My feelings on The Demon Rush
If you need a primer on what the hotels are like, go to this topic: https://forum.speeddemosarchive.com/post/agdq_2014_hotels_report__pictures_in_the_second_post.html
So it's pretty obvious that the two choices are down to the Crowne Plaza and the Holiday Inn.
The Decision
Short version: I'm 99% sure I'm going with the Crowne after I negotiate with them on conference rooms. The location is too good to pass up.
Long version: Both hotels are similar in a lot of ways, the internet is roughly the same, the sleeping rooms are similar, and the prices are roughly the same. However, the Crowne's location and proximity to restaurants and grocery stores is too strong to pass up. I would say the Holiday Inn is a little nicer (it's better than your average Holiday Inn), and they seemed more willing to accommodate us, but in the end that's not as important as the convenience of the location, considering that everything else is similar.
Since the last hotels topic got pretty crowded, here's a rundown of the two hotels. Anything new is in bold.
What's Similar
-88-89 dollars a night + tax (12% at crowne and 13% at Holiday Inn) for the sleeping rooms.
-4 people to a room
-All sleeping rooms come with a fridge and free wi-fi.
-Airport shuttles! If you arrive at Dulles, then you just call the hotel and they'll pick you up.
-Free parking!
-Complimentary breakfast.
-Both hotels will allow catered food from outside in the conference rooms.
-24/7 fitness center, an indoor pool, and a business center with free printing.
-The wired internet at both hotels is very similar. The Holiday Inn has 7.5 up, and the Crowne has 8 up.
-The sleeping rooms are nearly the same size, and they're queen size beds for the doubles. Also, the mattresses are softer than the Sheraton (which were rock-hard)
-Both hotels have a 24/7 business and print center, with no log-in necessary. However, at the Crowne, you'll need a room key to open up the center.
What stands out in each hotel
The Crowne Plaza
Conference rooms are 150 a night + 6% tax, and we'll be getting 5 rooms (the ballroom counts as 3). Wired internet is 150/night, with no tax.
In other words, it's 945 a night for conference rooms and internet, which is pretty steep, but not too bad when spread out amongst 200+ attendees.
-More conference room space, 6700 sq ft, as opposed to the Holiday Inn's 5320 sq ft. For reference, we had 2000 sq ft at the Sheraton DTC.
-Within walking distance of at least 10 restaurants, a grocery store (Giant), and coin laundry.
Holiday Inn Dulles airport
For all of the conference rooms it's 825/night+6% tax+22% service charge (I thought this was going to be waived, and I would renogatiate but I doubt we're going with the Inn+75 dollars for a one-time internet fee.
-Free shuttle service within three miles of the hotel. AFAIK, you have to pay for the Crowne's shuttle unless if you're going to Dulles airport.
-Sleeping rooms have a microwave
-Will provide a concession stand (Crowne likely won't provide this because it's so close to restaurants).
Questions we want to ask
All answers are in bold
-How many shuttles are available for airport pickup?
Both Crowne and Holiday Inn say one every half hour.
-How many people can fit in a shuttle?
The Crowne's can hold 10, the Holiday Inn's can hold 12.
-How long are the shuttles open for?
Airport shuttles are 24/7 at the Crowne, if you need to go to the airport, be sure to let the Shuttle driver know at least an hour in advance. It's 4am-midnight for the Holiday Inn
-How far in advance do we need to arrange a shuttle?
-Can we change the conference room thermostat ourselves, or do we have to ask front desk?
The thermostat can be changed by us in the Crowne, and we have to ask the front desk at the Holiday Inn.
-Can we lock rooms/ask front desk for services 24/7, or is there a cutoff time?
24/7 at both hotels
-Lighting control?
Yes, there are sliders at both hotels
-For roommates coming in at separate times, how do they pay?
At the Crowne the first person pays for the first night, and then the roommates split payments when checking out.
For the Holiday Inn one, it's similar to the Sheraton. It's one person's card, then payments are split when checking out.
For the Crowne: Is there a common area microwave?
Yes, they will be providing one free of charge.
For the Crowne: How much is a shuttle?
I am still waiting for the answer on this one.
For the Holiday Inn: are the microwave and fridge free?
Yes
-Check in and Check out times?
Check in is 3PM at both hotels, but we can start setting up the conference rooms earlier, and Check out is 11 am at the Holiday Inn, and noon at the Crowne.
-Is the wired line exclusive to us or on a shared network?
The Crowne said we'd be taking up most of the space anyway so it would hardly matter (we'd be taking up everything but the board rooms, and the Holiday Inn said putting it on a exclusive network would be an extra charge. I'll ask more into it later.
So it's pretty obvious that the two choices are down to the Crowne Plaza and the Holiday Inn.
The Decision
Short version: I'm 99% sure I'm going with the Crowne after I negotiate with them on conference rooms. The location is too good to pass up.
Long version: Both hotels are similar in a lot of ways, the internet is roughly the same, the sleeping rooms are similar, and the prices are roughly the same. However, the Crowne's location and proximity to restaurants and grocery stores is too strong to pass up. I would say the Holiday Inn is a little nicer (it's better than your average Holiday Inn), and they seemed more willing to accommodate us, but in the end that's not as important as the convenience of the location, considering that everything else is similar.
Since the last hotels topic got pretty crowded, here's a rundown of the two hotels. Anything new is in bold.
What's Similar
-88-89 dollars a night + tax (12% at crowne and 13% at Holiday Inn) for the sleeping rooms.
-4 people to a room
-All sleeping rooms come with a fridge and free wi-fi.
-Airport shuttles! If you arrive at Dulles, then you just call the hotel and they'll pick you up.
-Free parking!
-Complimentary breakfast.
-Both hotels will allow catered food from outside in the conference rooms.
-24/7 fitness center, an indoor pool, and a business center with free printing.
-The wired internet at both hotels is very similar. The Holiday Inn has 7.5 up, and the Crowne has 8 up.
-The sleeping rooms are nearly the same size, and they're queen size beds for the doubles. Also, the mattresses are softer than the Sheraton (which were rock-hard)
-Both hotels have a 24/7 business and print center, with no log-in necessary. However, at the Crowne, you'll need a room key to open up the center.
What stands out in each hotel
The Crowne Plaza
Conference rooms are 150 a night + 6% tax, and we'll be getting 5 rooms (the ballroom counts as 3). Wired internet is 150/night, with no tax.
In other words, it's 945 a night for conference rooms and internet, which is pretty steep, but not too bad when spread out amongst 200+ attendees.
-More conference room space, 6700 sq ft, as opposed to the Holiday Inn's 5320 sq ft. For reference, we had 2000 sq ft at the Sheraton DTC.
-Within walking distance of at least 10 restaurants, a grocery store (Giant), and coin laundry.
Holiday Inn Dulles airport
For all of the conference rooms it's 825/night+6% tax+22% service charge (I thought this was going to be waived, and I would renogatiate but I doubt we're going with the Inn+75 dollars for a one-time internet fee.
-Free shuttle service within three miles of the hotel. AFAIK, you have to pay for the Crowne's shuttle unless if you're going to Dulles airport.
-Sleeping rooms have a microwave
-Will provide a concession stand (Crowne likely won't provide this because it's so close to restaurants).
Questions we want to ask
All answers are in bold
-How many shuttles are available for airport pickup?
Both Crowne and Holiday Inn say one every half hour.
-How many people can fit in a shuttle?
The Crowne's can hold 10, the Holiday Inn's can hold 12.
-How long are the shuttles open for?
Airport shuttles are 24/7 at the Crowne, if you need to go to the airport, be sure to let the Shuttle driver know at least an hour in advance. It's 4am-midnight for the Holiday Inn
-How far in advance do we need to arrange a shuttle?
-Can we change the conference room thermostat ourselves, or do we have to ask front desk?
The thermostat can be changed by us in the Crowne, and we have to ask the front desk at the Holiday Inn.
-Can we lock rooms/ask front desk for services 24/7, or is there a cutoff time?
24/7 at both hotels
-Lighting control?
Yes, there are sliders at both hotels
-For roommates coming in at separate times, how do they pay?
At the Crowne the first person pays for the first night, and then the roommates split payments when checking out.
For the Holiday Inn one, it's similar to the Sheraton. It's one person's card, then payments are split when checking out.
For the Crowne: Is there a common area microwave?
Yes, they will be providing one free of charge.
For the Crowne: How much is a shuttle?
I am still waiting for the answer on this one.
For the Holiday Inn: are the microwave and fridge free?
Yes
-Check in and Check out times?
Check in is 3PM at both hotels, but we can start setting up the conference rooms earlier, and Check out is 11 am at the Holiday Inn, and noon at the Crowne.
-Is the wired line exclusive to us or on a shared network?
The Crowne said we'd be taking up most of the space anyway so it would hardly matter (we'd be taking up everything but the board rooms, and the Holiday Inn said putting it on a exclusive network would be an extra charge. I'll ask more into it later.
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