hotel? 1 Link to post Share on other sites
Daniel Perales 108 Posted August 14 Report Share Posted August 14 Otakon posted their take of this situation on "X" (Twitter) earlier today. I can't link it because I'm using my job's computer as I post this (miracle that I made it this far). Link to post Share on other sites
rotinoma 6 Posted August 14 Report Share Posted August 14 (edited) I find the handling of the situation worse than the instrument they implemented, and like other said, poor/not enough communication made what normally a pain in the butt process even more so. Like don't even bring up fairness, by letting people go on the queue before the communicated time it's already unfair lol. No ownership of the issue, not even sympathy for the affected, not recognizing the problems people have, before and after the fiasco...the non-apology today is just that. If Otakon cares about fairness, use Queue-It. If they want to only do FCFS, at least they can use a solution that doesn't require constantly connected from the browser. It's 2024 people do most of their internet browsing on mobile devices. Actually so many people got disconnected that I think maybe more test should have been done before rolling the registration out? Otakon has a year to fix all these problem for 2025 hotel reservation I guess. (Watch they take this time to come up with a new way to screw us over 🤣) Edited August 14 by rotinoma 2 Link to post Share on other sites
Clutch 87 Posted August 14 Author Report Share Posted August 14 (edited) 8 hours ago, Just a Lad said: To clarify, did it cancel the first reservation for your booked hotel and put you on the waitlist for the preferred hotel? Or did it replace your first reservation with an equivalent at the preferred hotel? I am not sure. Looking at the cancellation email, it has the higher confirmation number. The first one may not have cancelled, but it didn't show me having 2. I think I added an extra character when I put the password in the second time. When I use the first password, there still seems to be a registration. Really nervous that the remaining one is still legitimate. Guess sending the confirmation email again would not hurt? It was pretty overwhelming trying to do this at work, under the gun for the timer on the screen, and it being a different process this year. edit: So it looks like this goofy system created 2 accounts with my same email address instead of saying "an account already exists with this email" when I tried to register again. Depending on which password I use, one has no room listed, but the other still does. Resent the confirmation email just to be safe. What an incredible relief. Thank you @Just a Lad! Edited August 14 by Clutch 1 Link to post Share on other sites
Revan 45 Posted August 14 Report Share Posted August 14 8 hours ago, Daniel Perales said: Otakon posted their take of this situation on "X" (Twitter) earlier today. I can't link it because I'm using my job's computer as I post this (miracle that I made it this far). From their Facebook page (I was delayed because I can't log into forums (fora?) on the work computer either: To quote A Charlie Brown Christmas: "Well, as they say on TV...the mere fact that you realize you need help indicates that you are not too far gone." Link to post Share on other sites
Just a Lad 3 Posted August 15 Report Share Posted August 15 (edited) I’m also beyond confused on where we’re supposed to go for feedback and answers at this point. All their social media says to go to the discord, but the mods don’t have answers (or worse, are giving conflicting ones). I also don’t like how often they’re either throwing the blame back at Maritz for any booking issues and/or insisting that a FCFS queue was necessary. Anime Boston also uses this housing provider and I’ve never had the issues we’re having this year. AnimeNYC has been using queue-it without issue for both the hotel block and panel reservations. also bugs me that we still don’t have a clear answer on what’s going on with the waitlist - see image below: mods are saying the survey at the end of booking is “preferred choice list” and wasn’t the real waitlist, then ignoring people who ask follow up questions on how to, you know, actually get on the waitlist. Edited August 15 by Just a Lad 1 Link to post Share on other sites
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