For those people who may not peruse the Facebook group.
http://www.indystar.com/story/news/2016/12/06/gen-con-renews-contract-indy-until-least-2021/95042466/
Renewed through 2021 now.
Glad it was only a 1 year extension.
I like Indy.....but there are problems that REALLY need solving. Downtown hotel space is #1 and outer hotels with a reasonable shuttle are #2.
If those things are not resolved, and sadly the last few years have been a downward trend, then Gen con needs freedom to explore its options.
Frankly, no more extensions should be made until the above issues are addressed.
Granted, Problem #2 could probably be fixed by moving. But are you aware of the countless conversations people have had in past years where it is generally agreed-upon that Indianapolis quite likely has the most connected-to-convention-center hotel space in the country? Not going to be possible to beat Indianapolis for #1 unless you lean heavily enough on #2 to make up for it, which means going to a huge city that would then swallow Gen-Con instead of temporarily making its downtown over into a gaming metropolis. All sound like bad options to me.
Its not just the # of hotels i see an issue, but the "hotel tax" indy also jacks onto the prices that is making it financially an issue for many to come..
And your recommendation for correcting that is?
Gen con is failing in its current state on these issues. If I want atmosphere I'll get it inside the convention.
Since Gen Con doesn't build hotels, there really is no option for them in Indianapolis. Personally, I think that the hotel situation is as good as it can be with the limited number of hotel rooms available. Nearly 70k people WANT a connected hotel room, but there are only about 29k rooms available. (You may get 1 or 2k more with new hotels being built, but you will still be short.) This was not a problem when attendance was around 30k people. Most got a connected hotel but now Gen Con has grown. and the contract with Indianapolis was already in place. The shuttle idea would be ok, but it becomes a liability issue when you start thinking of insurance for transporting convention goers.
If anybody can provide an identity of a city with A) A large enough convention center to support Gen Con (there are not many, I guarantee it.) AND B) with enough connected or close hotel rooms where more than the 30k in Indianapolis could get a room close. This narrows your choices CONSIDERABLY, and makes the total pretty near ZERO. After 2021, I would be interested in seeing if another venue becomes possible.
What doesn't help is the blatant collusion by the hotels to jack up the room rates right at GenCon time. If you look at the rates during the rest of the year and compare it to the GenCon nights, it's ridiculous.
But a city with good public transport, like light rail or subways, would work too. Being able to get to the convention without having traffic and parking issues is key.
The price of hotels in the weeks before and after Gen con are MUCH lower. So it IS gouging. Vegas has higher prices during holidays....but they dont raise prices because a convention is in town. Mostly because a convention is always in town.
The hotels know they can get away with it. So they do.
Why does it have to be the Holidays? If enough demand uses up the supply, guess what? The prices go up. This has been occurring since the dawn of time and happens everywhere. I completely understand that you don't like it but it's not price gouging. It's simple economics 101.
Your Vegas example is pretty much apples and oranges as you point out yourself that there are always conventions. While Indy does make use of the Convention center all the time, we certainly don't host many the size of Gen Con that often. Thus, demand for hotel rooms is much lower most of the time. Same in Vegas really. I paid $70 for a room at the Hard Rock on a Wednesday evening but the same room cost me nearly $300 for the Saturday night. No holiday going on; just bigger demand for rooms on a weekend. Luckily, the company was paying for it or I sure as heck wouldn't have stayed there.